¦a t ( t f <^< V'l^t^t ( . ( t t t ' , , fS

CCCi.d

¦Y^LH-WIMIIVEI^SIIirY-

Gift of
Mrs. Edward T. McLaughlin
1913

PARIS:

A EAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.

BY
SIR FRANCIS HEAD~
Suttor of "3SuIi&lEa from tfje 53runnen of Waagau.'

"As I pursued my journey,
I spy'd a wrinkled Hag, with Age grown double,
Picking dry Sticks, and mumbling to herself."
Otwat,

NEW YORK:
MICHAEL DOOLADY, 49 WALKER STREET.
1859,

E. OBAIGHEAD,
Printer, Slereotyper, and Electrotyper,
Carton BSuiltiinfl,
81, 83, and 85 Cenire Street.

PEEPACE.

Nearly forty years ago I happened to be in Paris for
three or four months. Lately, on a very short notice, I
had occasion to go to it again. Being detained there
rather more than three weeks by an oculist, whose pre
scriptions confined me to the house several hours a day,
I eked out the rest of my time by taking a few notes.
In passing through London I had hastily obtained
eight or ten letters of introduction ; but, as on reading
G-alignani's excellent guide-book, I found that every thing
I could reasonably desire to see would, on application in
writing, or on the production of my passport, be thrown
open to me — with almost a single exception — I returned
the whole of them, preferring to throw myself on the hos
pitality of the public authorities of Paris, rather than be
indebted to, and probably embarrassed by, private favours.
During my brief residence in the French metropolis,
excepting three days, I dined and breakfasted by myself
I never entered a theatre ; only once a caf^. I neither
paid nor received visits. In short, I totally abstained from
any other society than that which I had the happiness to
enjoy in the public streets.

"^

PREFACE.

My amusements solely consisted in collecting literary
sticks, picked up exactly in the order and state in which I
chanced to find them. They are thin, short, dry, sapless,
crooked, headless, and pointless. In the depth of winter,
however, a faggot of real French Sticks — although of little
intrinsic value — may poasibly enliven for a few moments
an English Fireside. I therefore with great diffidence
offer them to my readers, and, hoping the fuel I have col
lected for them may be deemed worth burning, I beg leave
most cordially to wish them
"A MEBRY Christmas and a HAPPYr^EW
Year."

N. B. — As the foot-notes in these volumes contain nothing but trans-
lalions — for the assistance of those who do not understand French — of the
sentences to which they refer, the general reader may ride over tkem
without notice.

CONTENTS.

PAoa
PRIPAOE  5
The S tart  ,  9
The Stroll  24
Entreprise G^n^ral^ des Omnibus  41
Caf^ de Paris  45
Place de la Bastille  49
Horse Establishment  52
The Equarrisseur  55
The Poor of Paris  61
Jardin des Plantes  69
Messageries G^mSrales de France  79
Theatre des Animaux Sauvages  81
Abattoir des Coohons  91
Gardens of the Tuileries  96
Pavilion de I'Horloge  100
La Madeleine  102
Preparations for the Fete of the Kepublio  106
Abattoir de Montmartre  Ill
Great Northern Eailway  116
Sunday, the 4th of May  131
The Oculist  143
Hotel des Invalides  154
Military Models  169
Musee de I'Artillerie  ;  173
Post-Offioe  '.  177
Prefet de Police  189
The Commissionnaire  201
Halle aux Vins  211
Versailles  217
Institution Nationale des Jeunes Aveugles  235
Mont de Pii5te  243
The Chiffonnier  248

8 CONTENTS. PAas
My Lodging  258
Imprimerie Nationale  264
La Morgue  272
Dog Market  277
Hospice de la Vieillesse  281
Conservatoire des Arts et Metiers  285
Pantheon  289
Hospice des Enfans Trouv^s  294
Lefaye et Lafitte  800
The ElysSe  805
Marchi du Vieux Linge  807
La Crtehe  811
Institution Nationale des Sourds-Muets  318
Eoulage  824
Hospice des Femmes Incurables  327
The Artesian Well  ¦  336
Hotel des Monnaies  340
Washing-boats  849
The Plaoe de Greve  352
Entreprise des Pompes Funebres  339
Ecole Polytechnique  362
Eoole Nationale des Fonts et Chau.ssdes  867
Les Casernes  870
Ecole Speciale Militaire de St. Cyr  880
Ecole d'Etat Major.  391
La Grande Chaumi^re  404
The National Assembly  412
Lyons Eailway  420
Eeview  430
Prison Modele  443
Pere la Chaise  449
Conclusion  430

A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.

THE START.
At eleven o'clock of the night of the 29th of April, a.d.  ,
the London train, after two or three rejoicing whistles,
reached Dover, and, in a few minutes, I was on the threshold
of one — I know not which — of that long list of " excellent
hotels " whose names, the instant I stepped out of the train,
had been simultaneously dinned into my ear by every descrip
tion of voice, from squeaking treble, apparently just weaned,
to a gruff hoarse double-bass, compounded in about equal
parts of chronic cough, chronic cold, chronic sore throat, gin,
rum, hollands, bitters, brandy, hot water, and filberts.
The narrow outline of the house-lad who, walking back
wards, had been elastically alluring me onwards, and the
bent head of the sturdy house-porter, who, with my portman
teau on his back and my blue writing-box pendant in his
right hand, was following me, so clearly explained my predi
cament, that, on entering a large coffee-room full of square
and oblong mahogany tables, an over-tired waiter, in a white
neckcloth, dozing in an arm-chair, no sooner caught a glimpse
of the approaching group, than with the alacrity with which
Isaac Walton would have twitched at his rod the instant his
colored goose-quill bobbed under water, whirling a white
napkin under his left arm, hs shuffled on his heels towards a
large tawdry chandelier, twisted witji his right hand three or
four gaslights to their maximum flare, and then, with the

10 A FAGGOT OF FRENGE STICKS.
jabber of a monkey, repeating to me the surnames of a variety
of joints of cold meat, he ended by asking me " What \ would
please to take ?" In reply to his comprehensive question, I
desired him to screw back all those lamps whioh were nearly
blinding me, and, as soon as I had returned to the enjoyment
of comparative darkness sufficient to be able to look calmly
at his jaded faoe, in three words I withered all his hopes by
quietly asking him for the very thing in creation which of all
others he would have plucked from my mind — " a bedroom
candle." AAer turning on his heels and walking like a bankrupt
towards the door, without the addition or subtraction of a
single letter, he telegraphically repeated my words ; and ac
cordingly in less than a minute a very ordinary sort of a
chambermaid, with a faoe and brass candlestick shining at
each other, conducted me up two or three steps, then up
about half a dozen more — of the exact number in both in
stances she carefully admonished me — then along a carpeted
passage that sounded hollow as I trod upon it, then sharp to
the left, and eventually, after all this magnificent peroration,
into a very little room, almost entirely oocupied by a large
family four-post bed, the convex appearance of which corro
borated what was verbally explained to me — that the feathers
were uppermost. As soon as my conductress had deposited
her candle on a little table, which, excepting a tiny washing-
stand in the corner, was the only companion in the way of
furniture the bed had in the room, she wished me good night ;
in reply to which I asked her to promise me most faithfully
that I should be called in time to " cross " by the first packet.
•* I will go and put it down on the slate, Sir !" she replied ;
and as she seemed to have implicit confidence as to the re
sult, I soon divested my mind and its body of all unneces
sary incumbrances, and, in a few minutes, lost to the world
and to myself, I sank into oblivion and feathers.
I had been dead and buried for an unknown period, when
I was gradually and rather uncomfortably awaked by the re
petition of an unpleasant noise, which, on opening my ears
and eyes, I discovered to be the pronunciation at intervals,
from the mouth of a short, thin, palo, wiry young man, on
whose pensive face, jacket, and trowsers were various little
spots of blacking, of the words "Pour o'elock, Sir !"

THE START. H
As the packet was not to sail till five, I had plenty of
time to prepare, and yet I should have preferred to have
been more hurried. As long as I was employed in washing
I got on very well ; but when in my secluded little aerial
chamber I sat down to whet my razor, soap my chin, brush
it, turn it all white, and then look at it in a small swing-glass,
I could not help feeling that the next time those serious
operations were performed, I should be out of old England,
vagabondizing in a foreign land !
It was as dull a morning as I ever remember to have be
held, and every thing seemed to be conspiring to make it so.
From the chimneys of the diminutive houses that appeared
before me— one, if possible, more insignificant-looking than
the other — there exuded no smoke. At the Custom-house
there was nothing to cheer or excite me ; nothing in my bag
gage that elicited the smallest remark. The searcher looked
as if he knew it would be perfectly uninteresting, and it was
so. There was no sunshine, rain, hail, or sleet ; only a very
little wind, and that foul.
On stepping on board the packet, the deck of which hav
ing been just washed was shining with wet, I found it con
tained four passengers besides myself There was no call
ing, hallooing, taking leave, or crying, but a few minutes past
five the paddles began to move slowly : revolve ; splash.
Without any one to wateh us, follow us, or even from a little
window wave a handkerchief at us, we glided away from the
little houses, through the little harbour, alongside of the little
pier — at the end of which stood a little man with a large
spy-glass under his arm — and thus, taking leave of Great
Britain, in a few minutes we were in the Channel.
The water and the clouds were slate-colour ; there were no
waves, no white breakers, no sign of life in the sea except a
sort of snoring heaving movement, as if, under the influence
of chloroform, it were in a deep lethargic sleep. My fellow-
passengers, T saw at a glance, were nothing in the whole
world but two married couples ; and as I paced up and down
the deck, while, on the contrary, they took up positions from
which during the passage they never moved, I vibrated be
tween them. One young woman, apparently the wife of a
London tradesman, sat on the wrong side of the vessel in the
wrong place. Her little husband kept very kindly advising

12 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
her to move away from the sprinkling of the paddle-wheel.
She would catch cold ; — she would get her bonnet wet ; — she
would be more comfortable if she would sit anywhere else.
She looked him full in the face, listened to every letter, every
syllable, every word as he pronounced it : but no, there she
sat, with red cheeks, bright eyes, and curly hair, as inani
mate as a doll. My other compagnons de voyage were a
pair of well-dressed young persons of rank, apparently but
lately married. On all subjects they seemed to think ex
actly alike, and on none more so than in being both equally
uncomfortably affected by some slight smells and movements
which assailed them. For a short time the young bride sat up,
— then reclined a little, — then a very little more, — then —
with a carpet-bag as a pillow — lay almost flat on the bench ; her
well-formed features gradually losing colour until, shrouded by
a large blue cloth cloak, for the rest of the passage they dis
appeared altogether from view. The husband in a mute si
lence sat sentinel over her ; but, long before her face had
been hid, not only had his mustachios assumed a very mournful
look, but his face hadbecome a mixture of pipe-clay and tallow.
As, without a human being to converse with, I continued
walking backwards and forwards — a small circular space
round the engine was the only dry spot on the deck — assailed
sometimes by a hot puff, then by a cold one, then by a smoky
one, and then by one rather warm and greasy, I observed,
lying perfectly idle and close to the cabin stairs, a pile of
about a dozen white washhand-basins, one placidly resting in
the other. Pointing to them, I thought it but kind inquisi
tively to look at the young sentinel ; and although with a
slight bow he faintly and apparently rather gratefully shook
his head, there was legibly imprinted on his countenance the
answer which, in the Arabian Nights, the slave Morgiana
gave to the question of the forty thieves, — " Not yet but pre
sently." In the brief fleeting space of three quarters of an hour
diversified only by the few events I have recorded, we had
quietly scuffled as nearly as possible half way across the de
fensive ditch on which Old England so insecurely rests for
protection from invasion. Our course was here enlivened by
small flights of wild fowl flying but a few inches above the
water, with necks outstretched, as stiff as if they had been

TEE START. I3
spitted ; indeed, so straight was their course and so regular
was the flapping of their wings, that a tiny column of smoke
from each would have given them the appearance of flying
by steam. The little low sand-hills which, in contradistinction to
the chalky cliffs of Albion, form the maritime boundaries of
France, were now clearly delineated. In about ten minutes
the church and lighthouse of Calais became visible, and in a
few more we approached the extreme point of the long pier.
On entering the harbour we passed a few soldiers and pedes
trians so rapidly that, as they dropped astern, they appeared,
although evidently leaning forwards, to be in fact stepping
backwards. The steep roofs and upper windows .of houses
were now to be seen peeping over the green ramparts that
surrounded them ; and I had hardly time to look-at them,
and at the picturesque costumes, strange uniforms, and
foreign faces above us, when the words were given —
" Ease her — stop her — back her ;" a . rope coiled in the
hand of one of our sailors was heaved aloft, secured round
a post, and thus in exactly one hour and forty-five minutes
we made our passage from the pier of Dover, to that from
whence a number of bearded and smooth-chinned faces were
looking down upon us. Although some twenty feet beneath
them, it is the property of an Englishman, as it is that of
water, to find his own level, and, accordingly, no sooner was
a long wooden staircase lowered from the pier to the deck,
than I slowly ascended, until I found first one foot and then
the other firmly planted on the continent of Europe and in
the republic of France.
I was returning as well as I could the momentary glance
of a great variety of eyes, and was trying to satiate my curi
osity by looking at them all at once, when I observed ap
proaching me a venerable-looking gentleman, as grey-headed
as myself, who, in a confidential tone of voice, amounting
almost to a whisper, delivered himself of a speech which, oom
ing out of him with the utmost fluency, appeared to explain
most clearly the innumerable little advantages I should de
rive by giving over to him immediately, all my English gold
in exchange for Frenoh money.
The bold comprehensive view he took of the whole sub
ject was quite unan.=!werable. There was, however, uppermost

14 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
in my mind, an antagonist idea, as vigorous, as self-interestea,
and, if possible, as incontrovertible, as that which had just
given locomotion to his legs and movement to his lips. In
answer, therefore, to his auriferous and argentine proposals, I
eagerly, and I fear rather greedily, asked him in about half
a dozen words, where I could get some breakfast.^ With
great politeness he kindly pointed to the railway station close
before us, and, with a continuation of the smile which had
adorned his countenance from the first moment he had ad
dressed me, he was resuming his speech on the currency ques
tion, when away I hurried on the scent on which he had, laid
me, and in about half a minute found myself in a room which
evidently contained all the things in this world I most
wanted. As I had slightly interested myself in England on the
subject of railway management, I should, I feel quite certain,
if I had had time, have observed with considerable curiosity
the interesting details of the scene before me. The wolf
within me was, however, growling so fiercely, scratching with
its fore paws so violently, biting and gnawing so voraciously,
and behaving altogether so unmannerly, that with a faint
glimmering of a kind excellent lady seated between an assort
ment of bottles as elegant if possible as herself, I have a dis
tinct recollection of nothing but — I think I see them now —
two very nice light rolls, a miserable insufficiency of exceed
ingly sweet butter, and a thick white china cup brim-full of
cafe au lait.
I remember quite well, on the sudden ringing of a bell,
throwing on the table two English shillings ; then, as I was
hurrying and munching along a platform, depositing in my
coat-pocket half a handful of copper coin of odd-looking sizes ;
then the purchase of a ticket to Paris ; then an assurance in
French from several mouths all at once that I need not
think about my baggage, that it had not even been at the
Douane, that it would not be examined till I got to Paris
that I had better take my seat ; and I had scarcely done so
when a bell took up the lecture, rang farewell, — bonjour  '-
adieu ; — at last the engine finished it by exclaiming, by one
very loud whistle in plain English, " Hold on, my lads for
we're off ! blow me !"
The day, which had promised nothing, turned out most

THE .S'l'AIiT. 15
beautiful. The sunshine gave to every object its most cheer
ful colours, and for many years of my life I do not remember
to have had more placid enjoyment than I experienced in
viewing and reviewing the objects that appeared to be suc
cessively flying past me, and which had a double attraction,
first from their novelty, and then from the series of recollec
tions they awakened from the grave of oblivion, in which for
nearly forty years they had lain buried.
After quitting Calais, for mauy leagues the country was
not only flat, but appeared as if in a few hours it could all
be put under water ; and as we flew along I observed, run
ning at right angles to our course, and at intervals seldom
exceeding 100 yards, a series of ditches from 4 to 10 and 12
feet broad, the water in each of which flashed in the sun as
we crossed it.
At most of the towns and even villages we passed, ages
ago I had either been quartered or for a night or two had
been billeted. Some I had entirely forgotten, others I re
membered more or less vividly. All of a sudden the innu
merable windmills around Lille, — which on horseback I had
often in vain endeavoured to count and which I had never
since thought of — appeared before me grinding, revolving,
and competing one against another, just as they used to do,
and so they vanished. Next came flitting by the fortifica
tions of Douay I had so often inspected. From the depart
ment of the Pas de Calais to Paris, excepting a few trees
that appeared to encircle every town and village, the whole
country is totally unenclosed, exactly as it was when I used
to hunt and course over it without a single impediment for a
horse even to look at, excepting now and then a few hollow
roads, which I now beheld again meandering through the in
terminable landscape just as they used to do.
On the surface of the republic not an animal of any sort
was to be seen at liberty. In the vicinity even of every cow
that was grazing there was, if one would but take the trouble
to look for it, somewhere or other to be disoovered a dark-
coloured lump on the ground — the little girl, woman, or boy
that was not only guarding it, but sometimes tethered to it.
On land on whioh there seemed nothing to eat, sheep, as in
old times, were browsing close to rich crops of clover, &c.,
whose only boundary was a temporary fence composed of two

15 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
or three lean dogs that kept running backwards and forwards
at right angles to each other. Herds of half-starved pigs
were guarded in the same way. Indeed the only animal that
had not at least one human or canine attendant was a goat,
occasionally to be seen by itself — tethered.
As we proceeded, I was surprised to observe into what a
series of very small fields the ocean of oountry_ through
which the train was flying had, since I last beheld it, by the
operation of the late laws of France against primogeniture,
been subdivided. It appeared as if I was travelling through
Lilliput, or through a region of charitable allotments for
children ; and when I considered that the legal security of
these little properties has diminished with their dimensions,
I could not help feeling that, if poor Goldsmith had been in
the train, he would have admitted the fallacy of those beauti
ful lines — " 111 fares the land, to hastening iUs a prey.
Where wealth accumulates and men decay.''
Excepting occasionally a slated high-roofed chateau, in
bad repair, and now and then a picturesque cemetery, the
whole population appeared to present one uniform character.
Everybody — men, women, and children, whether riding, walk
ing, ploughing, harrowing, digging, washing, or doing nothing
— were all dressed in blue ; and yet this single colour, repre
senting human nature, was everywhere contrasted with bright
yellow rape in blossom, beautiful greens of various shades,
patches of glittering water, and here and there diminutive
rectangular spaces of brown fallow land. It was a peaceful
placid scene ; nevertheless I could not help every now and
then involuntarily recollecting the fair surface of France a
battlefield, leaving around, before, ' behind it, and especially
on both sides of the great paves, broad furrows of desolation
and of trampled crops, such as had marked the retreat of the
Frenoh, and the advance of the allied army, from Waterloo
to Paris. After flying along for about 200 miles through a uniform
but highly interesting picture, there began to appear in the
fields, like brilliant flowers, women, young and old, dressed in
pink_ or crimson bodices. They were weeding, and even
digging ; in fact, they were at wbat might truly be called

THE START. I7
hard labor. The train, however, as it passed, seemed bene
ficently to emancipate them ; and thus for many seconds,
with scorched sunburnt faces, and with the implements of
husbandry in their hands, they stood, for as long as we could
see them, gazing at it, in various attitudes of repose.
At about ten leagues from Paris we rapidly passed the
remains of a railway-station that had been bvirnt in the revo
lution of 1848 ; and again, in about four leagues more, the
black charred ruins of the station at Pontoise. That the
conflagration had not attained its object, namely, liberty,
equality, fraternity, was strikingly illustrated to my mind,
by the appearance, in the middle of a field, of a woman work
ing hard with a pickaxe !
Throughout the region of little fields I had traversed, it
was, however, but too evident that equality had very nearly
been attained : or, in other words, that everybody had suc
ceeded in preventing any one from possessing muoh more
than was necessary for bare existence, thereby excluding
those fine reaping-machines, ploughing-machines, and other
economical mechanical powers whieh Science is gradually
introducing, and which our Socialists, Red-Republicans, and
ultra-levellers would do well to recollect can only be applied
to farms covering a great breadth of land, and worked by
considerable capital ; and I was moreover reflecting on the
intellectual poverty of such a state of rural existence, and,
morally speaking, how true was the observation that " Paris
is France," when a young man with mustachios, who had en
tered the carriage at the last station, politely offered me " Le
National" newspaper of that morning. The important sub
ject before my mind, and the real scene before my eyes, were
so much more interesting than any thing I could read in
print, that I would willingly have declined his offer. I, how
ever, did not like to do so, and accordingly, still ruminating
on the picture I had witnessed, of an agricultural population
living from hand so mouth, with probably no better instructor
than the village cure, I opened the newspaper, and read as
follows : —
Translation. — "The vacation (Easter holidays) of the National As-
Bsmbly terminates to-day. A gi'eat number of the representatives of the
Majority have profited by the cong^ which has just expired to visit their

18 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
departments, where they have been able to consult the fpirit (resprit)
and the desire of the population."
The newspaper, of course, proceeded to state that ' the
desire of the population" was " in favor of universal suf
frage, and the non-eligibility of the President."
With the newspaper in my hand, and with my hand rest
ing on my knee, I was calmly reflecting on what I had just
read, when a slight movement among my fellow travellers,
who all at once began to take down their hats from the roof,
and their sticks and umbrellas from a neat little dormitory in
which they had been consigned, announced to me we were
near our terminus ; and accordingly, shaking off my reverie,
I had scarcely followed their example when the speed of the
train began evidently to relax, and in a few minutes, passing
close to the Barriere St. Denis, we went slower, slower,
slower still, and the delightful little paragraph of my journey
had scarcely ended — as all paragraphs ought to do — by a full
stop, when the noise of opening doors and of feet descending^
and then hurriedly trampling along a wooden platform, joy
fully informed me that although the sun, which had risen
while I was fast asleep in a fourpost bed in Dover, was still
three or four hours high above the western horizon, I was
safe and sound in Paris !
The duty that majestically arose rather than rushed up
permost in my mind was to obtain my portmanteau ; how
ever, trusting — as in such cases I always like to do — im
plicitly to its honour, I felt confident it would find me out, and
accordingly, banishing it entirely from my thoughts, and sub
mitting myself to an apparently very well arranged little
system of martial law, I with great pleasure marched here, —
halted there, — turned to my left, — marched, — until halting
again I found myself deployed into line with my fellow tra
vellers, standing before a long table on which, sure enough, I
beheld the pieces of red string I had tied round both handles
of my property for the purpose of readily recognizing it.
On the production of my " billet de bagage," and of my
key, it was, pro forma, opened, re-locked, and finally carried
by a porter into a square full of omnibuses and carriages of
all descriptions. To what part of Paris it was to go it of
course did not know, nor did I ] and as I bashfully felt rather
unwilling to disclose this fact, I very readily nodded assent

TEE START. ig
to the conducteur of a neat looking omnibus on which was
inscribed " H6tel de Meurice."
" I know we shall be well off there," said I, partly to my
self and partly to my portmanteau, " and at our leisure we can
at any moment better ourselves if we should desire to do so."
It appeared that a great many other people, and a great many
other portmanteaus, and other articles of baggage, thought ex
actly as we did, for I and my property had scarcely taken our
respective places inside and out, when various lumping sounds
on the roof, and various ascending feet on the steps, continued
to follow each other in quick succession, until in a few minutes
the interior, and I believe exterior, of the carriage were stuff
ed as full as ever they could hold, and then away we all
rolled and rumbled.
Between the hats, bonnets, and shoulders of the row of
people who sat before me in mute silence, I occasionally
caught a glimpse, sometimes of something yellow, — then of
something green, — then of a pane of glass or two, — then of a
portion of a shop window, — then of part of the head of a gen
tleman on horseback ; but when, driving under an archway,
we entered the little yard of the hotel de Meurice, with be
coming modesty I frankly acknowledged to myself, that al
though in a handsome carriage I had just driven through the
noblest, the finest, the most magnificent, and, in ancient and
modern history, the most celebrated streets, boulevards, and
" places" of Paris, I was unable to impart, either verbally or
in writing, much information on the subject.
" With the assistance of a little time and reflection I hope
to do better !" and suiting my action to the words of my
thoughts, I was just going, as I got out of the 'bus, to look
once around me to observe what the yard might contain,
when I found myself surrounded and addressed by two or
three waiters, who. with some fine bows, informed me, in
French, that the table d'hote had just been served, and that
if I would like to dine there I could at once take my place.
" Oh, Do !" whispered a well-known voice within me, and
accordingly, infiuenced by it, following one of tho " garcons"
into a large, long, handsome room, I glided behind the backs,
chairs, and bent heads of one row of people, and before the
faces, glasses, tumblers, bottles of wine, knives, forks, and
deep plates of another row of ladies and gentlemen, each of

20 A FAGGOT OF FBENCE STICKS.
whom was more or less intently occupied in sipping or sup
ping out of a silver spoon — soup. At the further end of this
hospital of patients, all obediently taking the same medicine,
were a few vacant chairs, which, almost before I could sit
down, were filled by my fellow travellers.
As soon as the well-arranged feast was over, several per
sons arose from their chairs, and, joyfully following their ex
ample, I recovered possession of my hat and stick, and then,
escaping into the yard, and walking out of the Portecochere, I
became in one moment what, during almost the whole of the
repast, I had been yearning to be — an atom of the gay,
thoughtless, happy crowd that in every direction were swarm
ing along the streets of Paris.
It would, no doubt, have been correct and proper that, re
gardless of the vain occupations of man, or of the ephemeral
fashions of the day, I should have commenced my observation
of the city of Paris by a calm, philosophical comparison be
tween its architectural formation six-and-thirty years ago, and
its present structure. I had fully intended to do so ; but my
eyes would not allow my mind to reflect for a moment on any
subject, and accordingly I had hardly proceeded ten yards be
fore, I am ashamed to acknowledge, I found myself gaping in
to a shop-window at a large doll, with a white handkerchief in
her hand, and on her lap, a paper, on which was written, —
"Ma tete est en poecelaine:
J'ai des soeues de toutes geandediis." *
Within, seated at a table, were three young women, very
well dressed, never looking towards the street, but talking to
each other, and sewing for their very lives. Beside me stood
gaping, like myself, an old woman holding in her hand a roll
nearly three feet long, and a soldier with a parcel in the folded
sleeve of his one-armed uniform coat.
On leaving the window, my attention was attracted by
light green, dark green, light yellow, dark yellow, blue, and
parti-coloured omnibuses, driven by coachmen sometimes in
bright yellow, sometimes in pea-green hats, and in clothes of
such brilliant colours that the equipages, as they successively
* My head is made of china :
I have sisters of all sizes.

TEE START. 21
passed, reminded me of the plumages of various descriptions
of gaudy parrots, whioh in southern latitudes I had seen flying
from tree to tree. Then there passed a paysanne on horse
back, with her little daughter behind her, both wearing hand
kerchiefs round their heads, the miserable horse also carrying
two panniers full of sticks and other purchases he was evi
dently taking back to the couiltry ; then came rumbling by,
driven by two soldiers in undress uniform, a rattling, badly
painted, small low waggon, on which was inscribed, —
" Teesoe Public." *
Then passed, very slowly I thought, a " Hansom's cab," im
proved into a neat light chariot; then approached a waggon
drawn by four horses, in light-coloured harness, with scarlet
tufts hanging from each side of the brow-band of the bridles,
also dotted along the crupper, their collars, as also the wooden
wings affixed to them, being covered with a deep dark-blue
shaggy rug. Close behind this vehicle I observed, on extra
ordinary high wheels, a one-horse cart, marked " Roulage,"
with shafts 25 feet long ! then rolled by, as if from another
world, a sort of devil-may-care old-fashioned diligence, having
on its top, in charge of a rude, undigested, and undigestible
mass of baggage, a sandy-coloured, cock-eared dog, stamping
with its fore-feet, and barking most furiously at everybody
and at everything that moved.
As I was advancing with one crowd, and at the same time
meeting another, all, like myself, sauntering about for amuse ¦
ment, I saw in a shop a watchmaker earnestly looking through
a magnifying glass, stuck before his right eye, at the glitter
ing works of a watch, on which his black beard was resting
like a brush. In another window were several double sets of
pink gums, that by clockwork, kept slowly opening and shut
ting. In each, teeth, here and there moving from their sockets,
went down the throats of their respective owners, leaving ser
rated gaps. In a short time up they slowly came again, re
suming their places so accurately that it was impossible to see
joint or crevice of any sort. To any gentleman or lady who
had happened to lose a front tooth, the moral was of course
self-evident. * Public treasure.

22 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
Within a handsome shop, over which was inscribed " Cafe
et Glaces," * I observed seated at an exalted bar— on which
appeared a large basin full of lumps of ice, a quantity of lem
ons in silver-mounted stands, and a double row of bottles con
taining fluids of various colours, — two young ladies, who, ac
cording to the fashion of the day, were not attired alike. Both
were intently sewing. Before them were about thirty little
marble tables, round, square, and oblong. At one a man, and
apparently his old wife, seated opposite to each other, were
playing together, at dominoes, some of which were lying with
their speckled faces uppermost, the rest on their white edges
waiting to be played. Beside this happy couple sat, watching
the game, an old gentleman with — for some reason or other
— a toothpick sticking out of his mouth, and, for some other
very good and glorious reason, a red ribbon in one of his but
ton-holes. In several windows were advertisements, addressed ap
parently to people of large appetites and small fortunes. For
instance, in one I observed —
"Dejeunes a 25 sous pae tete. On a deux plats aux OHorx, une
DEMI-BOUTEILLE de vin, UN DESSEET, et pain a DISOKETION.f
In others were notices exclusively addressed to the Bri
tish people, such as — in one
" L'Ombeelles." J
in another "Bottes confoetables."§
A little shop selling a few faded vegetables and seeds,
had magnificently entitled itself —
" Heeboeistkeie." H
On strolling to the Boulevards, which appeared to be a
region of beards black, white, brown, sandy, foxy, red, long,
* Coffee and ices.
f Brealifasts at 25 sous a-head. Two dishes at choice, half a bottle
of wine, a dessert, and as much bread as is desired.
± Umbrellas.
§ Comfortable Boots. J An Herboristery.

TEE START. 23
short, sharp-pointed, round, — in short, it was evident that the
beards of no two male members of the republic had been
" born alike," — I came to a large " Cafe,", before which were
seated on chairs, twisted into various groups, a mass of men
enjoying the inestimable luxury of placidly puffing away halt
an hour or so of their existence. Some were reading, or
rather — half mesmerised — were pretending to read a news
paper, whieh, in a different attitude, each held before his
eyes or prostrate on his knees, by a mahogany stick, in which
the intelligence, &c., was securely affixed. Among all these
indolent-looking men I observed very busily worming her way,
a quietly-dressed, plump, pretty, modest-looking girl of about
seventeen, supporting in her left arm a basketful of small
bouquets, very tastefully arranged. Without the smallest
attempt to extol her goods, and evidently withqut the slightest
desire either to speak to or to be spoken to by any of the
occupiers of the chairs, she quietly as she passed along put
into the button-hole of the coat or waistcoat of each, a bloom
ing flower, which, without application for payment, she left in
the breast of man to vegetate and grow into a penny, — two
pence, — three pence, or to fade into nothing at all, as it might
think proper, or rather, according to the soil on which it fell
For some time I thought her speculation a complete failure.
At last an old gentleman slowly raised his hand, and, on her
approaching it, I perceived that from a variety of fingers of
all ages there dropped into her basket a copper harvest.
After wandering homewards for some little time, I read
on the corner of a street into which I entered, " Rue du 29
Juillet,"* which Iwas pleased to find was, as I expected, close
to the point from which I had started, and accordingly, enter
ing Meurice's hotel, I ascended a staircase, — was conducted
into the room that bad been allotted for me, — and in a few
minutes dropped off to sleep.
* 29th of July Street.

2.4 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.

THE STROLL.
The next morning, after an early breakfast, and afterwards
writing a few letters, I sallied forth from beneath my archway,
to enjoy the harmless liberty of looking about me; but although
the city had not yet awakened either to business or to pleasure,
and although from its streets being comparatively empty, I had
full opportunity for observation, and even for contemplation,
— I must own that, had I not known I was in Paris, I should
not have been informed of the fact by my memory. For the
picture had not only, by the chemical process of Time, been
dissolved, but, excepting the old sky, — ^which the artist pro
bably felt he could not very much improve, — he had re-painted
and re-covered the whole of the canvas with new objects.
For instance, with infinite labour, he had everywhere rubbed
out that picturesque line of large, frail, creaky, cranky, crazy-
looking lanterns, whioh — suspended over the middle of every
street, were lowered to be lighted — used always to be seen
dangling over the roofs of the carriages that rolled beneath
them ; and in lieu thereof had substituted a double side series
of beautiful gas lamps. Again, with great labour, he had not
only scratched up and out that rude ill-constructed pavement
of round stones for carriages, horses, and foot-passengers,
which, inclining from the houses on each side, used^ — in the
middle even of the gayest thoroughfares — to form a dirty
gutter, which, in heavy rain, looked like a little trout stream ;
but instead of this concave surface he had substituted a beau
tiful convex road, bounded on each side by a white, clean
foot-pavement. The frontage of the shops'he had also com
pletely altered ; but the greatest liberty he had taken— and
when a young enthusiastic artist has a brush in his hand,
there is scarcely any liberty that he will not take— was, that
he had actually filled up the foreground of his fine new
picture of Pans, by crowding the streets \\ith French people '
whereas, all the time /saw the city, I can faithfully declare
that the only human beings one ever looked at were Russians
1 russians. Austrians, Hanoverians. Belgians. British and

THE STROLL.

25

wild-looking Cossacks, carrying, on starved little horses, lances
^so disproportionately long that they looked as if they had
Quixotically come from an immense distance, and from an
uncivilised region, to fight against the stars in the firmament
of heaven; in short, a nation of brave men, who, single-
handed, had conquered the armies of almost every nation in
Europe, were, from the insatiable ambition of one man, over
whelmed by the just and well-arranged union of half-a-dozen
powerful nations, united together to wage war, not against
France, but against the unrelenting enemy of mankind !
I was enjoying this mixture of feelings, and, without hav
ing reflected where I would go, or what I would do with my
self, I was looking at everything at once, and especially at
the variety of moving objects around me, when there drove
by a gaudy omnibus, on the back of which, among several
other names, I observed inscribed the word " Passy." It
was the little village about a league off at which I had last
been quartered ; and although I had since scarcely ever
thought of it, in one second I recollected the happy group
among which I had lived an " enfant de famille." " The good
old people will long ago have vanished ; the young ones will
probably be grandmothers ; however (waving my stick), I
will, at all events, onoe again beat up their quarters."
In compliance with my signal, the 'bus stopped ; and as
it happened to be one of the few that carry passengers out
side, in a few seconds I found myself seated by the coach
man. " C'est la maison du President,"* said he to me, point
ing with his whip to the trees of the Elysee ; thus evidently
showing that before I had opened my mouth he was aware
I was a raw stranger. As we were driving up the avenue of
the Champs Elysees I had an opportunity — in the prepara
tions for the approaching fete of the republic — of witnessing
the latest improved method of making great men. On the
summit of each of a series of lofty plaster pedestals, of elegant
form, distant about 80 yards from each other, there had been
inserted a sort of telegraphic signal, composed sometimes of a
single beam, placed vertically, sometimes of a huge represen
tation of the letter A, terminating in the letter I, sometimea
of the letter X, sometimes of the letter Y, sometimes of the

* That is the bouse of the President.
9

26 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS
letter V. These pieces of stout timber were to form the
legs, backbones, and occasionally extended arms of heroes or^
of statesmen ; and as the artists had not all commenced to-'
gether, and as some had evidently more assistance than
others, the statues in different stages of progression, beauti
fully explained the secrets of their art. On one pedestal,
excepting the wooden symbols I have desoribed, appeared
nothing but a pair of milk-white military jack-boots, about
sis inches higher than the top of the head of the workman
who was making them. On the ground lay the gigantic head
with mustachios, looking at his boots ; in short, calmly
watching all that was doing. On the summit of the wooden
hieroglyphic on another pedestal I observed an orator's head,
beneath which the artist was very cleverly arranging a quan
tity of straw to bolster out some ribs and a large stomach
that lay on the earth beneath. On another pedestal the
powerful head, arms, breast, covered with well-earned medals,
crosses, &c., and back of a marechal of France, suddenly
ended in a sort of kilt of rushes, which the artist, with the
assistance of ropes, cord, packthread, and large bags of white
plaster, which hardened almost as fast as it was applied, was
modelling with great success into the upper portion of a pair
of magnificent pantaloons.
On all the statues, the drapery was very ingeniously and
successfully created by swaddling the lofty statues in old pii
able canvas, no sooner bent and tastefully adjusted into ele
gant folds, than it was saturated with liquid cement, which
almost immediately gave not only solidity to the mass, but
the appearance of having been sculptured out of stone.
Although in the fabrication of these various statues it
was occasionally almost impossible to help smiling at the
contrast between the work completed and in embryo, yet it
may truly be said that the workmanship exceeded the mate
rials. The attitudes of the several statues, as we passed
them, appeared not only to be admirably devised, but to be
executed with that fine t^ste and real talent which distin
guish the French people, and which it is pleasing to observe
all classes of their community are competent to appreciate.
Indeed it was with gratification, astonishment, and profit,
I often afterwards for a few moments listened to the criti
cisms and observations of men in blouses, who, although in

TEE STROLL. 27
humble life, might, from their remarks have passed for bro
ther artists of him who, unaware even of their presence, was
intently modelling over their uplifted faces.
After receiving from my intelligent companion a few
words of voluntary information on almost everything and
everybody we passed, my attention was directed to the ani
mals that were drawing us. They were a pair of small, pow
erful, short-legged, white entire horses, with thick crests and
very small heads, somewhat resembling that of an Arab.
They were as sleek in the coat, and as fleshy as moles ; and
although acoording to English notions they were altogether
disproportioned to the long lofty carriage they were drawing
up the inclined plaiu of the Champs Elysees, it appeared to
follow them from goodwill almost of its own accord. In
their harness they had plenty of room to work ; could ap
proach or recede sideways from the pole, as they felt dispos
ed ; and although, when necessary, they were guided with
great precision, the reins, generally speaking, were dangling
on their backs. Now and then, as we were jogging along, on
the approach of another omnibus, carriage or cart, and occa
sionally for no apparent cause whatever, sometimes one and
sometimes both of the little greys, would cock their ears,
give a violent neigh, and in the same space of ground take
about twice as many steps as before. Indeed, instead of bc
ing, as might be expected, tired to death of the Champs Ely-
sees, they appeared as much pleased with everything that
passed as I was. The coachman told me these horses be
longed to a company, and that one of their principal stables
was within a hundred yards of the Barriere de Neuilly we
were then passing. He advised me to go and look at them ;
and accordingly, with many thanks bidding him adieu, I pro
ceeded on foot along the boulevard on my left, for about a
hundred yards, to a gate, at which I found a concierge in a
white cap, of whom I inquired, as I had been directed by the
coachman, for " le piqueur."*
'¦ Entrez, monsieur !" she replied, " il est la en bas."t
Proceeding into a large barrack-square, I wag looking at
innumerable sets of harness hanging beneath a loug shed out-
* Tlie foreman.
f Walk in. Sir I he is there below.

28 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
side a range of stables, when I was accosted by a well-dressed
gentleman, with large mustachios, who asked me very civilly
what was my business 1
I at once told him my story, such as it was ; to which he
replied that no one could visit the establishment without an
order, which, he added with a slight bow, " No doubt Monsieur
would instantly obtain ; and to assist me in doing so, he very
kindly wrote in my memorandum book, " M. Moreau, Chas-
tone, Administrateur-General de I'Entreprise des Omnibus,
Avenue des Champs Elysees, 68, de midi a quatre heures."*
As it was only seven o'clock, and as it appeared M. Mo
reau was to be invisible till twelve, I strolled to the grand
Arc de Triomphe, ascended some steps, through a door, and
then, proceeding upwards, walked round and round for a con
siderable time. When nearly at the top I entered a feebly-
lighted, low-looking prison, with a groined roof supported
by six arches, four of which were closed by strong iron bars.
At each of the two ends of this dismal chamber there ap
peared a stout barrier of iron railings, and I was fancying
that by some mistake I had got into a sort of cui- de-sac, when
beneath the sixth arch I perceived a passage, and then, as
cending for some time in total darkness, I at last arrived in
the fresh, warm, open air, upon an exalted platform 1 50 feet
in length by 23 in breadth, from which there suddenly flashed
upon my eyes, or rather upon my mind, one of the most mag
nificent views I have ever beheld, the characteristic of which
was that, like that from the top of the Calton Hill, at Edin
burgh, it afforded a panorama of scenery of the most opposite
description. In front lay before me, towards the east, the broad, straight,
macadamized road, boulevard, or, as it is more properly termed,
" avenue," up whioh I had just been driven, terminating in the
green trees of the gardens of the Tuileries. On each side of
this great road there appeared expressly for foot passengers; a
beautiful shaded space, in the middle of which was an asphalte
path, broad enough for about six persons to walk abreast. The
foot-roads were dotted with pedestrians, the carriage-road spot
ted with equestrians, military waggons, carts, public as well as
* General-Superintendant of the Company of Omnibuses No 68
Avenue of the Champs Elysees. From 12 to 4 o'clock. ' '

THE STROLL. 29
private vehicles, and 'buses, increasing in size until they passed
beneath like toys before the eyes.
This magnificent arterial thoroughfare, nearly five times
the width of St James's-street in London, nearly bisects Paris,
the whole of whioh, as seen at a single glance, appeared com
posed of lofty houses of diffierent shades. of white (unlike the
heads of human beings, the youngest are the whitest), light
blue roofs of zinc or slate, and Venetian windows, bearing si
lent testimony to the heat of the climate in summer. But
what attracted my attention more than the sight of all the ob
jects in detail before me was the striking absence of what in
England is invariably the characteristic of every large city or
congregation of men — namely, smoke. Here and there a dark
stream, slowly arising from the lofty minaret of a steam-engine,
reminded me of the existence of commercial life, but with
these few exceptions the beautiful clear city before me ap
peared to be either asleep or dead. During the few minutes
I gazed upon the scene, I several times looked attentively
at the large stacks of chimneys which rose out of the blue
roofs, but with a few exceptions not a vestige of smoke was
to be seen.
Of the two portions into whioh Paris by the triple road
described is divided, that on the left — the largest — was bound
ed by the Hill of Montmartre, upon which, with great plea
sure, I observed' at work, apparently the very same four wind
mills which were always so busily grinding away when I last
resided in their vicinity. They had ground wheat for Napo
leon, for the Duke of Wellington, for the allied Sovereigns of
Europe, for Louis XVIIL, for Charles X., for Louis-Philippe,
for the leaders of the Red Republicans, and now they were
grinding away just as merrily as ever for Prince Louis Napo
leon. In fact, whichever way the wind blew, they patriotically
worked for the public good. Round the foot of Montmartre
there had lately arisen a young city of new white houses.
In the half of Paris on the right of the great triple road,
there appeared resting against the clear blue sky the magnifi
cent domes of the Invalides, Pantheon, Val de Grace, and the
Observatory. Beneath on eaoh side I looked down upon a
mixture of new buildings and of green trees which, in the ad
vent of May, had just joyously burst into full leaf
In contemplating the beauty of Paris from the summit of

30 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
the Arc de I'Etoile, it is impossible to refrain from rema,rking
that, with the exception of the three domes I have mentioned,
no one of which is for the purpose of worship, scarcely a
ch rih-looking building is to be seen.
The view from the opposite or west side of the summit of
the arc forms a striking contrast to the picture of a city as just
desoribed. With the exception of the Fort-du-Mont Valerien,
on an eminence 580 yards off, the horizon is composed of hills
as blue, bleak, and houseless as the highlands of Scotland,
which indeed they faintly resemble. Between the fort and the
Arc lies prostrate the Bois de Boulogne. I had left it hacked
to death by the sabres and hatchets of the troops with whom
I had been bivouacked in it. But these unfriendly scars
were, I rejoiced to see, all obliterated. A new generation of
trees as of men had succeeded, and the large extensive dark-
green but rather cheerless-looking mass was enlivened only by
the old broad pave, running— as it always has run — as straight
as a sergeant's halbert to Neuilly, and at an angle to the left
by an equally straight broad macadamized road — " the Avenue
de St. Cloud."
From the south side of the platform I looked down upon,
or rather into, the uncovered, gay, but tawdry Hippodrome,
the exercises, amusements, and spectators of which can be al
most as clearly seen as by a hawk hovering over them. Be
yond it appeared a mixture of houses, including Passy, com
posed of about two-thirds white buildings, and one-third green
trees. From -the foot of the north side of the Arc runs a short
pave of about 200 yards, bounded on each side by houses and
trees, whioh, by a sort of dissolving process, change into green
fields, aoross which were to be seen here and there little pic
turesque stream,'! of the white steam of the Versailles and
Northern Railways, bounded by blue distant hills.
I had chang'id from side to side more than once to enjoy
the magnificent contrasts I have but very feebly described. I
had returned to the northern side, and was watching the pro
gress of a tiny iiolumn of steam — the blessed emblem of peace
to all nations, .nnd to none a greater blessing than to Franee
and England, when a human being — the only other one in
creation beside i myself on the platform, and he had only a
moment or two ago crawled up and out from beneath — said to
me, —

TEE STROLL.

31

" Wonderful fine view. Sir ! Do you see that house
down there, with four trees before it?"
On answering in the affirmative — indeed it would have
been impossible for any one to have denied either the asser
tion or the question — he very good-humouredly added —
" What do you think of it ?"
I was destitute of thoughts on the subject, and was going
honestly to avow it, when he added —
" I came here from England last Tuesday, to put my
daughter to school there. What do you say of it ?"
I was not in a frame of mind all of a sudden and at suoh
a height above the surface of the earth, to give away for
nothing at all an opinion concerning a house five stories high,
with six windows in front, or about an Englishman educating
a young daughter in France ; so, glancing at the beautiful
steepleless city before me, and then whispering to myself,
" I would as soon put a chicken's egg under a duck as do
what you have done," I said —
" It seems a very substantial good house," which appeared
to make him happy ; and as we had both gained our object,
we nodded farewell and parted.
I was about to bid adieu to the magnificent panorama I
had been enjoying, and had approached the head of the pitch-
dark staircase, when I heard beneath me the slow pacing of
feet, — then a very little puffing, — then there gleamed upwards
a feeble light, — and at last appeared the black hat, thin faoe,
and lean figure of an old gentleman carrying a lantern, fol
lowed by a lusty, very well-dressed lady, equally stricken in
years, with an extremely red face, and cheeks so healthy that
they appeared considerably to embarrass her vision. Indeed,
to speak plainly, she was so fat, and she had so many luxu
riant curls of artificial hair, that she could hardly see out of
her black little shining eyes. Leaving her, however, to make
suoh use of them as she might think proper, I commenced
my descent, and, in utter darkness, passed — or rather stood
stock-still, with my back against the wall, while there passed
me — a party of young people, whose loud merry laughter
denoted that at all events they had outgrown the age at
which they might have been afraid of being in the dark. But
they were quite right to come without lanterns, and I would
advise any one who wishes to enjoy to the utmost the splen-

32 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
did coup-d'oeil I had just left, to burst upon it, as I had done,
from pitch darkness.
On reaching the bottom I observed a board, on which
was written in French and also in English — I rejoiced to see
the two languages standing together in the world hand in
hand — the following notice : —
" The keepers of the Arc de Teiomphe receiving no
salary from government,
the visitors are solictted to give them a fee, which 18
lebt at theie own discretion."
As twelve o'clock had just struck, I walked down the
beautiful avenue of the Champs Elysees to the houSe of M.
Moreau, who, on my showing him my passport and explaining to
him the favour I wished him to confer upon me, was good
enough to desire his chief clerk to give me the following or
der, which I insert as an exemplification of the politeness of
the French people to strangers : —
" A Moils. Denault, chef d'Etablissement I'Etoile.
" Entreprise G^n^rale des Omnibus, 6, Eue St. Thomas du Louvre.
" Monsieur Denault est autorisi A laisser entrer dans son etablisse
ment, pour y examiner ]e mode d'attacher les chevaux dana lea ^curies,
&c.  porteur de la pr&ente.
"Paris le 30 Avril, 1851. A. Geiveau."*
With this letter in my hand I reascended the Champs
Elysees, and passing close beneath the triumphal arch, turned
to my left along the street indicated until I once again en
tered the great barrack-looking square, in the middle of
which, very nearly on the spot where I had left him about
an hour and a half ago, I saw M. Denault and his dark
mustachios. On presenting to him my authority, his countenance as
sumed a grave, and I thought rather a serious, aspect ; as
* To Mr. Denault, Chief of the Establishment at the Etoile
General Association of Omnibuses, No. 6, Eue St. Thomas du Louvre.
Mr. Denault is authorised to allow to enter iuto his eatablishmentj
for the purpose of examining the mode of attaching the horees in the
stables, <fec  , the bearer. A. GKrvBAC.
Paris, Apnl 30, 1861.

THE STROLL. 33
however his eyes glanced along line after line it rapidly re
laxed, until, looking at me with a pleasing smile, he told me,
with great politeness, that he should now be most happy to
give me all the information in his power ; and waving his hand
m signal to me to advance, he was preparing to follow me to
the range of stables before him, when I asked him to be kind
enough to explain to me the strength of his establishment.
He told me tkat the Company to which he belonged had, in
six establishments in Paris, 1500 horses, of which 300 were
under his charge. In several of these establishments all the
horses were entire- He had, however, about half of that de
scription, the remainder being about half mares and half
horses, as in England.
The long bui-lding before us, which, as I have stated, very
much resembled cavalry barracks, was divided into a series
of 15 stables, each 80 feet long, containing 20 horses; 10 on
each side, with a broad passage between' them.
On entering No. 1, I was much struck with the total ab
sence of the usual smell of a stable, and with the scene which
unexpectedly presented itself Of the 20 horses that belonged
to it about one-third were out at work. Of the remainder,
some were standing with their tails to their manger, looking
at their comrades on the opposite side ; some munching
beautiful clean shiny wheat-straw ; while others, on litters of
great thickness and equally clean, were lying as if dead, in
a variety of attitudes. One or two at full length, were re
posing parallel to their mangers ; some oocasionally groaned,
or rather grunted, as thoy slept ; one gently raised his head
to look at me, and then, as if I really was not worth a mo
ment's more notice, laid it flat down again. Two more, lying
face to face, as if in each other's arms, were partly under the
feet of a neighbour feeding from his manger. All were sleek
and fat.
In few stables in England have I ever seen litter in a
cleaner state, horses in better health, or in a greater state of
enjoyment. The reason was evident. The row of fifteen
stables, instead of being, as in our cavalry barracks — or even
as in our hunting-boxes — divided from each other by brick
walls, were separted only by open wooden palings about
eight feet high, which allowed thc air to circulate throughout
the whole length of the building, and escape through air-
2*

34 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
chimneys constructed for the purpose. Besides this, in the
upper portion of the front and rear walls of each stable there
had been constructed air-shutters for regulating the tempera
ture in each long compartment.
" Vous avez encore trois degres de trop !"* said Monsieur
Denault to a man in a blue jacket and blue trowsers, who,
from the instant I had entered the stable, had not only fixed
his eyes upon me, but had swallowed every observation I had
made. " Ah !" said this man, nodding his head, " il va donc tom
ber de l'eau."t
In stable No-. 1, in which we stood, the horses — unsepa
rated by partitions, but divided in couples by swinging bails
— were all tied and fed together in pairs. To each couple
there was given per day 5 "kilos" of hay, 4 of straw, 15
litres of grain. In summer an additional litre of grain, and
in very hot weather bran twice a week.
I mentioned to M. Denault, that in England omnibus
horses are almost invariably fed on a mixture of chopped hay,
chopped straw, and corn. He replied he was of opinion that,
according to the common principles of gastronomy, horses, like
men, prefer a variety of dishes.
•' They enjoy their hay ; gain strength and sustenance from
their corn ; et puis apres. Monsieur, ils mangent de la paille" —
shrugging up his shoulders and showing me the palms of both
his hands — " pour s'aniuser : <ja les occupe ; 9a leur distrait ;
9a les empeche de se battre !"|
On my inquiring how many persons were employed to keep
the stable as clean as I beheld it, he informed mc that to
every ten horses is attached one man, who feeds and takes
care of them ; there are consequently two such attendants
in each stable. For every ten horses there is also a per
son appointed to clean their harness and the carriages they
draw. On entering stable No. 2, which in point of cleanliness and
ventilation was the fac-simile of the one I had just left I found
it contained nothing but entire horses, who, unseparated even
* You are too hot by three degrees I
I Ah I we shall have rain then.
I And after that, Sir, tbey eat straw to arause themselvea : it occupies
them — it distracts their attention — it prevents them from fightino-.

THE STliULL. 35
by bails, fed, slept, worked, in short, lived together in pairs ;
each couple, however, were divided from the adjoining ones on
the right and left by swinging bars, suspended by a rope from
the ceiling at a height a little above the hocks. The horses
before me were not only in the enjoyment of stout robust
health, but their coats were particularly short, sleek, and glossy.
For the work they are required to perform they appeared al
most perfect in form. They are low punchy creatures, with
short, stout, active-looking legs and small heads, bought by the
company between four and five years of age, principally in
Normandy and Belgium, but the best come from the depart
ment des Ardennes. The price paid for them is from 500 to
600 francs, say about £22 sterling. As soon as they are re
ceived from the several sellers they are marked with what is
called a " baptismal number," cut with scissors in the hair of
the neck. After the period of trial has expired, if found to be
sound, as warranted, the same number is branded with a hot
iron on the hind thigh, just below the hip, and beneath it the
last figure of the year in which they were purchased.
On receiving this information I expressed to M. Denault
my surprise that his company should be honest enough indeli
bly to record that which ladies and horse-masters in England
are always so very particularly desirous to conceal, namely,
the exact age ; but he replied, " When the Company have once
purchased a horse they never sell him until he becomes use
less." " Then," said I, with my eyes fixed upon the branded
marks of an extremely powerful well-made entire horse that
was before me, " do you designate them only by their num
bers? — have they no names?"
" No," he replied, " we only know them by their numbers ;
they have no names."
" Mais oui !" observed sharply and gruffly the stableman in
blue, in charge of the horses, and who, like his comrade in the
other stable, had been most attentively listening to every word
that had come out of my mouth. " Mais oui," he repeated in
broad patois; "je leur donne a chacun son nom! Celui-ci,
par exemple," pointing to the powerful, thickset, sleek, lively
grey horse whose brand I was still looking at, " j'appelle Jean-
Battiste ; c'lui-la Fou."*
* Oh yes I I give each of them his name. This one, for instance, I call
" Jean-Battistc ;" that one "FooL"

36 \ A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
The latter word was hardly out of his mouth, and most
certainly could not have reached the roof of the stable, when
all of a sudden, and for no apparent cause, John-Baptist, toss
ing his head in the air, and kicking violently, gave a most tre
mendous squeal, that really quite electrified mc.
" Ah, sacr6 cochon I"* exclaimed his keeper, with raised
and uplifted eyebrows, as with both hands he raised his long
wooden-pronged pitchfork perpendicularly above his head,
" qu'as tu done, vieux coquin ?"t John made no answer, but
at onoe, whatever might have' beeu the point in dispute, gave it
up, and then, nestling like a lamb towards his comrade, sliared
with him in a mouthful of clean straw.
While I was ruminating at the hurricane which had so
suddenly subsided, a bell rang, and at the same moment I ob
served that all the horses on one side of the stable began to
prick their ears, move their feet, look behind them, and show
little outward signs of inward satisfaction, such as occasionally
may be seen very slightly to flit across the countenances of
fine ladies and gentlemen when, after a dull, tedious, protracted
period of waiting, their ears are suddenly refreshed by the
Bound I have just mentioned — the dinner-bell. In less than a
minute the feeder entered, carrying on his shoulder a sack of
corn, which he placed on the ground, and he had scarcely com
menced to measure out three or four double handfuls into a large
round sieve beside it, when all his ten horses began some to
scream, some to bite at each other, and all more or less to
stamp on the ground. I asked M. Deuault why the ten ani
mals before us remained perfectly quiet 1
" Ah," muttered the keeper in blue, " c'est qu'ils connaissent
bien que ce n'est pas pour eux .'" J In about five minutes,
however, when in his turn he went away for his sack of oats,
his own horses, Jean Battiste, Fou, and all, became so excited
that a good many " sacres," some long drawn and some sharp,
were expended to subdue them ; indeed, I never saw a set of
animals feed with greater voracity.
While the twenty horses in profound silence, with their
twenty mouths in thc mangor, with nothing about them moving
but their jaws, — save occasioually an ear that very viciously
* Ah, abominable hog.
IWhat Is the matter with vou, ynu old rogue i
All, because they know well enough it is not for them.

TEE STROLL. 37
lay back whenever a comrade of the neghbouring couple ven
tured to look at what they were eating. — were thus busily oc
cupied, I asked M. Dnault whether they did not fight at night?
Pointing to a large lamp suspended from a rafter in the cen
tre of the stall, he told me that the two men before us were
always required to sleep in- the stable.
" Voila nos plumes la has !" • said my blue satellite, pointing
to some straw on a wooden frame at the end of the stable.
" Ah, sacre !" f he exclaimed, through his teeth, to a fine,
sturdy, brown horse, that a few seconds ago had begun to nib
ble the mane of his comrade, and was biting harder and harder
every instant.
" En plaoe I" J said the opposite stableman to a pair of
horses, warm and dirty, that had just entered from their work.
" En place !" he repeated ; the animals obeyed, and walked be
tween a pair of vacant bails to their own two halters.
" Of the three descriptions of horses in your establishment,
which," I said to Monsieur, " do you prefer?"
He answered that, although entire horses are the most lia
ble to catch cold, and altogether are the most delicate, they
are nevertheless the most enduring, and consequently the best
adapted for long distances, '¦ pour les diligences ;" ^ in short,
for " vitesse et vigueur." || For 'bus work, where they are lia
ble constantly to be stopped, the ordinary horse is only prefer
able on account of his being more calm and of his more docile
temper : " ils se fatiguent moins, ils durent plus longtemps." Tf
He said that mares were considered worst of all ; and when I
told him that almost an opposite opinion existed in England,
he explained to me that it is the habit in Belgium, and in the
departement des Ardennes, to sell mares in foal, in order that
they should appear stout : and that, on being deprived of their
offspring, they are usually assailed by a milk fever, in conse
quence of which they become weak.
I asked him how he managed to persuade his entire horses
to live close together in pairs, with nothing but a swinging bail
between each couple ? He told me, with considerable ani
mation, that, when first put together in couples, " ils chsrchent
* There are our feather beds I + Ah, holy I
\ Into your placo.
§ For stage work. {| For speed and vigour.
*|f They fatigue themselves less, and last longer.

38 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
dispute, ils se battent pour quelques jours."* With a great
deal of very expressive action, which made him quite warm,
he showed me how they bit, how they fought, how they paw
ed, and how they kicked out behind at each other. " Mais,"
he added, with great calmness, good sense, and good nature,
" apres que chacun a compris le caractere de son voisin ils
deviennent bons camarades !"t
He added that as soon as a young horse lately purchased
has been found to be sound, besides being branded as des
cribed, " On lui fait la toilette ;"J that is to say, they cut off
his beard, pull his mane, remove any long hairs about his fet
locks, and, by other little delicate attentions, smarten him up
for Paris work. He told me, however, they never docked a
horse's tail, as it was highly valuable, not only for flapping
flies from himself, but from -his comrade in harness ; indeed,
he said it was observed that horses at Paris which had no
tails usually grow lean in summer. In the winter they adopt
the English custom of singeing the roughest.
I asked M. Denault what was the meaning of sometimes
a little bit of straw, and sometimes of hay, which I here and
there observed to be plaited in a lock of the tail of several of
the horses ? He replied that the stablemen, in washing over
the horses' feet, were directed every day very attentively to
observe whether any of them wanted either shoeing or nailing ;
that in the former case they were required to insert in the tail a
piece of straw ; and in the latter a piece of hay ; and thus,
ffhen the blacksmith made his daily visit, without being at the
trouble to examine the feet of every one, he saw at a glance
not only those that stood in need of him, but, by the bit of
hay or straw, exactly what each wanted ; under this ingenious
arrangement the stableman, and not the blacksmith, is very
properly held responsible for a horse casting a shoe at work.
On proceeding to the smith's shop, I found him engaged
in shoeing a horse in the old French fashion of forty years
ago ; that is to say, his assistant was holding up the animal's
foot while he was driving in the nails. I told him, as he was
* They look out for a quarre], and fight for some days.
-j- But after eaeh has comprelicnded the character of his neighbour
they becorae good comrades.
X Thcy arrange hia toilette for hira.

THE STROLL. 39
hammering away, that in Bngland both operations were per
formed by one man, upon which he looked at his assistant, —
who looked at him — both grinned at each other — shook their
black locks — and then proceeded with their work. The shoes
he was putting on were very little heavier than those used in
England, a set of four weighing six pounds. The nails, how
ever, are in France not only driven into the foot at a different
angle from that in which they are inserted in England, but
the head of each is forced into a square hole, made exactly to
fit it, by which arrangement, being flush with the shoe, they
do not, it is urged, wear off; on the other hand, they of course
cannot, as in England, prevent the horse from slipping.
Above the bent bodies of the smith and his mate I observed,
suspended to the forge, a quantity of artificial rOses, mixed
up with an assemblage of smart ribands, blue, white, and red,
which, I was informed, had been placed there on the ffite de
St. Eloi, the patron of blacksmiths, and that according to
custom they would remain until the annual return of the same
fete, when they would be replaced by new ones.
" In England," thought I to myself, " the patron of a
blacksmith is whoever has last given him a pot of beer."
There are two sorts of water in the establishment, one
from pumps, used for washing the harness and carriages, the
other from the Seine ; the latter, every four-and-twenty
hours, is turned into large open tanks, to which the horses
are led to drink three times a day, it being a rule that no one
is allowed to approach it until he has been iij the stable two
hours after his work.
On entering the infirmary I found a veterinary surgeon,
with a pair of vcry long yellow mustachios, with his coat off,
and with a sort of apron round his body, busily employed in
drenching a sick horse with an enormous quantity of warm bran
tea, his assistent being quite as vigorously occupied with the
animal elsewhere. The poor thing's head was tied to a ring in
the wall, and a noose having been passed round his upper jaw,
it was, by a third assistant, hauled upwards towards another
ring, inserted at a great height, by which means the doctor
was enabled with perfect ease to pour wholesale down his
throat the smoking draft ; in fact, there was no resisting the
double treatment to which he was simultaneously subjected ;
and as I could evidently do no more than earnestly hope it

40 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
might cure him of whatever were his afflictions, I walked
away, and was conducted by my obliging attendant to an im
mense magazine, five stories high, in which, piled on each
floor, four or five feet high, I found a stock of black, sweet,
but light chaffy oats, sufficient to keep the whole establish
ment for more than a year ; indeed, the building was so in
geniously and so admirably ventilated, that I was assured.
with common precautions, corn could be kept in it for ten
years. At some distance from this building was, also under
cover, a very abundant supply of hay, tied up in bundles,
" bottes," ready for use.
It is under the treatment I have described that the omni-
Dus horses of the west end of Paris serve the public. The
establishment reflects great credit upon the community in gene
ral, and upon M. Denault and M. Moreau in particular. By
their unceasing care the horse's life is a wholesome, healthy,
and happy mixture of enjoyment and work ; indeed, sweet,
clean, and comfortable as are their stables, their harness is so
easy and loose, the Paris air is so fresh, everything is so gay,
there is so much for them to look at, and, apparently, wher
ever they go, and especially wherever they stop, there are
such innumerable subjects — all apparently of such vast im
portance — for them to neigh about, that I really believe they
are, if possible, happier in the streets than at home. It is
true they do not go as fast as the omnibus horses of London,
and that at Paris a man is considered to estimate time at
somewhat more than its real value who, to purchase a few
minutes, would inflict pain and suffering upon a race of ani
mals, especially created for his happiness and enjoyment.
But, without checking fast driving in England, it is surely
the duty of the public, if they determine to enjoy it, to obtain,
by dint of a few moments' reflection, sweet air, pure water,
and kind attentions for those noble creatures whose superior
physical strength it is alike their duty and their interest to
foster rather than exhaust.
With this moral in my mind, I very gratefully thanked
M. Denault for the obliging attention he had shown me, to
which he replied by insisting on giving me an introduction to
the manufacturer of the company's omnibus carriages, as also
a note to the principal superintendent of the company's
largest establishment of horses at the opposite or east side of

ENTREPRISE GENERALE DES OMNIBUS. 41
Paris, beyond the limits of the city, and of the Barriere de
Charenton.

ENTREPRISE GENERALE DES OMNIBUS.
After taking leave of M. Denault I was conducted by his
piqueur to a large gate, over which was inscribed " Entreprise
Generale des Omnibus."
On ringing the bell, a side door opening into a large court
flew open, and almost at the same moment there stood right
before me, in a white cap, an old withered concierge, with a
face not very unlike that of Cerberus, who was evidently un
willing to admit me until she had been informed that I had
come there by order of M. Denault, upon which, relieving her
conscience by a very slight shrug, and then turning her bent
back upon me, she hobbled into her lodge, and my conductor,
seeing he had effected his object, with a friendly salute re
turned to his stables.
The chef of the establishment, a short intelligent-looking
gentleman, with a bushy, brushy beard, walked towards me ;
and as, although he said nothing, his attitude was very clearly
interrogatory of what I wanted, I very briefly explained that
I wished to be permitted to walk over his workshops. He
replied very kindly that I might go wherever I liked ; and
exactly as I desired, he then left me to speak to a workman
who was evidently waiting for him.
In the yard before me there stood, with high poles, and
rounded tires to the wheels, several new omnibuses, elegantly
constructed and handsomely varnished, divided inside into
seats for seventeen persons (the two next the door are not
separated), with breadth of passage in the middle sufficient
to allow passengers ample room to enter and depart without
rubbing against the knee-pans of those who are seated. To
the roof was affi ied a brass rod or hand-rail, to ensure rickety
old gentlemen against reeling sideways into ladies' laps, and
vice ve?:<:r.. i'or the purpose of entrance were two broad easy
steps; and on the left-hand back panel shone a transparent
tell-tale dial, the black fingers of which, — in obedience to a

42 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
string which, whenever any one enters, the conductor is
obliged to pull, and which also strikes a bell " one," — informs
passengers inside, the public outside, and the proprietor at
the end of the course or journey, how many fares have been
received. In Paris omnibuses have no doors, or rather the
door is formed by the conductor, who stands on the upper
step of the entrance, leaning against a broad strap, which in
an instant he can unhook, for the ingress or egress of the
public. In another part of the yard I observed near the wall
three old, worn-out, dead, but not buried, " diligences," which
in their day had been considered not only as vast improve
ments of the old form, but as imitations of the English mode
of travelling. They were composed of four different sorts of
carriages stuck together. The rear one, wbich was very low,
held eight persons, four on each side, sitting with their
shoulders towards the horses. The middle one six, sitting
opposite to eaeh other, three with their faces, and three with
their backs, towards the horses. The front chariot three,
above whose heads there grew out, like an immense fungus,
a nondescript ^ort of cabriolet, with leather head and apron,
for four more. Behind this rude thing was a frame-work to
enable baggage to be piled up to a fearful height. As might
reasonably be expected, the under part of these antiquated
quadruple vehicles was as clumsily j5onstructed as the super
structure I have just described. The wheels were low and
heavy ; the tires, in five separate pieces, flat, and of double
the present breadth : the springs unelastic : the pole stuck
out little above the horses' knees.
By the side of these old-fashioned travelling-machines
were, in various stages of construction, several new carriages,
with improved wheels, axles, and poles, handsomely stuffed
and painted, but on the same principle — rather inconsistent, I
thought, with that of a republic — of dividing the travelling
community into four separate uncomfortable compartments or
cages ; thus creating much unnecessary weight and expense.
The carriages were certainly handsomely varnished ; but, as
compared with the light omnibuses at the other end of the
yard, were like heavy over-dressed dowagers sitting behind
the rising generation, " tripping on the light fantastic toe."
I was looking at several workmen, who, cooped within one

ENTERPRISE GENERALE BES OMNIBUS. 43
of these heavy vehicles, were ornamenting its drab cloth lining
with handsome broad lace, when I observed the concierge
opening the great gate to admit what at the moment formed,
I thought, rather an affecting picture, namely, a lame 'bus
coming into hospital. In some chance-medley it had been
severely wounded in its side, and was now dragged forward by
a low, punchy, light-hearted, merry little horse, who, on de
positing it in the yard, was no sooner tied by his halter to a
ring in the wall than, suddenly looking behind him, first on
one side and then on the other, he began to neigh, as if he
was determined that every living being in the establishment
sliould know exactly how the accident had happened — -" quorum
pars magna fui" — in short, what an amazing deal, in some way
or other, he had had to do with it. Nobody, however, listened
to or even looked at him but myself
From the yard I proceeded into the workshops, in which,
with the assistance of a powerful steam-engine, a number of
artificers were at work. Several circular saws, with a whizzing
noise, were cutting out the main-frames of omnibuses in em
bryo, while three or four turning-lathes were as busily employ
ed in preparing useful and ornamental work of different de
scriptions, the whole of which was quietly but very neatly ex
ecuted. On entering the department of Vulcan, in whioh were
several forges at work, I oould not help being struck with the
difference between French and English smiths, with the latter
of whom I have had some little acquaintance. Both raise
their sledge-hammers with equal vigour ; but the effort of the
French " striker" seems to die away before it reaches the
anvil ; whereas in England with the momentum it invariably
quickens. The same difference was apparent to me in heavy
filing. The French workman makes a great effort to get the
file into its position, and afterwards half gives it up. The
English smith prepares gently, and then works spitefully. In
two words, the French smith appears to work very neatly in
deed, but, as we should term it, to niggle.
On entering a large shop, warmed by a stove, in which a
number of men were busily employed in painting and in lining
omnibuses, I observed a fine, tall, ruddy-faced, goodhumoured-
lobking man, with white mustachios, in a blue linen smock-
eoat and trowsers, who had at his back, towering a couple of

44 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
feet above his head, a machine, covered with crimson velvet,
upon which were suspended on hooks four silver cups, like
bells. Beneath them on each side of the man's hips there pro
jected from the apparatus he was carrying a short silver-plated
pipe, ending in a similarly resplendent tap. As he proceeded
he at intervals rang a merry bell, which' appeared to create
universal thirst, for without a single exception the workmen
at every carriage he came to stopped for a moment to drink
off, when it came to their turn, what he gave them, whioh I
observed sometimes to be in a large cup and sometimes in a
little one, the different doses bearing no relation whatever to
the difference in size of those who received them. In due
time tlie crimson- velveted cask was drained dry, and, as the
man walked with it into retirement behind the body of an old
'bus, I followed him, and after conversing with him about the
weather, the Great Exhibition in London, and a variety of
other little introductory subjects, I asked him at last to explain
to me what he was selling, and what he charged for it The
answer to the first question almost spoke for itself ; or
rather, the purap beside us, and two pots of stuff, one dread
fully sour and the other of a sweet citron taste, explained to
me that the mixture he was concocting was an innocent de
scription of weak lemonade, which, while he was making it, I
tasted, and paid hira for with a piece of silver, that seemed at
onoe to unlock the most secret recesses of his heart, and he
accordingly told me that every workman in the establishment
contracted with him for a glass of lemonade, as oftentimes per
day as he thought proper to administer it. He said that,
ringing his bell to announce his approach, he usually paid
them three or four vi.sits a day.
" Mais quand il fait chaud, ma foi, Monsieur, bien souvent
c'est cinq fois !" *
His charges for this luxury were, he informed me, eight
sous (four pence) a fortnight for those who were satisfied with
a little cup, ten sous a fortnight for those who generously al
lowed their stomachs the large one.
As the crimson-velveted machine was now full again, and
as I also was replete with the information I desired, we both,
like country actors when the curtain draws up, again appear
ed before the public. Tinkling his bell, he walked straight
• But when it gets hot, faith, Sir, it is often five times!

CAFE DE FARIS. 45
to the window of a green 'bus full of men lining it. I
strolled towards an artist emblazoning with sundry ornaments
the panels of a yellow one. After admiring the execution
of his work, which caused his brush, I thought, to work with,
if possible, a little more alacrity than before, I asked him,
after a variety of small questions, what he thought of the
revolution ?
" Monsieur," he replied, " I gained a little fortune from
it in painting out coronets. I have since gained still more
by painting them in again. Ma foi, Monsieur," suddenly
ceasing to paint, and looking in my face with a pleasing
smile, — " /don't care how often we have a revolution !"

CAFE DE PARIS.
As whatever is worth doing is always worth ddfcg well, at
about half past six in the evening of my first day in Paris,
I inquired all of a sudden of a French gentleman who was
passing with me across a street, where was the best place to
dine ? and as, after enumerating several which I forgot as
fast as he mentioned them, he ended by advising me, on the
whole, if I liked a good dinner, to go to the Cafe de Paris, on
the Boulevart des Italiens, I enjoyed the walk, and the re
flection it gave rise to, and, in due time reaching my goal, I
found myself comfortably seated in a small octagonal room,
chastely painted, brilliantly illuminated by gaslights, reflect
ed in and multiplied by plate glass, behind, before, in fact all
around me. In this little chamber of Adonis, which looked
into a larger saloon, were negligently scattered a quantity of
small tables.
On entering I had very carefully bowed to the two pre
siding ladies of the establishment. I had selected a seat,
had deposited my hat and stick in perfect safety, and, pleased
to think how admirably and almost intuitively I had done it
all, I was going to take a long, placid, comfortable look at
every body and every thing arouud me, — for in my little den
there were evidently a great number of bodies and of things

46 A FAGGOT OF FRENGE STICKS.
worth looking at, — when as straight as a bull-dog rushes at a
bull there advanced towards me, whisking the tail of a white
napkin as if to intimidate me, a very respectable man of
about thirty years of age, dressed in a white neck-cloth, a
very well-made dark cloth jacket, but without any trowsers,
breeches, or pantaloons. — at least I could not see any, be
cause the region they inhabit was completely covered with a
white apron. ,
As my object was to appear quite at my ease, I deter
mined to receive him without — at all events showing — the
slightest emotion ; as soon, however, as he reached me, he
laid down on the table before me, not only a long rigmarole
written paper, but a very large book, and, submitting to me
these data to compound an answer, he asked me in beautiful
French, and with another whisk of his napkin, what I would
desire for my dinner ? Now, six-and-thirty years ago, it was,
I recollected, considered as rather a dashing thing to answer
a query of this nature by saying negligently, and apparently
with unshaken reliance on the " honour" and good taste of
the chef in a white nightcap below, "A cinq francs !" * I
accordingly tried very hard not only to say but to look the
words as youthfully as I had used to do. Instead, however,
of receiving the grateful bow I had expected, the gentleman
in waiting, with a shrug which I feared told everybody, every
where, that I was making to him some very mean unconscien
tious proposal, replied he would rather I would name what I
would desire to have. Of course I instantly consented, ob
serving, with a wave of my hand for the purpose of getting
rid of him, that I would let him know, upon which turning
on his heel, and thereby averting from me his white apron,
— which gave me an opportunity of observing that he wore
black trowsers — he darted away to another table.
Now, although, when left completely to. myself, I knew
perfeotly well that I wanted a good dinner, — indeed, that
with malice prepense I had come on purpose for it, — ^yet, on
looking into the encyclopasdia of dishes he had laid before
me, I really did not know, and I therefore felt I should have
considerable difficulty in letting hi?n know, "what I would
desire to have." It was, however, a vast comfort to me to
* For five francs !

GAFE DE FARIS. 47
reflect, as I laid hold of the important volume, that I was
about to draw tickets in a lottery composed of all prizes
and no blanks, and so, without fretting on the subject, I
tapped my table gently, and when my waiter, obeying the
summons as readily as if it had been his own dinner-bell,
stood erect before me, I pointed to some description of soup ;
"Bien, Monsieur !"* he replied ; — to an odd-named fish ; " bien.
Monsieur ! ;" — to cutlets of apparently an extraordinary
nature ; " bien. Monsieur ! ;" — and lastly pointing to some
thing I considered would he pastry, I then, looking as if I
had been born in the room, closed the book.
" Tres bien, Monsieur !"t said my attendant, making me a
slight bow, and then carrying off the volume to its temporary
resting-place. As 1 had now delivered my judgment, and had nothing to
do but to await the execution of the delightful sentence I had
passed upon myself, I enjoyed the luxury of quietly looking
about me. Round a small table at my right sat three French
men, with beards black, blacker, and blackest ; on my left
three smooth-chinned modest-looking English young ladies,
with their husbands, or, with what among travellers is gener
ally termed, their cousins. In the fore and back ground of
the picture there continually crossed and recrossed, in various
directions, and at various angles with the equator, a number
of respectable, attentive, well-behaved waiters, of from twenty-
five to forty-five years of age, with hair plastered by oil close
to the head, in white neckcloths, and otherwise dressed as I
have described. Among them there occasionally appeared a
being o* a higher order, distinguished by a black apron. This
pers&uage was altogether above bringing in books, dishes,
changing plates, or wiping forks. His sole, serious, and im
portant duty was to deliver to the occupier or occupiers of
each table whatever wine, through the medium of the common
white-aproned-waiter, had been required from him ; and he
not only brought it, but with great dignity uncorked it ; and
in the case of its being champagne, or wine that required to
be cooled, I observed that, as carefully as a young mother
lays her first infant in its cradle, he placed it on ice, almost
horizontally, in a wooden frame resembling a ship gun-carriage,
* Good, Sir! f Very good, Sir!

48 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
the neck of the bottle being elevated, as nearly as I could
guess, at an angle of about ten degrees.
As dishes upon dishes, with hurried steps, were brought to
the numerous tables of the octagonal paradise in which I was
seated, the buzz of conversation very sensibly increased be
sides which the human mouth, like a regiment at review, went
through all its most difficult movements. Sometimes it ate a
good deal ; then it drank a little ; then it smiled ; then it ate
a little raore ; then it talked humorously; then it drank off a
glass of champagne ; then in a serious tone it called out
" Gar(jo.»i I" * then it sipped ; and then talked much more ve
hemently than before.
While my Frenoh companions, especially the three with
black beards, which at every movement of their mouths kept
irregularly vibrating, were munching, drinking, or expounding
something which appeared almost invariably to end through
the nose ; shoulders, in all directions, began to shrug, hands
began to act, and, as if in spite of ice, faces gradually became
pinkish — pink, — red — redder, — -hot and hotter. Indeed even
the three young English ladies' lips looked, I thought, a very
little warmer ; and although for the life of me I could not
perceive within the little octagonal room any additional cause
for merriment, for some reason or other they certainly did
giggle muoh oftener than at first. Indeed I was beginning to
think whether the gentleman in the black apron ought not to
have iced the wine-drinkers instead of the wine, when my re
flections, all of a sudden, came to an end. My mind must
surely have had a fit of apoplexy ; for I remember nothing
further that occurred, except that I found myself placidly, and
in good fellowship with all men, lapping up with a spoon some
very nice soup, which had scarcely vanished when I became
the proprietor of some turbot, which, I rather believe, by some
accident must have been ground to death in a mill. The com
position, however, was most excellent. In due time I was
nourished with cutlets luxuriously floating in the essence of
asparagus ; and at last came my " tart," which turned out to
be a small pastry bandbox, with a handsome lid, full of cocks
combs, beautifully serrated and plaited, with a variety of odd-
looking things, of all sorts of shapes and consistency. In
fact, there must have been a little of every delicacy in creation ;
» Waiter!

PLACE DE LA BASTILLE. 49
and the dish would have been a complete and most excellent
dinner. Not wishing to appear eccentric, I ordered a pint of
champagne, and observing, when I had dismissed my tart, that
when I took the little bottle from its icy bed, and tilted it up,
it seemed — although to my knowledge I had really done no
thing to offend it — rather disposed to decline to hold any fur
ther communication with the glass beneath it, I tapped my
table, and as soon as the gentle sound brought, as it instantly
did bring, a waiter's faoe close to my own, I asked for my bill.
While it was preparing, I acknowledged to myself, without
hesitation, that I had very muoh enjoyed .all I had seen, all I
had heard, all I had eaten, and all I had drunk. The room,
however, was so over-lighted, the glare from the lamps and
looking-glasses was so oppressive, the feat I had perforraed,
and the feast I had enjoyed, were altogether so unsuited to
the fixed regimen of my life, that, as I had now not only wit
nessed but had assisted in the process of dining at a restaura
teur's at Paris, I determined I would not do so again ; and
accordingly, excepting three days on whioh I accepted invita
tions of ceremony I could not decline, seated at an open win
dow, I dined quietly in my lodging by myself, during the
whole period of my short residence in the bright, gay, and
happy metropolis of France.

PLACE DE LA BASTILLE.
On descending from an omnibus I found myself in a large,
long, irregular, uncomfortable-looking open space, called the
Place de la Bastille, formed by the junction of the Quai du
Canal St, Martin, of the Boulevart Beaumarchais, of the Rue
de la Roquette, Rue de St. Antoine, Rue du Faubourg St.
Antoine, Rue do Charenton, Rue de Lyon, and of the
Boulevarts Bourdon and Contresoarpe, leading to the Pont
d' Austerlitz. At the point of concentration at which all these cross-roads
met, I saw before me a lofty bronze column, surmounted by a
perfectly naked, lengthy, thin, herring-stomached, long-backed,
S

50 -^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
flying-Mercury-looking mountebank, with a pair of wings on his
shoulders, the whole newly gilt all over, as if it had just flown,
and for a moment — merely to take in wind — had perched there
from California.
On the outside of the column, from the bottom to the top.
in three strata, each representing the result of one day's revo
lutionary havoc, were inscribed in letters of gold, so small that
at a few feet elevation they were to my eyes utterly illegible, a
variety of names. On the base was legibly engraved the fol
lowing inscription, which briefly told me the whole story of the
column : — "Loi du 13 Decembre, 1830,
Art. 13.
Un monuraent aera conaacr6 a la mfimou-e
Dea 6v6nemen3 de Juillet.
Loi du 9 Mars, 1833,
Art. 2.
Ce monument sera foig6 sur la Place
De la Bastille." *
On the other side was inscribed : —
" A la Gloire
Dea Cit»yens Frangais,
Qui s'armferent et combattirent
Pour la Defense des Libertas Rfipubliques
Dana les memorables Journies
Des 27, 28, 29 Juillet, 1830." f
The monument was surrounded on all four sides by mas
sive iron railings, within which, at the foot of the column all
* Extract from the law ofthe 13th December, 1830,
Article 13.
A monument shall be consecrated to the memory
Of the events of July.
Fi'om the law of the 9th March, 1833,
Article 2.
This raonument shall be ereoted on the Place
Of the Bastille.
\ To the Glory
Of those French Citizens
Who armed themselves and fought
In Defence of Republican Liberty
During the memorable Days
Ofthe 27, 28, 29 July, 1630.

PLACE DE LA BASTILLE. 51
the way round, I observed a confused pile of faded wreaths
(immortelles) and of branches of laurel, the leaves of which had
become crisp and brown.
Just as I was about to enter the door, I heard some steps
heavily descending, and, accordingly waiting for a few moments,
there appeared, first the balustrade legs, then the protuberant
waistcoat, and at last the warm, intelligent countenance of a
brother Englishman — who, as he passed me, said, laying great
emphasis on eaoh of his nouns of number,
" There are two teradred and /brty-three steps. Sir ! I've
just counted 'em !" And as it was exactly what I did not
want to do, I put down the figures hot as I received them, and
then, ascending a well-staircase, every bright brass step ofwhich
rang as I trod on it, I at last reaohed the summit, and for some
time, absorbed in historical recollections, looked down upon the
spot beneath, where the Bastille and all its included horrors
had once existed.
On happening to cast my eyes upwards, I almost started at
the appearance of the great gilt strip-stark-naked figure just
above me. It was certainly beautifully balanced. His whole
person, from the crown of his head to the extremity of his
pointed toe, whioh almost alone rested on its pedestal, was of
bright, glittering gold. His long, thin neck was extended ; his
wings appeared almost to flutter on his back ; and as an equi
poise to the leg extended behind, he held in one hand a broken
chain, in the other a burning torch.
Who this high-flown, high-bred personage might be— for
besides being an angel he was evidently a gentleman — I could
not exactly divine ; and for several minutes I had been thinking
it over and over, or rather round and round, as I descended
towards the earth, when, on reaching the bottom, I perceived
before me — no doubt he had purposely placed himself in that
position — the man in the handsome cocked hat, who had charge
of the column. Taking off my humble round one to him, and
at the same moraent slipping something into his hand, I asked
him what the magnificent statue " en or," * which I had just
been admiring, represented?
" Monsieur !" said he, with an extended hand and with a
dignified smile, " c'est le Genie de la Liberte ! "f which, I sup-
* In gold. \ Sir, it is the geniua of Liberty.

52 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
pose, said I to myself, as I very slowly walked away, must
surely mean — " her Ladyship's present husband."

HORSE ESTABLISHMENT.
I WAS on the point of asking an idle man, who, like myself,
was mooning about the Place de la Concorde, where I should
be likely to find a fiacre, when I observed one instinctively
driving towards me. It was one of those little rickety, loose-
jointed quadrirotal or four-wheeled buggies, — with a head,
apron, and small driving-box in front containing a coachman in
a black glazed hat, and blue jacket ornamented with a bright
silver plaquet, — which are obliged to go anywhere within the
wide world of Paris for 22 sous.
" A la Barriere de Charenton !" said I to the driver, who,
without making any other answer than a nod, leant back
wards, and, putting into my hand a little card of the size and
with the inscription as here given, we
all jogged on at the rate of about four
miles an hour. The horse, for fear of
A/LA. the whip, did not dare to walk, and
would not trot any faster without
breaking into a canter, which was con
trary to law ; it was evidently useless,
therefore, to say a word on the subject.
However, it was a beautiful day, and as
all I wanted was to be permitted now and then to look about
me, and now and then to think a little, the horse, vehicle,
and driver suited me exactly. I was now in one of the
worst parts of Paris, and it was impossible to help observing
that almost every time the horse nodded his head, as if, by
order of the police, he were counting the number of steps he
took, the prospect on each side of me became a little more
gloomy. The houses became frailer, the lime appeared
gradually to be changing into mud, slates into tiles, iron
* Keep thia uumber in case of a complaint.

Conserver ce numero en
cas de reclamation.*

HORSR ESTABLISHMENT. 53
ornamental lamp-posts into plain wooden gibbets, with out
stretched horizontal arms about four feet long, at the ex
tremity of which, swinging in the wind, hung an inferior de
scription of lamp. In looking at them I could hardly help
shuddering, so clearly ^did they explain to me the horrid
meaning of the cry, "A la lanterne!"* which had been the
death-warrant of so many thousands of people. Indeed, if I
had never heard of such a ory, it would have been impossible
for me to have driven by all these gibbets without noticing
their ghastly appearanoe.
As soon as we arrived within about fifty yards of the
point I had mentioned, the driver pulled gently at his reins,
the horse very readily stopped — in fact, we all stopped.
Leaning towards the driver, I paid him 22 sous ; but instead
of two more "pour boire "t — the customary gratification — I
gave him five, for which he expressed himself exceedingly
grateful ; and I was thinking how very little gratitude, friend
ship, or good fellowship one could buy in London for three
halfpence, when I observed a douanier glance very scrupu
lously at my pockets, while at the same moment his com
panion, opening the lid, peeped into a small basket in the
hands of a poor woman walking beside me. In short, we
were passing the Barriere de Charenton, at which — as at all
others around Paris — the officers of the octroi examine every
thing that enters or goes out of the metropolis.
On inquiry I found that the great stables of the omnibus
company I had come to visit were within a hundred yards,
and as soon as I reached them I delivered to the chief of the
establishment the note of introduction in my favour which M.
Denault, near the Barriere of the Etoile, had been so obliging
as to give to me.
'• Vous etes Anglais, Monsieur ? \ said he, with a very
friendly smile, as if an answer in the affirmative would be, as
it evidently proved, pleasing to him. He then, with the ut
most kindness, took me over every portion of his establish
ment : his stables, infirmary, forges, supplies of water, and
storehouses of corn, hay and straw.
As it would be tedious to the generality of my readers
* Away with him to the lamp-post! \ Drink-money.
\ Ai-e you an Englishman, Sir %

54 A FAGGOI OF FRENCH STICKS.
were I to repeat the details I witnessed, but which to me
were highly interesting, I will briefly state that, of 263
horses under his care, 200 were males, there not being a
single mare within the building ; that the stables, instead of
containing, as at the Barriere de I'Etoile, only 20 horses,
held each from 40 to 50 ; that they were well ventilated ;
that the horses were separated in couples by swinging bails ;
that they were fed together in pairs with oats five times
a-day ; that at night they had as much hay as they could eat,
with straw in the day "pour s'amuser;"* that each horse
usually worked from 15 to 16 miles per day (the horses of
the Paddington omnibuses, at greater speed, go only eleven
miles per day); that one man was required to look after
eight, and also to clean their harness ; and that by other men
the carriages were washed every day. Lastly, that the sums
paid by each passenger are as follows : — between any points
within the barriers of Paris, 6 sous, with four additional if
taken to places beyond the barriers. On Sundays the
latter charge of 4 is increased to 6, the former charge remain
ing the same.
The establishment at the Barriere de Charenton in all
main points was very creditably kept. On the whole, how
ever, the horses were inferior to those working at the west
end ; indeed, although their health and comforts were essen
tially attended to, the locality seemed to authorize less
attention to outward appearances.
While I was looking at the stud, I asked the chief super
intendent what became of the company's horses — as they did
not sell them — when no longer capable of public service ; and
as he gave me the same answer I had received from M.
Denault, namely, that they were usually sent to the horse-
slaughterers, called " equarrisseurs," at a considerable distance
in the Plaine des Vertus, I begged he would give me a note
of introduction, that I might ascertain what was the real
conclusion of their career. He readily complied with my
request, and accordingly, after thanking him for his great
kindness, I managed to find another four-wheeled carriage,
in which I drove off.
* To amuse themselves with.

TEE EQUARRISSEUR. 55

THE fiQUARRISSEUR.
As we proceeded, the houses of the environs of Paris very
soon began to turn into small habitations, dead walls, and at
last altogether to die away. The road also appeared gradu
ally to be losing its senses, and to stagger as if it had no idea
at all where it was going to ; and as I also was destitute of any
knowledge on the subject, I remained passive, excepting now
and then when, in going over lumps of loose stones, which ap
peared exceedingly disposed to upset us, I deemed it neces
sary with extended arms to hold on to eaoh side of the car
riage. In about half an hour we drove through a temporary
passage in the masonry of the escarp of the line of fortifica
tions which surrounds the metropolis ; and here, for a few mi
nutes, I descended from the carriage.
The fortified line of enceinte round Paris, which has caused
so much observation and discussion, is composed of a rampart,
ditch, oovered berm (broad enough to be manned by skir
mishers, or riflemen), and raised glacis, as accurately as I
could measure them — which any person is allowed to do — of
the following dimensions : — Feet.
Height of the raasonry of the escarp, above
which is an earthen parapet . . 33
Breadth of the ditch from 55 to ¦ . 160
Height of crest of glacis above the bottom of
the ditch  26
The masonry of the escarp is so well covered in front that
it would evidently be impossible to breach it from a distance ;
and the enceinte, being a bastioned line, is in every part tho
roughly well flanked ; besides which its extent is so great that,
practically speaking, it possesses almost the advantage of be
ing a straight interminable front, which, of course, would pre
vent an enemy from enveloping its works for the purpose of
enfilading them.
The counterscarp has not been riveted ; and thus not only
has a great expense been saved, but, as the army of defence

56 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
would always be on a very large scale, the slope upwards to the
covered berm and crest of the glacis would enable columns of
troops of 10,000 or 20,000 men to make sorties on extended
fronts from the ditch, which would again afford them most
easy and convenient shelter if repulsed. The passage through
the enceinte for the highroads (similar to that in which my
carriage was standing) would, of course, have proper gates,
barriers, and loopholed defences applied whenever there ap
peared any probability of their being required, and at the
same time the works would be armed.
The fortifying of Paris is generally acknowledged to have
been a very judicious measure, and in this opinion I quite
concur. Wars will hereafter be more likely to be made by coali
tions than formerly, and France more than any other country
likely to be attacked by a powerful coalition. The armies of
the Continent of Europe are much larger than they used to
be ; and from these facts combined it is undeniable that
France may be assailed by 400,000 or 500,000 men at once.
Under such circumstances the old lines of frontier-fortresses
would not, as they were intended, afford the resource of check
ing the enemy at the threshold for months, because he would
have forces enough to mask or watch them, as also his com
munications, and to make a dash at the capital with 100,000
or 150,000 troops, as was done in 1814, and again after Wa
terloo, and as, on similar principles of his own originating,
Napoleon did in 1809 and 1812, &c.
Besides this, the frontiers of France, by the peace of 1815,
have been left comparatively open, as regards the covering by
fortresses, and thus all the studies and labours of Vauban,
Louis XIV., and Bonaparte, have been completely annulled.
If Paris, therefore, could be made defensible, so as to
afford time, before it were taken, to give to the government a
chance of re-organising new armies, and of then acting upon
the more extended lines of operations of the invader, it wpuld
more than replace the advantages of the frontier-fortresses, in
asmuch as the movements against it would be much more diffi
cult to support, and consequently much more dangerous to
attempt. The practicability of giving to Paris sufficient defensive
powers depends upon two things : —

THE EQUARRISSEUR. 57
1st, On its fortifications being compact, and with ground
around them favourable in form, and in freedom from build
ings, enclosures, &c.
All which are peculiarly the case at Paris.
2nd, On the constant presence of a garrison sufficient in
numbers and quality, without trenching upon the strength of
the regular army for thc field, —
Which is found in the hundreds of thousands of National
Guards, who, under a certain military organization, are well
armed, equipped, and accustomed to turn out and take ordina-
nary military duties ; and although they would be very infe
rior as a manoeuvring army in the field, yet backed by all the
resources of Paris and the greater part of the population, in
cluding the Ecole Polytechnique and ilives of all sorts, who,
for some unaccountable reason, in battles in Paris always
seem to take the lead — they would form an excellent garrison .
in a fortress.
In France all military men seem to agree in the propriety
of fortifying Paris, and the details of the execution of the
" enceinte continu^'' are certainly extremely well adapted to
the circumstances and object. The main foundation is laid,
and seems to be carefully maintained ; the filling up, by
planting artillery, fixing a few barrier-gates and palisadings,
and establishing some outworks in earth, would be readily
added where most required, and the whole would b ethen most
formidable. The only discussion of any importance has been against
the detached forts ; and that has been raised by the ultra-
republican party entirely on political grounds. They foresee
that these forts would act as citadels to repress popular insur
rections. This they would certainly help to do, —
1st, By securing arms, ammunition, and military means,
&c.,-from the insurgents.
2ndly, By keeping the troops separated from the people.
3rdly, By placing small numbers i nsecurity to hold posi
tions, containing prisons for safely guarding political offend
ers, &c. These advantages the Red Republicans, of course,
deprecate ; but, constitutionally speaking, ought the stability
of even a Republican government to exist at the mercy of any
sudden popular effurt, founded, perhaps, on a delusion or fal
lacy, and always leading to absolute anarchy ? And, again,
3*

58 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
could these forts really impede any well-considered reform
that the public generally desired ?
The ultra party, in their efforts to gain their point, have
endeavoured to show that the detached forts of Paris have
been constructed on faulty principles, even as a means of de
fence against a foreign enemy ; but I believe it is generally
admitted they are decidedly wrong ; for there cannot be a
doubt but that, when considered only in a military point of view,
they would afford a very important support to the lines of
circumvallation around Paris, besides forcing an enemy to
keep at a greater distance, and to extend to a greater degree
his communications.It would no doubt be necessary that these detached forts
should be garrisoned by good troops ; still they need not be
all from the most efficient regulars ; invalides, pensioners, gend-
. armes, and other old soldiers, who must always be in Paris,
might form the bulk of them, the remainder being composed
of the National Guard.
With respect to the continued lines — " enceinte continue"
— around Paris, it may be said that even the large body of
National Guards would not be sufficient fully to man their
numerous bastions, &c,, &c. ; but it must be recollected that
Paris could not in such a case by possibility be attacked, or
even threatened, all round- I* could only be attacked or se
riously threatened by a very large force ; and such a one
could not be moved round by stealth, but would require days
to be transported from one side to another, while the garrison
would make counter-movements in hours ; therefore at least
two-thirds or three-fourths of the garrison would be on the
sides liable to be attacked.
There exists, however, one consideration that would, of
course, affect the whole question of the permanency of the
organization of that National Guard on which the whole de
fence depends.
The army, and the ultra advocates for order and for a
strong government, under the plea that the National Guard
has been the pivot on which all the popular movements have
turned, would be very desirous of disbanding and abolishing
it, but it may be presumed they are little likely to succeed.
On passing through the cutting, the magnificent plain be
fore me appeared not only admirably adapted for the purposes

THE EQUARRISSEUR. 59
of war but for the blessings of peace : a more perfect level of
rich land can scarcely be beheld ; indeed, the verdure was al
most too luxuriant.
My enjoyment, however, of this scene was somewhat in
terrupted by the driver stopping the carriage at a point where
the road on which we travelled branched into two crooked
paths, first at one of which, and then at the other, he kept
turning his face, evidently showing he did not know which to
gelect. As, however, on that on the left I perceived a man
approaching us on horseback, I desired him to drive along it,
and when we met our fellow traveller I learned from him with
much pleasure (to the driver, who was employed by the hour,
it probably did not so much matter) that we were not only
" all right," but with his hand he pointed out to us, at a con
siderable distance, some low buildings containing the chim
ney of a steam-engine, and surrounded by a wall, which he
informed me was the place I was seeking.
On reaching the great entrance gate, I perceived, seated on
the ground, four or five exceedingly pretty children ; and on
the driver ringing the bell, there came out and up to me a
young woman, whose clean appearance and pleasing counten
ance I certainly had not expected to find within so solitary,
and, from the ideas connected with it, so gloomy an abode. On
receiving my note she said she would go and look for the su
perintendent ; in the meanwhile, as she begged I would walk
in, I entered the gate, and turning to the right, proceeded by
myself about fifty yards, until I oame to a scene that arrested
me. Before me was a mass of about 50 yards of motionless
and moving substances. The former were the carcases of
horses, at the furthermost end in their hides, — nearer just
skinned, — nearer still headless, — and close to me divided into
limbs. Among this mass of skulls, bones, limbs, and dull
flabby skins, stooping and standing in various attitudes, were
the men who were performing these various operations ; and
as, in point of colour, their dresses assimilated with their
work, it was, as I have stated, difficult at the first glance to
discover the living from the dead.
In front of this strange scene, and immediately before mo,
were two rather ill-looking men with mustachios and beards,
each employed at a separate stone table in skinning a dead
dog.

60 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
" What ! do you kill dogs here ?" said I, addressing myself
to these men.
" Oh oui !" said the worst-looking of them, " toute sorte
d'animaux !" * and, after a pause, without once having raised
his eyes to look at me, he added, as he sliced away, " mdme
d'humains !" f
It was the only unpolite answer I received in France, and,
as I knew pretty well how to deal with it, I said very gravely,
" Et les femmes, vous les tuez aussi ?" J
The man instantly stopped skinning,— loooked up,— grinned,
— his comrade grinned too, — and we were all friends. They
informed me that the dogs they were skinning had been sent
by the police of Paris, who take summary possession of any
that, especially in hot weather, are found wandering about
without masters.
Although the scene before me was undeniably a strange
one, it was neither what I cared for nor what I had come for ;
and, as it was the condition of the poor living horses, and not
the disposition of the carcases or bones of dead ones, for whioh
I felt any interest, I asked the man who had given me the
sulky answer if he would do me the favour to conduct me over
the establishment, whioh, no doubt with the knowledge that I
was " Anglais," ^ he readily consented to do. Accordingly, at
my request, he led me to a portion of the yard about fifty
yards off, where I found standing, tied up to a strong rail, the
three horses next to be slaughtered. The hair of their manes
and tails was cut close off; at a slight glance at their flanks I
at once saw, however, all I was anxious to ascertain, namely,
that they were full of food. What were their disorders, of
lungs or limbs, whether they were broken-winded or incurably
lame, were facts I did not care to investigate ; but there is
something so revolting in the idea of allowing a poor horse, —
our willing servant of all work, — to suffer in his last moments
from the pangs of hunger, that, considering the lonely spot in
which we stood, I own I felt relieved as well as rejoiced to see
what I have described. The man informed me that, under the
supervision of an agent of police, who resides in the establish-
* Oh yea I all sorts of animals.
-|- Human beings as well.
X And women, do you kill them too f
§ An Englishman.

THE POOR OF PARIS. 61
ment — which had been constructed by a company, and which
iu thirty-one years will belong to Paris — the animals sent to
be slaughtered are, except under particular circumstances, not
allowed to be kept alive above twenty-four hours ; indeed, they
are generally killed on the day of their arrival. That, during
the time they are alive, horses, cows, and bullocks, receive one
" botte" of hay per day ; asses and mules, half a " botte."
That dogs and cats are usually killed by the police, and sent
merely to be skinned.
A few yards off on my right was a large heap of horses'
feet, and, as I observed most of them had shoes on, I inquired
the reason. " Ah I" said the man, very gravely, " c'est qu'ils
ont appartenu a des personnes qui ne s'amusent pas a les d6-
ferrer." *
He then conducted me to a covered building, where the
bodies of the horses are boiled, and in which are steam presses,
to extract " I'huile de cheval," f after which is made Prussian
blue, the residue being sold as manure ; in the adjacent
building there stood a number of casks full of the oil ex
tracted.

THE POOR OF PARIS.
In France so much has been said and sung, so much written
in ink and in blood, about liberty, fraternity, and equality, that
on my arrival at Paris I might have expected to find that the
innumerable gradations into which society in England and
elsewhere is divided had been swept away- ; that in the French
metropolis wealth had no mountains, poverty no valleys, but
that the whole family of mankind were living together on a
" pays bas," — on one common level. The first hatter's shop I
came to, however, very clearly explained to me that the advo
cates of "equality" have preached infinitely more than they
have practised.
In one window, in the Rue St. Honore, and within a hun-
* Ah ! it is because they belonged to people who did not care about
(literally, " who did not amuse themselves by") taking the shoes off.
f Horse oil

62 -^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
dred yards of my lodging, I beheld, the very first morning I
left it, citizens' hats of various prices ; cocked hats, helmets,
and shakos, of various grades ; and, finally, servants' hats,
finer, if possible, than all. Several had not only bands of
broad silver or gold lace, but either the edges were broadly
trimmed with the same costly material, or the hat was orna
mented with four rich silver cords from brim to crown, termi
nating in a fine gilt button. There were, also, for the pos
tilions of the republic, jockey caps of superfine blue cloth,
ornamented by a broad silver band, containing a gold stripe in
the centre.
In the principal streets, and especially in the Avenue of
the Champs Elysees, are to be seen, during the hours of fash
ionable resort, every description of carriage, from four-in-isand
chariots, and barouches, driven by coachmen in wigs with two
tiers of curls, and bearing coronets of different ranks, down
to the citadine containing a whole family, who have probably
hired it to enjoy the luxury of an hour's drive.
In rumbles behind I often saw two footmen in splendid
liveries, with bouquets of flowers in their breasts, sitting " a
I'Anglaise," in mute silence, with folded arms, terminating in
milk-white gloves.
On nearly every barouche-box is to bc seen, beside the coach
man, a servant, more or less gaudy, in a similar attitude — the fa
vourite folly of the day. As these carriages, following each
other in line, parade or vibrate from one end of the avenue to
the other, " down the middle and up again," they pass or are
passed by equestrians in every known costume. Some are
so padded and stuffed, — so ornamented with fine frills in their
bosoms and beautiful flowers at their breasts, — have such little
feet and such small fingers, — in short, are altogether so fashiona
bly dressed, that one hardly knows whether they are big girls or
great men. Some are dressed as " cavaliers," in complete rid
ing costume, others in shooting coats, a few in uniform, many
in blouses. On the boulevards are to be seen at all times, and especially
in hot weather, enormous crowds of people seated on chairs, or
slowly lounging about, apparently with no business to perform,
or other object to look forward to than to get rid of sultry wea
ther, by means of little cups of coffee, little glasses of brandy,
tobacco-smoke, and repose. Of this crowd a proportion are

TEE POOR OF PARIS. 63
men who, having nourished no natural attachments, have sold
the patrimony they inherited for a sinall annuity, and, like the
candles at a Dutch auction, are living it out Among the
mass aro a vast number of people who, according to the cus
tom of Paris, have got off their two or three children — not one
half of the mothers suckle their own infants — by sending them,
as soon as they have become three or four years old, for eight
or ten years to " pensions " in the country, where, entirely
weaned from parental solicitude, they naturally become all so
cialists. In Paris a very large number of poor people associate as
man and wife without being married ; and what is particularly
deraoralizing to the community, the generality of them live
together very happily.
Now, although all these various grades of society and dif
ferent raodes of existence form a striking contrast to the
words •¦ Liberty, Fraternity, and Equality," which on every
public building, and on most of the churches of Paris, are to
be seen inscribed in the coarsest, cheapest description of black
paint, so bad that it must evidently in a very few years peel
off, crack off, or by rain or revolutions be washed off; yet, ia
she midst of varnished carriages with coronets, equestrians,
pedestrians, chairs, little tables, coffee, brandy, and tobacco-
smoke, I was constantly asking myself this important question,
"Where are the poor?"
Now, it so happened that the same question had been in
truding itself on the mind of Lord Ashley ; and as, in reply
to his philanthropic inquiries on the subject Dr. M'Carty,
physician to the British Erabassy at Paris, a gentleman of
great ability and intelligence, had offered to conduct him to a
few of the very worst and poorest parts of Paris, I gladly
availed myself of Lord Ashley's kind invitation that I should
accompany him. Accordingly, meeting by appointment at
Meurice's hotel, his lordship, Dr. M'Carty, and myself, one af
ter another, walked up the crazy steps ofa "voiture de place,"
at the window of which, as soon as we were all seated, there
appeared, in the form of a note of interrogation, the hat, face,
neckcloth, and waistcoat of the driver.
" Au Marche des Patriarches,"* replied Dr. M'Carty, lean
ing towards him. * To the Market of the Patriarchs!

64 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
" Bien, Monsieur !"* said our conductor, and then, mount.
ing his box, he rumbled us along the magnificent Rue de Riv.
oli, aoross the Place du Louvre, close to the beautiful Gardens
of the Luxembourg, and at last into the Rue d'Bnfer.f Said
I to myself, as I read its name at the corner of the street,
" This looks something like business," From thence we pro
ceeded along several clean streets, until Dr. M'Carty observed
to us that we were approaching our object The words, how
ever, were hardly out of his mouth before we rattled by a nice
small plot of open ground, covered with trees. I was so anx
ious to arrive at zero, that, strange to say, I felt quite disap
pointed at the fresh air which these trees seemed to enjoy, and
at the cool agreeable shade they created ; and I had not re
covered from this feeling when the carriage stopped, the driver
opened the door, and we one by one got out. As we stood to
gether in a group, I fancied we all looked a trifle smarter in
our dress, and that the watch-chains in some of our waistcoat
pockets glittered a little more, than when we had entered the
voiture de place ; but as no change could have come over us,
the difference must have proceeded from our being now in a
part of the city of inferior architecture, inhabited by people
whose dress at once proclaimed them to belong to an infinitely
less opulent portion of the community. Still everything
and everybody I saw were neat ; the caps of the women,
whether walking in the streets, standing at their doors, or
within their shops, were fresh and white. The shirts ol
the men were, considering it was Friday, very clean too ;
but as we followed Dr, M'Carty, what struck me most was,
that every man, woman, and child we met was habited in a
national costume, expressive of his — I must not in a republic
say rank, bilt — . . avocation. The gold ear-rings, particular-
shaped cap, or handkerchief twisted round the head, was
something that the wearer seemed not only authorised to carry,
but proud to call her own. No doubt these deceitful orna
ments often bloomed over an aching heart, and a faint stomach;
and there might, therefore, I felt, exist misery, which, as a
passing stranger, I might be incompetent to analyse, and con
sequently unable to detect.
Before, however, coming to any conclusion on the subject,
I must observe that there existed before my eyes a difference,
* Good, Sir ! f Hell Street

THE POOR OF PARIS. 65
if possible, still more remarkable, and which in a comparison
between the poorest parts of Paris and London cannot with
fairness be overlooked. In London, and even in England,
people accustomed from their infancy to that moist healthy
climate which gives verdure to animal life, red and white roses
to the cheeks of our peasantry and to those of their lovely
children, are really not aware that, under all circumstances,
and at all periods of the year, they are living, in the country
in a mist, and in London in an atmosphere of smoke, of more
or less density. It is true, often in the country, and even in
the metropolis, we have bright sunshiny days, in which we talk
of the air being beautifully clear ; but between the air of Eng
land and of Paris there is as muoh difference in clearness as
between the colour of the water in the straits between Dover
and Calais and that of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, in
which the blue sky of heaven appears to be reflected.
But not only does the air of Paris possess a clearness I
have never seen exceeded, or scarcely equalled, in any other
portion of the globe, but, from the absence of mist and smoke,
it is enabled to receive, and it evidently do^s contain, infinitely
more light than can possibly find room to exist in the moist
" half and half" air and water atmosphere of England. In
the broad streets, in the great squares, and especially from the
gritty asphalt pavement of the Place de Concorde, the rever
beration of a superabundance of light generates green goggles
for old eyes, crows' feet around middle-aged ones, and for a
few moments lowering eyebrows, even above young ones. But
it is in the poorest parts of Paris this remarkable amount of
light, of dryness, and of clearness of the atmosphere, are
most striking. Indeed, as I followed Dr M'Carty, I remark
ed in every street we entered, that, as far as the eye could
reach, there was apparently no difference whatever between
the clear, clean air on the pavement and that of the heavens
over our head. Every distant moving object, every carriage,
every horse, every man, every woman, every child, every dog,
and every cat that, chased by the dog, scampered across the
street, was as clearly visible as if it had passed close to 'us. In
fact, the air was so clear that distance appeared unable, as in
England, to dissolve the interesting picture which every street
and alley we entered brought to view.
As in the case of the difference of dress, it must, however,

66 -^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
be considered that, although the clearness I havc described
gives a charm, a cheerfulness, and a transcendent beauty to
the streets of Paris, there may, and I believe there does, lie
lurking within it an amount of impurity which, although it be
invisible, renders Paris, on the whole, infinitely less healthy
than London. Without tracing the various bad smells which
proceed from almost every floor of almost every house to their
impure sources, it is evident that in the aggregate they must
contaminate although they do not discolour ; and it is no
doubt for this reason — from. the continued prevalence of this
invisible agent — in fact, from inferior sanitary arrangements,
and especially from defective drainage — that,
While the comparative mortality of the population of Lon
don, exceeding two millions, is 25 per cent., the mortality of
the population of Paris, rather less than one million, is 3 3
per cent.
Again, while the ravages of the cholera in London were in
the proportion of 14-601 per cent., in Paris they were 15- 196
per cent.
The total average deaths in Paris are from 28,000 to
30,000 annually, which, on a population of 900,000, gives
about 1 in 30.
The deaths in London, varying from 1 in 28 in White
chapel to 1 in 56 in Hackney, average for the whole popula
tion 1 in 42 ; that is to say, about one-fourth less than at Pa
ris : and thus, from inferior sanitary arrangements, there die
annually in clear bright Paris about 7000 persons more than,
out of the same amount of population, die in smoky London.
But although I summoned these statistics into my mind
to prevent it being led astray by appearances which might be
deceitful, yet I must own it was my impression, and I believe
that of Lord Ashley, that the poverty We had come to witness
bore no comparison whatever to that recklessness of personal
appearance, that abject wretchedness, that squalid misery,
whioh — dressed in the cast-off tattered garments of our aris
tocracy and wealthy classes, and in clothes perforated with
holes not to be seen among the most savage tribes — Ireland
annually pours out upon England, and which, in the crowded
courts and alleys of London I have so often visited, produce
among our own people, as it were by infection which no moral
remedy has yet been able to cure, scenes not only revolting as

THE POOR OF PARIS. 67
vpell as discreditable to human nature, but whioh are to be
witnessed in no other portion, civilized or uncivilized, of the
globe. As we were anxious to get into the interior of some of the
poorest of the houses around us, we entered the shop of a cob
bler, who as usual " liv'd in a stall,
Which served him for parlour, kitchen, and all."
The poor fellow was not only very indigent, but evidently did
not like " rich aristocrats," which our dress, to his mind, pro
claimed us to be. — How little did he know that the arch-aris
tocrat of the party before him was an English nobleman, who,
regardless of the allurements of rank and station, had laboured
during nearly his whole life to ameliorate the condition of
those beneath him ! — Accordingly, as he sat hammering away,
he gave to our questions very short answers, i He was in fact a
true republican : still, however, although he wanted exceed
ingly to get rid of us, he did not use towards us a word ap
proaching to incivility ; and I moreover observed that, what
ever might be his poverty or his principles, he wore a clean
shirt, and was otherwise decently dressed.
In passing along the next street, we entered a very large
house, in which we perceived a great congregation of women,
all busily engaged, each at her tub, in washing. Over their
heads, and the steam that partially enveloped them, there hung
from a rafter a large tricolor flag, above which were inscribed
the words — " Vive la Republique."*
As our entrance naturally caused some little sensation, one
of our party endeavoured to allay it by telling a stout lady,
who had evidently the charge of the whole — what, under every
circumstance, is always the best — the truth ; namely, that we
had walked in to see her establishment.
" Voyez donc, Monsieur !" said the stout woman, waving
hcr right hand successively at all her assistants ; " il y a des
ieunes et des vieilles," After a short pause she added, " Vous
en trouverez qui sont jolies, Allez !"f
Their beauty, however, not being to Lord Ashley or any of
* The republic for ever !
f Look over it. Sir ; there are young and old. You wiU find among
them some that are pretty. Arrah 1

68 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
US a subject of what is called primary importance, we ventured
to make a few statistical inquiries : upon which the lady, evi
dently suspecting that our object must, in some way or other,
be hostile to the flag under which she presided, suddenly
became so exceedingly cautious, that, excepting seeing that
there were no very distressing signs of poverty in her estab
lishment — which, indeed, was all we desired to ascertain — we
could obtain nothing in answer to our queries but a repetition
of the words " Je n'en sais rien. Monsieur ! ca ne m'occupe
pas !"* and so we departed.
As in the locality in which we stood we had failed to
find any of those painful combinations of poverty and des
pair we had been led to expect. Dr. M'Carty was kind
enough to propose to go with us in search of them to another
district of Paris, commonly called, " la Petite Pologne." Here,
however, we found the general condition of the poorer classes
in no way worse than those we had just left. On entering a
large house, four stories high, running round a small, square,
hollow court, we ascertained that it contained rather more
than 500 lodgers, usually grouped together in families or in
little communities. In this barrack or warren, the rooms,
paved with bricks, were about 15 feet long, 10 feet broad,
and 8 feet high. We found them, generally speaking, clean
and well ventilated, but the charge for each chamber unfur
nished was six francs per month.
Dr. M'Carty now kindly proposed that we should return
to the rich west end of Paris, to the most miserable district
in that portion of the city. Here also we failed to meet with
anything that could be said to add opprobrium to poverty.
The inhabitants of the few houses we entered were, no doubt,
existing upon very feeble subsistence, but in every case they
appeared anxious to preserve polite manners, and to be clean
in their dress. In the Rue du Roche, No. 2, we entered a
lodging-house kept by a clean, pleasing-mannered woman, and
as all her lodgers were out at work, we walked over her es
tablishment. The rooms, which were about 8 feet ? inches
in height, contained — nearly touching each other — from
three to five double beds; for each ofwhich she charged 10
sous per night, being 5 sous, or 2^d. for each sleeper (in Lon-
* I know nothing about it, Sir ; it does not concem me !

JAROm DES PLANTES. 69
don the charge is usually id.). The woman told us that to
every bed she allowed clean sheets once a fortnight. Each
room had one window, and we found every one in the house
wide open.
Although Dr. M'Carty had now shown us the poorest de
scription of people of whose condition he was cognisant, I
have no doubt that an agent of the police could have led us
to scenes of greater misery than those I have described.

JARDIN DES PLANTES.
On coming out of the Boulevart de I'Hopital I found myself
close to the Jardin des Plantes, and as I had procured an or
dinary order of admission, whioh happened to be in my pock
et-book, I walked into it.
The politeness which distinguishes the French nation is
not only retailed by every citizen of Paris, but with a liber
ality which merits the admiration of the civilized world, is
administered wholesale by the French Government to every
stranger who visits their metropolis. For instance, the mag
nificent cabinets of comparative anatomy, the gallery of zoo
logy, the specimens contained in the mineralogical and geo
logical galleries of the Jardin des Plantes, are only open to
the citizens of Paris on Tuesdays and on Fridays ; whereas
any traveller, however humble his station, on application in
writing, or by merely producing his passport certifying that
he is a stranger in the land of a great nation, is, in addition
to the days mentioned, allowed free entrance on Mondays,
Thursdays, and Saturdays. On Wednesdays the collections
are closed for cleaning, and on Sundays no person is admit
ted. Dogs must always be muzzled, and, to prevent mischief,
they are not allowed in any instance to enter that portion of
the grounds in which the loose animals are kept. .
I had scarcely entered the gardens when I was accosted
by a short, active man of about fifty-five years of age, with a
brown face and an arched nose — it arched concavely, snout-
wise — who in a few words, very logically explained to me —

70 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
1st, That I was evidently a foreigner ;
2ndly, That being a foreigner I must necessarily be total
ly ignorant of the localities of the Jardin des Plantes ;
Srdly, that being ignorant I should be lost in the intrica
cies of its curiosities ;
4thly, That he was an authorised commissionaire ; in
short, that I knew nothing, he everything, and
Therefore that / should gain infinitely by putting my
self under his care.
The demonstration was so complete, that by the utterance
of "Allons done!"* I gruffly consummated the alliance he
proposed ; and the two syllables could not, I am sure, have
flown twenty yards, before I and the brown-faced man with
the arched nose were walking together rather vigorously
along a broad path, shaded by trees, towards the gallery of
zoology. I now discovered — -as in hasty love matches has but too
often proved to be the case — that my guide and I were un
happily missuited to each other, and the consequence was we
had at least six quarrels — or, to state the case more fairly, he
forced me to quarrel with him about half a dozen times — be
fore we had proceeded a hundred yards. The subject of our
dispute, which I submit to the unprejudiced judgment of the
reader, was as follows. I — looking upon the man as my
slave, and recollecting the American maxim " that every man
has an undoubted right to flog his own nigger,"— felt I was
authorised to put to him little questions as fast as each, one
after another, bubbled up in my mind ; but every time I at
tempted to do so, and before I had got out three words, he in
variably stopped me full butt by advising me to go and see
the animals and the labyrinth, for reasons which I, in return,
would not allow him to utter. In fact, just as a new member
in the House of Commons, who, having written out his maiden
speech, and learnt it by heart, cannot deliver himself of any
other, so had my guide only one way of showing me what he
thought I ought to see ; in fact, my ideas, whether first,
second, or third-class passengers, were all to run on his rails.
I told him I would not give a sou to see all the animals in
the world ; that I detested a labyrinth ; and as he began to
see I evidently disliked him too, and that I was seriouslv
* Get on then !

JARDIN DES PLANTES. 71
thinking of a divorce, he shrugged up his shoulders, and we
walked in silence towards the gallery of zoology, a plain build
ing of three stories high, 390 feet in length, into which I was
very glad to find that he, not being a stranger, was not allowed
to enter. The magnificent collection in the seven great apartments
of this establishment are classed according to the system of
Baron Cuvier. In the first room stands a marble statue of
Buffon, appropriately surrounded in this and also in the fol
lowing room by a complete collection of highly-varnished
turtles and tortoises of all sizes, little fishes and serpents in
bottles, enormous large ones suspended from the ceiling,
snakes in the corner, and aquatic birds of every possible descrip
tion in ail directions. In the third are congregated more than
2000 reptiles of 500 different sorts, divided into four great
families, namely, Cbelonians, commonly called tortoises ; Sau
rians, or lizards, comprehending crocodiles, &o. ; Ophidians,
or serpents ; and Batracians, vulgarly termed by the unini
tiated toads, frogs, &c. The fourth contains crustaceous spe
cies, comprehending brachyures, anomures, macroures, stoma-
podes, amphipodes, and xyphosures. The fifth is enlivened by
a great variety of stuffed apes, monkeys, ourang-outangs, and
chimpanzees. In the sixth are zoophytes, sponges, nautili,
and fossil shells. In the seventh is a beautiful statue in white
marble, by Dupaty, representing vivifying Nature, surrounded
by a quantity of stuffed goats, dogs, and llamas.
From this splendid collection I ascended by a staircase,
the walls of which — no doubt with a view to keep the pot of
the mind of visitors constantly boiling — have been appropri
ately hung with dolphins, seals, and other marine animals, to
the second story, composed of four vaulted rooms, in the first
of which are various speoies of mammalia, such as foxes, bears,
weasels, and kangaroos. The next room swarms with apes,
armadillos, bears, wolves, hyaenas, and ferrets. In the third,
a long gallery, intersected by four arches, contains, principally
in glass cases, upwards of 10,000 stuffed birds of 2500 differ
ent sorts, forming the most complete collection in Europe.
In the centre of rooms Nos. 2, 3, and 4, just described, are
arranged in glass cases a complete collection of polypterous
and apterous insects, also nests of termites, hornets, and
wasps, with specimens of the devastations effected in wood by

72 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
different species of worras ; likewise a numerous collection of
shells, mollusca, zoophytes, echini, &c.
On the ground-floor are two rooms full of duplicates of
zoophytes and .'peoimens preserved in spirits ; and in the
third mammiferous aniraals of the largest class, such as ele
phants, hippopotami, morses, rhinoceros, &c.
On the whole the gallery of zoology of the Jardin des
Plantes is estimated to contain upwards of 200,000 specimens
of the animal kingdom, among which are 2000 specimens of
mammalia, of nearly 500 different species, and 5000 speci
mens of fishes of about 2500 speoies ; besides which there is
a very complete variety of tubifores, madrepores, millepores,
corallines, and sponges.
While, with Galignani's guide-book in my hand, I was
hastily passing through the chambers I have detailed, now
stopping for a moment to look at a large specimen and then
at a little one, I could not help acknowledging how pleased
my guide — who had been trying in vain to allure me to the
living animals ofthe Garden — would be could he but witness
the feelings which, on very slippery boards, I experienced as
I walked between scales of serpents, shells of tortoises, skins
of animals, and the plumage of birds, whose bodies were all
gone, and whose joyous lives had long been extinct ; all had
been the captives of man ; all had died either by his hands,
or in his hands ; and although their variety was infinite, their
congregation astonishing, and the method of their arrange
ment most admirable, yet in point of beauty, every specimen
— whether of a poor bird with wings extended always in the
same attitude, of an animal with glass eyes and puffy legs,
of a gouty-looking fish immoveably floating in spirits of wine
— was but an unsightly mockery of the living creatures with
which it has pleased an Almighty Power to ornament and
animate that tiny speck of his creation on which we live.
On descending the slippery stairs into the fresh air, my
guide — who had been waiting at the door like a cat watching
for a mouse — instantly joined me, and probably having, like
myself, had time to reflect on the subject of our disputes, he
conducted me very obediently towards the point I had named,
without once reverting to the labyrinth or to the animals,
which I have no doubt, were still meandering and swarming
in his raind. Nevertheless, to every little question I was

JARDIN DES PLANTES. 73
about to put to him, he could not refrain from beginning to
give me a long answer before I had said three syllables ; and
his apprehension was so uncomfortably quick, and his reten
tion of speech so feeble, that I had become quite disgusted
with him, when, as we were walking together rather quickly,
he suddenly stopped.
On the ground ou my right, with her back against a row
of iron rails, was seated a poor woman with two children by
her side ; another, a little boy, had been playing with a ball ;
and it was because the child had thrown his ball between the
rails, out of his reach, and stood wistfully looking at it, that
my guide had stopped in the very middle of a question I was
asking him.
" Pardon, Monsieur !"* said he to me, leaning towards
me, and taking out of my left hand my umbrella, with which,
after a good deal of dexterous flshing, he managed to hook
out the lost ball. The child joyfully seized it.
" Qu'est-ce que vous allez dire a Monsieur?"! said his
mother to him.
" Merci, Monsieur !' | said the boy, looking my guide full
in the face, and slightly bowing to him. The man touched
his hat to the poor woman, and then walked on,
" Well !" said I to myself, " that scene is better worth
beholding than a varnished fish, or a stuffed monkey !" and
after witnessing it, and reflecting on it, somehow or other, I
quarrelled no more with my guide,
I had now been conducted, according to my desire, to the
Cabinet of Comparative Anatomy, which, by the unwearied
exertions of Baron Cuvier, by whom it was arranged, and
under whose direction most of the objects were prepared, has
become the richest and most valuable collection in Europe,
On entering the ground floor I gazed for some minutes
at an assortment of skeletons of whales, — of a variety of ma
rine animals,— and of a male morse, — brought by Captain
Parry from the Polar Regions ; then proceeding into the
next room, and afterwards up stairs, I found myself surrounded
by mummies, then by rows of human skulls phrenologically
arranged ; then appeared the skulls of various animals ; then
* Pardon rae. Sir !
f What are you going to say to tbe gentleman ?
\ Thank you, Sir,

74 -4 FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
a model of the human head, which, on being taken to pieces,
displayed all its anatomical secrets ; then a cast of the liuman
figure, denuded of its skin, cleverly developing the muscles ;
lastly, skulls and casts of great men, good men, and wicked
men. Among these curiosities I stood for some time looking
at a small group of skeletons, which had apparently been
collected for the purpose of displaying comparative specimens
of the different members of the nations of Europe.
There was the skeleton of an Italian, twenty-five years
of age ; of a Dutchman, aged forty ; of a " Flamand," sixty ;
of a Frenchman (no age stated) ; and, lastly, one above which
was written, — " Anglais,
Ag6 de 68 ans.
De I'Hospice de la Piti6.".*
I was looking at my countryman, who, poor fellow 1 had
it seemed ended his earthly career, whatever it might have
been, under the friendly but distant roof of a French hospi
tal — the yearly average number of patients in which is 10,750
—when I observed, written upon his skull, in pencil, the words
"Anghcus SuPEEBUa"-|-
In glancing at the row of skeletons before me, t had
naturally been so impressed with the truisms that in death
all men are equal, and that, although the bones before me had
never chanced to enter that grave in which, it is said, no dis
tinction exists, they were, at all events, now all alike, that it
had never for a moment entered into my head to make any
comparison between them. The words, however, in pencil,
involuntarily drew my attention to the subject, and I then
remarked, what any one who may hereafter visit this little
row of grim skeletons will instantly perceive, namely th»t in
the poor Englishman's chest there is, where his lungs and
heart had lived, room for a clean shirt, a couple of neckcloths
and half-a dozen pocket-handkerchiefs more than in the chpst
* An Englishman,
Aged 68 years,
From the Hospital of Pity.
¦|- The Proud Englishman.

JARDIN DES PLANTES. 75
of the Frenchman, Dutchman, Flamand, or Italian ; and
although I was very far from entertaining any desire to be
witty, and, above all, to abuse the privilege which by the
French nation had been so generously granted to me, I cer
tainly did feel that, as an English translation of the words in
pencil, " Anglicus Superbus," on the head of my poor country
man, who had died in an hospital, there might fairly be
inscribed " Uglt Customee ;"
for a more powerful frame I never beheld : indeed the breadth
between his chest and back-bone, as compared with his com
panions, is most remarkable.
Beside the group I have just described was a skeleton,
over whioh, by authority of the museum, was inscribed, —
" Squelette de Solyman,
Instruit mais tr^a fanatique,
Assassin de Kleber."*
In what may be called a chamber of horrors I perceived
the inside of an ourang outang. Also the interior of some
hens, showing the gradual formation of their eggs ; and as a
companion thereto, in a different portion of the room, were
specimens showing the comparative size of infants of various
ages. One of the most interesting objects I witnessed iu this
department of science was a distinct human form, looking as
if it had been spun by an immense spider. It was a repre
sentation of nothing but the heart, veins, and arteries of a
man. The whole secret of his life was here developed. The
course of his blood, rushing, flowing, ebbing back, creeping,
and crawling to and from every part of his system, was so
minutely detailed, that the momentary passing blush across
his cheek was clearly explained.
On a board suspended against one of the walls of this
room, T observed inscribed the following creditable appeal to
the good sense and good feeling of the French people : —
* The skeleton of Solyman,
Learned, but a great fanatic,
The assassin of Kleber.

76 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
" Ces collections, Propri6t& Nationales, sont raises sous la sauve-garde
des citoyens."* As I felt that I could manage to crawl about the garden,
or even occasionally to sit down and rest myself, without
assistance, on coming out of the museum I paid off my brown-
faced attendant to his entire satisfaction ; and having thus
thrown off my allegiance to him, I determined for about half
an hour to enjoy liberty, fraternity, and equality. I there
fore joined the crowd, and as every body seemed to be stroll
ing about, he or she knew not where or why, I very luxu
riously did the same. Sometimes I found myself in an
avenue of lime and chestnut trees ; — then in a large enclosure
forming the botanical garden, and called the school of
Botany ; — then in a nursery teeming with indigenous, exotic,
and perennial plants ; — then looking over the railings of a
sunk enclosure containing a beautiful assortment of flowering
shrubs ; — then, after wandering about, I saw within a few feet
on my right the bright eyes of a pair of beautiful antelopes,
in an enclosure entirely their own ; — then some very odd
sheep, that looked as if their grandfather had been a respect
able goat ; — then, with horns growing backwards, some buf
faloes ; — then a flock of llamas. Then I came to a poultry-
yard, in the middle of which stood a magnificent peacock,
with his tail spread so that every eye in it might look directly
at the sun ; around him were a wife and an only child, a
couple of cranes, some eccentric-looking geese, ducks, and
other water-fowl, from various quarters of the globe. In
another direction were some long-legged ostriches and a
cassowari. Then I passed a hexagonal building, with a projecting
pavilion from each side, surrounded by railings, in which
were a young rhinoceros, an Asiatic buffalo, a cabiai or
capybara from Brazil, and a brace of elephants, whose saga
cious minds, or rather trunks, were constantly occupied in
analysing the contents of a great number of little outstretched
hands, some of which contained a bit of orange-peel, — re
jected ; — ^half a bun, — accepted ; — the core and pips of an
* These collections, the Property of the Nation, are placed under the
protection of thc citizens.

JARDIN DES PLANTES. (f
apple, the rest of which a maidservant had eaten, — accepted ;
— &c. In one enclosure were some beautiful zebras ; in others
South American buffaloes, antelopes, gazelles, and bisons. In
the managerie, composed of two dens full of wild-beasts, were
hysenas, wolves, jackals, leopards, lions and lionesses, safely
secured by iron bars, through whioh a crowd of people of all
ages, in round hats, cocked hats, casquets, caps, bonnets, and
with mouths gaping or closed, are continually to be seen gaz
ing at the captives. The chief point of attraction, however —
I mean that whioh appeared to be best suited to all sorts and
conditions ^of men, women, and children, of senators, soldiers,
and clergy — was a substantial stone building, divided into a
number of little compartments, with a large circular playground
in front, covered with wirework, in which were to be seen wet-
nursing, cai-essing, squalling, quarrelling, gambolling, biting,
pinching, pulling, jumping, vaulting, swinging by their tail,
until tired by all these exertions they paused to rest and chat
ter, a large and complicated assortment of monkeys, daily al
lowed to enjoy sunshine and fresh air, and to hold a levee, un
til four o'clock, at whioh hour a couple of keepers with whips
drive them into their respective cells, the doors of which —
some not more than a foot square — shut them up for the re
mainder of the twenty-four hours, to ruminate on what they
have seen, and digest as well as they can what they have eaten.
After passing some very large, lazy, soft, flabby boa con
strictors under glass, and kept warm by blankets and hot air,
in short, looking altogether very muoh like highly respectable
aldermen after a civic feast, I came to a quantity of cages, con
taining all sorts of Roman or hook nosed birds of prey, from
the tiny sparrow-hawk up to the eagle, vulture, and, at last,
the great condor of South America, whose bald pate, bony legs,
and muscular frame, I had never before seen in captivity ;
among them I observed a dull, puny-looking, brown bird, with
a particularly weak beak, over whose head, as he stood moping
on his perch, was written — " surely," said I to myself, " by
some royalist " — " Aigle Vulgaire de Corse,"*
After strolling about some little time among a crowd of
* Common (vulgar) Eagle of Corsica.

78 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
people, who seemed to be as happy and as thoughtless as the
birds singing in the trees around them, I saw several persons
peeping over each other's shoulders at something beneath them,
and, on my peeping too, over the bonnets and beautiful rib
ands of a lady, if possible, as old as myself, I perceived that
the objects of their attention were some bears, in two or three
deep pits, separated from each other by high walls, of the
same altitude as those whioh surrounded them on the three
other sides. In one of these cells were two large brown trans
atlantic specimens, living with all that can conveniently be
granted to them to remind them of their distant homes ; and
thus, in the middle of the universe of their small paved court,
there has been placed a solitary pole, with iron bars instead of
branches, to represent the great forest of North America.
With these reminiscences before them they are perfectly at
liberty to roam as far and to climb as high as they can. One
of the captives, however, instead of doing either one or the
other, stood on his hind legs, searching for benevolent faces
that would give him apples, while, in the adjoining cell, a white
bear looked up most piteously as if begging only for — cold.
In another cell I observed poor Bruin cantering for exer
cise round his pit as steadily as if a horse-breaker had been
lounging him ; and yet I remarked that even he now and then
like Rasselas, looked upwards, evidently longing to be out.
Among those who, like myself, were intently watching these
poor captives, were two young fresh-coloured priests, in long
black gowns, tight over their chests and loose downwards,
three-cornered black hats, white bands, and white edges to their
stocks. As they stood directly opposite, I found I could not
conveniently raise my eyes from the animals without looking
at them, and whenever I did so, and reflected, poor fellows !
on the unnatural lives that had been chalked oivt for them, I
could not help feeling that, on the whole, the bears had the
best of it.
As I was retiring from the gardens in which, with so much
pleasure, I had been a loiterer, just as I passed the barrier
that contained the elephants the clock struck three. The sa
gacious creatures, who, resting first one huge fore leg and then
the other, had been as attentive to the crowd as the latter had
been to them, no sooner heard this signal than, turning their
short apologies for tails towards the public and republic, and

MESSAGERIE.-: GENERALES DE FRANCE. 7&
their heads towards their dormitories, they awaited with ap
parent impatience, — every now and then uttering a noise com
pounded of the cries of birds and beasts, — until in a few se
conds, the gates being thrown open, they walked in, and their
doors being then closed, and there being nothing to be seen
but the empty court in which they had stood, everybody, like
myself, walked away.

MESSAGERIES GENERALES DE FRANCE,*
I WAS returning through La Rue Grenelle St, Honore, when
I was suddenly induced to turn to my right, under the lofty
arch of a portecochere, over whioh was written in large letters
the four words above described, and, on walking into a spa
cious paved yard, there instantly flashed before my eyes the
yellow painted panels, bright scarlet borders, and black var
nished tops of a congregation of three-bodied carriages, each
divided into " coupe," " interieur," and " rotunde," surround
ed by cabriolets of various shapes. On looking round the
court, one of the most prominent objects in which was a large
clock, I saw, written in compartments on the wall, " Angle
terre," Amsterdam, Aix-la-Chapelle, Besanqon et Geneve, St.
Etienne et Clermont, Orleans, Tours, Saumur, Chateauroux,
Cherbourg, Caen, Brest, Rennes, The scene was one of
well-arranged confusion. While the cracking of whips as
sailed my ears, (the French postilions can, they say, crack,
sufficiently well to be recognised, any common tune,) I ob
served people diagonally hurrying across the yard, and across
each other, in all directions.
" Par ici, Madame, s'il vous plait !"t said a porter, stand
ing close to the horses of a diligence, all ready to start.
" Montez, Monsieur !":[: to a man, near him, carefully packed
up for travelling.
Behind the exalted cabriolets and on the roofs of several
* General Coaeh Office, <tc., of France.
f This way, Ma'am, if you please.
X Get in or up, Sir 1

80 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
diligences about to start was conspicuous a magazine or store
house of baggage, of the same height as, and of the whole length
of, the carriage. The horses, whose picturesque collars were
ornamented with bells, which at every moment slightly tinkled,
were standing in whity-brown harness, with narrow reins.
The driver or coachman of each vehicle was dressed in a
hairy cap, a blouse apparently much bleached by wind and
rain, and blue trowsers. The " conducteurs" in dark-cloth
coats, covered with black lace, black filligree work, black
frogs, and collars embroidered with silver. One had a soar-
let sash round his waist. Standing in the yard beside them,
were nearly a dozen women, some in white caps, some in
black ones, but almost all with baskets in their hands.
" Adieu !" said one.
" Bon voyage, ma mere ! !"* said another.
There were gentlemen with watch-chains of gold or silver
festooned across their waistcoats ; a dog vociferously barking
in French ; a miller, with a long beard all over flour ; yellow
hand-barrows wheeling portmanteaus, trunks, bandboxes, and
gaudy carpet-bags ; yellow one-horse baggage-carts, with
black canvass covers.
In the principal " bureau," or office, I observed men wri
ting, in beards, with faces the perspiration on which seemed
to say they might do very well without them.
At last, " Montez, Madame !" " Allons I " Clack ! . . .
clack I . clack ! . clack ! . . . clack ! When the huge
reeling mass, dragged by five horses in hand, first moved off,
it appeared impossible for the pair of humble little wheelers,
— who, without touching the pole, trotted before it like a
guard of honour, — ever to stop, or even to steer it out of the
yard. Nevertheless, clack ! clack I clack ! clack ! clack !
rolling and tossing like a great vessel just out of harbour, it
obeyed the helm ; and without the smallest difficulty — glori
ously rumbling along the pave as if it would shake the earth
to its foundation — worming its way out of the court, it pass
ed under the arch in triumph I
To each yellow baggage-cart, whose duty it is to despatch
throughout Paris the mass of parcels, &c,, continually arriv
ing " par diligence," is attached a " facteur," to deliver the
* A good journey to you, mother 1

THEATRE DES ANIMAUX SAUVAGES. §1
packages, and a sous-facteur to drive the horse. Both of
these birds of paradise are dressed in blue caps with silver
embroidery, blue jackets, silver buttons, scarlet collar, blue
trowsers, terminating in mock leather boots, sewed on to
them. In a similar dress, but a shade or two finer, stands the
"facteur du bureau,"* who enregisters the "voyageurs,"! and
eventually places, or, — in the case of an English travelling
family who don't understand French, — politely stuffs them
into their respective places.

THEATRE DES ANIMAUX SAUVAGES,
I WAS strolling along the Boulevart des Italiens, when I
observed on my left a number of people, without touching
each other, standing in procession as if following some hearse
that for a few moments had stopped. On looking, however,
at the head of the little line of march, I perceived it crowd
ing round a small hole about a foot square, into which they
were paying money and receiving tickets,
"What place is this, if yoii please?" said I to a gentle
man who was just passing.
" Monsieur," he replied, " c'est le theatre des animaux
sauvages," He proceeded politely to tell me it was very near the hour
at which the beasts were fed ; and as he added I should have
much pleasure in witnessing it. I obediently fell into the line
of respectable-looking people who were approaching the little
hole ; and on arriving at it, and stooping down my head to look
into it, I saw the bearded face of a grim-looking personage,
who asked me very quickly what ticket I would have, and, as
I was evidently perfectly unable to tell him, he kindly put the
proposition before me in another light — namely, " to which part
of the theatre did Monsieur wish to go?" As I had not tlie
least idea into how many compartments the portion allotted for
* Head of the Office. -I- Travellers.
:|; Sir it's the theatre of wild beasts.
4*

82

A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.

the spectators was divided, or what were their naraes, I was no
better off than before, so I was obliged to ask him the prices
of each ; and having selected, as an Englishman invariably
does, the most costly, he instantly gave me a card and some
large double sous in return for a small piece of silver I hardly
looked at, and do not know what it was. After proceeding
along a passage, I came to a man who with one hand received
my ticket and with the other pointed out the particular lane
I was to follow, and whioh conducted me into an open space or
" parterre," immediately in front of the cages of a quantity of
wild beasts ; on my right was a stout wooden painted partition,
about five feet high, above whioh, on benches slightly rising
one above another, were seated those who for 6d. and 3d. had
obtained cheaper tickets.
As I had purchased the privilege of walking abbut, I spent
nearly a quarter of an hour in looking — sometimes at two
elephants who, each chained by one foot to a platform, stood
see-sawing their huge bodies and slowly nodding their heads
and trunks, their little sharp eyes all the time looking out in
every direction for an extended hand with something white in
it ; — sometimes at a large rhinoceros, also on a platform, at
tended by an Arab in gaudy costume ; — and sometimes at a
series of cages in which were confined leopards, wolves, hyasnas
bears, tigers, lions, with a den swarming alive with monkeys,
swinging, chattering, fighting, squalling, screaming, and chasing
each other in all directions, save into one corner, in which sat
chained to the ground an immense, vindictive, desperate, blood
thirsty, red-republican looking chimpanzee. The monkeys
sometimes got into suoh a violent commotion that a lad, whose
principal duty it appeared consisted in beating them, opening
a little door, entered among them with a whip. For some time
he had been taking notes of their proceedings, and he now be
gan — with impartial justice — to flog them according to their
offences. The operation, whioh caused a great rush of the specta
tors in the " parterre" to the cage, was certainly not without its
effect, for the monkeys, as soon as it was over, sat for nearly a
minute without indulging in a single frolic, until, one happen
ing to give a jump over the back of a comrade below, whose
tail he most unfortunately twitched en passant, there revived,
as in important diplomatic disputes, first of all grimaces, then
a simultaneous display of innumerable sets of little white

THEATRE DES ANIMAUX SAUVAGES. 83
teeth, then chattering, and finally a declaration of general war,
which, as usual, in due time was succeeded by another peace.
As the seats in the theatre were now almost all oocupied, and
the parterre nearly half covered with spectators, the business
of the evening commenced by a young man, in a chanting
tone, — in which a great deal of magnificent emphasis was almost
invariably heaped upon the wrong words, — giving to the com
pany the history of each of the largest of the animals. As
soon as he had coucluded, the turbaned Arab, with hooked nose
and bright eyes, pointing with his sallow, lean, emaciated fore
finger at the rhinoceros, detailed in broken French the history
of his capture, of his embarkation, of his violent conduct on
board ship during a gale of wind, of his endeavours to break a
hole in the ship's side, and of the necessity therefore of sawing
off his horn. He showed his horn at three years old ; that
which had grown out of him at seven ; and approaching the huge
hairless creature, he then pointed to a stout stump about four
inches long, whioh, for safety's sake, was all he was now allowed
to possess. He had scarcely concluded, when the young man who
had described the other animals called out with a loud voice. —
" Charles va entrer dans le cage des leopards !"*
— towards which the people in the parterre iraraediately hur
ried. After a pause of about half a minute I heard three loud
startling taps at the back of the cage, as if there had been " a
message from the Lord's ;" then the drawing back of an iron
bolt ; at last a small low door opened, through which there ap
peared, stooping as he entered. " Charles," who, instantly as
suming an erect and rather theatrical attitude, stood in the
midst of the beasts whose den he had invaded. He was a tall,
thin, sinewy, handsome-looking man, with very black hair ; and
whether it was necessary for his protection, or whether it was
merely a pretence, I know not, but his first precaution was, by a
most extraordinary expression of his eyes, to look with them into
those of each of the beasts around him, who severally, one after
another, seemed to turn from his glance as if from fear, abhor
rence, or both. However, whatever were their feelings, Charles
very soon demonstrated that, in official language, " with senti
ments of the utmost respect, they had the honour to be his
most obedient, humble servants,"
With his right hand catching one by the skin of his neck,
* Chariea ia going into the cage of the leopards!

84 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
he pulled him, — pushed him, — shook his left fist at him,— .
caught him by one fore-leg, — ^jerked it upwards, cast him on
the ground, — and then, throwing himself upon him, leaning
his elbow on his captive's neck, resting his head on his hand,
and looking at the audience as if to say, —
" Now does not a leopard make a most easy chair ?" —
he received in acknowledgment a round of applause.
After subduing each of the leopards in a different way, he
began rather frantically to wave his arms : upon which first
one of them jumped over him, then another, until at last they
were seen running round and over him in all directions.
Charles, now looking to his right and then to his left, walked
slowly backwards until he reached the little door, which
opened, — allowed him to retire, — and then, as if with a sort
of " shut sesame" influence, apparently closed of its own
accord. After the audience in the parterres had in groups talked
it all over, and after a general buzz of conversation through
out the theatre — everybody within it appearing either to be
talking, sucking an orange, or munching a cake — a loud voice
again proclaimed, —
" Charles va entrer dans la cage des tigres.""*
The same three knocks, the same entering bend, the same
erect attitude, and the same extraordinary glare of his eyes,
accompanied by a corresponding grin with his teeth, formed
the prelude of operations, of which, as it would be tedious to
repeat them, I will only say that although it was evident
much greater circumspection was evinced, Charles succeeded
in drilling his captives with wonderful power into extraordi
nary obedience. They growled, roared, opened their mouths,
but, the moment he put his face against their beards, they
turned from him as if they had been suddenly converted into
bits of floating iron, and he into the repellant end of a power
ful magnet. After a third announcement, Charles entered the den of
five lions, who, as compared with the tigers, appeared to be
passionless ; indeed, one might have fancied them not only
to be beasts of burden rather than of prey, but that the bur
den they were especially intended to suljmit to was, — ^ill-
* Chariea is going into the cage of the tigera.

THEATRE DES ANIMAUX SAUVAGES. 85
treatment by man. The old shaggy father, or rather grand
father, of the family, seemed as if nothing could disturb his
equanimity. Charles shook his lean flabby cheeks, —
" for hia akin
Like a lady's loose gown hung about him,"
closed his eyes, forced them open, pulled at his long shaggy
mane with both hands. By main strength opening his wide
mouth, and disclosing long yellow tushes, blunted and distort
ed by age, he put his face to his great broad nose, rubbing
his mustachios against it as he kissed it ; then, again wrench
ing open his mouth, he slammed his jaws together with such
violence that we heard the hard teeth clash.
In a similar way Charles successively paid his addresses
to the lioness, who growled a good deal, and to the other lions,
who made a variety of noises, between a roar, a grumble, and
a snarl. He then drove them this way, that way, and all
sorts of ways ; pushing one with his foot, pulling another by
the tail, &c., &c. ; at last, going to one end of the cage and
calling to the old grandfather, he made signs to him to come
and lie down at his feet. The aged creature, who appeared
to be dead siok of this world, of everything it contained, and
especially of anything in it approaching to a joke, for some
time looked at him most unwillingly, turning his head away
as if to try and change the subject. At last, in obedience to
repeated movements, especially of Charles's eyes, he got up,
wormed his way between his wife or daughter-in-law, which
ever it was, and the rest of his fellow-captives, and with a
deep groan rolled over and lay motionless. Charles imme
diately set to work to arrange him as if he had been a corpse :
pushed his great head square, tucked in a huge fore-leg, ad
justed a hind one, put his long tail to rights, and when he
was completely parallel to the bars he ogled the lioness, who,
exceedingly unwillingly, at last came forward and lay down
with her head on the old lion's flank. When she also was
squared, Charles, with dumb signs, and without the utterance
of a single word, for he seemed to do his work almost entirely
by his eyes, insisted upon the remaining three lying down
one after another, each with his head upon the flank of the
last recumbent, in the way described. It took him a consid-

86 A FAGGOT GF FRENCE STICKS.
erable time to adjust them in a line, and, not satisfied with
this, he then, with considerable force, put the upper fore paw
of each over his bedfellow's neck, until they all formed one
long confused mass of yellow hair, upon which he lay down
" like a warrior taking his rest with his martial cloak around
him," His triumph was greeted with general approbation, I
could not, however, help feeling I was witnessing an exhibition
which no civilized country, most espeeially one like France,
teeming with brave men, ought to allow. 'To maltreat a pris
oner under any circumstances is ungenerous ; deliberately to
behave towards any living being with cruelty is discreditable ;
but when man, calling himself " the Lord of Creation," gifted
with reason, coolly, coldly, deliberately, and by slow but con
tinuous degrees, maltreats and tortures a wild animal distin
guished by his courage, and whose characteristic is ferocity, he
commits a crime, guilty in proportion to its success ; indeed,
a moment's reflection must surely convince any one how little
cause any congregation of civilized beings have to rejoice in
being able to demonstrate that, by a series of secret cruelties
and by long-protracted indignities, man may at last succeed
in subduing the courage, in cowing the spirit, in fact, in
breaking the heart of a captive lion ! and yet, incredible as it
may sound, the people of England, but a few years ago, flocked
in clouds to witness this unworthy triumph, little reflecting
that while they were applauding Van Amburgh, and while
they were cheering on English bulldogs to bite the ears aud
lacerate the jowl of a lion, apparently too noble to feel any
thing but astonishraent at the foul treatment to which he was
subjected, and which it is a well-known fact for a long time he
disdained to resent, not only the people but the royal arms of
England — "the lion and the unicorn fighting for the crown," —
were publicly dishonoured and disgraced ; for the French army
under Napoleon might just as well, during their march of tri
umph, have amused themselves by assembling in a theatre to
behold one of their countrymen pluck every feather from a
living eagle, whose figure decorated alike their standards and
their breasts, as a body of Englishmen publicly to torture that
noble monarch of wild-beasts — one of the heraldic supporters
of the British Crown !
But, under the beneficent dispensations of Providence, it

THEATRE DES ANIMAUX SAUVAGES. 87
usually happens that what is unbecoming for man to perform is
not only unwise but unprofitable. No one can phrenologically
look at the head of a tiger without perceiving that he is not
gifted with brains enough to govern his passions ; and although
a human being, boasting of reason, may with impunity succeed
for some time in putting his head into the mouth and between
the jaws of his victim, yet it is evident that, if anything should
suddenly inflame the heart of the beast, there does not exist
within his skull anything to counteract the catastrophe that
occasionally has happened, and which in barbarous exhibitions
of this sort is always liable to happen. For the preservation
therefore of human life, and, what is infinitely more valuable,
for the houour of huraan nature, it is to be hoped that the
nations of Europe will by proper regulations prevent ferocious
animals — properly enough exhibited as .specimens of their
race — from being treated, either in public or in private, with
that cruelty or indignity whioh there oan exist no doubt had
been previously necessary to make hyasnas, tigers, wolves, and
lions go through the mountebank feats I have desoribed.
However, '" revenons a nos moutons."*
Charles now appeared on the elephants' platform, in front
of whioh the occupiers of the parterre swarmed, and towards
whioh the eyes of the rows of heads arranged in tiers one over
another, were directed. As soon as the attendant had un
screwed the heavy chain just above the captive's foot, and
whioh appeared to have pinched him a good deal, the huge
creature walked up to Charles, and, as if determined — at all
events as regarded politeness — to instruct rather than be
instructed, with a wave of his trunk he took off Charles's hat
for him, and with it bowed profoundly in three directions, to
the ladies and gentlemen on his right, then to those on hia
left, and lastly to those immediately before him. In obedience
to his master's words of command he now lifted up one clumsy
gouty-looking leg. then another ; then one fore leg and one
hind ono, of opposite sides ; then one fore and hind leg of the
same side ; then the heavy animal, bowing with his trunk as
he began, danced — with the monkey as his partner — the polka
step, his kicking up behind —
" Old Joe kicking up behind and before.
And the yallar gall a kicking up behind old Joe !"
* To return to our subject

88 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
— causing great merriment, especially, it appeared, to all who
wore bonnets. He then, on a handful of mixed moneys being
thrown on the platform, obediently picked up all the gold, and
then all the silver, putting each piece into a box high above his
head, the lid of which, being closed, he was obliged always to
lift up. Lastly, he caused a sort of galvanic twitch more or
less strong among the spectators by flring off a large horse-
pistol. Tho garcon now brought in a small table, a large bell, and
a bell-rope, which he affixed close beneath the money-box, and
then lugged in a long single plank, one end of which he placed
on the table, the other end resting on the platform, close to
the entrance door bebind. As soon as these preparations were
adjusted, the elephant, with some dignity, pulled at the rope
and rang the bell, which had scarcely sounded when, from the
far corner of the platform, in tripped, dressed like a waiter, a
monkey on its hind legs, holding in both arms a tablecloth
and a huge napkin ; the fonner was .spread on the table, and
the latter was scarcely fixed round the elephant's neck, like a
pinafore, when he rang again, on which in trotted the monkey
with a plate of soup, which he delivered to Charles, who gave
it to the animal, whose proboscis in about three seconds suck
ed it all up. The elephant then instantly rang again, on which
the monkey brought him in both hands a large plate of cab
bage, the whole of which, extending his trunk and then tuck
ing it upwards, he put into his mouth. The laugh which this
single mouthful caused had not half subsided, when, the bell
having again rung, in trotted a dish of little cutlets, two or
three of which, while Charles's head was turned, the pilfering
monkey stuffed into his mouth, eyeing his master all the time
with a look of deep serious eunning which was very amusing.
The elephant took the plate, and at one movement turned all
the rest into his mouth.
On wine being brought to him by the monkey, he poured
some of it into a glass, drank it, and then, taking hold of the
black slippery bottle, and decanting almost the' whole of it
into his mouth, he gave it to his tiny attendant, who, as he
was running away with it, all of a sudden stopped in the middle
of the plank, then with his old-fashioned face looked over one
shoulder at Charles's back, and, greedily raising the bottle to
his mouth, he drained it to the very last drop ; lastly, with

THEATRE DES ANIMAUX SAUVAGES. 89
his tail protruding from his trowsers, he trotted off, and,
Charles's performances being over, he and the elephant re
spectfully bowed to the public.
The huge creature's supper having concluded, the last aot
of the entertainment was the feeding of the remainder of the
animals by the garqon-in-waiting, who began his work by
passing on his hands and knees through a small door that ad
mitted him, a stout short heavy whip, a can of milk, and a
basket of broken bread, into the large cage or caravansary
of the monkeys.
It would be exceedingly difficult accurately to describe the
excitement the appearance of all these things at once created.
Every captive began to chatter, and all the passions of men
and monkeys were exemplified in Babel confusion. There
appeared, — " First, Fear, his hand, its skUl to try '' —
if he could not pilfer a bit of bread ;
"And baek recoil'd, he well knew why,"
writhing from the lash of the garden's whip.
In the form of a little ring-tailed blue motikey,
" Next Anger rush'd, his eyes on fire,
In lightnings own'd his secret stings ;"
and a duel ensued.
In the attitude of the great bony chimpanzee,
" With woeful mciisures wan Despair,
Low sullen sounds his gi-ief beguiled ;
A solemn, strange, and mingled air,
"T was sad by fits, by starts 't was wild."
During the time the garcjon with his left hand was pouring
milk and breaking bits of bread into a long trough, his right
arm, without favour, partiality, or affection — in fact, evidently
not caring a farthing to whom they belonged — was constantly
belabouring the innumerable sets of little, long, black fingers
of hind legs as well as fore legs picking and stealing from all
directions. For a considerable time the lad endeavoured to
suppress this besetting vice by, as often as he eould, punish-

90 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE SUCKS.
ing il, then and there, in detail ; at last, all of a sudden, losing
his whole amount of patience, he put down his basket and jug,
and then, flourishing his whip as if he were going through the
six cuts of the broadsword exercise, he attempted, in a state
of absolute fury, to inflict indiscrirainate castigation on all his
prisoners. " And though sometimes, eaeh dreary pause between,
Dejected Pity, at his siae,
Her soul-subduing voice applied,
Yet still he kept his wild, unaltered mien.
While each strained ball of sight seeraed bursting from his head."
I believe, however, that on the whole the lad lost rather
more than he gained by his anger ; for often, while his whip
was passing through empty air, his monkeys were to be seen
jumping with impunity over him — over each other — between
his legs — flying horizontally — diagonally — and vertically, from
perches of various heights— this way — that way : — in short,
like sparks of fireworks, in all ways at once. During this
scene the great chimpanzee, fettered in the corner, stood erect,
seriously winking his round eyes as if counting every stroke
of the whip. The endless variety of " sauve-qui-peut " move
ments of the monkeys, accorapanied by occasional grinning,
and by unceasing squalling and chattering, formed altogether
a compound so attractive that it produced the only instance
of misunderstanding I witnessed during my residence at
Paris ; and, after all, this only amounted to two very fine-
looking Frenchmen, with large black beards, standing for
about half a minute with their faces almost touching, saying
to each other, in a tone that increased in quickness, loudness,
and fierceness at every repetition,
" Mais, Monsieur I
" Mais, Monsieur ! I
" Mais, Monsieur ! ! !
" Mais, Monsieur ! I I ! "
I am, however, very happy, indeed, to say, it ended — as it
had begun — in nothing. In the mean while, the garden's
temper having returned to him, he continued his laborious
task, namely, to allow every monkey to eat and drink, as
nearly as possible, no more than his fair share of the bread and
milk he had brought for the whole republic.
As he was pretty well exhausted by his work, another man

ABATTOIR DES COCEONS. 91
now appeared with large lumps of raw meat for the wild beasts.
On approaching the different cages, the ferocity of the tigers,
hysenas, leopards, &e.,was slightly visible, from their attitudes,
and especially fi'om their eyes ; but they all acted as if under
the influence of some narcotic, and thus, at Charles's bidding,
they relinquished the red flesh which, through the bars of their
prison, they had caught in their claws. On the whole, as this
unworthy triumph over the appetites of the fiercest animals in
creation could not have been honestly obtained, I felt any
thing but pleasure in beholding it ; and accordingly, seeing
that the evening's entertainments were drawing to a close, I
joined a party leaving the parterre, and in a few seconds found
myself among the happy, lounging, loitering, sitting, smoking
crowd of the Boulevard.

ABATTOIR DES COCHONS.*
On descending from an omnibus, in whioh I had been rumb
ling along sideways -for nearly three quarters of an hour, and
which at last dropped me considerably beyond the Barriere de
Montmartre, I was told that in twenty minutes I could walk
to the " Abattoir des Coohons," which I was desirous to
visit. Now, I always found that the people of Paris, out of sheer
kindness, and to prevent me from putting myself to the ex
pense of a fiacre, invariably cheated me in their estimates of
distance, and accordingly it took me nearly three quarters of
an hour of my fastest walking to reach the point of my desti
nation, a spot which, until lately, must have been in the coun
try, but which now is among new buildings, to be seen rising
up around it in all directions.
The establishment, from the outside, was completely con
oealed from view by a high wall, including a square, each side
of which was about 1 50 yards long. I walked round two of
them without being able to find any entrance ; at last, in the
third, I oame to some large lofty iron gates and a bell, which
* Pig slaughter-house.

92 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
I took especial care to touch gently, in the French style, and
not to throw it into hysterics by an English pull.
On being admitted by the concierge, — who, as soon as she
had opened the door, popped into her hole as easily as she had
popped out of it, — I saw before me, and on each side, a num
ber of low buildings with a large clock in the middle, to keep
them all in order ; and I was looking at various arrange
ments when the " chef" of the establishraent, at the instigation,
I suppose, of the concierge, walked up to me, and, after listen
ing to my wishes, told me very formally that the establish
ment, although used for public purposes, had been built by an
individual ; that it was the property of a company ; and that,
as it would not belong to the city of Paris for four years, he
was not permitted to show it to any person whatever, without
an order from the company.
" 11 faut absolument, Monsieur, un ordre !"*
To be denied to see what was literally before my eyes, and
to be obliged to retreat from within four walls I had had so much
trouble to enter, was a disappointment so cruel that I can only
compare it to what Tantalus must have experienced when,
dying from thirst, he stood in water which, bubbling upwards,
glided away just before it reaohed his lips. I was determined,
therefore, if possible, to attain my object. The chef was a
very large, powerful, and, notwithstanding his occupation, a
good-humoured looking man. He, however, sturdily repelled
all my reasoning, that, because I had visited the " boucheries"
of Paris, had been permitted to see the abattoirs of oxen,
sheep, calves, &c., I hoped not to be refused to see that of
pigs, &c. &c. &c,, by replying that I had only to apply for an
order to obtain one. However, when I told him to look at me,
and see how hot and tired I was, I observed that I dealt him
a heavy blow ; and I had no sooner quickly followed it up by
reminding him that, besides being " bien fatigue,"t I was a
stranger in his land — " un etranger "J — a word that upon
every class of society in Paris acts like a talisman — than he
smiled, shrugged up both his shoulders, surrendered at discre
tion, and, saying very kindly, " Allons, Monsieur !"§ he walked
into his office, came out again with some keys in his right
* You must absolutely, Sir, get an order.
f Very tired. \ A stranger
§ Come along. Sir.

ABATTOIR DES COCEONS. 93
hand, and then with the utmost kindness conducted me over
the whole of his buildings.
As we were walking along, I asked him to be so good as
to explain to me what was the foundation of his establishment.
As if I had touched a vital point, he immediately stopped
dead short, looked me full in the face, and with great dignity
briefiy explained to me, in the following words, the axiom or
principle of the whole concern : — " Monsieur," said he, " per
sonne n'a le droit de tuer un cochon en Paris !" *
Said I to myself, " How I wish that sentence were written
in gold on our London Mansion House !"
We now reached a long building, one story high, not at all
unlike a set of hunting stables ; and on door No. 1 being
opened, I saw before me a chamber ventilated like a brewhouse,
with a window at eaoh end, and paved with flag-stones, the fur
ther half of whioh was covered with a thick stratum of straw,
as swoet, olean, and unstained as if it had just come from the
flail of the thresher. Upon this wholesome bed there lay
extended, fast asleep, two enormous white hogs, evidently too
fat even to dream. They belonged to no political party ; had
no wants ; no cares ; no thoughts ; no more idea of to-morrow
than if they had been dead, smoked, and salted. I never
before had an opportunity of seeing any of their species so
clearly ; for in England, if, with bended back and bent knees,
an inquisitive man goes to look into that little low dormitory
called a sty, the animal, if lean, with a noise between a bark
and a, grunt, will probably jump over him ; or if fat, he lies so
covered up, that the intruder has no space to contemplate him ;
whereas, if the two pigs lying before me had been in my own
study, I could not have seen them to greater advantage.
'Without disturbing them, my conductor closed the door,
and we then entered Nos. 2, 3, and 4, whioh I found to be
equally clean, and in which were lying, in different attitudes,
pigs of various sizes, all placidly enjoying the sort of apoplec
tic slumber I have described. My conductor would kindly
have opened the remainder of the doors, but as I had seen
sufficient to teach me, what in England will be discredited,
namely, that it is possible to have a pigsty without any disa
greeable smell, I begged him not to trouble himself by doing
so; and he accordingly was conducting me across the open
¦* Sir, nobody has a right to kill a pig in Paria.

94 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
square when I met several men, each wheeling in a barrow a
large jet-black dead pig, the skin of which appeared to he
slightly mottled in circles As they passed me there passed
also a slight whiff of smoke ; and I was on the point of asking
a few questions on the subject when I found myself within the
great slaughter-house of the establishment, a large barn, the
walls and roof of whioh were as black as soot. The inside of
the door, also black, was lined with iron. The floor was cover
ed for several inches with burnt black straw, and upon it lay,
here and there, a large black lump, of the shape of a huge hog,
which it really was, covered over with the ashes of the straw
that had just been used to burn his coat from his body.
In vain I looked beneath my feet and around me to disco
ver the exact spots where all this murder had been committed;
but nowhere could I discover a pool, slop, or the smallest ves
tige of blood, or anything at all resembling it. In short, the
whole floor was nothing but a mass of dry, crisp, black, char
red remains of burnt straw. It was certainly an odd-looking
place ; but no one could have guessed it to be a slaughter
house. There was another mystery to be accounted for. In Eng
land, when anybody in one's little village, from the worthy
rector at the top of the hill down to the little ale-house keeper
at the bottom, kills a pig, the animal, who has no idea of "let
ting concealment, like a worm in the bud, prey on his damask
cheek," invariably explains, seriatim, to every person in the
parish — dissenters and all — not only the transaction, but every
circumstance relating to it ; and aecordinglj'-, whether you are
very busily writing, reading, thinking, or talking about nothing
at all to ladies in bonnets sitting on your sofa to pay you a
morning visit, you know, and tliey know, perfectly well —
though it is not deemed at all fashionable to notice it — the
beginning, middle, and end, in short, the whole progress of the
deed ; for, first of all, a little petulant noise proclaims that
somebody somewhere is trying to catch a pig ; then the animal
begins, all at once, with the utmost force of his lungs, to squall
out, " They have caught me ; — they are pulling at me : — they
are trying to trip me up : — a fellow is kneeling upon me : —
they are going to make what they call pork of me. 0 dear !
they have done for me !" (the sound gets weaker) " I feel ex
ceedingly unwell; — I'm getting faint; — fainter; — fainter still,

ABATTOIR DES COCHONS. 95
— I shan't be able to squall much longer !'' (a long pause.)
" This very long little squall is my last, — 'Tis all over, — I am
dying — I'm dying — I'm dying : , , , I'm dead !"
Now, during the short period I had been in the establish
ment, all the pigs before me had been killed ; and although
I had come for no other earthly purpose but to look and
listen ; although ever since I had entered the gate I had — to
confess the truth — expected to hear a squall ; — was surprised
I had not heard one ; — and was not only ready but really
anxious, with the fidelity of a shorthand-writer, to have in
serted in my notebook in two lines of treble and bass the
smallest quaver or demisemiquaver that should reach my
ears, yet, I had not heard the slightest sound of discontent !
However, while I was engrossed with these serious reflec
tions, I heard some footsteps outside ; a man within opened
the door slightly, and through the aperture in trotted, look
ing a little wild, a large loose pig, whose white, clean, delicate
skin physically as well as morally formed a striking contrast
with the black ruins around him.
In a few seconds he stopped ; — put his snout down to the
charred ground to smell it ; did not seem to like it at all ; —
looked around him ; — then, one after another, at the super
intendent, at me, and the three men in blouses ; — appeared
mistrustful of us all ; — and not knowing whioh of us to dis
like most, stood as if to keep us all at bay. No sooner, how
ever, had he assumed this theatrical attitude than a man
who, with his eyes fixed upon him, had been holding in both
hands the extremity of a long thin-handled round wooden
mallet, walked up to him from behind, and, striking one blow
on his forehead, the animal, without making the smallest
noise, rolled over on the black, charred dust, senseless, and,
excepting a slight convulsive kick of his upper hind leg, mo
tionless. Two assistants immediately stepped forward, one
with a knife in his hand, the other with a sort of iron frying-
pan, which he put under the pig's neck ; his throat was then
cut ; not a drop of blood was spilled ; but as soon as it had
completely ceased to flow, it was poured from the frying-pan
into a pail, where it was stirred by a stick, which caused it
to remain fluid.
Leaving the poor animal to be singed by a portion of the
heap of white straw in a far corner, I followed the men who

96 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
with their barrows had come again for one of the black corpses
lying on the ground, into a large, light, airy building, as high
as a church, as clean as a dairy, and with windows and doors
on all sides. In the centre was a beautiful fountain playing,
with water-cooks all round the walls. By this ample supply,
proceeding from two large reservoirs, by steam power main
tained constantly full, the flagstones were kept perfectly
clean, and were consequently, when I entered, as wet as a
washhouse. As fast as the black pigs were wheeled in, they were by
a running crane lifted up by the hind legs until they appear
ed suspended in rows. Their insides were here taken out,
and carried to a set of large stone tables, where, by the as
sistance of the water-cocks and fountains, they were not only
cleaned, but became the property or perquisite of the clean
ers. Their bodies were then scraped, until they became
deadly white, in which state, to the number of about 300 per
week, they are restored at night to their respective proprietors
in Paris, By the arrangements I have described, conducted by one
receiver of the droits d'octroi (my friend), four surveillants,
or foremen, and the necessary quantity of slaughterers, wheel
ers, cleaners, and scrapers, the poor animals, instead of being
maltreated, half-frightened to death, and then inhumanly
killed ; — instead of inflicting upon all classes the sounds and
demoralizing sight of a pig's death ; — instead of contaminat
ing the air of the metropolis ; — undergo the treatment I have
described, for the knowledge of which I am deeply indebted
to the politeness of him who so justly expounded to me the
meaning of that golden law —
" PeESONNE n'a le DEOIT de TUEE UN COCHON EN PaEIS !"

GARDENS OF THE TUILERIES.
The principal characteristic of the fajqade of the Tuileries
looking into the garden consists in exactly that which a

GARDENS OF THE TUILERIES. 97
stranger would not expect to find in a palace, namely its law
less irregularity. Sixty-one windows in front are divided
into nine compartments, some two, some three, and some
four stories high, with a frontage of windows in each, as fol
lows,— 6. 7. 5. 12. 3,12. 3,7.6. total 61. In one part near
the centre, where the masonry is only three stories high, are
no less than four tiers of windows in the blue slates above ;
indeed, the roof is so high and grotesque that it not only
looks as if the architect, for want either of money or stone,
had been obliged to finish off the building with slates, but,
having done so, had determined the position of the windows
in the roof, by firing cannon-shot at it — every hit to be a
window. The view from the centre of the Palace must be — for it
had changed its masters so often that I felt no desire to enter
it — very magnificent.
In front, in the gardens full of flowers of all colours, es
pecially yellow, is a circular basin of water, from whioh radi
ate in all directions broad sanded walks, separating the
various statues and ornaments, as also a wood of horse-chest
nut trees, when I beheld them in full blossom. Beyond is
the picturesque Egyptian obelisk of Luxor, standing in front
of the distant magnificent triumphal Aro de I'Etoile.
Around the fountains I found a crowd of grown-up people
and children, all apparently with equal anxiety watching
several little ships, brigs, and schooners, they hadilaunohed.
One, with the tricolor flag drooping from its tiny mast, had
got into a corner, where it was becalmed ; another, veered
round by a gentle breeze, was taken aback. On one, nearly
in the middle, a gentleman, standing with his head uncovered,
had embarked, to the delight of everybody, his black hat.
On the centre stone, surrounded by the water, a large swan,
with his neck elegantly bent, was cleaning his snow-white
breast with his bright red bill bordered with black. As the
vessel with the hat slowly approached him, he opened his
wings from his sides in anger. Above him, on the emptor
stone eup, were hopping two or three sparrows, as if, in their
little way, to demonstrate to the human race watching them
the infinite variety of Nature,
Around, in various directions, was a scene equally happy
and innocent. Ladies with beautiful parasols were sitting on

98 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
benches ; on rush-bottomed chairs, shaded by trees, were
groups of respectable-looking nurses (" bonnes "), wearing
white aprons ; some reading, some working with needles.
Then strolled by a stout Englishman in a predicament in
which no Frenchman ever allows himself to appear in public,
namely, with a lady on each arm — termed by the Parisians
" Panier a deux anses."* Three or four little girls were
skipping, several had hoops, one or two large air balls ; here
sat an old gentleman with his chin leaning on his gold-headed
cane ; there strolled along a party of soldiers. Three or
four " bonnes ^ were sitting together, each with a sleeping
baby prostrate on the very brink of her lap ; farther off was
a younger nurse in a sugar-loaf cap, with flaps hanging down
wards like a butterfly's wings, holding a parasol over her tiny
charge ; another was pretending to drive with broad scarlet
reins a little boy in a deep blue velvet frock. Before them
was a child three years old leading an Italian greyhound that
kept jumping around it ; close to me, nurses with horizontal
backs were stooping downwards, trying to make children
walk. Everybody — nine-tenths of them were women and
children — seemed desirous to contribute to the picture some
beautiful or, at all events, some striking colour ; in short, it
was altogether a stange mixture of well-dressed people, qui
escent on chairs, and of bright colours in motion,
I had been admiring this joyous scene, the features of
which, besides their happiness, had to me the charm of novelty.
Like Adam wandering about Paradise, I had been enjoying
the discoveries whioh every moment and almost every turn
brought to view, I had gazed sometimes at a statue, then at
a beautiful fountain ; then at the flowers of the horse-chestnut
trees in bloom, I had admired the shadows, and then, if
pos.sible, still more the gorgeous sunshine of this world, when
all of a sudden, as I was searching for new pleasures, with
an appetite that had increased in proportion as it had been
gratified, I saw, almost before me, a neat-looking summer-
house or building, on which was inscribed the word " Cabinet."
Now, besides being next door to a house on whioh was in
scribed " Salons et Cabinets," I had been reading that very
morning in Galignani's Guide all about " Le Cabinet d'His-
* A basket with two handles.

GARDENS OF TEE TUILERIES. 99
toire Naturelle," " Le Cabinet d' Anatomic," besides which
the French newspapers had been full of abuse of the crooked
policy of the " Cabinet of London," and of the anti-republi
can feelings of the " Cabinets of Europe ;" so I thought that
as the door of the " cabinet " before me was wide open, I
would go and search out what it contained. In two seconds
the object of my curiosity was accomplished, and, full of ap
probation of what I had seen, I was instantly about to retire,
when there flitted across my conscience an admonition that
there might perbaps be something I ought in honour to pay
for the knowledge I had obtained, and I was in a dilemma
from which I did not exactly know how to extricate myself,
when, by a piece of that extraordinary good fortune which has
occasionally brightened my chequered course through life,
there popped out of a small door close beside me a very well-
dressed gentleman, who, if he had dropped from the clouds,
could not have appeared before me more opportunely.
With a superabundance of useless words, for to tell the
truth I could not, off hand, frame the question exactly to my
satisfaction, I asked him to be so good as to tell me whether
in going aw^ay I had anything to pay for having entered the
establishment. With a kind bow, he said, " Monsieur, vous
payerez en sortant a droite,"*
Accordingly, with a firm step I walked along the passage
to the point indicated, where, to my surprise, and I may truly
add confusion, I saw, seated close before me needle-working
a very small piece of fine muslin, a beautiful lady in a most
beautiful cap !
In one moment I perceived that the longer I waited the
worse it would be ; so, with a very slight inclination of my
head, with a quantity of pieces of silver of different sizes all
ready in my right hand, and with nobody looking at me, I
said very gently and very gravely,
" Combien, Madame, s'il vous plait ?"t
The last word was hardly out of my lips when, screwing
her mouth up into the politest description of smile, she replied,
" Monsieur, c'est quatre (she called it ' cat ') sous !"|
* Sir, you -will pay on your right as you go out.
-j- How mucb, Madam, if you please 2
X Sir, it ia twopence.

100 -4 FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
I put into her white hand a piece of five sous, and with
out waiting for my halfpenny, walked away muttering to my
self, after a long-drawn sigh, " Well ! . . . it's worth coming
from London by rail to Dover, by steam to Calais, and then
all the way up to Paris, to see that !"

PAVILLON DE L'HORLOGE.
In the Champs Elysees, on the left of the grand prome
nade, I found standing a great crowd of persons, gazing ap
parently at an equal quantity sitting. I asked one of the
former how I could become one of the latter. With his
stick he pointed where I was to go.
" What am I to pay ?" I inquired.
" Nothing," he answered ; " you will merely order what
you like."
Proceeding in the direction indicated, I found myself in
the rear of the sitting multitude, and, with nothing and no
body to obstruct my entrance, I slowly walked through them,
until, arriving at a chair and a little table unoccupied, I sat
down an " enfant de famille."
The congregation was composed of thirty or forty
rows of chairs and very small tables, at which were seated,
in happy repose, groups of quietly dressed people and
soldiers. On almost every table I observed either a bottle
of water, a small glass of brandy with three lumps of sugar,
coffee and a glass of brandy, or one or two bottles of beer.
In fact, as I had been informed, the rule is, that in lieu oi
paying any entrance-money, people are merely required,
somehow or other, and in any way they best like, to spend
10 sous (5d), for which, in addition to coffee, &c,, they re
ceive an enjoyment of a very superior nature.
Immediately in front of them was a beautiful little con
cave temple, the whole of the inside of which, brilliantly il
luminated with six lustres full of imitation candles lighted
by gas, was a mass of plate-glass, gold borders, flowers, and
white enamelled pa.int. Within this small interior were five

PAVILLON DE DIIORLOGE. \Q\
young ladies fashionably dressed, two in pale blue silk, two
in straw-colored silk, and one in milk-white stiff muslin, with
a pink sash. Mixed up with them were two dandified young
men with short brushy beards, white neckcloths, and glossy
hair neatly plastered to their heads. All held in their hands
quite new white kid gloves. In front of this elevated tem
ple, which, in point of beauty and splendor, appeared fit for
the reception of Venus herself, was an orchestra, containing
four or five fiddles, as many wind instruments, two violoncel
los, and at each end a powerful able-bodied double-bass. On
the right and left, outside the ground belonging to the pro
prietor, were to be seen the faces of the crowd I had left,
economically waiting to eatch for nothing as much as they
could. Monsieur, qu'est-ce que vous prendrez ?"* said to me one
of six waiters, in white neckcloths and white aprons, in various
direotions, attending upon the seated audience. I was not
quite prepared all of a sudden to drink beer, brandy, or coffee;
so, with an almost imperceptible but significant nod, as I told
the garcon I would not trouble him, I slipped into his hand
a franc, for which he did exactly what I did not want him to
do — made me a low bow.
One of the young ladies now rose from her chair, and. ac
companied by the orchestra, sang a pretty little song very
nicely. As soon as it was concluded, and she had taken her
seat, with the eyes of everybody shining full upon her, she re
ceived with well-affected modesty the compliments of the young
ladies beside her ; and for a considerable time they sat making
pretty mouths at each other, and pushing their fingers into
their tight new white kid gloves. Sometimes — just as poor,
witty Theodore Hook used to pour out a glass of champagne,
and then, as he said, " bow to the epergne " — one of them,
looking straight before her over the heads of the audience,
would, showing all her white teeth, smile at apparently nothing
but empty spaee. With similar little innocent coquetries the
inmates of the temple all sang in their turns. Their voices
were not strong, but as the band carefully abstained from over
powering them, they performed their simple airs with consider
able taste, and appeared to give their attentive, respectable,
and well-conducted audience streams of placid satisfaction.
* What will you take, Su?

1Q2 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
The cool air was delightful ; and as I happened to be to wind
ward of the few smokers present, I could not help feeling very
thankful I was not in the impure, heated atmosphere of au
Opera-house.

LA MADELEINE.
In crossing the Place de la Madeleine, I stopped for a few
minutes to look at the beautiful facjade of the church, and as
several people were ascending its steps, I followed them into
its interior, during the performance of high mass.
On entering I was much struck with the excellent music
resounding throughout the building. In England, a churoh
organ is very apt not only to be uproarious, but tyrannically
to overwhelm the audience with its powers. Here it was sub
servient to the human voice. Sometimes it appeared to be
cheering it on — sometimes in silence to be listening to it, and
only to chime in when absolutely required.
The service was arranged and executed with great science
and taste. The best, the shrillest, as well as the sweetest
voices, appeared to proceed from behind the altar, but, from
wherever they came, they reached the roof as well as every
portion of the building.
Before the altar there occasionally stood, with his back to
wards the congregation, a single priest — then three alongside
of each other — then two, one before the other. " Then came
wandering by a spirit like an angel " in white robes — he bowed
in gliding by, " and so he vanished." On each side of the altar
were a row of young handsome boys, dressed in bright scarlet
caps, bright scarlet cloaks, over which were snow-white short
surplices, confined round the waist by a broad light-green sash,
the ends of which hung at the left side.
The changes wrought in this picture by the simple move
ment of the scarlet cap had evidently been well studied, and
produced very striking effects. At a particular part of the
service the boy's black shining hair was suddenly displayed,
and the cap held in the off hand had apparently vanished.

LA MADELEINE. 103
At another moment the blood-red cap was seen, held by both
rows of boys on their breasts next to the congregation — theu
it lay on their white laps — and then, on their rising from their
seats, it suddenly appeared again on their heads.
In contrast to these boys there oocasionally, from behind
the altar, glided into view some pale-looking priests in jet
black gowns, surmounted, like those of the boys, by short white
surplices. During these ceremonies, and while two powerful
assistants in white gowns, jet black hair, and crimson sashes,
were swinging incense, the shrill notes of a single boy behind
the altar were suddenly drowned by a chorus of fine voices,
which gradually subsided into the deep double bass notes of
one or two priests.
The service was on the whole admirably performed, and, to
those who have been taught to revere it, must be highly im
pressive. After the elevation of the host, the wafer was ad
ministered to several persons in the front row next tothe altar,
and a large basket of broken bread, in colour and consistency
strongly resembling what is commonly called sponge oake, was
distributed to the congregation, almost every one of whom
partook of it. It was carried throughout the church by a
priest, preceded by a person upwards of six feet high, dressed
in a golddaced cocked'hat, worn cross-ways, a la Napoleon, an
embroidered coat, with an epaulette on one shoulder and crim
son trappings on the other, a sword, crimson plush knee-breeches
ornamented with gold, white stockings, and black shoes
When the service was about three-quarters over, a man at
one end of the churoh and a woman at the other, both very
gaudily dressed, were seen worming their way to every person
present, from each of whom a slight money transaction was ta
king plaoe. Everybody gave something, and about every third
person received back something, When the woman came to
me I gave her a franc, upon which she fumbled for some tirae
in her pocket, and returned me an amount of cash apparently
more than I had given to her. I felt it would not be decorous
to decline to take it, or proper to inquire of my neighbour —
even in a whisper — what was the object ofthe benevolence. It
proved, however, to be a slight payment for the chair I had
occupied. As soon as the service was over, mora than three-quarters of
the congregation left the church, and, with a full intention to

104 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
follow the stream, I was lingering to take a last look at the
altar, when I obeserved two or three priests most actively em
ployed in hurrying off every glittering object, and in covering
it with black trappings. At a side altar in the centre of the
church similar preparations were making, and the alterations
were scarcely effected, when the great gates of the church were
thrown open, and a procession of people in mourning, marked
with rain-drops, slowly walked up the aisle. In a few seconds
there followed four well-dressed men, bearing, covered with
dingy white serge trappings, a coffin, on which rested a milk-
white wreath of immortelles.
The coffin was deposited in the centre of the church, and
those of the congregation not seated were gathering around it,
when I heard a priest say, " II y aura un autre !"* and the
words were hardly out of his mouth when the " rap-a- tap-tap "
of a couple of muffled drums was heard outside the great
gates, which instantlj' rolled open to admit about twenty
soldiers of the National Guard, followed by a crowd of persons
of apparently every condition of life. As soon as all had
entered, the corporal in command gave the word of command —
" Reposez-vous sur vos arraes !"t on which the butts of the
muskets reverberated against the hard pavement. After wait
ing a few minutes, the word — " Portez vos armes !";{: was given,
in compliment to the coffin whioh now entered the church.
On its lid were the scarlet epaulettes, the drawn sword and
empty scabbard, the one crossed over the other, of its inmate,
and the body, guarded by its comrades, proceeded towards the
little altar, before which it halted.
While the rich man's requiem was resounding from the great
altar, the soldier's funeral was going on at the little one. There
were the same words, — the same gestures, — and the same holy
ceremonies. Candles were burning round eaeh of the two
corpses, and while the service of the rich one was dignified and
continuous, that of the soldier was interrupted not only by little
words of command from the corporal, but, on the elevation of
the host, by the sudden roll of the two muffled drums. It was
striking to see the power and authority of the army existing
within the walls of the church, and the stiff, motionless, upright
attitude of the soldiers, who during the whole ceremony wore
* There will be another !
f Order arms. X Shoulder arms.

LA MADELINE. 105
their shakos, was strangely contrasted with the varied obeisances
and white and black vestures ofthe bare-headed priest.
The military service was first concluded, and on the depar
ture of the priest I was about also to move, when I observed
that the ceremony was still not quite over.
The last operation of the holy father had been to sprinkle
with a hair brush, the silver handle ofwhich was about eighteen
inches long, the coffin, epaulettes, sword, and scabbard of the
dead soldier with holy water.
With the same brush the ohief mourner slightly repeated
the ceremony — crossed himself — and then handed it to his next
comrade, who, after going through the same movements, handed
it to the next in the procession, and so on. As there was no
supply of water, the brush was of course nearly dry, and, as
the ceremony appeared almost endless, I got quite tired of it,
and was therefore just about to retire, when I observed among
the procession, following some men in common blue linen
frocks and trowsers, a few women, several of whom were in
tears. The men in the blouses paid very little attention to the
coffin, and merely made over it two or three apparently heart
less movements, — as, however, the women approached, I ob
served that their feelings became stronger. The first wo
man, on receiving the brush from the last man, was barely
able to wave it over the immortelles, scarlet epaulettes,
drawn sword and empty scabbard lying on the lid of the
coffin ; — the second, a young person of about twenty, ex
liibited a picture I shall not readily forget. On receiving
the brush she burst into bitter tears — trembled — tottered —
could not look at the coffin, I thought she would have
dropped ; at last, in a frenzy of grief, she stepped forward,
waved the brush twice over the corpse— hurriedly delivered it
to some one else, then, putting both her hands to her eyes
and pressing them against her forehead, she reeled against
me, and then, staggering onwards a few paces, she stood still,
evidently bereft of her senses, and altogether overwhelmed.
The third woman was also much grieved, but the remainder
of the sex less or but little affected.
The same ceremony of pretending with a dry brush to
sprinkle the coffin with holy water was afterwards performed
over the body of the rich man by his relations and followers,
5*

106 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
but for some reason or other, which I have not the slightest
desire to know, very little — to tell the truth — no grief what
ever was evinced ; indeed, one little girl of about nine years
old, after giving two or three dabs, looked around her with a
sweet innocent face, and laughed.
When all was over, after I had made my exit from the
church, and, with my umbrella over my head, had reached
the magnificent flight of steps, by which I descended to the
foot pavement, I happened to see the woman who had been so
grievously affected at the soldier's funeral. Although it was
raining unrelentingly, their tears, as for a few moments they
stood together, repeatedly dropped upon the wet pavement.
They then, careless of the incleinency of the weather, kissed
each other several times — stooped, kissed, and cried over the
heads of one or two little children who oame up to them, and
then, after another last kissing farewell of each other, they
pattered through the rain on foot, in different directions,
towards their respective homes.

PREPARATIONS FOR THE FETE OF THE
REPUBLIC.
Besides the perennial, or rather perpetual, gaiety which in
all weathers and in all seasons characterises Paris, on my
arrival there I observed in almost every direction workmen
and artists employed in arrangements, more or less incom
prehensible, which, I was informed, were in honour of, and in
preparation for, the " grand fete of the Republic."
Some were erecting poles, others constructing scaffolding.
Here I observed a crane lifting, as slowly as if it had been a
locomotive engine, a sea-horse's fore-leg ; beneath it several
carts laden with moss, grass, and fir-trees. There, two or
three men in blouses were as carefully hoisting to its destina
tion (the summit of a pole) the pensive colossal head of a
statesman. In another direction, a tall, cylindrical canvas
screen, occasionally flapping in the wind, concealed an artist,
from morning till night, working bebind it. Now and theu

FETE OF THE REPUBLIC, 107
there trotted by a cart laden with huge baskets full of rosy-
faced apples, as big as pumpkins. Then were to be seen men
and boys hurrying along with arms full of boughs, glass
globes, wire, candles, bundles of flags. One fine-looking man,
with a face exceedingly hot, was carrying a gold eagle,
beneath which was inscribed " Honneur et Patrie,"*
The rapidity with which — out of this chaos of confusion —
order, symmetry, and the creation of an infinite variety of
beautiful objects were effected, it would be almost impossible
to describe. For instance, over the principal arch of the Pont
de la Concorde I observed a gang of workmen in beards or
mustachios, directed by one or two gentlemen with books in
their hands, and surrounded by an incomprehensible conglo
meration of gigantic human limbs, horses' legs, fishes' tails,
wooden packing-cases of different sizes, with barrels and bags
in piles of plaster, moving, and, with the assistance of cranes
and pulleys, lifting these various masses.
On passing the spot the following day, I beheld a magni
ficent and stupendous group of figures — representing the
Genius of Navigation, surrounded by Tritons and sea-horses
— oovered with workmen in blouses, swarming like bees, and
crawling like mice, about the snow-white colossal figures they
were now rapidly completing, and which appeared standing
on a mass of artificial rooks, descending to the water's edge,
over which was to be precipitated an artificial cascade, repre
senting the most beautiful falls of natural water. The rocks
(the wooden packing-oases I have seen) were not only beauti
fully painted and covered with moss, but, as if by the hand
of nature, ornamented with real pine-trees, some of which ap
peared lying prostrate, as if blown down by one element, and
about to be carried away by another. Again, at the end of
the bridge there stood immediately before me that magnifi
cent building called the National Assembly, the house of
parliament of the Republic,
On the landing-place beneath the colonnade, and on the
flight of long steps by which it is approached, were standing in
dense masses, and in various attitudes, soldiers in bluish-grey
coats, red epaulettes, scarlet trowsers, and glittering cap
plates. Above their heads, hanging against the white wall
* Honour and the couutry.

108 -i FAGGOT OF FRENCE .STICKS.
and between twelve lofty Corinthian columns, were a variety
of tri-coloured flags, of whioh the blue and scarlet were par
ticularly vivid. In the middle was a large gold ornament,
as if to assimilate with the gilt horizontal bars and tops of
the iron railings which protect the bottom of the steps. On
the right and left of the assembly was a long embryo colon
nade, composed at first of nothing but — at regular distances,
and standing upright out of the ground — a series of logs of
timber, which the next day appeared converted, by brick-
nogging, into columns, connected together by horizonal logs.
In this state I left them ; and, in the course of three or four
hours repassing the spot, I found that, while I had been going
over one public institution, the columns had almost all not
only been oovered with painted canvas admirably represent
ing porphyry, with gilt capitals, but had been surmounted by
shields and a beautiful set of vases, eight or ten feet high,
overflowing with flowers.
Again, in passing in front of the Church de la Madeleine,
before which the day previous I had observed some myste
rious preparations, I found the whole of its front — excepting
the superscription —
" LiBEETB, FeATEENITE, EgALITe" 
above the great entrance door — completely covered with fes
toons and curtains of gold, silver, and crimson tissue, the
columns being connected together by garlands of coloured
lamps. Again, in approaching the Seine, I found on both sides of
it, rejoicing in the air, and almost touching each other, a line
of flags of various colours, all bright ; while I was admiring
them, the various vessels, barges, and bathing-houses moored
in the river, to join in the universal joy, were rapidly decked
out with similar pieces of bunting, of which the blue, white,
and red were particularly and appropriately conspicuous.
Among all the beautiful preparations making to expend,
as has been customary for many years, nearly 400,000 francs
— voted partly by the National Assembly and partly by the
city — for a fete which latterly, on the 4th of May, has cele
brated the anniversary of the Republic, there was one, how
ever which I own very much astonished me. I had been

FETE OF TEE REPUBLIC. 109
delighted with the construction of the double row of magni
ficent colossal statues of great men who gradually before my
eyes had burst into existence ; had admired tho preparations
on the bridge leading to the National Assembly, as also those
in front as well as on the right and left of that handsome
building ; had taken quite an interest in the preparations for
a regatta or boat-race on the Seine, as well as for the fire
works in the various localities in which they were to appear,
and which severally had been appropriately decked out for
the occasion ; but I could neither understand the propriety,
nor altogether approve, of the preparations I witnessed for
ornamenting what appeared to me to be already the most
highly ornamented spot in creation, namely, the Plaee de la
Concorde. For instance, I roughly counted in that strange
magnificent place of many names (on which — bo it remem
bered — .onthe 21st of January, 1793, Louis XVI. was guil
lotined, and across which, on the 24 th of February, 1848,
Louis Philippe fled, never to return) no less than —
1. Two groups in marble, each representing a restive
horse struggling with its keeper,
2, Two lions, eaoh with his tail curled round his left
leg. 3. Eighteen lofty gilt Corinthian columns, each surmount
ed by a gilt globe, illuminated by two gilt lamps.
4. Thirty-eight smaller Corinthian columns, partially gilt,
each bearing one gilt lamp.
5. Eight allegorical figures, representing the eight chief
provincial towns in France.
6. Two magnificent fountains, each composed of ten fe
male figures of sea nymphs, &c,, holding in their arms and
— without metaphor — wet-nursing, with magnificent streams
of cold water, sturdy dolphins; two gigantic male figures,
andjthree children, all in bronze,
7, Thirteen beautiful colossal statues on lofty bases.
8. One magnificent central Egyptian red obelisk from
Luxor, with gold inscription, surrounded by rails partially gilt.
Now, on the common, homely principle of "letting jrell
alone," one might have expected it would have been deemed
not only unnecessary, but almost impossible, to make the Place
de la Concorde more beautiful than it was. It had been de
termined, however, to give to it the greatest of all charms—

110 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
especially in Paris— namely, that of novelty ; and accordingly
notwithstanding repeated showers of rain I observed men and
boys, with cartloads and armsful of boughs, employed in con
verting all the semi-naked figures of both fountains into beau
tiful bushes of evergreens, and their splendid basins into trel
lised baskets, which, first painted and while the colour was
quite wet (indeed, it had not been brushed on two minutes),
then partially gilt, were rapidly filled with artificial fruit and
flowers, the whole being ornamented in all directions and in
most beautiful festoons with coloured and also with white semi-
opaque ground glass lamps, increasing in magnitude from the
extremities to the centre of eaoh of the curved lines by which
they were suspended.
The fifty-six gilt columns I have enumerated, not only
around the circumference, but diagonally aoross the centre of
the plaoe, were connected together by long and elegant.wreaths
of variegated lamps.
The numerous statues, and innumerable gilt glittering fluted
columns were enlivened by a confused medley of brilliant tri-
coloured pennants, some forked and some pointed, the whole
bounded on the left by the new, fresh peagreen foliage of the
trees of the gardens of the Tuileries, and on the right by
those of the Champs Elysees. The rough asphalte pavement
was literally swarming alive with a dense mass of carriages,
carts, horses, 'buses, and human beings in clothes and uniforms
of all colours. Lastly, the sun of heaven was gilding and
painting the whole scene in its gayest and gaudiest hues.
" Where," said I, to a man. nearly as old as myself, dressed
in a blouse, and who was standing close to me, " where, if you
please, are the principal flreworks to take place?"
Either he or I had that morning, in anticipation of the
fete, been drinking a good deal of wine of rather a strong
smell ; and accordingly, when he grasped tightly hold of my
arm, and pointed with the forefinger of his left hand towards
the distant dome of the Invalides, we both vibrated a little.
" Tenez, mon garcon !" * said my instructor, kindly trying,
notwithstanding our staggering, to point the spot — which ap-
parfntly kept moving — out to me. " C'est ***** -ment
loin d'ici ! Allez !"
* Why, my boy ! its * * * * * -ly far from here 1 Arrah

ABATTOIR DE MONTMARTRE. \\\

ABATTOIR DE MONTMARTRE. *
About half a century ago there lived in a country village tii
England as maid-servant, a pleasing-looking young woman, of
suoh delicate sensibilities that, to use her own expression,
'' She couldn't abear to see a mouse killed." She married the
butcher. At about the same period, Napoleon, who cared no
more for the effusion of human blood than the stormy petrel cares
for thesalt spray of the waves of the Atlantic Ocean, from similar
sensibilities, determined to cleanse Paris from the blood of
bullocks, sheep, pigs, and quadrupeds of all sorts, by suppress
ing every description of slaughterhouse within the city, and
by constructing in lieu thereof, beyond the walls, five great
public abattoirs, besides sraaller places of execution -for pigs,
and also for horses.
The largest of these is that of Popincourt ; but, as the
greatest quantity of cattle are slaughtered at Montmartre, I
drove to the avenue Trudame, where, on descending from my
cabriolet, I saw before rao a rectangular establishment, resemb
ling c.-ivalry barracks, surrounded by walls 389 yards length
ways by 150 yards breadthways.
On entering the iron gates, I found on my left a small
bureau, whioh looked like a guard-room, and from which, on
expressing my wish to go over the establishment, I was very
civilly furnished with a conductor.
In front of the entrance-gate was a space shaded by trees
and bounded by a barrack-looking building of fifteen windows
in front, the residence ofthe principal officers. On the right
and left, in three parallel rows, werc six sets of buildings
(twelve in all) separated from each other by broad roads
which isolated eaoh. Affixed to the walls of this enclosure
were other buildings, the purposes of which will be consecu
tively described, as also two " abreuvoirs," or watering-places
for cattle, and one fountain.
The officers of the establishment consist of

* Slaughterhouse of Monfcmartve.

112 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
An inspector of police, whose duty it is to see that the
whole interior of the abattoir is clean and in a state of " salu
brity ;" that there are no disputes among the people employ
ed ; and that the animals are not beaten ("qu'on ne frappe pas
les animaux"). A principal inspector of the " Boucheries."
A sub-inspector of ditto.
Four guardians (surveillans) of the oxen, sheep, calves,
&c. to be slaughtered.
Two superintendents for skinning, " triperie," &c.
Pour men for cleaning the paved streets, &c., of the in
terior. One porter.
One gate-keeper (concierge).
The slaughtering department is composed of 64 slaugh
terers, each of whom has his slaughterhouse, his " bouverie,"
or stable for cattle, his loft and granary for hay and corn, and
his chamber for dressing and undressing.
On walking to the space in front of the entrance gate,
and between it and the garden belonging to the barrack-looking
residence of the officers above named, I found within it, in
two separate divisions called "parks," lying under the shade
of lilac and laburnum trees in blossom, several sheep and bul
locks just arrived.
Immediately adjoining to these enclosures, common to all
the 64 boucheries, I entered a lofty "bouverie" 150 feet long,
admirably ventilated by windows above on all four sides.
Down the middle there ran before me a broad passage, on
each side of which were a series of square compartments, 25
feet long by 15 feet broad, separated from each other by
wooden railings. In those on my right I saw, lying on straw"
as clean as that in the show-stables of a London horse-dealer,
a quantity of bullocks, two, three, or four in each cell. In
corresponding cells on my left were standing or lying, sepa
rated from each other by a low partition, a number of sheep
and calves.
In the first of these cells, on the back of one of a small
flock of sheep, I saw, lying fast asleep, a shepherd's dog.
The bullocks and sheep were eating hay ; the calves, my
conductor told me, had " soupe."
" What is it made of?" I asked.

ABATTOIR DE MONTMARTRE. \ \ 3
" De la farine, des ceufs, et de I'eau chaude,"* was the re
ply ; and he added that throughout the " bouveries" there
was warm water for the calves. Every cart-load of calves,
the heads of which are never allowed to hang outside, is
obliged to leave half of its straw for their use in the abattoir.
There are eight bouveries such as the one above described.
Above each line of cells for bullocks and calves is a loft to
supply them with hay, and adjoining, are, open to the air
and protected by iron wire, a series of large rooms, contain
ing eaoh a table and a chair, in which are to be seen, neatly
arranged, the clothes and boots of the butchers, who, even if
they had the inclination, are not allowed to offend the citi
zens of Paris by appearing in the streets in their professional
garb. Passing the four " cours de travail,"! containing the 64
slaughtering-houses, I was next led to a large building, in
which the blood of the animals slaughtered is subjected to a
scientific chemical process, under which, after lying for some
time in clean, round, shallow tin pans, it is poured into barrels :
first, for the purpose of refining sugar ; and secondly, for ma
nuring the earth. The entrails, after being carefully emptied
into a pit constructed for the purpose, and emptied every
day, are well washed by an abundant supply of water.
On entering the " triperie" department, I found a number
of women employed in boiling, in a series of coppers supplied
by three large vats of water, sheep's heads and calves' feet.
An adjoining building appeared nearly full of sheep's feet,
neatly tied up — not as Nature had arranged them, in fours,
but — in dozens.
On entering a range of 48 melting-houses, admirably ven
tilated, I was astonished to find that, although they were
nearly full of pails of tallow, there was no unpleasant smell.
Above are a series of apartments, in which reside the women
and men employed in this operation, whioh I had always in
correctly fancied to be unavoidably very offensive.
In proceeding towards the 64 boucheries arranged in the
middle of the entrance, I went into one of the bouveries, to
look at a bullock that my conductor told me was just going
to be slaughtered.
* Meal, eggs, and warm water. \ Working yards.

114 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
It was a beautiful morning, and, although the sun was
hot, the atmosphere, where I stood, felt quite refreshing. He
was lying in a cell by himself, perfectly tranquil, on clean
straw, and, with his fore-legs doubled under him, was chewing
the cud. His great black nose, which almost touched the
white litter, was wet and healthy ; his eyes were bright ; his
tail quiet, for, as the air was cool, there was not even a fly
to tease him.
As we were gazing at eaoh other, a butcher, carrying a
short rope, followed by a boy holding in his right hand a
stick, in which I particularly observed there was no goad,
walked up to him, and gently putting the noose over his
horns, and then making him arise, he quietly conducted him
to his doom. The poor creature walked slowly through the
hot sunshine with perfect willingness, until he arrived at the
threshold of the broad door of the slaughterhouse, where,
suddenly stopping, he leant backwards, and stretched out his
head, evidently alarmed at the smell of blood. The butcher
now slightly pulled at the rope. Without barking of dogs or
hallooing of men, without the utterance of an imprecation or
of a single word, four slight blows on the right hock with the
boy's stick made him, after looking for a second or so fear
fully to the right and left, hurriedly enter, after which he in
stantly appeared to become quite quiet. The rope from his head
was now gently passed under his off fore-leg, and, on its being
tightened, a couple of men in wooden shoes, clattering to
wards him over the wet slippery pavement, by a sudden push
on his near side tumbled him over. He was scarcely down
when one blow of a mallet made him completely senseless,
two others were given him for precaution's sake, and a
butcher then, forcing his knife into his broad chest, instantly
withdrew it.
There was a dead silence for some seconds ; notwithstand
ing the colour of the knife, the blade of which I observed
pointing to the ground, no effect was produced. At last out
rushed a stream or river of blood, which, first black and then
bright red, flowed in little waves along a gutter into a re
ceptacle made to contain it.
As the great creature lay lifeless before me, I felt very for
cibly how extraordinary was the fact, that while the Demon of
War — Napoleon Buonaparte — had, in 1811, established in

ABATTOIR OF MONTMARTRE. 115
Paris the merciful arrangements I had witnessed, it had taken
the Goddess of Peace upwards of six-and-thirty years to pre
vail upon the inhabitants of England in general, and upon the
Lord Mayor and Corporation of London in particular, to abol
ish a system not only of barbarous cruelty, but which, by cre
ating feverish excitement, amounting occasionally to madness,
has rendered more or less unwholesome the meat of every
wretched victim that has been killed in a metropolis (consum
ing annually 240,000 bullocks, 1,700,000 sheep, 28,000 calves,
and 35,000 pigs) whose inhabitants, as if in satirical ridicule
of themselves, delight publicly in singing, when in large con
gregations they sit down to dinner —
" Oh, the roast beef of old England,
And oh, tho old English roast beef!"
Several calves were now driven into a yard containing four
or five tressels, upon which, one after another, they were placed
on their sides by men in wooden shoes, who held them down,
while butchers — also in sabots — not only cut their throats, but
their heads quite off; thus in a few seconds most effectually
corabining death with the operation of bleeding, which, in
England, is cruelly made to precede it The blood of each
calf was caught in a pan by the men who held it down. As
fast as the animals were killed, skinned, and cleaned, their car
cases, by means of ropes and pulleys, were hung up, arranged
in lines, and then wrapped up in linen cloths as white as
snow. Observing to one of the butchers, who had rather a red-
republican-looking countenance, that some of the sheep ap
peared to be very thin : —
" Ah !" said he, with a slight shrug and a gentle sight, " il
y a des gros et des maigres, comme il faut de la viande pour
tout le monde."*
" And yet how does that agree," said I to myself, " with
your fraternity and equality V
As the hours for slaughtering were now nearly over, I had
an opportunity of seeing the simple process of sluicing, by
means of an abundant supply of water from a cock in each of
* There are fat ones and lean onea, for we must have meat for every
body.

116 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
the 64 boucheries, the red .slippery floors of several ot the
slaughterhouses, which in the course of a few minutes were
made as sweet and clean as the flags of a washhouse. As soon
as this was effected, the butchers, washing themselves, and then
slipping out of their wooden shoes, walked to their rooms
to assume the decent dress in which they had entered.
and in which they were about to return to their respective
homes. The charge at the abattoirs for killing cattle is from one
franc to one and a half per head ; besides which the butcher
claims, as his perquisite, the blood, brains, and entrails.
If, when the animal is killed, its flesh is found to be dis
eased, or even bad, instead of being converted, as in London,
into sausages for the rich or into pies and patties for the poor,
it is confiscated by the Inspector of the Police residing within
the establishraent, who instantly sends it off to the Jardin des
Plantes, to be eaten by the wild beasts,— by lions, — tigers, —
bears, — by eagles, — by vultures, — and by other birds of prey.
The meat for the inhabitants of the city is usually sent out
at night only, but animals to be killed are received at any
hour. The number slaughtered per week at the single abattoir of
Montmartre amounts to about 900 oxen, 400 cows, 650 calves,
and 3500 sheep.
On leaving the establishment I walked completely round
the lofty walls that enclose it ; but neither to windward nor to
leeward could I detect the slightest sraell indicative of the
bloody business transacted within it.

GREAT NORTHERN RAILWAY,
As 1 was rather anxious to be permitted, during my short
residence at Paris, to enjoy the professional pleasure of shak
ing the black hands of some of the Stokers and Pokers of the
Great Northern Railway, — which connects Paris, not only via.
Arras, Douai, and Valenciennes, with Brussels, Namur, and
Liege, but by a branch railway from Creil with St Quentin,

GREAT NORTEERN RAIL WA Y. 117
and by branch railways from Douai with Lille, Calais, and
Dunkerque, with Bruges and Ostende, and with Ghent and
Antwerp, — -"Baron Rothschild, one of the leading directors, was
good enough to desire that, without reserve, I should be shown
over the whole of the establishment, and, accordingly, beckon
ing to a voiture de place, I sat within it, rumbling, ruminating,
and looking at one button only on the driver's back — the other
one was deficient, and yet, alas ! there was the very spot on
which it had lived — until, within the course of about half an
hour, turning out of the Rue Lafayette, I found myself on an
irregular, open, paved space, of a nondescript tipsy-looking
shape, called " Place de Roubaix," bounded on the south, east,
and west, by the houses of Paris, and on the north by the " em-
baroadere," or metropolitan terminus of the Great Northern
Railway, — " Chemin de Fer du Nord,"
As soon as I had dismissed my conveyance, I proceeded on
foot across a paved square, separated from an interior yard by
iron railing, at eaoh extremity of whioh was an entrance gate
leading to the station immediately in front of me, composed
of a handsome looking zinc-roofed building, one story high,
the outer faqade of which was formed of eight lofty arches,
four filled up with glazed windows, the rest with glass and
doors. On a gable at one end there beamed an honest-faced
clock ; on a corresponding gable at the other end a dial of the
same diameter, above the black useful fingers of which was
written, " Indioateur des Departs."*
On the right of this interior yard I observed ranged in
line beneath a covered shed, a motley row of that which every
railway station most delights in, " 'buses," attached to each of
which were standing, in placid matrimonial alliance, a pair of
black, white, brown, bay, or piebald horses. On the left, ever
lastingly staring at them all, was " Bureau des Omnibus,"!
and alongside of it several animaloula of the genus cabriolet.
Lastly, in the middle of this handsome paved yard, there grew
and fiourished a very little tree.
As fast as the various public and other carriages arrive
they drive up to one of the four great glass doors I have
named, on entering one of which I found myself in a spacious
paved hall, 231 feet long, 36 feet broad, and 24 feet high,
* The indicator of departures. -j- Office for omnibuses.

118 A FAGGOT OF FRENGE STICKS.
bounded on the entrance side by the eight lofty glass windows
and doors, which reaohed nearly to the ceiling ; and on the
opposite side by a wall divided into doors and compartments
designated longitudinally, as follows : —
Bureau dea Renseignements.*
S"'- dea Bagages Depart, f
Siie». d'Attente de la Grande Ligne.j:
B""- de distribution des Billets. §
Ditto ditto
Ditto ditto
Ditto ditto
Ditto ditto
S"=- d'Attente de la Banlieue. ||
Chemin de Fer de Boulogne. T[ — (The clerks within this office belong to a
different company.)
S""- des Bagages Arrivee.**
After spending a short time in the bureau of the chief en
gineer, whom I found very kindly disposed to give me what
ever information I desired, I proceeded with his assistance to
a lengthy office in the long paved entrance promenade I have
described, the "Salle des Bagages Depart," in the middle of
which, throughout its whole length, I perceived a low table on
which is placed, as fast as it can be weighed, each article of
outward bound baggage, which, by attendant porters is piled
upon three-wheeled trucks apparently muoh more convenient
than those usually used in England, and then rolled along the
platform to the luggage van in which it is to travel. A single
glance at the distance which intervenes between this office and
the departing train is sufficient to show a mal-arrangement,
the inconvenience of whioh is acknowledged, but whioh, from
want of space, was unavoidable.
Parallel with and adjoining to this office I found, ranged
within a narrow shed, and, as it were, framed and glazed, for
eaoh had his window, a row of clerks, whose duty it is to re
ceive goods and parcels to be despatched by passenger trains,
* Office for obtaining information.
f Hall for luggage outwards.
X Waiting-rooms for the main line.
S Offices for the delivery of tickets.
If Waiting-room for the short line.
T[ Boulogne railway.
** Hall for baggage that has arrived.

GREAT NORTEERN RAIL WAT. 1 19
'¦ Messageries de grand vitesse,"* Above their heads outside,
were inscribed the nanies of the various places of destination,
for which there was a series of ticket-papers, about three
inches by two, of a particular colour, numbered consecutively
for each article, excepting where several bore the same address,
in which case the same number was affixed to all. The tickets
of passengers' baggage are distinguished from those of goods
left solely in charge of the company by a cross made with a
red pencil. The duty of this office continues night and day.
At about one hundred yards southward, I reaohed a shed in
which, under similar arrangements, goods are received and de
spatched by luggage trains of " petite vitesse "f
Returning to the long paved entrance promenade, I was
conducted to the grand waiting-hall for the main line, compos
ed of two sets of rooms (altogether 108 feet long, by 30
feet broad, and 27 feet high), sky-lighted throughout the whole
length of the ceiling, and communicating by running doors
with the platforra. Eaoh of these twin-republics is composed
of a separate compartment for first, second, and third class
passengers. In No, 1, the floors of whioh, as a mark of dis
tinction, are as slippery as glass, are a handsome looking-glass,
a green plush sofa, two green plush ottomans, and a quantity
of subsidiary green plush chairs. In No, 2, the fioor of which
is a little slippery, are broad, comfortable green plush benches,
Corapartraent No, 3, the floor of which, although very cleanly
kept, was not slippery at all, is furnished with substantial
hard oak forms.
On passing a door on the outside of the building, I asked
the engineer, who was conducting me, what it contained ?
" iWerely, he replied, " le magasin des objets trouves,"| and
he was proceeding onwards, but at my request was good enough
to send for the key.
Sterne observed, " they do everything differently in France,"
aud accordingly — truly enough as soon as the door was
opened, I perceived walking towards me, with their tails erect,
and slowly vibrating, three great fat cats,
" Beaucoup de rats, Monsieur ! " said the man in mustaohois,
who had unlooked thc door, " En quantite !"^ he added, as
* Fast trains. ¦)- Slow trains.
X Lost luggage office.
^ A number of rats, Sir ! in quantities I

120 A lAGGOl OF FRENCE STICKS.
one of the cats, oocasionally leaning towards me to rub her side
and stiff upright tail against my legs, kept pacing up and down
before us like a sentinel.
On the right hung nothing but " casquettes ;" in front were
cloaks, portmanteaus, and boxes ; on a table in the centre a
quantity of umbrellas and oanes, among which I observed, tied
together, a family group of five umbrellas of different sizes, and
the poor father's stick. On the left was a congregation of car
pet bags, sacs de nuit, bundles in handkerchiefs of different
colours, two French prayer-books wrapped up in black cloth, on
ly one shawl, two or three bandboxes, a few mysterious-looking
utensils, and six swords.
It appears that gentlemen travelling in France are more
light-headed than ladies, for while within the chamber in which
I stood there was not a single bonnet, I saw ranged on my left
no less than UO black hats. On eaoh was a paper, stating
the date, the dismal days and nights, of its imprisonment, with
the name of the maker, whioh the man in charge of the cham
ber told me enabled him readily to attend to any inquiries, —
He seemed proud of the arrangement, and accordingly, taking
down a labelled hat from the pile, ho handed it to me that I
niight observe how it was done. On looking into it I unexpect
edly found within a lion and a unicorn — " Heaven bless them !"
said I to myself — with the words — " Townend, 190, Regent
Street, London,"
On the north side of the long passenger platform, commu
nicating with the waiting-rooms I have described, are ten sets
of rails, on whioh are very cleverly arranged the carriages and
spare carriages requisite for the working of the great line ; oppo
site is a branch line, with five short satellite rails (for carriages)
for the " banlieue," or short passenger and goods traffic. On
the arrival of every train of the raain line, that is to say, from
Calais, Dunkerque, Ostend, Namur, Brussels, Liege, &e , as
soon as the passenger carriages, passing under a handsome
archway, are comfortably sheltered under a lofty thin slated
roof, the luggage, turning suddenly to the left, along a rail at
right angles, about thirty yards long, is conducted into an im
mense oovered building, in which are two low tables or coun
ters, each 200 feet long, divided into compartments, labelled
over head with the names of the principal stations on the line.
When the various articles are distributed thereon, according

GREA T NOR THERN RAILWAY. 121
to the tickets affixed to each, there is thrown open a great door,
through which is immediately seen to rush a torrent of passen
gers — John Bulls, Jenny Bulls, and travellers of all nations —
who, with Babel faces of confusion, gape, stare, until at last, as
soon as their eyes catch the superscription designating their
baggage, they are to be seen radiating towards it in various
directions. On the production of their ticket, that which
bears the corresponding number is delivered to each. At the
end of this well-arranged hall is an office for the payment to
the " Octroi de Paris"* of whatever may be due to it.
On the north of the lofty covered shed from whioh the
passenger-trains depart, and which adjoins that under whioh
they arrive. I entered the " Bureau de Douane,"t where I be
held seated in a row, eight clerks, beyond whom, in a large
store-house, up and down which was pacing a custom-house
officer, dressed in uniform, and wearing a sword, several men
were engaged in opening and examining luggage of every de
scription. That portion which was for " La Belgique"J was
then doubly tied round with large cord, and secured from fur
ther exaraination by a leaden seal. On the outside of this
department were standing several horse-boxes, opening fore
and aft, instead of only at oue side, as in England,
My companion novv kindly proposed that I should walk
with him down the line for about a mile, to the company's
establishment of work-shops, &c, I accordingly followed,
and. in answer to the first question I put to him, was in
formed, that the railway " Chemin de Fer du Nord," was
opened to Lille in 1846. to Dunkirk in 1848, and to Calais in
1849. " Who is this ?" I said to him, looking at a tall man walk
ing towards us, in a sort of half uniform, with an unusually
long and thick black beard.
" One of our guards," he replied.
It occurred to me at the moment that our railway directors
in England might for the same service recommend the adop
tion of this fashion. In regions of intense cold it is invariably
found necessary to cover a shaved chin, and as there is no
cheaper or warmer protection than that which nature has
granted to the lower half of a man's faoe, it would be especially
* Receiver of the tolls of Paris.
f Office of the Customs. :j: Belgium.
6

122 -4 FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
economical and convenient to railway guards, who, when trav
elling at thirty or forty miles an hour, through cold air, itself
flying in an opposite direction, say from forty to sixty miles
an hour, are exposed — to say nothing of rain, sleet, snow, hail,
and sunshine — to very trying vicissitudes of temperature and
climate. At 440 yards from the station we came to a switch-man,
dressed iu a blouse, with a red cord round his neck, suspend
ing a cow's horn, with which — according to circumstances —
he communicated either with the station at the Paris terminus,
or with an approaching train, I was astonished to learn, from
the united testimony of my attendant and of this man, that a
blast from a cheap rude instrument of this description can, in
perfectly calm weather and in a plain, be heard at a distance
of 4400 yards (2^ miles) ; and that even against a strong wind
it is audible at a distance of 1500 metres, about a hundred
yards short of an English mile. In our foggy weather such a
warning voice might surely occasionally be of considerable ser
vice. At 550 yards from the station I came to another Cer
berus, who had charge of wires, with whioh, without moving
frora his post, he could turn one disc at the station, and simul
taneously another situated 550 yards down the line. His
power of signalizing or of warning extended, therefore, over a
distance of 1 1 00 yards. Suspended from his neck by a black
belt was a scabbard containing a red flag, there being no inter
mediate signal, by bunting, between "Advance" and "Halt"
Behind him stood a sentry box, containing in the corner a
small stove, the ornamental top of which, as is usual in France,
had been exchanged for a " marmite" or covered saucepan, in
which what he called his dinner — but from the smell what an
Englithman would call his " onions" — were stewing. Oppo
site his stove was a box of exploding petards for fog-signals.
He had also charge of a switch, to which had been very inge
niously attached a revolving weight — it is submitted that this
might be advantageously adopted in England — which made it
impossible for it to move during the time he was employed in
signalizing with his discs.
Alongside of the line, protected from the intrusion of cat
tle, &o., by nothing but a slight trellis-work, which without
any difficulty I could have levelled to the ground, were flve
electrie wires, three constructed and used by Government, the

GREAT NORTEERN RAILWAY. i2Z
Other two by the company. The posts for all had been fixed
by Government, As we were walking through a cutting, the embankment of
which had been planted with trees, for the purpose of retaining
the earth, there rushed by us, on its road to Paris, a train laden
with three tiers of large pans full of milk, from cows grazing
and ruminating about seventy miles off. At 1000 metres
(1100 yards) from the station, we came to a distance-post,
whioh constantly recurs at the same interval, and shortly after
wards there appeared before us a congregation of buildings —
the object of my visit.
The Company's establishment at this spot, called " la Cha
pelle St, Denis," and which, with a great clock in the raiddle
of it, straddles on both sides of the railway, over an irregular
space, about 1100 yards long, and from 200 to 300 broad, is
composed, on the eastern side of the rails, of magazines, &c.,
for the arrival and departure, at " petite vitesse "* — -say six
leagues an hour — of heavy goods ; and on the left or western
side, of workshops of various descriptions.
Proceeding to the eastern side of the rails, I found, sepa
rated from each other by wide spaces, four large, lofty, light
buildings, called '¦ Salles d' Arrivee :" f —
1, For the reception of sugar,
2, For mixed goods,
3, Do, do.
4. For oil, spirits, all that is liquid, and grain.
Also, two similar " salles" for despatching goods of all de
scriptions. The interior of each is coraposed of a wooden platform,
about five feet above the ground, with rails all along one longi
tudinal side, and with a space for carts and waggons on the
opposite side ; by which arrangement, in the arrival " salles,"
goods brought on railway-cars are transferred to wheels ; and
in the departure salles, from the wheel-carriages in which they
arrive are transferred to carriages to travel by rail.
In the arrival "saile. No. 1," I saw, in large heaps, beet
root sugar in bags, tapped in so many places by the " doua
niers," % that they looked as if they had been under the fire of
musketry. In saile No, 2 were bars of iron, piles of canva,°
* Slow pace. f Halls of arrival.
X Custom-house officei-s.

124 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
of paper three feet long, of matting, boxes of window-glass,
barrels, and huge bags of coarse canvas, through which were
protruding, like the quills of a porcupine, turkeys' feathers.
Above these various packages, on a beam that traversed the
whole building, was a running-crane for the purpose of moving
them in any direction.
In saile No, 3, the platform — 250 feet long, 120 broad, and
covered by a triple-slated roof, supported by thirty-six posts —
was divided by them into as many compartments, numbered, —
for Prusse, Mousoron, Tourcoing, Roubaix, Dunkerque, Quie-
vrau, Valenciennes, Hazebrouck, Calais, St, Omer, Armen-
tieres, Arras, Lille, Somain, Douai, Corbie, &c.
At the end of this saile was a " bureau," containing a very
ingenious contrivance for recording during the night, the
vigilance and presence of the guards whose duties it is to
watoh the premises, A small pasteboard dial, coinciding with
that of a clock, is so arranged, that whenever the guard, in
passing it, gives it, as he is ordered to do, a push, it not only
makes a hole, but by it marks the precise hour and minute at
whioh the rude pressure from without was inflicted ; and, as
the whole apparatus is looked up, the superintendent, on his
arrival in the morning, without inquiry, reads, from various
dials of this description, the precise periods at which the
guards performed in every locality their several tours. One
of these instruments a drowsy guard had been required to
push every five minutes, to satisfy the superintendent he had
not been asleep during the night.
On the. platform of these sheds I stood for some time
admiring the magnificent one-horse carts, everywhere in use at
Paris. On one I saw piled and carried off with apparent
ease, by a punchy little horse not fifteen hands high, fourteen
barrels of Burgundy (in two tiers, the lower one of ten, and
the upper of four casks), weighing, with the cart, 4000 lbs.
Another, in front of which was affixed a little capstan, with a
double rope, was laden with casks of sugar, weighing nearly
12,000 lbs. The clerks and porters employed in these "salles"
work from six to six in summer, frora seven to seven in winter,
with one hour's intermission, namely, froji eleven to twelve.
Against the eastern outer wall which surrounds the estab
lishment of "la Chapelle St. Denis," are five offices, three
belonging to the company, and the other two forthe "octroi'
of the Government.

GREAT NORTHERN RAILWAY. 125
After passing a sraall pier, not very well protected, for the
embarkation of horses, cattle and carriages, I observed an in
genious contrivance for assisting the transportation of coke,
which, on its arrival in a large grated waggon, is conducted on
rails, under a powerful crane, to whioh is affixed a large strong
rectangular frame, with iron pins, which fit and fasten all
round into corresponding holes in the top-rails of the waggon,
whioh then, coke and all, weighing 10.000 lbs., is lifted into
the air. to be replaced on a two-wheeled cart, whioh, in a very
few minutes, carries it away to Paris. There is also a lofty
machine, with a little railed gallery on the top, for the purpose
of ascertaining the weight of every load of coke, including the
truck, — called by French engineers " trook."
On crossing over the line to the company's workshops, I
was introduced to a fine-looking superintendent, who, although
he understood not a word of English, kept brushing with the
points of his long white beard my little note-book, in which he
carefully looked with kind simplicity, and apparent satisfaction
at every word I wrote.
At the entrance of the " Forgeries," — in the centre of which
is an exalted office, enabling the superintendent-in-chief to
overlook two immense workshops at right angles, admirably
lighted and ventilated above, by broad horizontal open blinds,
like a brew-house, — I found at work, in triple rows, eighty-one
forges, and two small steam-engines, by whose irresistible
power a hammer is enabled, sixty times per rainute, to inflict
a blow of from 18,000 to 20,000 lbs. It also gives life and
animation to a variety of smaller machines, for cutting, punch
ing, and dealing with iron as if it were leather. It likewise
causes to revolve an enormous grinding-stone, before which
there appeared, dressed in a pair of wooden trowsers, and lean
ing against an inclined elastic board, always pressing him to
wards the stone, a man, frora the neighbourhood of whose
stomach streams and sparks of fire were flying from the large
steel spring he was grinding. At a little distance from him
was a neat, compact, square furnace, for heating whatever re
quired to be forged. There were drawn from it while I was
looking at it, first a rectangular hollow square, then a long
thin plate, then a short broad one, then a lumpish piece of
iron, all red, or rather, almost white hot.
We next proceeded to the department for repairing the

126 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
company's brass engine tubes, made at Rambouillet, near
Rouen. As, however, the operation of cutting them with a
circular saw produced a noise exceedingly disagreeable, I hur
ried from it into a yard, in which I found troughs full of acid
for cleaning tubes, and vats fiill of water for washing them,
after whioh they are filled with hot rosin, which, strange to
say, as soon as it gets cold, hard, and brittle, enables them to
be bent with the greatest accuracy and certainty into a circu
lar or into any form. This object having been attained, the
tube is then moderately heated, which causes the rosin, slowly
and sluggishly, like a great serpent, to roll out.
In a covered passage I entered a series of store-rooms,
containing iron for various purposes, each ticketed separately;
brass ; paint of different colours ; various sizes of wire ; tools
of all sorts, to be delivered as required to the company's work
men, each of whom, in acknowledgment, surrenders to the
storekeeper his " ticket" (an iron wafer bearing his number),
which is put in the place of the tool he has received. Every
Saturday, previous to paying the men, all bring in their tools,
redeem their tickets, and then receive their money.
We next entered a magnificent " atelier," or workshop, 330
feet long, admirably lighted and ventilated, containing in four
rows seventy-two machines, worked by steam, for turning brass
and iron. The sudden sight of so many revolving leather
straps, the busy whirl of so many lathes, each attended by its
mechanic, the figures of upwards of a hundred men dressed in
blouses, standing at tables all round the walls in various atti
tudes of filing, contrasted with the comparative silence (for
the machinery worked with great ease) of the whole scene,
was highly interesting. In the middle of this splendid work
shop there was, as usual, an elevated office with glass windows
overlooking the whole.
Passing through a yard of several acres' area, full of wheels
of waggons and other carriages, we entered another immense
lofty double hall, at right angles, for the reception of engines
afflicted with all sorts of disorders in their bowels, for whioh
hammering seemed to be the general specific, for everybody,
everywhere, appeared to be belabouring soraething. And
although they all together created a " devil's tattoo," almost
deafening, it appeared to me that the men struck with rather
less spite, with a little less energy, and with rather more non-

GREAT NORTHERN RAILWAY.

127

chalance than in England. Adjoining was a shed for smaller
repairs, " petites reparations," of engines.
I was now conducted into the " Rotonde,'' a beautiful cir
cular fabric for washing, cleaning, and overhauling engines and
tenders, of which there were thirty-six, ali named and num
bered. Among them I observed an engine and tender, united
so as to form only one machine. The French engineers, copy
ing our language, call the tender " le taindair," At the end
of this rotonde was a pit, and ingenious weighing machine for
ascertaining and for adjusting the precise weight resting on
each of the three pairs of wheels of every engine.
In a very large yard, in which are an immense turn-plate,
an office, and a store of coke, is the " Bureaux des employes,"
or principal office of the establishment : beyond it I entered
another spacious oovered hall or hospital for sick and wounded
engines, which, standing on three sets of rails pitted beneath,
were undergoing slight medical and surgical operations, I
next paid a visit to the heart and lungs of the establishment,
a thirty-horse power steam-engine, whioh, with a thrilling
noise and rumbling motion, made my whole system appear to
quiver. At a short distance from it was another steam-engine
of twelve-horse power, for carpenters' work, and immediately
adjoining a very fine hall 300 feet long by 150 broad, for the
reparation of " vagons" and " voitures," all inscribed and num
bered in scarlet In this department I found various circular
saws and machines for cutting quoins for rails ; a colour-shop ;
a tool-shop ; and a grinding-stone, which, to prevent it from
splashing, was cleverly confined within a wrought-iron case, so
as to leave uncovered only the part wanted, which could be
closed by a shutter when not in use.
Against the wall surrounding the company's establishment
were a series of sheds for lamps and tin-work, cushions, &e,,
extending to a large field covered with rails, &c,, for the per
manent way. Parallel to these sheds is a long line of magnifi
cent stores, as light as day, for grain and flour, and of " salles,"
or workshops, warmed by stoves, for painting carriages.
Before the last revolution (the establishment then con
tained 2000 workmen), the company's carriages of all descrip
tions were made here, but, as they are now supplied by con
tract, the number of artificers has been reduced to 600.
Notwithstanding the accommodation these large halls af

128 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
ford (half of them were lately appropriated for packages going
to the London Exhibition), I observed, standing in the open
air, covered only by a brown canvas mantle, a splendid, richly
painted, richly gilt, and richly ornamented carriage, formerly
entitled, while it carried Louis Phillippe, " Voiture Royale ;"*
ever since it has been devoted to the President of the Repub
lic it has been called " Vagon Nationale ;"t — it has neverthe
less lately been embellished, infinitely finer than before, and
thus it has gained in splendour more than it had lost in name.
I was now conducted by my obliging attendant to an ex
traordinary-looking double store of three galleries, like those
of a Swiss cottage, with four flying bridges of communication.
These communications, as light as open day, were divided into
fifty-four compartments, again subdivided into pigeon-holes,
containing tools of every description, hair-brooms, mats, in
short, every article — most of thera ticketed — that a railway
establishment could require. Beneath was a " bureau," or of
fice, over the door of which was written, " Interdite au pub-
lio."| On entering I found it full of bearded clerks, all sit
ting in caps excepting one, whose head was covered with an
immense white wide-awake hat. At the principal stations the
cap of the " chef de la gare"^ is embroidered ; that of the sta
tion-master is plain ; and while on the subject of costume I
may observe, that all men employed on the company's line are
dressed in blouses.
Besides the spacious well-organized establishment, a mere
outline of which I have now faintly delineated, there exist
branch workshops at Amiens and at Lille. If the directors
could have foreseen what lately happened, and what at any
hour may recur, naraely, that a revolution in Paris completely
throws into the hands of thc workmen at " La Chapelle St.
Denis" the whole of the Company's valuable property compre
hended therein, instead of the vicinity of the metropolis they
would no doubt have established their workshops, ifcc, at Lille,
where they would have beeu beyond the familiar grasp of
" Liberty, Fraternity, and Equality,"
After walking by the side of the rails to the station at
* Royal carriage. f National waggon,
X No admittance for the public
§ Chief Superintendent of the station.

GREAT NORTEERN RAILWAY. lyg
Paris, I ascended a staircase which led me into a small room,
where I found two gentlemen and three electric dials. The
one on the left, which belongs to Government, and whioh
is the most perfect, can work off with one hand 110 letters,
or, with both hands, 180 letters per minute, three per se
cond. The other two, called " Cadrans alphabetiques,"* are
managed as follows. On the right of each machine there
lies on the table before the operator a horizontal brass dial,
of about ten inches in diameter, the circumference of which is
marked with an alphabet and figures corresponding with
those on the machine before him. By this arrangement, and by
the assistance of a brass radius terminating in a little knob,
the operator, working horizontally instead of vertically, ra
pidly moves the radius of the brass dial from one letter to
another, and, as fast as he does so, the corresponding letter
at the same instant is repeated on the dial before him, and
at its destination ! Besides letters, there are used ciphers
often expressive of a whole sentence.
After thanking the ohief engineer for the attention he
had been kind enough to show me, I passed into the great
covered promenade by which I had entered, and on looking
along the range of offices inscribed on the wall, I perceived I
had neglected to visit the " Bureau des Renseignemens." I
accordingly opened its door and walked in.
Within it I found an exceedingly intelligent gentleman,
whose duty it is, from half-past seven in the morning till nine
at night, on every day of the week, Sundays and all, to be
badgered by any man, woman, or child who, naturally or un
naturally, may be hungering or thirsting for railway infor
mation ; besides whioh he has to make, in writing, " recla
mations"! for every description of lost baggage. I felt
ashamed to speak to him, but, as he instantly not only ad
dressed me, but, on ascertaining what I wanted, with the ut
most goodnature expressed an anxiety to explain to me every
thing that belonged to his department, I briefly ascertained
from him that, during the summer, he and his assistant, then
at rest, had to woik " enormement ;"J that of all travellers
the country people of France give him most trouble : that it
takes sometimes a quarter of an hour to explain to thera un-
* Alphabetical dials. f Applications. :|: Enormously.

130 A FAGQOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
necessary details which, after all, might be understood in
two minutes ; that of the various trains, the branches of the
"' banlieue" (to short distances from Paris) are the most
troublesome ; lastly, that all days in the year, fete-days and
festivities — which to all other people are moments of enjoy
ment — give him the most afflicting amount of labour. While
I was with him, two or three people, quickly pushing open
the door, asked him for information almost at the same time ;
and while one of them was bothering him with all sorts of
little questions that appeared to me not to be worth a far
thing a dozen, I heard close to me, exclaimed in a tone of
honest joy, " Here you are !" On looking round, I found a
tall, strong, fine-looking young Englishman, pointing out with
his finger to the upturned eyes of his comrade — a foot shorter
than himself — the precise hour of departure of the to-morrow
morning's train from Paris to Boulogne.
"Old England foe evee!"
On walking, or rather crawling, out of the great yard —
for I was very tired — I went straight into a cafe on the Place
de Roubaix, and asked the waiter for a cup of coffee. In about
half a minute he not only brought it to me, but, almost be
fore I oould look at it, as a sort of codicil to the will I had
expressed to him, to my horror he filled and left with me a
little wine-glass with brandy, and then walked away.
This evil custom has of late years become so general in
Paris that, as I walked along the streets, I saw within the
cafes almost everybody who had coffee, either sipping, or
about to sip, a glass of brandy."
In returning homewards I stopped for a few moments to
look at an open empty black hearse, richly ornamented with
silver, to which were harnessed, but standing stock still,
a pair of horses smothered alive in black trappings, edged
with silver, and covered with silver stars and silver tears.
The reins were black and silver. The coachman, dressed in
a black cloak, with a pair of large jack-boots, with white linen
wrapped round his knees inside, had on his head a black
cocked hat edged with silver. Close to the horses there
stood, as chief mourner, a splendid, tall, well-fed man, dress
ed in a cooked hat, black coat with a collar of purple and sil
ver, and purple scarf edged with long silver bullion ; lastly.

SUNDAY. 131
resting against the wall of a shop, hung with black cloth de
corated with silver, were four men in black. As I was gaz
ing at the horses, coachman, and tall man in black, purple, and
silver, I observed that everybody that passed on either side
of the street, without looking to the right or left, either took
off his hat, or with his right hand touched its brim. I
thought at first they were all saluting the einpty hearse ; but
on looking into the black shop, I saw within it, resting on
two tressles, and illuminated by eight candles, the coffin of a
man whose name, obliterated by the black cloth that covered
his remains, nobody stopped to inquire about ; who had died
nobody knew why ; and who was going to be buried nobody
knew where. The civility, however, in Paris bestowed upon
the living, is as politely extended to them when they are
dead.

SUNDAY, the 4th MAY.
At nine o'clock in the morning, with my umbrella in my
hand, I sallied forth from my lodgings to behold the great
fete, the preparations for which had for so many days en
gaged the time and the talk of almost everybody in Paris.
The weather was dirty, moist ; and as there was every appear
ance that it would become more dull and more moist, I
hastened to the Place de la Concorde, the fountains of which,
surrounded by people, I found converted, as I have described,
into enormous gilt wicker baskets full of roses, red and
yellow, variegated with ruddy-faced apples as big as melons.
The goddesses' heads were now completely concealed by
bushes formed of the tops of young fir-trees. Encircling the
whole there gracefully hung, increasing in size from the ends
towards the centres, wreaths composed of 212 ground-glass
globe lamps. In various parts of the Place several men were
busi-ly fixing fireworks ; others, with large paint-brushes,
rapidly converting a mass of huge wooden packing-oases into
beautiful rocks, among which, entire fir-trees had been in
serted. In every direction was to be heard the tap and roll

132 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
of drums, preceding masses of moving bristling bayonets,
dully shining over the heads of the crowd through which they
were passing. On both banks of the Seine every vessel, and
especially the long low baths moored close to the stone pier,
were ornamented with flags. As I approached the Pont de
la Concorde the concourse of people was immense,
" Viola, Messieurs !" I heard every where, from voices,
high, low, male, female, but already more or less hoarse and
worn out, " le Programme detaille de la F6te ; la description
des Statues, du Rocher de Cascade, pour la bagatelle d'un
sou !"*
" Achetez, Monsieur !"! said to me a stout woman, with a
brown, honest, healthy face, ornamented with a long pair of
gold earrings, embedded in a white eap, beautifully plaited,
as she offered me one of the armful of printed " Programmes"
she was describing.
As I was complying with her request, several other hands
were stretched towards her for a copy, which she supplied
with great alacrity, continuing unceasingly, but every moment
a little more hoarsely, to exclaim, " Voila, Messieurs, le Pro
gramme detaille," &c. &c, &c.
In the middle of her announcement, " Pardon, Madame,"
she suddenly said to one of her customers, " c'est une demoi
selle !"J The lady took back the money she had paid, and in
exchange gave her the sou she had required.
" What is a demoiselle, if you please ?" whispered I to the
woman whose offering had been rejected. " Mais voyez.
Monsieur !"§ she replied, presenting to me a copper coin, on
which I saw the figure of Britannia. She had offered an
English halfpenny instead of a French one.
Here and there were to be seen standing bolt upright, or
pacing backwards and forwards, a " sergent de ville " (Anglice
policeman), attired in a blue single-breasted coat, remarkably
well made, with long broad skirts, edged round with small
red cord, silver buttons — a silver ship, the arms of the city of
Paris, embroidered on the collar — and a brass-hilted straight
* Here, gentlemen, is a detailed account of the Fete ; a description
of the statues and of the rocky cascade for the trifle of a halfpenny.
f Buy, Sir!
X Your pardon. Madam ! tlus is a voung lady !
§ Soe, Sir!

SUNDAY 133
sword suspended perpendicularly by a black belt beneath the
coat. These men, usually well grown, well made, and who,
generally speaking, have countenances highly intelligent, wear
mustachios, but no whiskers ; in lieu of whioh, from the end
of their chins there projects a sharp-pointed beard, which
seems to add, if possible, to the extreme sharpness of their
appearance. After mingling with the vast concourse of people, — some
looking over into the Seine — some at the new statues — sorae
at tbe colonnade in front of the National Assembly, — I
reluctantly left the joyous groups by which I had been sur
rounded, and walked to the Champs Elysees, where I found
a scene of unadulterated happiness, nearly a mile long.
The first group I stopped at was surrounding a small
oblong table, at the end of which was a common wooden
box with four holes in it, each about an inch and a half in
diameter. Into them a number of men in blouses were trying
to blow through a tube a little arrow. On the top of the
box, perfectly happy, sat, quickly nibbling cabbage-leaves, — ¦
munching a little, — and then, apparently unconscious of the
presence in creation of any beings but themselves, nibbling
again, — six rabbits and a guinea-pig. All of a sudden I
heard a slight general exclamation of triumph, caused by a
competitor having shot into one of the holes ; and almost at
the same moment the blouse-covered arm of the man who
had done so was stretched towards the largest and fattest of
the.rabbits, who, while in extreme happiness he was nibbling
a piece of the green cabbage-leaf which he had just broken
off, was suddenly lifted up by the ears, to be killed, skinned,
fricasseed, and eaten by the conqueror ; and yet his violently
kicking hind-parts were scarcely out of reach of his quondam
comrades, when, — so like mankind, — the remaining five went
on, with their long thin ears lying on their backs, placidly
nibbling and munching, utterly regardless of the game of
Death actually performing before their eyes.
After passing several turnabouts, billiards, and amuse
ments of various sorts, I came to a lad of about seventeen
dressed iu a blouse, who, with a large table covered with
squ.are pieces of gingerbread of different sizes before hiiu,
was unceasingly exclaiming, " On les vend a un sou et a deux
sous la piece. S'ils ne sont bons, on ne les paie pas ! On a

134 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
I'avantage de les goflter d'abord !"* Then looking upwards
towards the clouds, from which a few drops of rain were
now beginning -to fall, he said, appealing to me,
" Je croyais que le Bon-Dieu etait juste i mais,' he
added, covering over his gingerbread with a cloth, " il n'est
pas juste du tout !"!
It was Sunday ; and as I continued walking up the Champs
Elysees, just ornamented by the completion, at the cost of six
teen pounds sterling apiece, of the colossal statues of Papin,
Corneille, Poussin, Mole, Jean Bart, Jeanne Hachette, le
Grand Conde, Le Marechal Ney, Jacquart, Moliere, Jean
Goujon, Le Cardinal Richelieu. Dugay-Trouin, Jeanne d'Arc,
Le Grand Turenne, Le General Kleber, I could not help feel
ing the inconsistence in a nation thus to honour her public
men, and yet to live unmindful of the Omnipotent Power that
created them !
At the " Rond Point," or circular space, about half way up
the Champs Elysees, where six roads meet, I found completed,
on its pedestal, an iramense colossal statue of France, beauti
fully executed, holding, with extended arms, in each hand a
crown of laurels. On both sides of the pedestal was appropri
ately inscribed, " Aux GtomES DE LA France."!
Among the endless variety of modes of shooting for amuse
ment, I observed in the rain a number of people firing with
percussion-caps at a man's head, whose eyes (two candles) were
to be blown out by the air rushing from the barrel of the gun.
A little further on, surrounded by a group of admirers, were
a quantity of plaster figures, many of which had been more or
less wounded by the crossbow bullets to which — three shots for
a sou — they had been exposed. Beneath them, lying fast
asleep, with his shaggy side corapletely covered with the debris
of the broken images, was the rough black dog of the owner of
the game.
Without knowing what I was to see, I followed a man through
* Going for a halfpenny and a penny a-piece. If they are not good,
you need not pay for them. You have the advantage of tasting them
first. ! I tbought tbat God was just! but he is not just at all!
X To the Glories of Fi'ance.

SUNDAY. 135
a slit in a canvas wall, within whioh I found a tame stag telling
people what o'clock it was, &c. On coming out of it. '-Est-ce
que qa vaut deux sous ?"* said a boy to me, eagerly putting his
face close to mine. I did not like to injure the proprietor of
the stag, and, not being sufficiently aoquainted with the inqui
rer's taste to answer the question he had put to me, I extricated
niyself from the dilemma by putting into his hand two sous,
and saying nothing — on whioh and with which — in he rushed.
"Eh bien, Messieurs, qui demande la commotion?"! ex
claimed the proprietor of an electrifying machine, who, almost
as fast as he could receive the sous that were tendered to him
electrified not only the hands that contained them, but, amidst
roars of laughter, bunches of rustics, men and women, pressing
around them, A little girl, who came forward to receive the
shock, bore it very well ; but a large young woman standing
near her squalled out, and put her hands to the backs of both
her knees.
Alongthe principal road of the Champs Elysees were closely
ranged, on both sides, stalls full of trinkets of all descriptions.
One was full of pipes ; many consisted of toys, most ofwhich —
emblematic of a Frenchman's taste — were, I observed, drums
and dolls. In one were bread, wine, spirits, and red eggs ; in
another, cold boiled sausages ; in another, a woman, whose face
was wet with rain and perspiration, frying, over charcoal, sau
sages, which — ^just as if thcy wanted me either to buy them or
save them — spluttered loudly as I passed them. In the jew
ellery department were displayed wedding-rings enough to have
married, twenty times over, all the ladies in Paris. "The scene,
throughout its whole length, was ornamented with thousands
of flags, and yet men with arms full of them were hurrying
along. Diving again into the interior, I found a hussar, a handsome
man in a long beard, bare throat, military cap, scarlet jacket
richly embroidered, and crimson trowsers, selling quack medi
cines to an extensive circle of people, who had crowded around
him. and whom he always called " I'aimable societe qui m'envi-
ronne."J He was standing up in a sort of long barouche ;
above, and over his head, was a cabriolet, in which were seated,
* Is it worth a penny ?
f Now then, gentlemen, who'll have a aliock ?
X The amiable company wbo surround me.

136 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
in military uniform, blowing and beating themselves to death,
a pair of trumpeters, a key-bugler, and two drummers. After
displaying a oake of his medicine — holding it out at arm's
length between his fore-finger and thumb, to show as much of
it as possible, which he assured his hearers could cure anything,
a sickly-looking man stepped up on thc wheel of the carriage.
" Entrez, mon ami !"* said the hussar, assisting into the car
riage the limping impostor, who, with a number of twitches in
his countenance, expressive of great agony, explained he had
not only pains everywhere, but that he could not in the slightest
degree raise his left arra.
'¦Vous le jurez?"! exclaimed the hussar with great animation.
" Je le jure !";j: said the i^upostor, completing the oath, by
simultaneously raising, as is customary in a French court of
justice, his right arm to Heaven.
Preliminaries having been thus adjusted, the hussar desired
the man to prepare for his cure. Accordingly he threw off his
hat ; unbuckled his stook ; took off his coat ; then his waist
coat ; and. although a number of "ladies" were present, he
threw off his shirt. The hussar then set to work, and rubbed
him as seriously and as recklessly as if he had been soaping a
pig, his band all the time playing a suitable accompaniment to
every moveraent he made,
" Raise your left arm !" said he. The man did so, and pro
nounced himself to be perfectly cured ! ! !
Another impostor went through very nearly the same form.
At last, up came a man hobbling on crutches, who said he had
an excruciating pain in his hip.
" NO I" exclaimed the hussar, throwing his head back, ex
tending his right arm, expanding his chest, and looking as
magnaniraous as if he would die a hundred thousand painful
deaths rather than do what was wrong. " Public decency for
bids I should cure you here ! but," he added, with a look of
well-feigned charity and generosity, "here is a cake you may
take home with you to your wife !"
Having put the gentlemen to rights, he next addressed him
self to the ladies ; explained to them, without the slightest
concealment, the variety of little evils to which it appears their
flesh is heir ; and ended by telling them, most truly, that his
* Come in, ray friend! f Will you swear so J
X I swear it!

SUNDAY. 137
cakes were quite as good for them as for their husbands, their
lovers, or brothers. As soon as he had concluded, to my
astonishment, quantities of people, like the English in 1825,
and afterwards in 1845 during the railway mania, "came for
ward ;" and the avidity to possess the specific was so great that
the hussar could hardly pocket their money and deliver his yel
low cakes fast enough,
I now proceeded to a large open space in the interior of the
Champs Elysees, in which, besides nearly thirty bands that
were playing different tunes at the same time, showmen bellow
ing with their utmost strength, were, through speaking trumpets,
vaunting the wonders of their respective exhibitions, in addi
tion to which were to be heard constant explosions of gun-
firing. As soon as I had a little recovered from the stunning
effects of these extraordinary noises, under the shelter of my
umbrella — for it was raining steadily — I endeavoured to ascer
tain the principal causes of such a superabundance of joy.
Around the square were arranged in line — as in an English
fair — canvas theatres, on the exalted platforms of which ladies
in evening gowns, cut very low at top and very short at bot
tom, — gentlemen in brilliant uniforms, — and menials with
their faces powdered and with cheeks daubed with red paint,
were contending together for notice, A smaller set of tents
contained — to judge from the pictures displayed outside — won
ders of all descriptions. In the middle of the ground were
whirligigs, montagnes Russes, wooden horses each under a
canvas roof, which, turning round with it, sheltered the rider
from the weather, carriages and boats flying round horizontally,
long poles, soaped, with prizes at the top, others surmounted
by eagles for pistol and gun practice.
As the rain was coming down very hard, I took shelter in a
little theatre, on one of three reserved benches (for which I
paid 6^.), each of which had a stuffed seat and back. The re
mainder, which were of white new rough wood uncovered, were
filled with people who had paid for their admission two sous
each. After sitting by myself — for no one else paid for the
stuffing — for about five minutes, the curtain gently rising, dis
closed to us a table, at which were seated three monkeys, one
dressed in a blue coat, with two large scarlet worsted epaulettes.
The master addressing himself to this distinguished officer,
asked him where he came from. In reply he instantly drew

138 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
from his breast-pocket his passport, which he unfolded and
presented. " What is your narae?" Showing every one of a
double range of beautiful white teeth, he grinned and chattered
four or five times most violently,
A monkey, dressed in a cook's white cap, white linen jacket,
large loose bright-blue- calico trowsers, striped down the sides
with silver lace, brought in a pair of candles. In retiring he
showed no tail, but his hands hung down below his knees.
The master now began to tie round each of the three monkeys'
necks a white napkin At the same moment the motkey cook,
by untowardly bringing in and placing on the table a large
plate of salad, set them all chattering most violently. In short,
like greedy children, they kept looking at their dinner, instead
of sitting demurely to have their pinafores put on. As soon
as the last of the three was thus prepared, they all together
poked out their long, black, thin, hairy arms, and amidst roars
of honest laughter stuffed lettuce-leaves into their mouths,
until the dish was perfectly empty. The monkey waiter then
brought in wine ; as soon as it was despatched, he walked off
the stage with the empty bottle in one hand, and a basket in
the other. He then carried off the two candles, and the cur
tain slowly dropped.
In the second scene two little ponies ran round the stage ;
then oame in a monkey dressed as a young lady ; then a poodle
dog skipped, looking fearfully at the rope every time it re
volved towards hia feet ; then he walked round the stage on his
fore feet, with his hind legs in the air ; then cantered, holding
up first one fore leg, and then one hind one ; and when all was
over, ran with joy to his niaster, wagged his tail, and, after a
variety of movements, showed his fidelity by licking his hand.
Next appeared a barouche, drawn by two white poodles,
and driven by a monkey, with a comrade footman, who kept
grinning behind. — both dressed in blue coats, with red collars
and gold lace. In the carriage sat a monkey lady. In driving
the vehicle round very fast, it upset, and the curtain, amidst
roars of laughter, dropped upon the catastrophe.
In the third scene, a monkey, with a sabre in his hand, and
riding a dog, was followed by four monkeys on foot, the first of
whom, as he proceeded on his hind legs, leant his head on the
dog's tail, while the other three, also bending their backs, re
posed in like manner upon him and upon each other. After

SUNDAY. 139
sheathing his sword, the rider got into a swing, in which — as
might be expected — he underwent with perfect ease, and ap
parent enjoyment, a variety of antics.
Two dogs, with the word " California'' on their hats, now
walked in on their hind legs, each with a basket of yellow metal
in one hand and a shovel in the other.
Three monkeys mounted on dogs now rode a steeple-chase.
One, dog and all, jumped through a hoop covered with paper.
In leaping over a variety of fences, which the dogs took with
great ease, the countenances of the riders assumed that serious
look which, under similar circumstances, on larger faces is oc
casionally to be seen during the winter in some of our hunting
counties, A dog, walking on his hind legs and carrying a musket,
now led in a monkey, also dressed in uniform, with two large
red epaulettes, A monkey, clothed as a clergyman, with white
bands projecting from his throat, brought in a nlacarded sen
tence of " Condemnation to death, to be shot bt his comeades."
While a bell was slowly tolling, the master tied a white hand
kerchief round the head of the culprit, who, on one of the dogs
levelling a gun at him and then firing it off, dropped motion
less. A mournful tune was heard, and the monkey priest —
as if he had just eaten something that had woefully disagreed
with him — really looked very uncomfortable. A monkey
dressed as a grave-digger, in rusty black clothes, wheeling in a
black cart, bearing on its sides in white paint death's head,
put the dead monkey into it ; in, however, trundling it away,
he ran the wheel violently against a post, on which the lid of
the dead cart, by a pair of little hairy-arms, was pushed up
wards. The corpse looked out — grinned — chattered violently,
and at last, unable any longer to control himself, jumping out,
he ran across the stage amidst paroxysms of laughter, during
whioh the curtain dropped, and in two minutes the house was
not only emptied, but almost filled again, with a happy people,
who for two sous apiece were to receive the enormous amount
of enjoyment I have but very faintly described.
On coining out into the rain, I found, close to the canvas
theatre from which I had emerged, a crowd of people watching
a small tin pot lying on the ground. At the opposite end of

140 -^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
the little space roped off, stood the master of the concern,
holding with both hands an enormous hollow human head, with
white curly hair, laughing eyes, and an almost toothless mouth,
grinning from ear to ear.
A fine-looking countryman in a blouse, stepped up to him,
and in return for the payment of one sou, the master put over
his head the large hollow one he held in his hands He then
gave him a stick, with which, blindfolded by the huge extra
skull that rested on his shoulders, hewas to walk forward, halt,
and gain the prize by hitting the tin pot. He, however, to the
music of a drum whioh instantly began to beat, walked in the
wrong direction, and the great laughing countenance of the
mask which overwhelmed his head, contrasted with the anxiety
with which with all his strength he struck the ground instead
of the pot, which he had evidently determined to smash, was
productive of great happiness.
In large booths or tents, parties of " ladies and gentlemen"
were to be seen seated at little green tables, on each of which
appeared a black bottle, three or four tumblers, containing in
different quantities a red fiuid. In the middle of the crowd a
number of young men were amusing themselves by firing al
most perpendicularly with powder and balls at a golden eagle
perched on the top of a lofty pole. On one of the exalted
platforms of the small canvas theatres, the clown was riding
about on a pony, very ingeniously constructed of a hairy sub
stance, lined with oiled silk inflated with air, which, by being
suddenly compressed by the rider's thighs, caused the head and
neck of the little animal to relax or start up exactly as was
desired. As from these joyous assemblages I walked away, I wit
nessed a trifling scene which was really affecting,
A tall stout man upwards of six feet high, of about forty,
and with a handsome beard, was singing and playing on a hur
dy-gurdy, to a number of people. On his right stood his old
mother ; on his left, his four children, three nice-looking little
girls, of about seven, nine, and fourteen years of age, and his
son about ten ; all were singing and accompanying him, the
two eldest girls on harps, the younger one and the boy on fid
dles. As the whole family sang and played, the rain continued
to fall unceasingly, and although the poor little girls had tied
white handkerchiefs over their glossy hair, their nankeen
frocks were evidently dripping wet.

SUNDAY. 141
Among the various objects of attraction was Punch, who,
instead of his dog, had sitting onthe narrow stage ofhis exalt
ed theatre a most spiteful cat that, to the merriment of the
crowd, bit and scratched him, Death, the undertaker, every
body, and every thing that approached it.
On a small table there stood, among the multitude of
umbrellas, a tall man dressed like a sailor, with a magnifi
cent beard, and with hair flowing down his shoulders like
a woman's. At his side was a canvas painting headed —
* " Avant — Pendant — Apres."
indisputably illustrating by three pictures of himself, the
effects of the oil he was offering for sale. In the first portrait
he appeared bald and beardless ; in the second (just after he
had begun to usfe the oil), there was on his chin and head a
strong growing crop ; in the third he appeared — as he stood
before them — with the splendid beard and chevelure I have
desoribed. Within five yards of him, a man dressed in a white cap,
like a cook, was selling as fast as he could make thera, cakes
which he baked by pinching the savoury dough of which they
were coraposed with hot tongs, on whioh the rain oocasionally
hissed as it fell,
A little further on, hoping to get under shelter, I followed
a party through a slit in a canvas screen, within which in the
open air there stood for exhibition in an evening gown a young
woman who had not only a regular long beard and mustachios,
but whose shoulders and back were covered with hair. '' Tou-
chez le, Monsieur I"! she said to me, pointing to her beard.
The men present, showing their white teeth, laughed, but
some ladies, who had walked in immediately after me, stood
looking at her back and chin, and then at each other, with
countenances of silent horror, which it would be quite impossi
ble to describe.
Notwithstanding the inclemency of the weather, the whirli
gigs, wooden horses, and carriages heavily laden with joyous
faces, were spinning round in all direotions. Guns were firing,
cymbals clanking, druras beating, wind instruraents of all
descriptions resounding, and, louder than all, the speaking-
* Before — during— after. f Touch it, Sir!

142 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
trumpets of the various little theatres and shows were appa
rently announcing to the whole world the unspeakable delights
of the gradd Sunday fete of the Republic,
In returning homewards, I saw iu the Champs Elysees,
in the open air, and in front of the Cafe des Ambassadeurs,
araidst some thousand empty chairs, twenty-four waiters in
white neckcloths and white aprons standing chattering to each
other in the drizzling rain. As I was pitying them, the master
ofthe establishment, a young man of great intelligence, walked
up to me. He observed that I saw before me 400 tables, 3000
chairs, and that, to supply the guests he had expected, he had '
engaged for that day eighty waiters. I sincerely condoled
with him on the loss he must inevitably sustain, "Ah !" he
replied , with a slight shrug of his shoulders, anda countenance
beaming with good humour. It was all he said, or seemed
to wisli to say. on the subject. I then spoke of the unfortunate
political oondition of Paris, " We have plenty of Royalists,"
he said, " but they are all quarrelling among each other about
the individual. We have also plenty of honest Republicans,
but they quarrel about the individual too. People tell mewe
must cut off the heads of one of the two parties ; but, he added,
with the very sarae slight shrug, " it is irapossible !"
At the corner of the Plaoe de la Concorde I found — all .
wearing sharp-pointed beards — the Garde Mobile, or Gendar
mes Mobiles, the finest looking troops in Paris, The variety
of naraes which this force has been obliged to wear is rather
striking. It was at first called '• Guet Royal ;" then " Guet
Assis ;" then " Garde de Paris ;" then " Guet de Paris ;" then
Garde Nationale Soldee ;" then '- Legion de Police," By the
decree of the 10th of April, 1813, there was created and organ
ized, for the protection of the metropolis, a corps entitled
'¦ Gendarmerie Imperiale de Paris," By the royal ordonnance
of the 31st May, 1814, it took the name of " Garde Royale,'
On the 14th April, 1815, by order of the Revolutionists it re
sumed the nameof " Gendarmerie Imperiale," On the 10th
of January, 1816, by order of the Bourbons, it returned to the
name of " Garde Royale ;" — and on the 16th of August, 1830,
a decree was issued, changing its name to " Garde Munici
pale," Their full-dress uniform (for they have three costumes) is at
present composed of a strange and very striking mixture of

SUNDAY. 143
colours, as follows : — The black cap, — bound at top with silver,
ornamented at the side with a double angle of silver and scar
let, and a cockade of silver also edged with scarlet, and in front
by a scarlet tuft, a resplendent silver eagle and wreath, be
neath which projects horizontally the black peak, — is seoured
on the head by black patent-leather straps beneath silver chains
that meet under the chin. The coat, which has long skirts,
lined with scarlet, is dark blue, with scarlet edging to the cuffs.
The epaulettes are of white worsted ; the buttons of silver.
The cross-belts, which pass diagonally over the chest, of light
yellow, edged with white. From the left shoulder there hangs
through and round the left arm a long white cotton aiguilette,
festooned to the upper right breast buttons of the coat. The
trowsers are light blue ; the boots black. Affixed to the back
is a small light-brown hairy deer-skin knapsack, surmounted
by a blue greatcoat, neatly fastened in a roll by three yellow
straps. The gloves are very light yellow. The broad belt of
the bright-barrelled musket and the small pouch for percussion
caps are of a darker yellow, similar to that of the cross-belts.
Close to the guard-room, dressed in black glazed hats on
which was written — " Salubrity,
" Cantonnier,"
and in blouses braced round the waist by black leather belts,
were several men, employed by the police to keep the streets
clean ; they work from four in the morning till four at night,
for which they receive 40 sous (Is. Sc?.) a day, paid to them
three times a raonth.
In Paris the proprietors of every house are required to
sweep the foot pavement opposite to their respective domiciles.
The remainder of the street is cleaned by the city, who instead
of letting the work by contract, employ such numbers of " Can
tonniers " as they may deem necessary. In winter, of course,
more are required, besides which 3000 additional men have oc
casionally been employed to break the ice in the gutters and
carry away it and the snow to the Seine,
On ascending the steps of the church of the Madeleine,
most magnificently ornamented, I stood for sorae tirae on the
exalted platform looking at the moving mass of umbrellas
which, without interval or interruption, appeared to extend

144 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
across the Plaoe and Pont de la Concorde to the lofty coiumns
of the National Assembly. Within the church I heard re
sounding mass and prayers : outside, and close to me. men in
blouses were working — without metaphor — like the very devil,
with saws, tinware, and lamps, preparing for the illuminations.
A tide-of well dressed people, without crushing each other's
dresses, were slowly flowing into the church at one door and
out of it by another. On entering with the stream, after listen
ing for a few moments to the organ loudly pealing, I observed
on both sides ofthe door, half seated and half kneeling, alady,
dressed in the height of the fashion, to receive (eaoh in a crim
son velvet purse bound with gold) contributions on behalf of
the poor. One, in mourning, was about forty ; the other, nearly
thirty, and who was endeavouring to make her mouth look as
devout and as pretty as possible, was in colours. Both had in
their laps splendid prayer-books bound in crimson velvet and
gold. In the vicinity of the church was a body of troops standing
in the rain under arms, or rather leaning on them. Nothing
could exceed thegood humour that beamed in their counte
nances. On their right, looking as merry as a grig, I observed
the drummer, like a hen on her nest, sitting with his scarlet
trowsers on his drum to keep it warm and dry.
After mingling in the chequered scenes 1 have described for
about nine hours, I crawled home quite tired at half-past six.
However, as I felt resolved to see the fete out, as soon as I had
had my dinner — and, instead of heating wine, a little rest — I
sallied forth again, and was no sooner out of my door than I
found myself, as before, in a moving mass of umbrellas.
After looking, until it became dark, at various illuminations
- — before lighting the lamps, I saw the men employed to do so
pour off the water that lay in a stratum above the hard tallow
— and especially at the fountains on the Place de la Concorde,
now converted into glittering cascades flowing over baskets of
roses, I proceeded to the bridge, which was .so crowded, that
with considerable difficulty and by very slow degrees I was
enabled to advance. The only point at which I and every
body had an appearance of hurrying was through a broad pool
ol^ rain water, about eight inches deep, at the edge of whioh all
paused until, amid.st loud laughter, they mustered courage
enough by twos and threes to run through it

SUNDAY. 145
The good humour and real politeness of the crowd were
beyond all description ; and although everybody had not
only to take care of him, or her self, but of an uilbjvdla,
which, for want of room often unintentionally coniraitteL
very grave offences, I heard around me in all directions
nothing but joy and jokes. In trying to advance my pa-
rapluie during the heavy rain, I very unfortunately knocked
a young gentleman's hat off into the mud. " Ah !" exclaimed
a man in a blouse, as the owner ran to pick it up, " vous
aurez un coup-de-soleil !"* The proprietor, however, as he
put the dripping thing on his wet head, laughed as good-
humouredly as the rest.
As I passed the magnificgnt colossal group of the Tritons,
sea-horses, &c., in the middle of the bridge, representing the
Genius of Navigation, I remained of opinion that the artist
had entirely spoilt it by leaving the plaster snow-white. On
crossing the bridge, however, and, after a deal of patience,
obtaining a plaoe close to the railings overlooking the Seine,
I had occasion to acknowledge my error : for while, fancying
that with more wisdom than other people I had disoovered a
great fault, I was actually looking at the majestic group, it
all of a sudden, and apparently of its own accord, became
tinged with a light bluish hue, producing the most beautiful
effect that oan possibly be conceived. The change proceeded
from a small barge moored about one hundred yards down
the stream, in which was conoealed a powerful artificial light
of the colour desoribed, which through a large lens, like that
of a magic-lantern, was at a given moment made to radiate
upon the white group to give to it the unearthly, mysterious,
lovely tint, from all directions hailed with well-merited
applause. The picture was now complete ; for simultaneous with
the alteration of light an immense mass of water, conducted
through iron pipes of teu and eighteen inches in diameter,
was made to flow from beneath the group in cascades over
the masses of artificial rocks, interspersed, as I have stated,
with fir-trees of various ages and — as if from wind or from
the force of the torrent — -in various attitudes. In the river
beneath every barge and boat was beautifully illuminated,
* All ! you will have a coup-de-soleil 1
7

146 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
and whercer my eyes wandered there appeared through the
darknes? a picturesque mixture of light, colours, and flags.
In if short time the pale blue group, as well as the rocks, the
iJoats in the river, and even the countenances of the people
that stood dripping by my side, assumed a beautiful red hue,
then they became bright green, and, when the artificial
lights which gradually and successively had caused these
striking changes expired, the blue bull's-eye which, although
it had been for the moment overpowered, had continued un
ceasingly shining upon its object, recovering its power, shed
its pale lovely cerulean influence as before.
As, perfectly unconscious of the rain, I was enjoying the
soientifio changes I have described, I heard, at a considerable
distance, a very slight insignificant explosion, followed in
stantly by a general murmur of applause. Some said, Oh !
some. Ah I some, Ai I in short, the groan of delight from the
whole assembled multitude was apparently composed of the
joint utterance by innumerable voices of the vowels a, e, i, o,
u, formed into one long drawling word. On looking in the
direction in which everybody seemed to look and groan, I saw,
high up in the darkness, a dense mass of falling stars of every
possible colour, announcing the commencement of the fire
works at the Champs de Mars, at the Barriere du Trone, on the
Seine, and in various other localities. Occasionally the suc
cess of these feux d'artifice was only announced to us by a
faint and distant cheer ; but every five or ten minutes they
rose and burst at a great height, with a variety and splen
dour whioh appeared to afford everywhere intense delight.
During the time I remained leaning against the railings
overlooking the Seine, only about two rows of people behind
me (all of whom were under umbrellas) could manage to get
an occasional glimpse of the cascades, illuminations, &c,, to
thc remainder almost invisible ; and yet at no moment did I
receive the slightest pressure, nor did I hear a single com
plaint or even observation respecting the innumerable little
streams of water which from one person's umbrella were run
ning into his neighbour's neck, and vice versa.
At ten o'clock at night I abandoned my position to go to
my lodgings. In returning along the Pont de la Concorde, I
came into a tide of people, all, like myself, homeward-bound,
all in good humour, all happy. There was no pressing, no

SUNDA r. 1 47
confusion. Most of the women had nothing on their heads
but white cap^ ; many were carrying in their arms dripping
children. As the merry mass moved along, the rain, which
for the last hour had been steadily increasing, was to be seen
pattering upwards from the asphalte paveraent of the Place de
la Concorde, On reaching the oovered colonnade of the Rue
de Rivoli, it was, of course — especially for ladies whose silk
cloaks and backs were dripping wet — a haven of considerable
importance, yet I particularly observed no one tried to hurry
into it before the person that preceded him, or even to enter it
until he or she could do so without pressing upon any one else.
On the whole, as I entered the welcome door of my home, I
felt very deeply that, instead of regretting the weather they
had experienced, there was nothing in the fSte I had just wit
nessed that conferred half so much real honour on the Repub
lic as the urbanity, politeness, and social virtues which the
French citizens, under circumstances of untoward disappoint
ment, had just evinced in the celebration of its anniversary ; and
yet, although liberty, fraternity, and equality had really been
the happy characteristics of the day, it is an anomalous fact
that, while every citizen of Paris was enjoying the festival of
his independence from the power of monarchy, the garrison of
Paris, consisting of an army of 60,000 soldiers were — except
ing the guards I have mentioned, and oocasionally a dragoon
trotting through the streets with a despatch — confined to their
barracks the whole of the day, to prevent the overthrow, by
" the people," of the very republican system, the establishment
of which was apparently producing among them so much hap
piness and joy !
The expenses of the fete, indirectly as well as directly,
must have beeu enormous ; and yet, strange to say, although
I had been awakened in the morning by the gratulatory roar
of the cannon of the Invalides, and although my ears had been
assailed by appeals of applause and of noises of approbation
of every possible description, I did not, from morning to night,
onoe hear the voice — even of a chUd — exclaim " Vive la Re
publique !"
As, on reaching my room, I was pretty well tired out, I
soon made preparations for going to bed ; and yet, before do
ing so, I could not help refiecting with pride and pleasure on
a statement still lying on my table, in Galignani's newspaper,

148 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
announcing the respect which in England, on that day week,
Prince Albert and the Royal Commission had publicly paid to
the sabbath, by suspending on it all work at the Crystal
Palace, although by doing so their pledge to the whole family
of mankind to open it on the 1 st of May was in danger of be
ing broken.
The following little " dulce-domura" paragraph, contrasted
with the scenes I had just witnessed, pleasingly corroborated
the same important moral : —
From the ' Times' of Monday. " Yesterday the Duke of Wellington
attended the early service and received the sacraraent in the Chapel
Royal, St. James's."

THB OCULIST.
Before I left England I had been strongly recommended to
ascertain in London who was the best oculist in the French
metropolis ; I, however, took especial care to do no such thing,
but, on the second day after my arrival in Paris, called upon
Mr, Swann, an English chemist of very high character, and,
after explaining to him my anxiety on the subject, I put the
important question to him,
"Sir," he replied, " I will give you the name and address
not only of the best oculist in Paris, but, I believe, in Europe !"
he added that the proper way of consulting him was to go to
his house, where he received his patients every day except
Saturday till two o'clock ; and as he further advised me to go
early, on the next morning I left my lodgings at a quarter be
fore seven, and crossing the Plaoe de Vend6me (the sentinel
at the foot of Napoleon's column, pacing backwards and for
wards, had in a great-coat — which, I believe, belonged to the
sentry-box — a large hole —
" If there's a hole in a' yere coats,
I rede ye tent it :
A chiel's amang ye takin' notes,
An faith he'll prent it ")
nfterwards the Boulevart des Italiens, and then entering the

THE OCULIST. I49
Rue de la Chaussee d'Antin, I proceeded along it until I saw
over a handsome porte-cochere the No. 50.
I asked the concierge if Dr. Sichel lived there ?
"Au premier. Monsieur,"* she replied.
So up stairs I mounted, and on the first landing place,
ringing at the bell, the door was opened by a lad dressed in
a sort of half uniform half livery, who showed me into two
drawing-rooms, handsomely carpeted, the walls of whioh were
surrounded by chairs, on which I saw, seated in silence, and
in various attitudes, eight or ten persons. The boy told rae
in French " to give myself the trouble to sit down," On my
doing so, he went to his little desk, opened a little drawer,
and, putting his hand into it, he brought, and, without the
utterance of a word, delivered to me, a little bit of wood
about an inch and a half square, on whioh was inscribed the
figure 1 1.
"What is this?" said I to him in French,
" Monsieur" he replied, " c'est votre nuraero "! and then,
turning on his heels and walking across the carpet, he seated
himself at his desk with his faoe towards the wall.
In glancing at those who at the early hour I have named
had oome before me, I saw in a chair opposite me an offi
cer in blue uniform and red collar, wearing the cross of the
legion of honour ; beside him sat a lady in a white bonnet,
within which was an exoeedingly pretty face, a quantity of
black hair parted on the forehead, and in the place of whis
kers two slight wreaths of light green flowers. Next to her
sat a poor-looking paysanne in a milk-white cap, with frills
beautifully plaited, and with a black shawl neatly thrown
over her shoulders, confined aoross the breast by one long
pin stuck in diagonally. Of the party assembled, some with
out very muoh expression of countenance were leaning their
chins on umbrellas, others sat ruminating with their arms
stiffly extended, their hands one over another resting ona
stick. One poor lady, evidently suffering great pain, kept her
white poCket-handkerohief on her eyes. Next to her sat a
powerful-looking man in blouse.
I was examining my little wooden ticket, and was reflect
ing on the extraordinary disposition for order and system
* On the firet floor, Sir. f Sir, it is your number !

150 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
which, in spite of her interminable political disorders, and re
peated annihilation of every system of government, pervades
France, when the bell rang, and the boy, as suddenly as if
the wire had pulled him too, jumped up, and then opening the
door, ushered in two ladies, to the eldest of whom he gave a
wooden ticket, which she received with silence, and then with
her young friend sat down almost immediately opposite to
me. No. H's eyes immediately looked at No. 12's eyes sym
pathetically to discover, if possible, what was the matter with
them, at which the eyes of No, 12's friend sparkled and glis
tened, as much as to say, " You are mistaken, Sir, if you think
we are either sick or sorry !"
The bell every now and then intermittently gave another
ring, until in about a quarter of an hour the room was nearly
full of eyes, some evidently suffering so severely that with
habitual caution I began to reflect whether, in my visit I
might not possibly catch more than I had come to have
cured. For a considerable time we all sat in mute silence, and
indeed, in our respective attitudes almost motionless ; save
that every now and then a gentleman, and sometimes a lady,
would arise, slowly walk diagonally across the carpet to a
corner close to the window, press with his or her hand the top
of a little mahogany machine, that looked like an umbrella-
stand, look down into it, and then very slowly, at a sort of fu
neral pace, walk back.
All this I bore with great fortitude for some "time ; at
last, overpowered by curiosity, I arose, walked slowly and di
agonally across the carpet, pushed tbe thing in the corner
exactly as I had seen everybody else push it, looked just as
they did, downwards, where, close to the floor, I beheld open
in obedience to the push I had given from the top, the lid of
a little spitting-box, from which I very slowly, and without
attracting the smallest observation, walked back to my chair.
The silence continued for a long time ; at last with great
joy, I first heard and then saw the massive door of admission
to Dr. S. open, and I was expecting to see No. 1 rise from
her chair, when a sort of clerk, who hardly a minute before
had walked across the carpet into the room beyond the said
solid door, re-appeared, carrying through the two waiting-
rooms on his right arm a dark-coloured coat and waistcoat.

THE OCULIST. 151
Several other patients now arrived, and in a few minutes
the solid door again opened, the same clerk again walked out
of it, carrying in his right hand a pan of ashes out of a grate.
Although my time was of some little value to me, I felt
it was no use to be impatient, and as everybody looked good-
humoured and contented, I determined to try and follow
their example.
I own, however, that my countenance fell a little (I am
describing what not only occurred on my first visit, but that
which recurred on every subsequent one I made) on seeing
the boy who, unobserved by me, had disappeared from his
desk, open the entrance door, cross the carpet, and walk to
wards the solid door, carrying in both hands a tray contain
ing a large cup of coffee, two or three rolls, and sorae butter,
which he took into the chamber in which we were all event
ually to appear Subsequently, he opened in the drawing-
room a cupboard, into which — seating himself close before it
— he put a large cup of coffee, a large slice of bread, and
lastly and instinctively, his own head. In fact, it was evi
dent that, such is the fame and amount of practice of Dr.
S., that his patients, competing one against another, are in
the habit of invading his house and seating themselves in
his drawing-room before he has dressed or before he or his
servants have breakfasted.
About eight o'clock — which was quite as early as any
physician could reasonably be expected to begin his labour —
the lad reappeared, and, calling out " Numero 1," a poor wo
man arose from her seat, and entered the doctor's door.
In about seven or eight minutes No, 2 was called, and so
on till Nos, 4 and 5, when I observed that the next person,
and after him the next, that were called, were two gentlemen
(each taking in with him a lady), who had only just arrived.
This appeared to me so unjust that I could not resist com
plaining of it to a man in a blouse, who had, for upwards
of half an hour, sat in silence besides me.
" lis sont docteurs !"* he replied ; and I then learned it is
the habit in Paris, in all waiting-rooms of this nature, for
professional men bringing patients or clients — the terms, alas !
are but too often synonymous — to be adraitted as fast as they
arrive — in fact, to take precedence of everybody else.
* They are doctors!

15-2 .4 FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
By this rule I was often bothered a great deal ; for while
I sat, believing I was next to be called, the bell would ring,
and there would enter the waiting-room a gentleman, of whom
I heard whispered, with a slight shrug — the meaning of which
I but too well understood — " Encore un docteur !"*
" The De'il fiee awp.' with the doctors !" I very improperly
muttered to myself However, every dog has his day, and
accordingly, in due time, on the lad calling out my number, I
arose, and, entering the door I had so long been wistfully
looking at, I was received by Dr. S., whose intellectual coun
tenance at once promised me all I could possibly desire,
I was going to speak to him, but he very properly insist
ed first of all on looking at my eyes, and having done so, beg
ging me to be seated, and sitting opposite to me, he said to
me in French, with a look of perfect resignation, " I am wil
ling now to hear whatever you may think proper to say ;" and
he added that, as I was apparently an Englishman, I might
address him in my own language.
Nothing could be more sensible, satisfactory, and pleasing
than his whole manner. He spoke English with great fluency
and with good pronunciation ; and after he had explained to
me the nature of the disorder in ray eyes, which he termed
in writing " Blephamphthalmie," and which he said he had no
doubt he could cure, he requested me to follow him into an
adjoining room, where, he would give me a prescription.
In this little charaber there sat, close to a comfortable
fire, an intelligent-looking young man of slight figure, with a
beard and mustachios Ona small table before him were pens,
paper, sand, ink, coffee, rolls, and butter. Dr. S dictated to
him for about a minute, and then, leaving me seated opposite
to him, he returned into the larger apartment in whioh he
had received me.
Besides the gentleman before me, I saw in one corner of
the little room a round tin table, surrounded by a projecting
rim, around whioh were seated several persons, men and wo
men, each incessantly dabbing, first one eye and then another,
with a sponge repeatedly moistened from a tumbler full of
liquid. While this transaction was going on, the gentleman oppo
site to me, the instant Dr. S. had left the room, began to write
* Another doctor!

THE OCULIST. I53
i)ut my prescription, which I expected would have been ex
pressed — as it had been pronounced — in very few words,
I observed, however, that after filling one side of a sheet
of large note paper, he turned it over, and on the other side
continued to write ; — Then, in deep reflection, hc sat for a few
seconds looking at the ceiling ; — then he wrote a line or two ;
— and stopped ; — then took a bite at his roll; — munched; —
reflected ; — and then wrote again. As soon as he had finished,
he arose, knocked hard with his knuckle at the door of Dr.
S,, who almost immediately entered.
In a very oalm, impressive manner he gave direotions to
several patients, who, besides those dabbing, were seated in
the room ; and with great pleasure I observed that to the ap
parently rich and poor — for he neither knew nor cared for
the name of any of us — there was not in his manner, language,
or anxiety to explain himself, the slightest shade of difference ;
— his whole mind being evidently entirely engaged in curing
them of their respective disorders, ¦
Proceeding for an instant into one corner of the room, he
returned with a small squirt in his hand, and, walking up to
a very pleasing-looking young woman, without the utterance of
a single word, with his left fore finger he drew down the lower
lid of her right eye, and then with his right hand squirted
into it something whioh to my utter astonishment set her off
spitting and making horrible faces, just as if she had swal
lowed the most nauseous medicine !
" Ah !" she said in French, " I taste it all in my throat ;
ah !" she repeated, spitting into her handkerchief several
times, " que c'est mavauis !"*
" Well . !" said I to myself, with a long sigh, " there is
no end to the high-ways and by-ways of this world !"
Leaving her to make exactly what faces she liked. Dr. S.
now walked to his secretary, who delivered to him my pre
scription which he read word by word, with an attention that
appeared to engross his whole mind. He then not only read
it again over to me, but explained it to me very carefully •
in short, his appearance, demeanour, and conduct, were alto
gether strongly corroborative of the high character he had
attained, and which causes him to be engaged in the way I
* How nasty it is !
7*

1 54 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
have described, every day excepting Saturday, until two
o'clock, when he drives in his carriage to patients who are too
rich, too ill, or too idle to wait upon him.
On leaving him, I deposited my prescription with Mr,
Swann, from whom during the few minutes I remained in his
shop, I happened to learn a few of the innumerable clever
ways in which medicine is now concocted in France.
The most nauseous drug, in the form of paste, is wrapped
up in a wafer paper made soft and pliable by being damped
with perfectly sweet oil, by which means a very large mouth
ful of physic may be swallowed with exactly as much ease as a
piece of turtle or aTnass of masticated meat of the same size.
For children, a peck of pills are sent at a time to a confec
tioner, to be covered over with so thick a coating of sugar,
that they may be very agreeably sucked for a long time ; and
thus, merely by making children promise faithfully not to
bite them, medicine is now administered in the form of
sugar-plums !
" Succhi amari, ingannato, intanto, ei beve,
E dall' inganno suo, vita riceve."

h6tel des invalides.
I HAD, for upwards of an hour, been gazing, or rather gaping —
everybody in Paris was doing the same — at the rows of col
oured lamps, magnificent statues, and other reminiscences of
the grand by-gone f6te of yesterday, and, resting heavily on
my stick, was standing on the Pont de Concorde, between the
group of sea-horses and the temporary colonnades, which like
a pair of wings had grown from each side of that magnificent
edifice, the National Assembly, when I observed that there
had occasionally passed me several officers in full uniform,
and several people dressed en bourgeois, whose hurried pace,
contrasted with the sauntering attitudes of the crowd through
whom they had wound their way, evidently showed they were
on some trail — in short, hunting after something.
As I had nothing very particular to do, I watched the

HOTEL DES INVALIDES. 155
course they pursued, and finding that as soon as they came in
front of the Assembly, they all, as if by word of comraand,
turned to the right, I proceeded to the point, and waited until
there approached me, walking very quickly, an officer in the
uniform — blue coat with broad red facings — of the Garde Re
publicaine, On my asking him to be so obliging as to tell me
where he was going, with the utmost kindness of manner he
informed me he was hastening to the Hotel des Invalides, to
join in the fete commemorative of the death of Napoleon, of
which that day, he added, was the anniversary As soon as
we had mutually bowed to each other, my inforraant proceeded
on his course, quite refreshed, and in a few seconds I found
myself slowly following him along the Quai D'Orcay, until on
my left I oame to the magnificent esplanade, 1440 feet in
length, by /80 broad, leading from the Seine to that splendid
pile of buildings, the Hotel des Invalides. This avenue,
which of late years has been bounded on eaoh side by low tem
porary barracks, one story high, capable of containing 7000
troops, was all alive with people, most of whom were arranged
in two rows, leaving, in the broad pave in the centre of the
road, a passage, whioh I soon learned was for Prince Louis
Napoleon, whose arrival was momentarily expected.
Instead of taking up a position at this point, I proceeded
to the iron gates of the Garden, and without provoking a dif
ficulty, or teazing anybody by asking questions, I walked into
it as familiarly as if I had been born there. On each side of
the handsome broad approach to the magnificent hospital be
fore me, were drawn up in line the 3000 veterans who inhab
ited it, 2000 of whom had served under " L'Empereur"— and
1 more interesting picture could scarcely be witnessed.
Holding black halberds, at the upper end of which was a
small tricolor fiag, surmounted by a piece of crape, they were
dressed in a cooked hat, worn crossways, a la Napoleon, blue
loose coat, lined with red, red cuffs and sleeves, silver buttons,
a single white cross belt, and a short thin sabre. Among the
ranks of brown faces enlivened with little ear-rings, here and
there hung many an empty sleeve ; beneath them were to be
seen many a wooden leg. A few appeared hale ; but the
greater number were thin, shrivelled, bent, and toothless.
Some stood tottering, aud yet almost all looked gay, with
eyes still sparkling with enthusiasm. One only was yawning.
In the rear I observed several moving about on crutches.

156 -1 FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
Not a beard was to be seen. They had lived without it-
had conquered without it — had received their wounds without
it, and very probably they now disdained to adopt it. Com
paratively speaking, few even wore mustachios, and it was
pleasing to reflect, that, while the countenance of Europe has
lately become overgrown with hair, the weather-beaten faces
of the veterans of France and England continue as closely
shaved as when they grappled with each other on the bloody
fields of Egypt, the Peninsula, and Waterloo,
Besides those on duty in the two lines before me, and in
the interior of the building, a number of the veterans were
either standing or loitering about.
Oocasionally their attention as well as my own was at
tracted to some officer of rank, in full uniform, hastily walking
up the space between them towards the great hospital. After
several had passed — each, I observed, was more or less com
mented upon — there strutted by, to my great astonishment, a
remarkably stout, portly, handsome, well-fed, oily-looking priest,
in his canonical dress, with the cross and scarlet riband of
" Grand Commandeur of the Legion of Honour" dangling on
his black breast
" What ! do they decorate the priests ?" said I, to a veteran
by my side. With indescribable apathy, he replied, " Oui,
Monsieur, on leur donne les memes croix que les militaires."*
" Was it so in the time ofthe Emperor?" I said.
" j4/j que non !"! he exclaimed, tossing up his head with
such haughty recollections that he lost his balance, and stag
gered backwards a little. " Sacre nom !" he added, as soon as
he had recovered himself
One of the Old Guard now conversed with me for some
time. He told me he had served in Paris an English noble
man (Lord ***** *) — ^"tres brave homnio — ^jusqu'a son
papa I'a rappele.''J
Finding that I wished to get a good view of Prince Louis
Napoleon, he advised me to walk up to the entrance door of
the Invalides, at which he would — he said — descend from his
carriage I accordingly followed his advice, and, reaching
the point, found no one there excepting a sentinel, and the
* Yes, Sir, they give them the same crosses as the army.
f Oh, no I . . . Holy name !
X Very tine fellow — until his papa called him home.

HOTEL DES INVALIDES. 157
Lieutenant-Governor of the Invalides, General Petit, a fine-
looking old soldier, with a healthy colour, white mustachios,
and an intelligent countenance, evidently accustomed to com
mand. He was dressed in a hat bound round with very
broad gold lace ; a gold sash ; aoross his blue uniform and
gold epaulettes he wore a broad crimson riband ; round his
arm and the handle of his sword was a piece of crape.
I had scarcely reached the spot, when I perceived by a
movement among the veterans who were not on duty — for
those in line stood as erect and as firm as they could — that
the object of their expectation was in view. Instead, how
ever, of driving up to the Invalides, Prince Louis Napoleon
descended from his carriage at the iron gate, and I soon
saw him, followed by a numerous staff, advancing on foot
along the road whioh traverses the garden, and which is
about 160 yards in length. As he approached me, I of course
took off my hat, and without presuming to bow — ^many years
ago, when he was in England, I had been slightly acquainted
witb him — I was standing uncovered with it in my hand,
when to my surprise he was pleased to acknowledge me, with
so much apparent good will and kindness, of which I had af
terwards repeated proofs, that as soon as he passed I quietly
slipped among his staft', and with the procession slowly
marched on — I hardly knew where.
After several turns and twists, of which there remains in
my mind but a confused dreamy sort of recollection, I found
myself walking up the aisle of a chapel, — sixty-six feet high,
the floor of which, 210 feet long, was covered with black
cloth, — between two rows of soldiers wearing their caps, and
holding in their hands halberds bearing a small tricolor flag
surmounted by crape. Excepting compartments in which
were shields bearing ya. silver the letter N , the church was
all hung with black. The whole wall around the altar —
transparently veiled with crape — was covered with black
cloth, and the chairs throughout the aisle were also black. In
the time of Napoleon there were here suspended 3000 ban
ners of victory. On the evening, however, before the en
trance of the allied army into Paris (the 31st March, 1814),
Joseph Buonaparte, through the Duo de Feltre, minister of
war, ordered them to be burnt, and tbe sword of Frederick
the Great to be broken. Thrice were these orders given
before they were obeyed.

158 -4 FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
Towards the roof, the chapel was ornamented with count
less flags and trophies faded, and in holes apparently from shot
and musketry. Beneath them, in a gallery, were to be seen a
variety of beautiful bonnets, each encircling a couple of rows
of flowers, and a face, I suppose — to tell the truth, I did not
analyze them — representing either Spring, Summer, Autumn,
or Winter. Excepting the aisle along which we passed, the
body of the churoh was choke full of gentlemen, principally in
uniform. The altar, veiled with crape, was but a temporary
screen, behind which, and immediately beneath the lofty gilt
cross on the sumrait of the great dome, reposed, after all its
eventful travels, the body of Napoleon, in a tomb whioh has
already cost 6,163,324 francs, of which 1,500,000 have been
for the marble alone.
His nephew, surrounded by the principal officers, took up
his position on the left of this altar. Immediately above him,
suspended from the roof, was the great parasol of the Emperor
of Morocco. For about two or three minutes he stood — and of
course everybody else stood — perfectly upright. He appeared
wrapt in thought, until, suddenly awakening from his medita
tions, he slightly bowed and sat down. In a few seconds
those iraraediately about him sat down too, and then, like a
third echo, a rustle was heard, caused by everybody else sit
ting down, " Portez vos armes !" * exclairaed, in a flrm,
strong tone, the officer commanding the veterans, standing
with their cooked hats a la Napoleon, The muffled drums
rolled. The priests, congregated in a sraall square space, half
way up the church, now began the service of high mass, which,
assisted by an organ, and also by a band, they performed with
admirable voices and great effect. On the rails of the altar
there hung a great round yellow wreath of immortelles, a foot
and a half in diameter.
The countenance of Prince Louis -Napoleon throughout
the whole ceremony wore that mild, pensive expression for
which it is remarkable. Of the rest of the congregation, a
considerable proportion, especially the youngest, looking up
at the gallery, instead of at the altar, seemed to be thinking
more about the eyes of the living than the bones of the dead ;
— in fact, to say the truth, they were not very particularly at
tentive. * Shoulder arms !

HOTEL DES INVALIDES. 159
As soon as the solemn requiem was over. Prince Napo
leon rose, and, followed by his attendants, slowly walked down
the aisle, and then quitting the chapel proceeded into the
great court, 315 feet long by 192 broad, called the " Cour
d'Honneur."* in which I found assembled for review the
whole of the veterans of the establishment capable of stand
ing in the ranks, in which they were already arranged. Above
them, on the outside of the south wall of the quadrangle, at
the height of the second story, there stood, with folded arms,
with a cocked-hat placed crossways on his head, and with two
or three circular wreaths of yellow "immortelles" at his feet,
a bronze-coloured colossal statue of Napoleon, 12 feet high, a
fac-simile, in plaster, of that on the summit of the Place de
Vendome. At any time it would have been to rae a great enjoyment
to witness this assemblage ; but there was one circumstance
which rendered it particularly interesting. On the anniver
sary of the death of Napoleon, the wreck of the great army
who followed him with reckless enthusiasm wherever he went
claim the privilege of appearing in the review which follows
the requiem I had just witnessed, in the old-fashioned, eccen
tric, and alraost grotesque uniforms in whioh they had fought
and been wounded. As, therefore, I followed the Prince and
his staff down the ranks of men, some of whom, with severely
wounded faces, appeared so lean and wasted, as if the slightest
puff of wind would blow them down, I occasionally passed mi
litary costumes whioh almost startled me, so different were
they from that to which the eye had gradually become accus
tomed. Some of the jackets in front scarcely covered the
breast-bone, and when viewed behind appeared to cover no
thing at all ; in fact, the wearer was all trowsers, epaulettes,
and hairy cap. Several men wore bright-yellow leather pan
taloons, and Hessian boots bound with gold with gold tassels
in front ; some were dressed in black breeches, and long black
gaiters strapped round above the knee ; some wore yellow
trowsers, with the name of their regiment on the skirt-tails of
their coat
As Prince Louis Napoleon marched down the ranks of
bright, intelligent hazel eyes that, as he approached them, ap
peared to be re-animated for the moment with pristine vigour,
* Court of Honour.

160 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
he occasionally stopped before any veteran whose wounds, ap
pearance, or history made him particularly worthy of atten
tion, and spoke to him. While he was so engaged, the con
trast between his easy pliant manner and the straight, stiff,
upright attitude of the veteran, of whose head nothing but the
thin lips were seen to move, was very remarkable. At one
of the soldiers who was thus distinguished I gazed, as I passed
him, with great interest. He was a short, spare, diminutive,
thorough-bred looking little creature, of Arab breed, with an
aquiline nose, vigorous countenance, eyes bright as a hawk,
and with a countenance altogether highly excited, probably by
the recollection of former days, by the sight of the nephew of
his old master, and by the few flattering words just uttered to
him. But what he seemed to be most proud of, and what
seemed also to be exceedingly proud of hira, were four bullet-
holes in the oloth-turbaned cap on his head. He had been
one of Napoleon's body-guard ; had been constantly about his
person ; and he now stood before his nephew in the full cos
tume of the ancient corps to whioh he had belonged, well
known and respected by the whole "army : " Mameluke de la
Garde !" The words were evidently impressed in his brain.
As soon as Prince Louis Napoleon had finished his inspec
tion, accompanied by his suite, he walked in procession through
the garden to the iron entrance gate, where were assembled a
large crowd, and, amidst loud cheers of " Vive Napoleon !" he
entered his carriage and drove off; and as the veterans had
already been dismissed frora their parade, the garden in which I
stood was soon thronged by them. The crowd outside, with faces
pressing against the railings, seemed to look with intense in
terest and delight on the old uniforms stalking about before
thera, as if they and their wearers had just arisen from the fields
of Austerlitz, Jena, and Marengo. Several of these veterans,
not members of the Hotel des Invalides, as they walked into
the crowd to return to their homes, were followed by a halo of
people, almost treading on eaoh other's heels, from over anx
iety to obtain a glimpse of the uniforms which had been " the
Glory of the Erapire." Even within the garden, many of the
wearers of the old oosturaes were surrounded by their comrades
clothed in the garb of the Invalides. The great favorite, how
ever, was the fierce, fiery, fire-eating, enthusiastic little Mame
luke, with the four bullet-holes in his cap. I saw several old

HOTEL DES INVALIDES. 161
grenadiers, almost as thin and emaciated as skeletons, one after
another shake his uplifted small hand ; and when, after having
received their welcome • homage to his valor, he entered the
crowd, it, I have no doubt, formed his guard of honor till he
reaohed his humble dwelling in Paris,
As soon as the excitement of the moment had subsided,
when the crowd outside had dispersed, while a few groups
only of veterans were to be seen conversing together, and when
the leanest and most infirm had seated themselves on the
benches which in various directions had been appropriated for
their use, I looked for a few moments at the general outline
of the magnificent building of the Hotel des Invalides, the en
trance-front of whioh, 612 feet in length, surmounted in the
rear by the spacious dome, is composed of four stories, with an
additional story or row of windows in its tall slated roof
On the extreme left are the quarters — occupying four win
dows in front — of Prince Jerome, Napoleon's brother, the
governor of the establishment. On the extreme right are the
quarters — also occupying four windows in front — of Gene
ral Petit, the lieutenant-governor. Behind this splendid front
are four infirmary squares, eaoh of the four sides of which is
one story high, with one set of windows in the roof; also four
officers' squares, of the same elevation. The ground occupied
by the buildings, courts, and gardens of the Hotel des Inva
lides is sixteen aores.
After looking about me for a short time, I sat down on
one bench and then on another, to converse with the veterans
who were occupying it ; and although nothing oftentiraes could
be more frail than their bodies, yet I certainly was very muoh
struck, not only with their polite, highbred manners, but with
the extraordinary vigour which, generally speaking, remained
in their minds. To one of the most sturdy of my companions
I expressed a wish to walk over the building ; and as he cheer
fully proposed to be my guide, I felt I had better allow him to
go his own way. and accordingly, just as if he had been exceed
ingly hungry, or had fancied that I was, he led me first of all
into the cooking department, composed of one small kitchen for
the soldiers, and one large one for officers.
In the former — which, although very high and well venti
lated, was scarcely 30 feet square, and which contained no open
fire-place — where two large hot plates, each containing four

162 -'I FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
great patent caldrons for boiling, and ovens for baking, all
heated by coal. In this small space there can, by the admira
ble arrangements desoribed, be cooked provisions for six thou
sand persons per day ! In the caldrons, which were all socia
bly bubbling together, there appeared some green stuff that
looked like spinach, or smashed greens On a table adjoining
were large pewter plates full of brown beans, just peppered,
salted, and vinegared, and with a small heap of salad sitting on
the top. Bach of these messes was for twelve soldiers There
were also to be cooked for that day's consumption, for the vete
rans alone, no less than 5,200 eggs,
" Don't you give thera any meat ?" I said to the head cook,
a highly intelligent-looking man, dressed, head and all, in milk-
white. " Monsieur," he replied, '• on Monday we shall kill thirty-
five sheep for the raen alone !"
In the large kitchen for the officers were two caldrons, simi
lar to those described, each capable of boiling 1.200 lbs. of
meat, with a fireplace, before which appeared two spits of enor
mous length, covered from end to end with revolving joints of
meat, roasting by wood, burning a few inches only above the
ground. From the kitchen, the sole object of which was to sustain
the body, my conductor very naturally led me to the larder
instituted by Napoleon for the nourishment of the mind of his
veterans, a library containing about 17,000 volumes of an ex
ceedingly tough nature — " indigestaque moles" — namely, juris
prudence, theology, belles lettres, and strategy, ornamented
with a model of the Hotel, with a portrait of Louis Philippe
swearing to observe the Charter, and with the well-known
picture of Napoleon riding up Mount St. Bernard, in so un-
horsemanlike an attitude, that, had he ever assumed it, he must
inevitably have rolled off backwards.
After passing along, on the second story, a corridor or
colonnade, forming in bad weather a beautiful promenade for
the inmates of the establishment, I asked my guide to show
me the dormitories of the men. He said they did not like
to be visited by the innumerable strangers who came to see
the establishment, adding, with a smile, " as if they were wild
beasts ;" however, the words were scarcely out of his mouth,
when, with that politeness which in France constitutes the

HOTEL DES INVALIDES. 163
wish of a stranger to be the law of the land, he opened a door,
and led me through one of the largest, containing about fifty
beds, composed of a straw paliasse, wool mattress and bolster,
separated from eaoh other by a chair, for whioh there was
just spaee enough. Over the pillow of each veteran — several
of them I observed, each in his uniform, either sitting ru
minating in his chair or reclining on his bed — was affixed a
shelf, on which were folded clothes and articles of different
sorts. The lot, however, whatever it was composed of,
appeared invariably surmounted with a huge cooked-hat box,
of colored pasteboard. There are in the first and second
stories of the establishment eight of these spacious well-aired
dormitories, bearing the following names : — Salle de Vauban ;
d'Hautpool; de Luxembourg ; de Mars ; d' Assas ; de Latour
d'Auvergne ; de Bayard ; de Kleber. Besides the above are
several smaller dormitories, containing from four to eight
beds each.
My guide now conducted me to a very busy and interest
ing scene.
On entering a long corridor, open to the air, I found
assembled a large number of old soldiers crowding round a
door, into which they were apparently waiting for admission,
but before which there was pacing up and do.wn, as sentinel,
a one-armed veteran, who, for want of a better, was holding
in his left hand his drawn sword, the empty scabbard of which
was suspended by a white belt across his chest Each man
in the crowd had an empty bottle in one hand, and in the
other (if he had one) a white napkin, containing his knife,
fork, and tin drinking-mug. Of those who were approaching,
many were stone-blind, each tapping the ground hard with his
stick at every step he took. In one instance I saw two sight
less old soldiers leading eaoh other. In all direotions was to
be heard the stumping of wooden legs. One veteran wore a
black cap, in consequence of a wound in the skull. Many
were singing. The instant the clock struck four a general
restless movement took place, A drum close behind me
suddenly gave a loud and startling roll. At the words
" Allez ! entrons ! "* uttered by several voices at once, the
one-armed sentinel stood aside, and the whole mass, without
* Come I let us enter I

164 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
pushing each other, but without losing a single _ instant of
time, flowed through the door into an immense dining-room,
150 feet in length by 24 in breadth, in which in a few
minutes I had the satisfaction of seeing them seated on
wooden stools, around thirty-one circular tables, at each of
whioh were twelve veterans. The walls whioh contained thia
interesting assemblage of old warriors, who, although seated,
all wore either their cooked-hats or undress-caps, were covered
with pictures of great battles, and at the end there very pro
perly appeared the portrait of Louis XIV,, the founder of the
establishraent. As soon as all were seated, and while a cheerful hum of
conversation was resounding throughout the hall, a bell rang,
in obedience to which there very shortly appeared entering at
the door a quantity of men-cooks, carrying trays full of green
stuff, embossed with poached eggs ; and in a few seconds the
mouths whioh just before had been talking were all busily
eating, A few, however, ofthe blind, who — like wounded animals
separating themselves from the herd — preferred dining by
themselves, got up, and with their dinners in their hands, and
a bottle of wine (their daily allowance) under their arms,
they tapped across the floor — out of the door — along the open
passage — until, coming to the foot of a staircase — they
ascended each to his own room of utter darkness. Those who
have not appetite to eat their allowance of food, &c,, may
claim money instead ; and to those who have wooden legs
their shoe money is honestly refunded.
There are in the H6tel des Invalides three other large
dining-rooms, similar to that I have just described ; and as
they all could not contain much above half the number of
inmates, there are two services for each meal. One of the
four large halls is used as a mess-room for the officers, who
are served upon plate, the gift of Marie-Louise, It contains
twelve tables, with twelve chairs at each.
As I had insisted on my attendant leaving me to eat his
dinner, I sat down on a stone bench close to the open door of
the dining-hall, before whioh the one-armed sentinel continued
to pace ; and as beside me there reposed a fine old fellow who
was not to dine till the second service at five o'clock, we very
soon entered into conversation. After talking Very quietly on

HOTEL DES INVALIDES. 165
a variety of subjects, on all of which he appeared to be ex
ceedingly well informed, I asked him whether he was with
the Emperor at Waterloo ? He said " No ;" he had been
taken in Russia, and at the period I referred to had been
marching as a' prisoner for nine months.
" You must have undergone great hardships in that Rus
sian campaign," I said to him.
" Monsieur ! " he replied, with great energy, " depuis que
ce monde a ete un monde, jamais le soldat n'a tant souffert !"*
" Allez, mon vieux papa I "! he added, rising from the
stone bench on whioh we were seated, to conduct by his long
lean arm to the foot of the staircase a tall, old, blind fellow-
comrade, who, tapping his stick at every step, was evidently
from false reckoning bearing down right upon us,
" You were beaten," said I to him, as soon as he had
again quietly seated himself by my side, " not by your ene
my, but by climate."
" Non, Monsieur," he replied with great firmness, " faute
de vivres ! "f
" If a horse," he added, " has nothing in his belly," —
twitching himself up, he here put both his fists into the
vacuum in his dark-blue cloth waistcoat — " il ne peut pas
aller ; c'est le meme pour le soldat,"^
" It is very true ;" I said, " you must have had a rough
time ofit."
" Ah !" he said, after several moments' mute reflection, " (ja
ine parait un reve d'avoir echapp6 de ce que j'ai vu !"|l
At this moment a veteran, with two worsted stripes on his
arm, passed us, I asked my comrade what was his rank. He
replied he was a corporal ; that a sergeant has one stripe in
silver a sergeant major two in silver ; the same as throughout
the Frenoh service. He told me the soldiers of the army of
France rank as follows; — 1. Invalides; 2. Les Marius; 3.
Garde Republicaine : 4. Gendarmes Mobiles ; 5. La Troupe. IT
* Sir ! since this world has been a world, never has the soldier suffered
so much! f This way, my old papa !
X From want of food.
§ He can go no longer : it ia the same with the soldier.
II Ah ! it seems to rae like a dream to have escaped from what I have
seen! 1 Tlie Line.

166 -^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
As soon as we were both sufficiently rested we separate
In crossing the great entrance garden of the Invalides
stopped to look at a long line of very highly ornamented brs
guns and mortars, trophies of victory from Prussia, Alger
&o., overlooking the scarp-wall and fosse, or green ditch, whi
bound the northern front. About forty feet in the rear
these pieces of artillery there are, parallel with them, a ro
with intervals betweeii cach, of stone benches, almost all
which were occupied by the old soldiers — raany of whom hj
no doubt, taken part in capturing the guns before them — soi
with a wooden leg or two sticking out horizontally ; some wi
one arm ; some with a patch before an eye, &o, &c. One w
reading a newspaper ; many were smoking. On one of the
benches I sat down, touching my hat to nobody and to nothii
an attention iminediately returned in like manner by the c
soldier beside me. In front, and between us and the gui
were strolling up and down the intervening terrace four Fren
ladies beautifully dressed, with a footraan in a gold-laced a
gold bound hat, very gaudy livery, and milk-white glov
stumping close behind them. On the back of the Hotel d
Invalides I had observed, written in large black letters, " ]
berte, Fraternite, Egalite ;" and " yet," said I to mys.slf, " t
governor of the noble establishment on which these words s
inscribed is a field-marshal and a prince ; the lieutenant-oo
mandant is a general, having under him a colonel-major, 3 f
jutant-majors, 3 sub-adjutant-majors, 14 chefs de division,
adjutants de division. 14 sub-adjutants de division, 1 almon
2 chaplains, 1 head physician, 1 head surgeon, 1 head apotl
cary, 10 assistants, 26 sisters of charity, and 260 servants
all kinds. The governor has 40,000 francs a year ; the li<
tenant-general commanding 15,000 ; the intendant 12,000 ; t
colonel-major 7000 The veteran soldiers arc moreover di
ded into sergeant-majors, sergeants, corporals, and private
and yet upon the H6tel des Invalides — as upon everything
Paris — is there inscribed " Liberty, fraternity, and equality
From both ends of the terrace on which I had been sittii
extending from it to the Hotel des Invalides, I had observi
shaded by trees, a row of a hundred little gardens, each
feet long by 10 feet broad, all padlocked and full of paths, b
ders, and flowers ; at the far end of each was a small arbo
bower, or smoking-house. As these tiny retreats are rati

HOTEL DES INVALIDES. 167
sought for by many of the veterans, the governor registers the
names of all applicants, frora whom, on the death of a tenant,
the man of best character is selected.
" Your garden," I said to a fine, tall, erect, but very old
soldier, who, with the corners of his cocked-hat over his thin
shoulders, stood leaning on the long staff of a little hoe in an
attitude of repose and reflection that reminded me very forci
bly of Corporal Trim, " your garden is in beautiful order,"
" Ah ! Monsieur," with a slight sigh replied the old veteran,
who in his younger days had probably marched over the
greater portion of Europe without onoe thinking about a gar
den, especially of one ten feet broad, " ca distrait un peu !"*
In several of these little enclosures I observed, as I walked
slowly by, the tenant, in full uniform, ruminating in his bower
In one instance the woodendegged owner had taken off his
cocked hat, and, half asleep, was sitting, with .snow-white hair,
whioh oocasionally nioved on his brown temples, as the air, as
if fearful to awaken him, passed gently through it. In an
other of these small paradises I observed seated in the bower,
opposite to a very old Adam wearing bushy mustachios, a bent
Eve, apparently about seventy-five years of age. She was the
old soldier's " auld wife," availing herself of tbe permission
which used to be granted to the puhlic to visit the establish
ment from morning till sunset. The veteran told rae that, by
a late order of the governor, every stranger — wives included —
were now restricted from entering till twelve and were turned
out at four. " II n'est pas bien aime pour qa — allez !"! added
the old man. His partner said nothing.
Although the remains upon earth of the fine army of Na
poleon have very properly declined to copy " young France"
in the last new fashion of turning her face into a hair-brush,
yet within the Invalides there are, I am informed, four
beards, paid for by the artists, who wish to insert them in
pictures representing the various battles of Algeria.
I had now seen nearly all I desired. There, however,
still remained a question, which for some time I had wished
to ask ; and as one of the old soldiers, whose flowers I had
been admiring, invited me to enter his garden, and, eventually,
* Ah ! Sir, it diverts my attention a little
f He is not much liked for that — arrah !

168 -1 FAGGOT OF FRENGE STICKS.
" de me reposer un pen"* in his arbour, after talking upon
many details connected with the establishment, I asked him
where his comrades, on their march from this world, were
buried ? He replied, pointing with his stick towards the
south, " Dans le cimetiere de Mont Parnasse."!
I asked him what was the average mortality.
'• Ma foi. Monsieur,"! he replied, shrugging up his shoul
ders, " in dying we follow no rule ; each goes as he is called
for ; we go sometimes in crowds, sometimes one by one."
" How many," said I, " marched last year ?"
He replied, " Rather more than 300 !"
The old man's mamier was so dignified and gentlemanlike,
I had enjoyed conversing with him so muoh, and I had suoh
reason to be thanful for the courtesy he had shown me, that
I felt it would be ungrateful to leave uppermost in his mind
thesubject on which we had been conversing: I therefore
inquired about some of the various battles in which he had
been engaged ; and when, after patiently listening to the
details ho gave me, I observed that his heart was beating
high from, and his memory brimful of, noble recollections, 1
shook hands with him, and then left him seated in his arbour.
On reaching the Plaoe de Concorde there were walking
before me in full uniform apparently two little boys, who
had preceded me nearly all the way frora the Invalides. One
had in his hand a circular wreath of yellow " immortelles !"
" What, if you please, is the uniform those boys are wear
ing?" said I to two officers who happened at the moment to
be walking along.side of me.
" Pardon, Monsieur !" replied he to whom I had particu
larly addressed myself, but who had failed to hear what I had
said. My question was again on the very brink of my lips
when, one of the " boys" before me taking off his military
cap to cool himself, I perceived, to my astonishment, he
was old and bald-headed ! I therefore only inquired what
was his uniform. His object was, I knew, to deposit his
wreath at the foot of a colunin in the Place de Vend6me,
and I accordingly walked there. While I was proceeding
* To rest myself a little.
f In the cemetery of Mount Parnassus.
X Faith, Sir !

MILITARY MODELS. 169
along the Rue de Castiglione I observed a man as he passed
a shop take off his hat to a print of Napoleon, On reaching
the column on the Plaoe de Vandome, before which a one-
armed sentinel was proudly pacing, I found a little girl sitting
in the rain selling round circular garlands of yellow flowers.
An old gentleman, with a riband at his breast, purchased one,
— walked up to the rails, — hung it on one of them, — and
then, taking off his hat to it, turned on his heel and slowly
walked away. The two little soldiers I had passed merrily
threw theirs over the rails and then walked on. At eight
o'clock in the evening I met a boy of about eight years old
going to deposit one — ^he was probably the son or grandson
of some " vieux soldat de I'Empereur,"*
In the time of Louis-Philippe this practice was discour
aged ; few wreaths were deposited, and those were removed
at night. This year there were, I was informed, more than
usual, and yet, out of the population of Paris — among whom
were 60,000 troops, besides the Garde Nat'onale — there were
only deposited 163 yellow wreaths and one blue one ! So
mueh for military glory based upon unjust and insatiable
ambition.

MILITARY MODELS.
The day before I left England I had been promised that a
letter would be written in my favour to Colonel Augoyat, com
manding engineer in charge of the miHtary models in the Hd
tel des Invalides ; and accordingly, at about five o'clock in the
evening, after having wound my way up a sort of interminable
square well-stairoase in the northwestern angle of " Les Inva
lides," I came to a door and a bell On pulling the latter,
there appeared before me a servant, who told me the Colonel
was not at home, I therefore left my card ; and as the man
had explained to me that his master usually went out at eight
in the morning, I said I would call to-morrow a few minutes
before that hour, and accordingly on the following morning, at
* Old soldier of the Emperor.

170 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
five minutes before the time I had named, I walked up the
very same stairs, and, stretching out the same arm, pulled the
very same bell again.
Colonel Augoyat received me with the kindest and most
polite attention ; and as of his own accord he at once proposed
to show me the models — which for many months had been
closed to the public — I considered I was evidently reaping the
benefit of the introduction that had been promised to me ; and
therefore, without referring to it, I accompanied him to the
apartments over whioh he presides.
The models were almost all covered over with paper pasted
together, whioh, he informed me, kept out the dust better than
linen sheets. With considerable trouble these coverings were
removed. To describe the magnificent works which, one after
another, and with great difficulty, Colonel Augoyat was sq good
as to show me, would be utterly impracticable. I will there
fore briefly enumerate those which happened to interest me
the most.
1. A model of Mont Cenis, 3850 yards high ; showing the
new and old roads, and giving a view of the difficulties which
opposed their formation.
2. The city of Bayonne, showing the fortifled position
the Frenoh army under Soult had occupied during three
mouths, 3, Perpignan, in the Pyrenees, showing the surrounding
mountains, which rise so abruptly that, from their summit, it
appears as if stones might be chucked into the town beneath.
4, A magnificent model of Grenoble.
5. A raost interesting model of Brest ; showing its port,
harbour, ships lying in the sea, roads, and ten leagues of sur
rounding country.
6. Cherbourg ; showing the artificial breakwater, — a nar
row spit a league long, composed of immense stones, — the
various harbours, and stupendous works by which they are
defended. 7, Toulon, with its harbour and surrounding country.
8. The town of Strasbourg, and a portion of the Rhine.
9, The town of Metz.
1 0. One of the new forts round Paris.
Although either by writing or by drawing it is impossible
to give a description as vivid as the reality, yet — strange as it

MILITARY MODELS. 171
may sound — the magnificent military models of the Invalides
evidently impart an idea of the surface of the world in gen
eral, and of the important places which they represent in par
ticular, infinitely more instructive than it is possible for any
one even visiting the various localities to obtain.
For instance, in reconnoitring a regular fortification from
the exterior, little is to be seen but a series of green slopes,
running one into another, and terminating in the guns of the
citadel ; and even in inspecting it from the interior, all that
an experienced officer can do is, visiting one front at a time,
to look towards works the revfetements of which have been
purposely constructed to be concealed from the line of fire,
and consequently from the line of sight. He must thus visit
them in detail, and, having gone through this tedious process
with respect to every front, he has then, by dint of memory
and power of mind, to connect all the tesselated data he has
obtained into one mosaic picture.
Again, in surveying a river or a series of harbours, a naval
officer may, in his boat, visit, seriatim, the various sinuosities
of each, whioh he has then mentally to add up, to form the
general idea that is required.
In like manner, an intelligent man, by riding about a
country, may view it from various points, from no one of
which can he see either the opposite sides of the various hills
that present themselves, or the features of the ground lying
immediately behind them ; all, therefore, that he can do is, to
connect, as skilfully and as faithfully as his memory will allow,
the details he has seen into one idea, or, as it is called, general
knowledge of the country.
Even from a balloon, in order to inspect thirty or forty
square miles of country, it is necessary to rise to a height
whioh, practieallj speaking, mystifies almost to obliteration the
picture beneath.
In the models, however, of the Invalides, not only are the
features of the country, with its various agricultural produce,
acourately reprefiented, both as to form and colour ; not only is
every portion of a fortification accurately represented, but the
whole, including rivers, harbours, and roads, are, by the reduc
tion of scale, concentrated within so small a space, that the
super-inspecting eyes of the most inexperienced visitor can at
once obtain a knowledge of the country, and even a perception

172 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENGE STICKS.
of the general strength and purposes of the various military
works represented, which the actual localities would fail to
afford him.
From these valuable representations we proceeded to the
workshops in which they had been constructed, and in which I
found a most interesting model, in embryo, of the siege and city
of Rorae, which, by means of tools of various sorts, had been
neatly constructed out of large blocks of wood. After " le mo-
delage"* is finished, it is supplied with what are termed " ses
decorations,"! composed of powdered silk, of various hues, for
agricultural crops ; little trees of various descriptions ; tiny
houses of different sorts ; slabs of looking-glass for water ; fila
ments of the finest white silk for smoke from artillery, &c, &c, &c.
Not satisfied with having obligingly afforded me, at so early
and so unusual an hour, the gratification of witnessing the
models of the principal fortresses and naval arsenals of France,
Colonel Augoyat requested me to accompany him into his
office, where he wrote, and presented me with, an order to visit
'• le Musee d' Artillerie ;"J and as I felt that these repeated
attentions were conferred on my friend in England rather than
on myself, in taking leave of him I ventured to thank him in
his name, as well as my own. To my utter astonishment,
Colonel Augoyat informed me that hc had not received any
letter from our mutual friend respecting me, but, he added,
with a slight bow, which I shall never forget, and which it is
my pleasing duty to record, that he had had pleasure in com
plying with the wishes of an Englishman and a stranger !
In crossing the suspension-bridge, " le Pont des Invalides,"
I observed that, instead of a sentinel, there was written on each
of the piers,
" Les Fonts sont places sous la sauve-garde de la Repulique. — Proclama
tion du Gouvernement du 27 Fevrier, 1848."§
" What a blessing it would be,'' thought I to myself, " if the
Nations of Europe, instead of exhausting their finances by
maintaining in time of peace such enormous military forces,
would — from the same noble sentiment — join with England in
* The modelling. \ Ita decoration.
X The Muaeum of Artillery.
§ The bridges are placed under the protection of the Republic. — By
order of Governraent of the 27th Februaiy, 1848.

MUSEE DE E ARTILLERIE. 173
committing the peace of the World to the ' sauve-garde' — to
the good sense and good feelings — of the whole family of
mankind !"

MUSEE DE L'ARTILLERIE.
On turning to the right, I saw pass close before me in the
street along which I had to proceed, a party of six people, two
in uniform and one without his hat, carrying very fast a black
tressel, on whioh, wrapped in a blanket, and with a white cir
cular wreath of immortelles on it, there lay a small coffin.
As I did not feel disposed to hurry along with it — and in
deed as I had occasion to go into a shop where I remained
some little time — I thought no more of the little coffin, until,
having arrived at the Musee de I'Artillerie five minutes before
\i, the hour at which itwas to be open to the public, on enter
ing the large churoh of St Thomas d'Aquin, within fifty yards
of me, there it was, resting on two tressels. Nobody appeared
to take the slightest notice of it ; the six followers in waiting
were gaping about them in any direction but towards it ; and
as I also looked about me, I observed written on the wall of
the church the following notice : —
" Avis.
"Vous etes instamraent pri^s, par respect pour le lieu saint, de ne pas
cracher par terre." *
As soon as the clock began to strike, the little crowd of
visiters who for some rainutes had beeu assembled around the
gate of the Museum evinced a slight nervous movement, of
short duration, for, simultaneous with the last stroke of the
twelve, the doors were slowly thrown open, and, as if rejoicing
at our freedom, we all for a moment hurried into a passage, in
which the first object that arrested my attention was an im
mense chain, 643 feet (about one-eighth of a mile) long, and
* Notice,
You are earnestly requested, in respect for this holy plaoe, not to spit
on the ground.

174 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
weighing 7896 pounds, suspended along both walls. It waa
called, in a catalogue of 267 pages, which for tenpence I had
just purchased at the door, " La Chaine du Danube," * from
having been used by the Turks for a pontoon bridge on that
river, and was afterwards taken at Vienna by the French army.
Beneath it, standing erect and lying prostrate, were great guns
of all characters and countries. Among them, looking like
logs of tiraber, were two short, stumpy, wrought-iron cannon,
about four feet long, which, in the year 1422, had been aban
doned by the English before the town of Meaux.
From this gallery I entered a small room, containing inte
resting specimens of various pieces of ordnance, especially two
magnificent large guns, covered with Arabic inscriptions, and
standing on their breeches as erect as sentinels on each side
of the entrance-door into the great " Salle des Modeles," !
around the walls of which, on a broad table, which throughout
the whole length of the room occupies the centre, and on nar
row tables affixed to all four walls, I beheld deposited, with
very great taste, almost every description of weapon and im
plement of war.
Along the walls were arranged in family groups, all dated
1843 and wearing percussion-caps, specimen pistols, fusees,
carbines, muskets, and bayonets, of Sweden, Belgium, Saxony,
Sardinia, Russia, Prussia, Norway, Holland, Hesse-Darmstadt,
Denmark, Bavaria, Austria, Bngland, Wurtemburg, and the
United States of America. Of these weapons, those of Rus
sia, the stocks of whioh were of beautiful black walnut, appear
ed to me the best devised and appointed. Those of the United
States, although inferior to Russia, were very creditable.
Those of England were stout and substantial ; but in compa
rison to the corresponding arms of one or two other countries,
they appeared rudely made.
In different parts of the room I observed no less than fif
teen or twenty French soldiers, in the uniform of various regi
ments of cavalry and infantry, intently scrutinizing these arms;
and in the course of my life I never felt more desirous to give
away tenpenny pieces, than I did to slip into the hands of
eaoh of those soldiers who was referring to his catalogue the
franc he b'vd paid for it. At all events, the simple fact of his
* ,' »in of the Danube. ! Model-room.

MUSEE DE D ARTILLERIE. 175
having purchased it demonstrates indisputably the military
value and importance of a museura of this description.
On the various tables, especially on those running down
the middle of the roora, were models of almost every known
description of gun, mortar, howitzer, limber, carriages, ammu
nition-waggons, forage-carts ; also models of guns mounted en
barbette, of ship-guns firing through port-holes, &c. On the
ground were displayed shot and shells, both of stone and iron,
of various weights and callibres.
After ascending a handsome well-lighted stone staircase I
walked towards what is called " la Salle des Armures," * on en
tering which there appeared before me, down the whole length
of the room, mounted on green horses, a series of knights in
armour, of various descriptions, supported on the right and left
by knights in coats of mail on foot. At the end of the room,
on a table, there stood a little brass statue of the " Emperor
Napoleon on horseback."
From the roof hung various flags. On the walls, around
and beneath a series of portraits of the master-generals of artil
lery of France, from 1373 to the present day, were arranged
shields, helmets, stirrups, spurs, and lances, of ancient form.
Lastly, the floor was of old oak, waxed' and polished till it was
as slippery as glass. The armour of the first knight on horse
back (a specimen of that worn in the reigns of Charles VI.
and Charles VII. of France, and in England of Henry VI.
and Edward IV.) was not only exoeedingly heavy, but his
poor horse stood, moreover, overwhelmed within a suit of pon
derous mail, that, like a lady's petticoat, reached almost to the
ground ; and I was wondering how, under such affiicting cir
cumstances, the green horse could ever have managed to get
into a trot, when I observed that, as if to prevent him from
doing so. there was in his mouth a curb-bit, fourteen inches
long ! So much for the " go-a-head " notions of " auld lang
syne." From this knight, who, as I have stated, stands at the
entrance of the Salle des Armures, there proceeds a gallery
extending round four sides of a square, forming four salles.
In the first there appeared, of various dates, halberts, ar
mour, coats of mail, helmets, cuirasses, several of the latter
* Hall of Ai-mour.

176 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
nearly pierced with two, three, and four balls, musket and
grape shot. Also arrows, tomahawks, cross-bows, arque
buses, matchlocks, muskets, carbines, and pistols, of various
ages. In the second I found, very beautifully arranged, wall-
pieces 1 4 feet long ; arquebuses, "matchlocks, models of guns ;
also an assortment of magnificent arms, of great value, in a
glass case, &o,, &o,, &o.
In the middle of this infinite series of instruments and
weapons of every possible description, invented by the inge
nuity of man for the mutilation and destruction of his race, I
was rather surprised to .see calmly sitting on the window-sill,
and nearly surrounded by soldiers who were carefully in
specting the various weapons around them, a fine, mild, beard
less young priest, whose black gown, white bands, and eccen
tric-shaped cocked hat, appeared strangely contrasted with the
scene around him.
In the third gallery were muskets and wall-pieces which
appeared almost too heavy to wield ; yatagans, poignards,
and daggers of all sorts ; battle-axes, models of pontoons of
every known descriptiou ; double-barrelled muskets, with a
bayonet 6 inches long, like a strong knife.
In the fourth I fouud swords, plain as well as serrated, as
long and as straight as spits, as if the object of the inventor
was not only at a time to run seven or eight men through the
body, but afterwards, and at one operation, to saw off all their
heads. There! were weapons like scythes, for mowing people
down ; immense battle-axes for splitting their skulls. There
were also tastefully arranged in a glass case modern and an
cient swords, brightly ornamented, and of great value — on the
blue steel blade of one of them I read, in letters of gold,
" Vive le Roi I" — colour-lances crossed ; lastly, a serrated
sword, two feet long, that could have sawn down an oak-
tree. In this room I observed an unusual number of soldiers
busily pointing out to each other the various weapons whioh
happened to attract their attention ; and as their heads leant
towards eaoh object in succession, the bright brass helmets
of the hussars, the oilskin covered shakos of the infantry, the
bright plates in the caps of the artillery, and the red, green,
and yellow epaulettes of each, formed altogether a mixture

POS'T-OFFICE. 177
that gave living interest to the collection, whioh contains no
less than 3864 specimens of ancient and modern implements
of war. During the campaigns of Napoleon the Museum was
greatly augmented by spoils from almost every nation in
Europe ; but in 1 8 1 4 — when the hour of retribution arrived
- — the allied armies took possession of almost all that had be
longed to their respective countries. The Prussians alone
packed up and carried off 480 chests full of arms.
To the Museum is attached — solely for the use of the
officers of the garrison of Paris, and consequently not open to
the public — a valuable library of 6000 volumes, besides
maps, plans, and naval charts.

POST-OFFICE
The Frenoh Post-office undertakes to deliver not only to
every city, town, village, or hamlet in France, but to every
house, cottage, and mill, within the territory of the republic,
every letter that is addressed to it.
There are in France no less than 500,000 persons, in
cluding the heads of offices, prefets, mayors of all sizes,
&c., &c., who oan frank letters on the subject of their res
pective departments ; but the President of the Republic and
the Director-General of The Post-office, M. Edouard Thayer,
are the only two individuals who have unlimited power to
frank letters to any one. They do so by a few words
stamped in red, of which the following is a fac-simile.

¦annotio.^
The council of administration, of which M. Thayer is
president, is composed of M, Piroh, also " administrateur" of
the first and principal division of the department, and M,
Langevin

178 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
On my calling at the Post-office to ask permission to sea
its details, M. Piron, who had happened to read a publication
by me descriptive of the London Post-office, was good enough
not only to insist on taking me over the whole, but he most
obligingly introduced rae to the president, M, Thayer, who also
did me the honour to accompany me over a considerable part
of the important establishment over which he presides.
The business of the French Post-office department is sub
divided into five branches.
To M. Piron, as administrator, is solely committed the
supervision, under various officers, of the following duties : —
1, The correspondence — the organization — and determina
tion of the routes of the couriers, and of the transportation of
the mails by railways, mail-carts, or by private contract ; the
preparation and dep6t of maps and plans ; the arrangement of
correspondence with the different offices ; inquiries after lost
packages of letters ; the drawing up of conventions and trea
ties with foreign offices, and correspondence relative to their ex
ecution, 2, The general superintendence and inspection of the let
ter postal service ; the employment of the officers of every
grade ; the installation of the superintendents and letter-sor
ters ; the formation of the reports to be furnished to the In
spectors of Finance and of the Post-office ; investigation and
correspondence relative to inquiries after letters and news
papers, 3, Correspondence relative to exemptions and infractions ;
expenses of the staff in all the departments ; repression of
fraud ; disputed matters,
4, The verification and auditing of articles and accounts. .
5. Examination of dead letters and papers ; also of those
refused or unclaimed.
To M. Langevin is committed —
1. The creation and suppression of relays ; the regulation
and payment of the courier service — also of postmasters;
drawing up the books of routes for the couriers ; arrangement
of post-horses at Paris.
2, Superintendence of the contracts for the conveyance of
despatches ; agreements for the construction and maintenance
of the mail-carts, of the travelling post-offices and letter-car
riages, and of all the materiel necessary for the conveyance of

POST-OFFICE. 179
the mails ; superintendence of the couriers, porters, and mes
sengers of the Post-office,
3. Steam-boat service.
4. Financial department. — Preparation of the budget and
management of the expresses ; the reimbursement of sums
improperly received ; payment of the salaries of the staff of
Paris, and also in the departments,
5, Thc maintenance of steam-boats, &c. ; preparation of
treaties to be made with contractors ; fabrication and delivery
of postage stamps.
6. The superintendence of the receipts and expenditure
at Paris and in the departments, &c,, &c.
The remainder of the business of the office is comraitted
to M, Chooquet, M, de Leindre, and M, Babeau, each of whom
superintend details of considerable importance.
Besides the bureaux in the General Post-office, there are
also in Paris twelve principal and fifteen supplemental offices,
where the public can prepay or register letters for the depart
ments or for foreign countries, or forward or receive by post,
money. The principal offices, distinguished by the first twelve
letters of the alphabet, are open to the public from eight in
the morning till eight at night, excepting on Sundays and f^te
days, when they are closed at five o'clock.
Under the system of centralization which characterizes
every public office in France, an Englishman is constantly sur
prised to see how very simply and scientifically operations,
clumsily executed in England, are performed in Paris, For
instance, after M, Piron had risen from his multifarious papers
to accompany me, I observed him give one gentle tap with the
wooden holder of his pen against the boarded wall in front of
his desk His secretary immediately appeared. He then
touched a sort of spring which caused a bell outside the op
posite wall of the roora to strike one, on which in came his
messenger. Now, in England, to produce these two articles,
at least twenty times as much noise would have been manu
factured ; indeed, in London, if one great man drives to the
open door of another great man, the great man's porter imme
diately shuts it in the face of the great visitor's great footman,
that he, the great visitor's great footman, may have an oppor
tunity of disturbing every man of genius in the neighbourhood,
by belabouring an ugly-faced knocker within half a dozen

igo A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
inches not only of his own nose but of the nose of the great
man's porter who within is holding the handle of the door be
laboured, on purpose to open it with a fiourish as soon as the
rude, barbarous, unscientific operation has been fully com
pleted. The business of the Post-office in Paris, like that of Lon
don, is divided into two great operations, namely, the receipt
and the delivery of letters.
As all the arterial postal lines, from Paris to the depart
ments of France, and beyond them to the rest of the world,
radiate for greater or less distances from the metropolis on
railways, from the termini of which the letters are despatched
by steamers, diligences, malle-postes, canals, &c., there are
now no mail coaches in Paris. The letters to and from the
main office to the metropolitan termini of the various rail
ways are conveyed in closed fourgons, whioh will be describ
ed ; those to and from the .main office, from and to the
several post-offices in Paris, in large roomy caleches. On the
arrival of the different descriptions of carriages at the great
post-office, all are brought into a large, light, well-ventilated
roora, containing long tables, upon which they are tossed
down. On one side of these tables I observed seated a row of
postmen, in blue uniform coats — on one there was a medal —
with red collars, whose sole duty (which does not require any
very great amount of intellect) is to arrange the letters with
all their faces looking the same way ; and when this has been
effected, they are handed to a row of clerks on the opposite
side of the table, who divide them into two great classes,
namely, letters for Paris, and for the rest of the world.
They are then stamped by seventy-five " garcons de bureaux,"*
dressed in blouses with red collars. Those for Parisians re
main on the ground-flour, those for the inhabitants of the de
partments and for the rest of the human race, by means of a
pulley and rope, are made to ascend into a region above,
I had often remarked that on French letters, and indeed,
generally speaking, on those from the Continent, the post
mark is much more clearly defined than on our English
letters. On searching for thc reason of- this difference, I
* Oifice clerks.

POST-OFFICE. 181
perceived it to be that the lines and letters of the French
stamp, in which there is a contrivance for altering the date,
project ; whereas, in England, they are often excavated from
a flat surface.
The final distribution of the letters from all parts of the
world to Paris is performed at ten tables, by fourteen men at
each, all in uniform, and superintended by a " chef facteur,"*
responsible for all. In this duty I beheld, quietly working
in one room, 150 postmen, who were themselves to deliver
the letters they were sorting. At five minutes before the
time for actually starting I heard a bell ring, on which the
whole 150 postmen in imiform before me rose, and all at once
began each to plaoe his batch of letters into a neat patent-
leather despatch box, suspended from his neck by a black
belt, and containing three compartments ; one for letters, one
for newspapers, and one for money. Beneath the lid is a
portfolio for registered letters ; and to the outside is affixed
an inkstand, with a hole for a pen. Every postman, besides
being in uniform, has on his breast a gilt badge, on whioh is
his number.
As soon as these arrangements were concluded, the 150
men, in a body, left the room. We accompanied them to the
interior of a hollow square, formed by the various offices of
the department, where we found assembled nine omnibuses,
into eaoh of which there quickly stepped fifteen men (a table-
gang) ; every omnibus, therefore, was a " table." As each
man, wearing a glazed hat, took his place, he pulled his black
shining letter-box, which in walking had hung behind him,
round in front, upon his knees, where it lay as quietly as a
baby in the lap of a monthly nurse. When the fourteen men,
and their fourteen black boxes, were thus stowed almost as
close as herrings in a barrel, the " chef facteur," who has the
-command of all, and who is solely responsible to the Depart
ment for the postage of the whole, gave the signal for de
parture ; and thus, sometimes one after another, and some
times by two or three at a time, away drove the nine omni
buses to their respective arrondissements, the postmen of that
iinmediately around the principal office starting to their des
tinations on foot, * Superintendent

182 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
As soon as all these 'buses had merrily driven out of the
yard, I returned with M, Piron to the interior of the build
ing, to witness the assortment of the letters for the depart
ments and for the rest of the world. For this operation ia
devoted the whole of the second floor, composed of spacious
halls, admirably ventilated, and during the day lighted by
large windows on eaoh side, and before sunrise and after sun
set by gas lamps, surrounded by green shades.
The country letters are divided into sixteen stations.
Those which, by the pulley and rope, had ascended en masse
to this floor, arc poured out in about equal quantities upon a
series of desks, at each of which presides an intelligent-
looking clerk with mustachios, and occasionally with a beard,
who has before him, at the extremity of his table, sixteen
pigeon-holes, into whioh he rapidly throws every letter that be
longs to the district written above it. While he is proceed
ing, looking like a gamester dealing out cards, sixteen men,
each carrying a basket, proceed regularly from one sorting-
table to another ; and as the pigeon-holes of each are all
numbered alike, as they each contain letters for the same
plaoe, every basket-man, leaning over one sorting desk after
another, abstracts from the same pigeon-hole of each the let
ters for the same district, which, as fast as he collects, he takes
to other tables, where, by other clerks in beards of every pos
sible fancy, they are finally arranged, and then, instead of
being cramraed into white leather sheepskin-bags, which, in
consequence of the different shaped parcels conveyed by our
post-office, are deemed necessary in England, they are packed
in square parcels, about 2 feet long by 18 inches broad and
deep, wrapped up or swaddled in brown paper, secured by very
strong string, of whioh an extraordinary quantity appeared to
me to be uselessly expended. Indeed it was wound round
twenty or thirty times without apparent method, reason, or
necessity. The operation of sealing these parcels is, how
ever, very cleverly performed. Beneath a large pot full of
hard sealing-wax there is on each table of the department an
alcohol lamp, — the fiame of which, by a micrometer screw,
can be increased, diminished, or extinguished, — of sufficient
power to liquify the mass in about twenty minutes. For the
important process of sealing, the wax is, therefore, always
ready, in a fluid state. For the purpose of applying it, there

POST-OFFICE. 183
is affixed, at right angles, to the handle of the seal a stick, which
the sealer dips into the liquid wax, and, as soon as he has
transferred a sufficient quantity of it to the paper and string,
by a simple twist of his wrist he applies to it the seal. Be
fore the adoption of this ingenious process, which is only a
year old, not only for every packet, but for every seal on eaoh
packet, it was deemed necessary, as is still the case in the
English post-office, to raise a stick of hard wax to the flame
' of a candle, ignite it, wait a little, and then apply it. The
smoke caused by the endless repetition of this rude operation
was not only unhealthy, but it blackened the walls and ceil
ings of the halls. Indeed, M, Piron pointed out to me on the
lintels above and outside the windows, the deep black stain
of the old discarded process.
In wandering from table to table, looking at the sealing-
up process I have described, I came to that portion of the
establishment from which letters to foreign countries are des
patched. One of these compartments I could not help meas
uring ; it was 7 feet 10 inches long, by 9 broad, "And
this," said I to my obliging conductor, " in your universe,
represents ' la Grande Bretagne ?' " M, Piron returned my
smile, and at the same time pointed out to me, as was really
the oase, that England's little table was very muoh larger
than that of any other nation of the globe.
On the ringing of a bell, the whole of the sealed-up brown-
paper parcels were carried off by porters and other employes
to the interior yard, when they were quickly pushed into
well-made, enclosed, four-wheeled vans, called " fourgons," of
the shape of an English hearse, painted crimson, highly var
nished, and bearing on the sides the words, " Transport des
Depeches."* Each of these carriages was drawn by a pair of
capital, stout, active, sleek entire horses, and as fast as they
were filled were despatched, with a guard, to the metropolitan
termini of the various railways. The scene was not only
very animating, but, as involving the correspondence of Paris
with every portion of the civilized globe, was highly interest
ing. While the well-made fourgons were trotting out of the
great yard they were often crossed by the heavy cabriolets of
the department, which, with equal energy, were to be seen
* Conveyance of mails.

184 -i FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
trotting in, with the words " Service des Depeches'' painted
on their backs, " Republique Francaise" on their sides, and
drawn by stout and often well-bred horses, not only neighing
very loudly as they entered, but carrying round their necks
bells, whioh gave cheerfulness, and almost merriment, to their
arrival. Indeed, between the horses that were entering and
those in cabriolets that had entered — and which, without be
ing unharnessed, without being tied up, and without any one
to attend to them, were standing between the shafts of their "
respective carriages, with their faces to the dead wall — there
was, by neighs, more or less loud, a constant interchange of
post-office questions and answers, to which, however intently
the mind might be oocupied, it was impossible occasionally
not to listen.
The whole scene — rattling of wheels and neighing in
cluded — was, however, within the precincts of the post office.
This, in France, is very properly considered as absolutely ne
cessary ; and it was observed to me, by one of the attendants,
who had been in England, that he had been much astonished to
find that in London the public are allowed to crowd around
so important a service as that whioh at the moment he was per
forming. I told him, however, as regards the principal of
fice, he was mistaken, not only in his inference but in his
fact : what had offended him he had probably witnessed at
one of the branch offices of the London Post-office.
As soon as the fourgons were all despatched, excepting
the occasional tinkling of a restless bell, or a merry interjec-
tional neigh, the great yard was quiet. I therefore proceed
ed to a part of the department particularly interesting to all
foreigners. On entering a short narrow passage I saw before me
three small windows, on one of which was inscribed " A to F ;"
on the next " G to 0 ;" and on the third " P to Z ;" thus un
equally dividing the alphabet into six, nine, and eleven let
ters. From these three windows are delivered the whole of
the letters arriving at Paris from all parts of the world, ad
dressed " Poste Restante." In the interior, opposite to eaoh
window, is a box about three feet square, divided into small
compartments, each containing the letters whioh alphabeti
cally belong to it. For the duties of this office, — which ia
open from eight in the morning until seven at night, every

POST-OFFICE. 185
day in the week excepting on Sundays and on ffte-days, when
it is closed at five a. m., — one clerk at a time is found to be
sufficient. While I was in front of these three windows a French
man with mustachios was bothering this poor clerk most un
reasonably through the left one, to look for a letter he had
lost out of his own pocket-book since he had been at the win
dow, and which he supposed must somehow or other have got
through it into the interior and into one of the compartraents
far out of his reach before him. With the utmost civility
the clerk looked over all his compartments three times, and
yet the man was not satisfied. After looking thom over
again, he said, slightly bowing, to a lady who was standing
before the middle window, " II n'y a rien pour vous, Ma
dame,"* The poor thing looked dreadfully disappointed,
and, being evidently unable to go away, she maintained her
position, I, then delivering my card, asked if there was any
thing for me. I got three prizes, on the receipt of which I
heard the poor lady beg the clerk to look again, as she was
sure there must be one for her. With the utmost good-
humour he did as he was requested. I did not, however,
wait the result.
Monsieur Piron was now kind enough to show me some
of the "bureaux" by which the principal duties of the de
partment committed to his sole charge are transacted.
Without describing their details, I will briefly state that, on
the whole, the arrangements of the Paris Post-office for the
receipt, sorting, and distribution of letters, are very credita
bly performed. Indeed, in the two or three instances I have
mentioned, the French have an improved management whioh
we might profitably adopt.
In the attempt, however, which their House of Assembly
has made to adopt the magnificent British system of postage
invented by Mr, Rowland Hill, they have, I conceive, partly
failed — for the simple reason that, under severe pecuniary
embarrassments, they were afraid of sinking under the opera
tion ; and thus, unwilling to continue under their old system,
and yet unable fully to adopt the new one, they have sought
for refuge in a half measure, which, of course, cannot even
* There is nothing for you. Madam !

186 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENGE STICKS.
produce half results. The habits of the inhabitants of Paris
are not favourable to the adoption of Mr, Hill's system of pre
payment. A large proportion of the population live in re
gions high above the pavement of the streets ; and although
their letters are left for them with the concierge below, they
have no servant whom they could conveniently despatch and
intrust with money for prepayment ; and as, contrary to our
regulations in England, the charge is the same whether the
letter be prepaid or not, the consequence is, that, of the let
ters brought to the General Post-office from the receiving-
houses around it, the postage oifour fifths is unpaid.

Collection and Distribution of Letters in Paris.
There are daily in Paris seven collections of letters, cor
responding with the seven deliveries.
The hours of the collections are regulated according to
the distance between the several offices and the Central Post-
office. The boxes situated at the extremities of the town are
taken away at fixed hours, indicated for the commencement
of each collection. One may calculate five minutes' delay
for every five hundred metres in approaching the central
office. The boxes within a perimeter of 800 metres from the
central office are taken away every half an hour after those
of the Fauxbourgs, those of the General Post-office an hour
later. In no case does the delivery of a letter of the city for
the city require more than three hours. Letters deposited
in the box at the precise moment of the departure, or in
those of the perimetre, are distributed an hour and a half or
two hours at latest after the hour of the Dep6t deposit.
The first distribution, whioh commences at half-past seven,
and terminates all over Paris at nine o'clock, comprehends
the letters of the departments and of foreign countries, also
those of Paris collected in the boxes the night before, from
nine to half-past nine at night.
The second comprehends, besides the Paris letters col
lected in the boxes from half-past seven to a quarter past
eight, those of the second English courier.
The third, fourth, fifth, and sixth comprehend, besides the
Paris letters collected in the boxes, those which at different

POST-OFFICE. 187
hours of the day have arrived by supplementary couriers, or
by the railways.
The seventh comprehends the letters of Paris for Paris,
collected in the boxes from five o'clock to forty-five minutes
past five at night, the letters of supplementary couriers from
Marseilles and Lyons, letters from Italy, Algeria, &c.
Money Letters, or Registered Letteis.
In each of the post-offices at Paris, are received money
letters and registered letters for all parts of Franee, for Al
geria, and for those places where France possesses post-
offices, Pre-payment is obligatory for money letters, and
optional (facultative) for registered ones.
Both descriptions must always be presented at the offices.
Money letters pay a double postage ; registered letters, be
sides the ordinary charge determined by weight, a fixed and
supplementary tax of five sous. They, as well as registered
letters, are required to be placed in an envelope, secured at
least with two seals in wax, covering the four folds of the
envelope ; both descriptions of letters are remitted on receipt
at the domicile of the person to whom they are directed.
Postage Stamps.
The stamps or figures, sold by the administration, for the
franking of letters, represent five different values : the first,
colour bistre, two sous ; second, colour green, three sous ;
third, colour blue, five sous ; fourth, orange colour, eight
sous ; fifth, colour red, twenty sous, or one franc. The pub
lic is at liberty to combine these figures or stamps, the
franking being complete in all cases where the stamps em
ployed represent a value equivalent to the postage due. The
stamps are sold at all the post-offices, by the postmen, re
ceiving-houses, and by the sellers of tobacco.
Charges.
Letters of Paris for Paris are charged three sous (green
stamp) when their weight does not exceed fifteen grammes ;
a supplementary charge of two sous is made for each addi
tional fifteen grammes, or fraction thereof.

the cbai-ge

is

50 centimea

(f

1 franc.
1 "
80 centimes.

188 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
On the 1st of Janiiary, 1849, the charges for the postage
of letters according to distance were abolished, and replaced
by a uniform charge of 20 centimes (2ii,), which by the loi
des Finances of the 18tb May. 1850, was raised to 25 centimes
(2\d.), for every letter not exceeding in weight 7J grammes,
addressed to any part of France, Corsica, or Algeria.
For lettera above 7 ^ gramraes and )
not exceeding 15  J
Above 15 to 100 grammes . . .
Above 100 and not exceeding 200 )
an additional  J
Letters for Great Britian not ex- i
ceeding in weight 7i grammes j
Letters o/ the same weight to Bel- j <i at, ¦<
gium or Switzerland . • . )
Lettei's of the same weight to Belgi- "1
um or Switzerland, from places I „ _. „
which do not exceed 30 kilo- f
metres.* j
The following comparative statement of the amount of
work performed by the Post-offices of Paris and London
shows how large is the correspondence of France : —
There were despatched from Paris per day during the
year 1850— Letters  161,000
Newspapers and imprim^a . . 210,000
Total . . 371,000
There were despatched, during the year 1850, per day,
Sundays exclusive, from the London Post-office, for delivery
either within or without the London district —
1. Letters, books, and other packets, exclusive of newspapers,
despatched by the General Post beyond the London
delivery  162,000
2. Lettei's, books, and other packets, including chargeable
newspapers, delivered within the 3-mile circle of the
London district  124,000
3. Newspapers and other documents allowed to be stamped
as such and despatched by the General Post, exclusive of
noii-cliargeable newspapers (of which no record is kept),
posted and delivered within the London district. . , 114,000
Total ... . 400,000
* A kilometre is 1000 yards English.

PREFET DE POLICE. 189

PREFET DE POLICE,

A French gentleman, wbo for many years had been the
prefect of a department, and who had just returned from a
visit to England to his peaceful domicil in the neighborhood
of * *, expressed to me, as we happened to rest together
on a stone bench in the Avenue des Champs Elysees, his
astonishment at the good order that prevailed in London,
" In England," said he, " all people appear to respect the
law. Here all evade it. In solidity you English are like
the ancient Romans ; in vivacity we resemble the Athenians :
and yet, although in England you punish crime with great
severity, you appear to be ignorant of the means of prevent
ing it ; in fact, you require an Aot of Parliament to punish
notorious evils prevented in Paris by a simple order of police,
and in all the smallest commune by a simple order of the
maire !"
" Yes,'' said I, " but it is to that very simplicity, as you
term it, that we particularly objeoct,"
The system to whioh he alluded is, I believe, something
as follows, France is divided into eighty-six departments, to each of
which there is appointed a prefet.
Every department is subdivided into forty arrondisse
ments, to each of whioh there is a sous-prefect.
The arrondissement is composed of various cantons, which
are headless.
Every canton is composed of from twenty to forty com
munes (the smallest fractional subdivision), eaoh of whioh
has its maire, who, practically speaking, regulates his little
district in whatever way he considers will be most beneficial
to the community.
Now the prefect of the police of Paris, the only prefect
of the police in France, possesses on an enormous scale the
same description of arbitrary power that is confided to every
little mayor ; and thus, co-existent with the monarchy, the
emperor, and the republic, there has existed and there does

190 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
still exist in France a despotic authority inconsistent with
powers which in theory are declared to be supreme, ¦
The prefecture of police, an organization of enormous
action, is composed of various departments of active service,
forming a oone of which the apex is the prefect, in whose
office of government, as in a hive, upwards of three hundred
busy working clerks are constantly employed. The principal
person in the department is the " Chef de la Police Munici
pale,"* under whom there are —
1. The " Chef des Services de la SwxU." commanding a
brigade of exceedingly adroit men, many of whom are not only
in plain clothes, but, for the purpose of capturing murderers
and robbers, &c, often change their disguise three or four times
a day, to suit the localities they have to visit
2. The " Chef d'' Attribution des Hotels Garnies," who,
besides suppressing clandestine gaming-houses, watch over all
political refugees,
3, The " Chef d' Attribution des Moeurs," for the regula
tion of houses of ill-fame, &c,
4, The " Chef d' Attribution des Voitures, for the regulation
and observation of all public carriages.
Lastly, " Brigades Centrales," coraposed of sergents de
ville, who, in uniform and in various disguises, besides other
duties, perforin those intrusted to the London police.
In addition to the above there are, under the direction of
the " prefet of police," —
A '¦'¦Chefde Service de la Navigation'^ possessing author
ity over every boat in the Seine, with power to regulate what
it shall bring, and in what manner it shall disembark its
cargo. A " Chef de Service de la Salubrity," who has dominion
over drains of every description, with power to visit all closets,
which can only be emptied by people authorized to do so, and
which must be inspected as soon as emptied ; also the inspec
tion of all gas-lights and gas arrangements.
A " Chef de Service des Halles et Marches" who takes care
of the provisions of Paris, grain, flour, &c.
Every one of the twelve arrondissements of Paris is sub
divided into four " quartiers," or sections, each superintended
* Chief of the Municipal Police.

PREFET DE POLICE. 191
by a " Commissaire de Police," who, in his bureau in the cen
tre of his district, is, in fact, the efficient head of the police :
and yet, although every person looks only to his own commis
saire, and although of the " prefet de police." it may truly be
said or sung, " Oh no, we never mention him," yet all the
departments I have enumerated, under his sole direction, not
only work independently, but harmoniously interlace together,
nlaying into each other's hands, giving to eaoh other every
information in their power,| and even arresting for each other
any one whom in the prosecution of their own duties they may
observe infringing upon thc regulations of any other depart
ment in the several services to which they belong ; in short,
every one acts, not onlv for his own district, but for all Paris :
and thus the eye of the rrefecture of police, by night as well as
by day, like Shalrs'^eare's Ariel, is here, there, and everywhere ;
indeed, almost i ¦;irgle anecdote will exemplify its powers.
When Caussid'fere — now in London, and who was condemned
with Louis Bl!>,nc — was in February, 1848, made -'prefect of
the police o{ Paris," knowing that he had long been watched,
he inquirpr' \i the office over which he presided for his own
" dossier." On reading it he exclaimed with astonishment,
'' Non spu'ement mes actions, mais mes pensees intimes !!"*
' Aga'i, in the case of an application for the arrest of a
British subject whose eccentricities in France had been con
strued into insanity, and who in fact was mad, the police of
Paris refused a wiarrant for his apprehension; and on being
pressed to do so on the ground that at the very moment in
question he was actually conducting himself before them as a
madman, they produced his " dossier" — composed by their
own agents — showing not only how much eau-de-vie he had
drunk, but the places and houses at which, on that very day,
he had, previously to appearing before them, swallowed " seven
glasses of it," and, as it was therefore the brandy and not the
brains in his head that appeared to be in fault, the application
for his detention was refused.
The necessity for the police of Paris is supposed to rest
upon a principle everywhere acknowledged in France, that
" no one member of the community has a right to do that
which is hurtful to all, and therefore that all persons should
be prevented from doing so by regulations," or, in other words,
* Not only my actions, but my intimate thoughts I

192 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
by the exercise of despotic authority. The working of this
system, composed of much good and some evil, may be exem
plified as follows.
Industrial establishments, " etablissements industriels,"
are divided by the police into three classes, namely, dangerous,
unhealthy, and offensive (incommode).
As regards the first, no one in Paris is allowed uuder any
circumstances to do what may be dangerous to the community
without obtaining an express order from Government ; and
accordingly, under this head no steam-engine can begin to
work within the city until it has passed an examination ; and
even then, if it be of high-pressure, it is not allowed to work,
except within walls of certain thickness and under a roof of
very little substance.
As regards the second, all manufactures of glue, size, and of
everything deleterious to health, must be carried on far from
buildings. As regards the third, any machinery or manufactory, how
ever safe, however innocuous., and although it may have cost a
couple of millions of francs, may, by a simple order of police,
be shut up, if, from noise, from sraell, or from any other cause,
it prove " incommode " (inconvenient) to the neighborhood.
The outside of every domicile and building is watched by the
department of the police, whose duty is to see that its fabric is
secure, that its chimneys, gutters, &o,, are sound, and that no
sign-board, blind, or anything else, projects farther than is con
venient to all.
Every shopkeeper is rigidly prevented from selling anything
injurious to the health of the community. For this reason no
one is allowed to act as a chemist, to prepare or sell any medi
cine, until he has passed a strict examination ; and after he has
received his patent, he is prevented from selling any poisonous
substance until he has appeared before the prefet de police to
petition for perraission to do so, and to inscribe the locality in
which his establishment is situated, and even then he is res
tricted from selling poison except under the prescription of a
physician, surgeon, or apothecary, which must be dated, signed,
and in whioh not only the dose is designated, but the manner
in which it is to be administered. The pharmacien or chemist
is required to copy the prescription at the moment of his ma
king it up, into his register, which he is required to keep for

PREFET DE POLICE. I93
twenty years, to be submitted to the authorities whenever re
quired. Moreover, poisons of all sorts, kept by a chemist, are
required to be seoured by a lock, the key of which must be in
his own possession.
Besides these securities, the commissaire de police, accom
panied by a doctor of medicine, or by professors ofthe " Ecole
de Pharmacie,"* occasionally visit the shops and laboratories
of all chemists to ascertain that the drugs in- their possession
are of proper quality.
As a further security to thc public, the prefet de police is
required to arrest and punish all vendors of seoret remedies
whioh havc not, as re(iuired by law, been submitted to a com
mission of five professors of medicine to examine the composi
tion and prioe of the medicine proposed to be administered to
the public, and of which the sale has not been authorised in
the bulletin of the National Academy of Medicine,
No secret remedy can be sold or even be advertised by a
chemist or by any one, unless it has been specially authorised
by Government, It is the duty of the National Academy of
Jledioine to examine, and, if it approves of, to legalize, the sale
of any medicine that has not been invented by a physician.
The following judgments, which I copied from the newsi
papers while I was in Paris, will practically explain the manner
in- which the public are protected from the ignorant or careless
sale of medicines or poisons : —
"Secret Remedies. — M. Jean-Marie Toussaint, jeweller, appeared before
tbe Correctional Police for the illegal sale of medecine, and of a secret
remedy described by him as ' Poudre d^purative.' The accused alleged
in bis defence that this powder ia a secret of his famDy ; that he has cured,
by means of this poivdei-, many persons of distinction. The tribunal con
demned the jeweller-physician (bijoutier medecin) to a fine of 100 francs."
"Poisonous Substances. — M. H  , chemist, of Paris, has been con
demned by the Correctional Police to pay a fine of 100 francs, for having
on his premises a poisonous substance not looked up."
In the west end of Paris xhe police have lately permitted
chemists to sell Morrison's pills. &c, ; as they were informed
that unless they allowed the English to swallow their own
quack medicines (remedes secretes), in short, that if they were
to be stinted from their habit of taking medicine of the compo-
* School of Pharmacy.
Q

194 -^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
sition of whioh they were utterly ignorant, they — the Bull
family — would probably leave Paris in disgust.
On the same principle, and with the same objects in view,
the police, attended by persons of science, inspect the cellars of
wine-merchants to shield the public from adulteration or falsi
fication. They visit cooks'-shops to see that the meats sold are
wholesome, and the apparatus (usually of brass) olean. Bakers
are divided into four classes, and in order to ensure to Paris a
constant supply of three months' flour in advance, class No, I
are required always to have on hand 140 sacks ; class No, 2,
80 ; class No, 3, 60 ; and class No, 4, 50. The price of bread
is regulated by the prefect every fortnight, acoording to that of
grain in the corn-market ; and common bread is required not
only to be of a certain weight, but to be pure, unadulterated,
and to be baked in ovens of a proper construction.
But besides watching over the lives, properties, health,
safety, comfort, and food of the inhabitants of the city of Paris,
the prefect of police, by stringent and very extraordinary ef
forts, is the supervisor of the morals — " attentats aux moeurs "
— of the people.
No house of bad conduct is allowed, as in England, of its
own accord to fester up and break out wherever it likes ; but
such evils, whioh it is deemed advisable not altogether to pre
vent, are licensed to exist in certain localities, and are forbid
den frora others, especially from the vicinity of any school,
public institution, or church. From the instant they are es
tablished the exterior and interior are placed under the con
stant and especial surveillance of a particular department of
the police, the regulations of which appear to have no other
object than despotically to reduce to the minimum the list of
evils consequent upon that whioh, if not implanted, has delibe
rately been allowed to take root For instance, each mistress
of a house of this description is obliged, within twenty-four
hours, to bring with her to be enregistered at the prefecture of
police every female who may be desirous to live with her On
her arrival there, the delinquent is seriously admonished to
relinquish her intention ; and to induce, or rather to terrify
and disgust her. she is informed in detail of the surveillance
to which she will be subjected. If the candidate is very yonng,
instead of this course she is, in the first instance, carried from
the brink of ruin to the hospital of St, Lazare, where work is

PREFET DE POLICE. 195
given to her, and endeavours are made to reclaim her. If
from the country, a letter is addressed by the police to her
parents or nearest relatives, informing them of her position,
and urging them to save her. If no answer be received, and
if her friends cannot be found out, a letter is written to the
mayor of her'commune, requesting him to endeavour to do so.
If her friends decline to come forward, or if it be ascertained
that she is friendless, a last effort is made in the hospital of St,
Lazare to reclaim her, and, if that proves to be in vain, her
name is then irrevocably inscribed ; and, destitute of character
and of liberty, she passes the remainder of her life under the
dreadful appellation of " une filie inscrite." Not only is every
change of her domicile recorded in the books of the police, but
on the ticket she is obliged to bear, — and whioh at any hour
and by any person she may be required to produce — there
must be inscribed the results of the weekly professional visits
to which she is subjected. At no hour, or under any pretext,
is she permitted, as in England, to appear at the windows of
her residence, and she is especially interdicted from appearing
in the gardens of the Palais Royal, the Tuileries, the Luxem
bourg, or the Jardin du Roi. She is allowed only to walk in
certain places ; not to appear without a bonnet ; she must be
dressed in " toilette decente,"* must not wear clothes "trop
eolatantes."! On the contrary, if they be too gaudy, or if her
conduct be in any way improper or obtrusive, she is liable then
and there to be arrested by any member of the police, and im
prisoned in the Lazare for two months.
Of the houses to whioh I have alluded only a certain pro
portion are allowed to receive any females but their own regu
lar lodgers, A short time ago the Duchess of  happened to pay
a short visit to one of these abodes. On its being disoovered
by the police, they insisted on her name, like that of all the
rest of its inmates, being " inscribed" in the books of the
department ; and it was only by paying a very high fine that
her Graoe escaped from the regulation which would have sub
jected her — poor thing — for the rest of her life to the visits,
at any hour and at any place, of that portion of the police who
especially watch over " attentats aux moeurs,"
* Decent costume. ! Too gaudy.

196 ^ FAGGOT 0.e FREUCE STICKS.
Besides the above precautions, a party of police, principally
disguised, are especially appointed to discover and to make
known to the police every female, " filie isolee," in Paris of
decided bad conduct — termed " clandestine" — in order that '
they also may be summoned and their names " inscribed," from
which moment, like the most destitute, they can never rid them
selves of the haunting presence and severe regulations of the
police, which, utterly regardless of their feelings, despotically
guards the public health.
The authority which the police of Paris exercises over la
bourers and servants of various descriptions is — especially in
a republic — most extraordinary.
Every workman or labouring boy is obliged, all over France,
to provide himself with a book termed " un livret," endorsed
in Paris by a commissaire of police, and in other towns by the
mayor or his assistants, containing his description, name, age,
birth-place, profession, and the name of the master by whom
he is employed. In fact, no person, under a heavy fine, can
employ a workman unless he produce a " livret" of the above
description, bearing an acquittal of his engagements with his
last master.
Every workman, after inscribing in his " livret" the day
and terms of his engagement with a new master, is obliged to
leave it in the hands of his said raaster, who is required, under
a penalty, to restore it to hira on the fulfilment of his engage
ment. Any workman, although he may produce a regular
passport, found travelling without his book, is considered as
" vagabond," and as suoh may be arrested and punished with
from three to six months' imprisonment, and, after that, sub
jected to the surveillance of the " haute police" for at least five
and not exceeding ten years. No new " livret" can be endorsed
until its owner produces the old one filled up. In oase of a
workman losing his livret, he may, on the presentation of his
passport, obtain provisional permission to work, but without
authority to move to any other place until he can satisfy the
officer of police that he is free from all engagements to his last
master. Every workman coming to Paris with a passport is
required, within three days of his arrival, to appear at the pre
fecture of police with his " livret," in order that it may be
endorsed. In like manner, any labourer leaving Paris with a
passport must obtain the "vise" of the police to his "livret,"

PREFET DE POLICE. I97
which, in fact, contains an abstract history of his " vie indus-
trielle"* As a description of the political department of the police
of Paris would involve details, the ramifications of which
would almost be endless, I will only briefly state, that from
the masters of every furnished hotel and lodging-house (who
are required to insert in a register, endorsed by a commis
saire de police, the name, surname, profession, and usual do
micile of every person who sleeps in the house for a single
night), and from innumerable other sources, information is
readily obtained concerning every person, and especially
every stranger, residing in the metropolis. For instance, at
the entrance of eaoh lodging, and of almost every private
house, there sits a being termed a "concierge." who knows
the hour at which each inmate enters and goes out; who calls
on him ; how many letters he receives ; by their post-marks,
where they oome from ; what parcels are left for him ; what
they appear to contain, &c, &o. &c. Again, at the corner of
every principal street there is located, wearing the badge of
the police, a " commissionaire." acquainted with all that out
wardly goes on within the radius of his Argus-eyed observa-
ticaas From these people, from the drivers of fiacres, from
the sellers of vegetables, from fruiterers, and lastly, from the
masters of wine-shops, who either from people sober, tipsy,
or drunk, are in the habit of hearing au infinity of garrulous
details, the police are enabled to track the conduct of almost
any one, and if necessary to follow up their suspicions by
their own agents, in disguises whioh, practically speaking,
render thera invisible.
" You are," said very gravely to rae a gentleman in Paris
of high station, on whom I had had occasion to call, " a per
son of some consideration," Your object here is not understood,
and you are therefore under the surveillance of the police."
I asked him what that meant,
" Wherever you go," he replied, " you are followed by an
agent of police. When one is tired, he hands you over to
another. Whatever you do is known to them ; aud at this
moment there is one waiting in the street until you leave
mc," * Industrial life.

198 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
Although the above sketch, which, on the whole, I believe
to be a faithful one, delineates, I am fully aware, a system
which in England would be deemed intolerable, and which,
indeed, I have not the smallest desire to defend, yet it must
also be evident that, on the whole, it is productive of a series
of very great benefits to the community.
If a population such as swarms within Great Britain could
exist without any restriction whatever, it would, of course, en
joy what would justly be termed perfect liberty ; but if that
be impracticable, and if laws and restrictions be necessary
evils, it follows almost inevitably that the enjoyment of a very
small liberty ought not to be considered of greater impor
tance than the attainment of a very great public benefit.
For instance, in a land of perfect liberty, such as Califor
nia, any man ought to be entitled not only to sell medicinal
drugs in any way he may think proper, but — as he has also a
right to be utterly ignorant of their nature or effects — he
ought to be allowed to keep coffee in one box, sugar of lead
in another, tea in another, arsenic in another ; moreover, he
has an undoubted right, after his dinner, to go to sleep, and
while he snores aloud to leave his own shop-nigger to sell for
him, to men, women, and children of any age, his own goods,
in his own way. Again, in such a land of perfect liberty,
every man ought to be allowed to endeavour to cure anybody
that wants to be cured by him. He may be wrong in sup
posing that a mixture of sand vitriol, and water is good for
the eyes ; that ink, lamp-black, and cobbler's wax, in equal
parts, are good for the complexion ; that a very little arsenic
and soft soap are good for digestion ; and that blistering a
baby's feet draws inflammation from its gums : but if other
free people not only agree with him in opinion, but from long
distances come to him on purpose to give him two shillings
and nine-pence for a packet of his remedy, he is no doubt
fully entitled to sell it. In like manner, in a perfectly free
country, every woman has an undoubted right to be admired
or abhorred, or, in other words to lead a virtuous or an im
moral life, just as she may prefer. And yet, if the laws of
God and man concur in punishing one individual for murder
ing another, there surely exists no very great inconsistency
in depriving any member of a very large community, for the
public good, of the tiny " liberty " of slowly undermining the

PREFET DE POLICE. I99
health, destroying the happiness, and ruining the prospects of
an unlimited number of his or her fellow-creatures. And yet,
although this, common axiom is as fully admitted in Great
Britain as in France, there exists between the two countries
a wide difference of opinion as to the extent to which it
should be applied ; and thus, while the French people, ages
ago, surrendered themselves at discretion to the principles,
good, bad, or indifferent, to which I have referred, the Eng
lish, although they concur in the theory, very slowly and very
cautiously have been and still are progressively carrying it
into effect by the establishment of a " new" poor law, of a
" new" London police, of laws forbidding the dead to be
buried among the living, abolishing Smithfield market, pre
venting the sale of medicines by ignorant, illiterate people,
&c. &c. &c. ; and although the ^'¦liberty" of selling quack me
dicines (" remedes secretes ") is still claimed and allowed,
there can be no doubt that it, and various other little pet
" liberties'' of a similar description, will in due time be slowly,
carefully, but effeetually put to death.
Between the English and the French systems of police
there of course will and always ought to remain the same dif
ference which characterizes the tastes, habits, and opinions of
the two nations. It is, however, very gratifying to observe,
that in the meanwhile both are satisfied with the efforts they
have respectively been making to attain the same good object.
In England, the " new poor law" and the " new police" are
now almost as highly praised, as on their original establishment
they were execrated and condemned ; nay, the establishment
even of extramural burial-grounds and extramural slaughter
houses is by anticipation already far from being unpopular.
In France, the intricate system I have but faintly de
scribed also gives satisfaction to the majority of the commu
nity ; indeed, it is an extraordinary fact, that, although the
power of the monarchy, of the republic, of the empire, and
even of the army, one after another have been swept away, and
although at almost every revolution the raw will of the people
has for a certain period become the sole law of the land, yet
the police of Paris has never foundered in the storras which
have destroyed every other authority ; on the contrary, the
system is about to be adopted in the great, populous, and free
e'ty of Lyons. It is also a singular fact (at least on very high
authority 1 was told so), that, besides this feeling from with-

200 -4 FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
out, so strong an esprit de corps exists within the police of
Paris, that no individual in its regular service has ever been
known to betray it Persons of any description who give use
ful information to the department are paid for it ; but since
1827 no man of bad oharaoter has been retained in its regular
service. As far as the narrow limits of my own observation ex
tended, I feel bound to speak in its favour. Excepting a
single habit of Frenchmen to which I cannot more distinctly
allude, during my residence in Paris I never witnessed any
public act of the slightest indelicacy ; on the contrary, I every
where beheld a polite and a well-conducted people, who ap
peared by their admirable bearing to each other, and above
all to strangers, to have originated, rather than have been
subjected by, the organized force whioh like the atmosphere
everywhere prevailed around them,
'The direction of every letter I received may have been
scanned, — every parcel given to my concierge may have been
peeped into, — the name of every person that called on me
may have been noted down ; — I may have been watched, —
dodged, — followed : wherever I went there may have appeared
upon the walls and pavement I passed — as my shadow — the
figure of a commissaire-de-police in uniform, or in disguise :
but I must own that, whenever these light amusing ideas gam
bolled across my mind, I did the French people the justice to
plaoe into the other scale the single heavy fact, that while I,
unmolested, unembarrassed, and in perfect security, could wan
der wherever I liked, there lay self-imprisoned throughout the
day in Paris, 30,000 people who — it is a well-known fact —
dare not show their faces to the police, and who are as com
pletely subjected by its power, as the old-fashioned, bullying,
window-breaking mob of what were then very properly termed
" blackguards," have been by the firm, admirable arrangements
of our blue-clad London police.
If in visiting Paris my object had been to conspire against
the happiness of the people ; to endeavour to overthrow their
government ; and to involve them once again in the horrors
of another revolution, 1 should no doubt — to use a vulgar ex
pression — have deeply cursed " the eyes and limbs" of a power
that would not only have confounded my politics, and have
frustrated my knavish tricks, but have punished me, promptly,
severely, and arbitrarily.

THE COMMISSIONNAIRE.

201

THE COMMISSIONNAIRE,
It is an extraordinary fact, that while in every capital on the
Continent, and even at Edinburgh and Dublin, there arc at
the corners of the principal thoroughfares persons of good
character, well known to the community, who at a moment's
warning may safely be intrusted to execute the numerous lit
tle commissions which in any establishment occasionally re
quire a trusty messenger, no such arrangement exists in
London, or in any of our English great cities or towns.
In Paris this social luxury has been so admirably supplied,
that, like iced water at Naples, the community could now
hardly exist without it. Accordingly, at the intersection of
almost all the principal streets, there is posted by the police
an intelligent respectable-looking man (there are about 12,000
of them), cleanly dressed in blue velveteen trowsers, and a
blue corduroy jacket, on the breast of whioh is affixed a brass
ticket, invariably forfeited by misconduct, bearing his occupa
tion and number, as follows ; —

N?
4 7 9
B
NICOLAS
DUPLICATA
COMMISSIONNAIRE
A PAEIS.

202 -^ FAGGOT OF FRENGE STICKS.
The duties of this commissionaire are not only at various
fixed prices to go messages in any direction, and at determined
rates to perform innuraerable other useful services, but he is
especially directed to assist aged and infirm people of both
sexes in crossing streets crowded with carriages, and to give
to strangers who may inquire their way every possible assist
ance. The luxury of living, wherever you may happen to lodge,
within convenient reach of a person of this description, is very
great. For instance, within fifty yards of my lodgings there
was an active, honest, intelligent, dark-blue fellow, who was to
me a living book of useful knowledge. Crumbling up the
newspaper he was usually reading, he could, in the middle of
a paragraph and a moment's notice, get me any sort of car
riage,- — recommend me to every description of shop, — tell me
the colour of the omnibus I wanted, — where I was to find it, —
where I was to leave it, — how I ought to dress, to go here, —
there, — or anywhere : — what was done in the House of Assem
bly last night; — who spoke best, — what was said of his speech,
— and what the world thought of things in general. On the
other hand, he was, if possible, more useful to the sergeant of
police of tbe district than to me. He could tell hira where I
went, what I bought, what I said, what I thought, and, above
all, how I looked when I was not thinking. He could explain
to him all about my eyes, how inquisitive they both were,
what odd places they visited, &c. &c. When my friend was
absent, as of course he often was, engaged in the service of
others, I repeatedly employed a brother commissionnaire, at
some distance from my lodging, who was exceedingly loqua
cious and intelligent. One morning as, while waiting for an
oranibus, I stood talking to him, he told me he wished very
much to get employment in London, of which he had heard a
great deal, and, on my asking him what he could do if he was
there, he burst out with such surprising eloquence on the sub
ject, that I desired him to call upon me at eight o'clock in the
evening, after I had had my dinner.
I was reclining in an easy chair when he entered, I told
him that, among other investigations I was making, I wanted
to understand what were the qualifications of a Paris commis
sioner ; and I added, that, if he would explain to me what he
was in the habit of doing, I would write it down, in abbrevia
tion almost as fast as he could utter it.

TEE COMMIS,SIONNAIRE. 203
Upon this, away he started, but at such a tremendous paee,
that it was utterly impossible to follow him. Laying down
my pencil over and over again, I told him that that would not
do. We had I think as many false starts, as if he had been
running for the Derby ; at last I succeeded in teaching him
the rate at which he was to canter, not gallop ; and accord
ingly I then easily, without the alteration of a single word,
copied from his curbed mouth the following long-winded, rig
marole story, which will not only explain the extraordinary
volubility of tongue and facility of expression of a Paris com
missionnaire, but the services, good and (I regret to add) evil,
which it appears he is occasionally in the habit of perform
ing :— The Statement of  Commissionnaire-''
"Monsieur I je cire les bottes ; je scie le bois ; je le monte dans les ap-
partements ; je porte les malles et bagage, et tout ce qui se presente ; je
poi-te les lettres, des paquets ; je frotte les appartemeuts, puis les esca-
liers ; je lave les parterres et les salles a manger ; je fais des menage-
ments avec un brancard ; ga se porte a deux hommea avec des bricoles en
cuir ; je traine la charrette, des malles, du bois, des meublcs ; je bats les
tapis, je les decloue des appartements, et je les porte a la barriere en
dehors de Paris, oui, Monsieur ! je les rapporte a les personnes k qui ils
apparliennent ; je les pose ; je sais faire un appartement ; je fais des lits
dans Vappartement ; je mets en couleur le parquet des appartements: je
garde un malade la nuit, le jour (a shrug), a la journee (a shrug), et a la
nuit aussi (a shrug) ; je conviens du prix avec les personnes qui m'em-
ploient cinq francs pour la nuit, huit francs pour les vingt-quatre heures,
quand les personnes ne me nourrissent pas ; en outre, je gai-de les morts
dans I'appartement pendant les vingt-quatre heures qu'ils restent exposes ;

* "Sir, I black boots ; I saw wood ; I take it up into tbe apartments;
I carry portmanteaus and luggage, and whatever offers itself; I carry
letters and parcels ; I rub the floors of apartments and stairs ; I wash the
floors and tlie dining-rooms; I change furniture from one house to another
with a hand-barrow,- — carried by two men witb leathern straps ; I draw a
cart with portmanteaus, wood, or furniture ; I beat carpets, take them up
out of tbe apartments, sind carry thera to the barrier outside of Paris (yea.
Sir) ; I bring them back to the persons to whom they belong ; I lay them
down, I know how to arrange a room ; I make the beds ; I colour the in
laid floors of tlie apartments ; I watch a sick person through the night and
day (a shrug), for so much a day (a shrug), and for the night also (a shrug);
I agree as to the price with those persons who employ me, for five francs
the night, eight francs for the twenty- four hours, when they do not feed
me ; besides, I watch the dead in the apartment during the twenty-four

204 -^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.

1 (three shrugs) je fais tous ce qui se presente : je touche les biUets de
nerce a ordre, quand on me charge de la commission, et que l'on me

enfin (
commerc donne le billet pour le toucher ; je rapporte I'argent a la personne qui m'a
confix le billet, et la personne me paie ma commission ; j'engage au Mont
de Piet6 tout ce que le public me veut bien confier, — bijoux (a shrug),
baques (a shrug), chaines, montres, or, ou argent ; j'engage cuiUieres et four-
chsttes, en argent, a manger ; j'engage pendules, du Unge ; on engage tout
(a shrug) au Mont de Piet^, meubles, pianos, matelas, candelabres, lustres :
enfin, on engage tout ce qui a de la valeur ; et je rapporte I'argent et le
papier d'engageraent k la personne qui m'a bien voulu confier cette com-
raissiou-la, et en meme temps la personne me paie ma commission.
" Apr^s, je dSgage des effets du Mont de Pi^t^, pom- toutes les person
nes qui veulent bien m'honorer de leurs commissions, pourvu que la per
sonne mette sa signature sur le revers du papier que le Mont de Pi6t6 lui a
domie le jour oil elle a engag(5 les objets quelconques.
" Je vais en commission dans les d^partements de toute la France, et
dans I'etranger (shrug) la meme chose, moyennant le prix convenu et en
prix raisonnable ; je prends les chemins de fer (.shrug), la diligence (shrug) ;
je vais au plus vite, et je reviens au plus vite ; je brosse un cheval, moi I
je lui donne k manger ; je lave la voiture ; je sais conduire la voiture : je
fais la cave ; je rince les bouteilles ; je mets le viu en bouteiUe ; j'empileles
bouteiUes quand elles sont bouchles et goudronn^es ; je descends les
pidces de vin a la cave avec une grosse corde a I'aide d'un camarade, et le

hours that they remain exposed ; in short (three shrug.s), I do whatever ia
offered to me. I receive commercial notes, for whoever will charge me with
the commission, and who will give me the note to enable me to receive it
I bring back the money to the person who has intrusted me with the note,
and the person pays me for my commission ; I pawn at the Mont de Pi6t6
whatever the public is willing to intrust to me, — jewels (a shrug), chains,
watches, gold, or silver ; I pawn silver spoons and forks, for eating ; I
pawn clocks, lineu ; they take everything in pawn (a shrug) at the Mont
de Pilate, — furniture, pianos, mattresses, candelabras, lustres ; in short, they
take in pawn everything of value ; and I bring back the money and the
pawnbroker's ticket to the person who has intrusted me with the commis
sion, and at the same tirae that person pays rae for my commission,
" Afterwards, I redeem pawned articles from the Mont de Pi^t^ for all
those persons who choose to honour me with their commissions, provided
that the person puts his signature on the back of thc paper which the
Mont de PiiSt^ delivered to him on the day when he pa-wned the aforesaid
articles, " I act as commissioner throughout all the departments of France, and
also (shrug) in foreign countries, according to the price agreed on, and at a
reasonable price; I travel on the railroads (shrug), in the diligence (shrug);
I go as quick as I can, and I come back as quick as T can ; I rub down a
horse ; I can ! I feed him ; wash the carriage ; drive the carriage ; arrange
the cellar ; rinse ont the bottles ; bottle the wine ; pile up the bottles after
they are corked and stamped ; lower the hogsheads of wine into the cellar

TIIE COMMISSIONNAIRE. 205
prix c'est deux francs par piice. Dans mou pays je suis laboureur — tout
ce qni concerne atravailler la tcri-e, Je deracine les arbres ; je les scie en
plusieurs traits de scie ; je le fends ; je I'empile pour qu'il seiche ; ensuite
je le charge sur mulets, et je I'emporte a la maison pour bruler ri I'usage
de la maison ; ensuite je fauche les foins et les bles, je transporte les bles
dans la grange (shrug), et le foie aussi ; je bats le ble et je le renferme
dans le grenier ; alors on le prend au fur et a mesure pour le faire moudre
et pour faire du pain, Je taille la ingne, je pioche la vigne ; j'y met des
6chalats a chaque pied de vigne pour que la vigne ne se courbe pas ; en
merae tems j'attaclie la vigue I'echalat avec de la paille qui a §te tremp6
dans I'eau, et de la paille triee expres pour attacher la vigne a I'echa
lat, pour que les raisins murissent mieux, et qu'ils ne se trainent pas
sur la terre, Maintenent je fais la vendauge, ga veut dire ramasser
les raisins ; je les emporte a la maison avec une hotte qui se porte
sm- le dos a I'aide de deux bricoles qui sont attach^es et clones a la
hotte. Quand la hotte est pleine des raisins, elle pese deux cent
livres. Apr^s, je I'emporte a la maison, et je la vide dans une grande
cave, qui est faite expres pour caver le vin. Mes vendanges durent
quatre jours (shrug), cinq jours ; et quand j'ai fiiii de vendanger raa
cave est pleine : alors je m'occupe tous les jours de piger (^eraser) les
raisins avec un pilon en bois qui est rond et qui est fait expres pour cette
chose-la. H est tres large du bas. Ensuite au bout de quinze jours mon
¦vin est cav^. Je le tire par dessous pendant que la cave en fournit. Ce
vin la c'est la premiere qualite, Je le mets dans un tonneau a part, et je

with a thick rope, with the help of a comrade, and the price is two francs
for each hogshead. In ray own country I am a labourer, and do every
thing relating to tbe cultivation of the ground, I root up the trees ; I saw
them into several lengths; I split the wood; pile it up to dry; then
load it on mules, and carry it to the house to be burnt ; afterwards 1 mow
tbe hay and corn ; carry the coru into the barn (shrug), and the hay also ;
thrash the corn, and put it away into the granary ; from whence they take
it out by little and little to have it ground and to make bread. I prune
the vines ; dig round thera ; put props at the foot of each to support
it from bending; at the same time I fasten the vines to them with
straw which has been soaked in water, and selected expressly to fa.sten the
vine to the prop, so tbat the grapes may ripen better, and that they may
not trail on the ground. Now 1 coramence my vintage, that is to say,
gather tlie gi-apes ; I carry them to the house in a rough basket, which is
caiTied on the back by means of two straps, fastened and nailed on to the
basket. When the basket is full of grapes it weighs two hundred pounds.
Afterwards, I carry it to the house, and empty it into a, large cellar made
expressly to contain the wine. My vintage lasts four days (shrug), five
days ; and by tbe time I have finished my -vintage ray cellar is full ; then
" I employ myself every day in crusliing the grapes with a wooden pestle,
which is round, and made expressly fir the purpose. It is very wide at
the bottom. Afterwards, at the end of fifteen days, ray wine is in the
cellar. I draw it off from below as long as the cellar supplies it. Tliis
wine is of the first quaUty. I put it into a cask by itself, and I keep it to

206 -^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
le conserve pour vendre, pour payer les contributions de ma -vigne. Le
mare qui reste dans la cave je le prends avec des sceaux et je le porte
au pressoir ; la je le presse, et le vin que j'en retire c'est pour usage de
ma famille. Ce vin-U est inf^rieur au preraier (shrug) (parce qne le
preraier vient des grains des raisins les plus miirs qui se trouvent ^erases).
Maintenant, le mare qui me reste, que je retire du pressoir, je le meta
dans une cave expres pour cela, et j'y mets sept (shrug) sceaux d'eau,
etje laisse bouiller fa pendant cinq ou six jours; ensuite, ce mare-ld j'en
fais de I'eau de vie ; je fais cuire ce mare-la dans un alambic. Au fur et a
mesure que 5a est cuit, la vapeur concentric me rend I'eau de vie a 22
degres, alors que je le reduis a 18 degres (vu qu'a 22 degres il est trop
fort, il fait du mal au temperament) en ajoutant de I'eau. C'est comme
fa qu'on travaiUe chez nous ; on fait son vin (shrug) ; on fait son eau de
vie (shrug) ; on bat son bl6 ; on fait du pain pour un mois. Le four oii
l'on cuit le pain est en commun. II appartient a mon village. On cuit
cinquante cinq pain's de huit livi'es chacun. Quand le four a besoin d'etre
rSpar(S, c'est le sindio du village qui fait faire les reparations necessaires.
n paie avec les revenus du Village, corarae il y a des revenus des terres
que nos ancetres ont donnas pour une ecole de garfons et de demoiselles.
Cette ecole on la tieat six mois de I'annee, et on donne au raaitre d'ecole
des garfons soixante-dix francs, et a la maitresse d'ecole pour les filles
cinquante francs pour les six mois. Ces revenus \i sont des terres la-
bourables, pres et champs appartenant au village. Ces terres-lSi se
louent k la criee : on les donne a celui qui en offre le plus haut prix ;

sell, in order to pay tbe contributions of my vineyard. The residue which
remains in the cellar I take away in pails, and c.aiTy it to the wme-press ;
there I press it, and the wine I get from it is for the use of my family.
This wine is inferior to the first (shrug) (because the first is raade of the
ripest grapes which are crushed). Now, the residue which remains, which
I take out of the wine-press, I put into a cellar made on purpose for it,
and I add to it from seven (shrug) to eight (shrug) pails of water, and I
let it all boil during five or six days ; after that, I make brandy from this
residue. I warm this residue in a still. By slow degrees, as it becomes
heated, the concentrated vapour produces me brandy of 22 degrees
strength; which I reduce to 18 degrees (because at 22 degrees it is too
strong, it is bad for the constitution) by adding water to it. That is the
way we work in onr country ; we make our wine (.shrug), we make our
own brandy (shrug), we thrash our corn, we make bread enough for a
month. The oven where we make our bread is in common ; it belongs to
my village, Xhey bake fifty-five loaves, of eight pounds each. When the
oven requirea to be repaired, it is the syndic of the village who has what
is necessary done. He pays with the revenues of the village, proceeding
from some lands which our ancestors gave for a school for boys and for,
girls. This school is kept during six months ofthe year, and they give the
boys' schoolmaster seventy francs, and the girls' schoolmisti-ess fifty francs
fill- the six months. These revenues are from lands under cultivation,
meadows and fields belonging to the village. They are let by auction ; to
him -ffho offers the highest price they are given on certain conditions ; if he

TEE COMMISSIONNAIRE. 207
pourvu que, s'il n'a pas de quoi payer la rente, il fournisse une caution
solvable qui s'en rende respons.able."
After a short pause and a heavy aspiration, he added —
" Revenons aux Commissions!"
" Quand il passe une belle femme, parfois, il y a un monsieur qui me
dit, ' Commissionnaire, suivez cette dame-ld, et t^chpz de savoir son nom ;
* vous rae rapporterez son nora et son adresse ; voila raa carte ou je de-
' raeure: ayez le nom bien exact, et rendez moi la reponse chez moi ii six
' henres du soir ; je vous payerai votre commission genereusement.' Je
lui reponds, ' Monsieur, Madame reste rue (shrug), (n'importe ! ), &c. Elle
' se nomme Mademoiselle  . Maintenant, Monsieur, c'est a vous de lui
' ecrive si fa vous fait plaisir. Ce monsieur alors me dit, Venez demain a
' neuf heures du matin ; je vous donnerai ,une lettre pour remettre a
' mademoiselle.' Maintenant je vais porter la lettre ; monsieur me voit
de retour. 'Voici la i-eponse a voti-e lettrSl' 'Ah, je vous reraercie,
'commissionnaire!' Eh bien! combien vous dois-je, commissionnaire?'
' Monsieur, cette demoiselle ra'a fait attendre longtemps pour avoir la re-
' ponse ainsi. Monsieur, fa vaut bien trente sous ; vous savez que c'est
'loin!' 'Eh bien, voila trente sous, commissionnaire; si j'ai besoin de
' vous demain, je passerai a votre station,' Maintenant ce monsieur me
fait des questions, II me demande, 'A-t-elle un beau mobilier cette de-
' raoiselle Id?' Je lui i-eponds, 'Oui, Monsieur' (a shrug). 'J'aivu un
' bon lit, un secretaire commode, une belle pendule sur la cheminee, et

has not sufficient security of his own to answer the payment of his rent,
he must find a solvent bail to answer for him,
" But to return to the Coraraiasion.
" Sometimes, when a beautiful woman passes by, a gentleman says to
me. Commissioner, follow that lady, and try to find out her name ; you
raust bring me back her name and address; here is my card and direc
tion where I live : get the narae very exact, and bring rae back the an
swer to my honse at six o'clock this evening : I will pay you liberally for
your coraraission. I answer him, 'Sir, Madame lives in  street'
(shrug), (never mind where!), <fee. 'She is called MademoiseUe  -.
Now, Sir, you can write to her, if that is agreeable to you.' This gentle
man then says to me, ' Come to-morrow morning at 9 o'clock : I will give
yon a letter to deUver to Mademoiselle.' Now I go and carry the letter ;
Monsieur sees me return. ' Here is the answer to your letter !' ' Ah !
I thank you. Commissioner! "Well! how rauch do lowe you, Corarais
sioner?" ' Sir, this young lady kept rae waiting a long time for her an
swer ; so. Sir, it is well worth thirty sons ; you know it is a long way
off!' 'Well, here are thirty sous, Commissioner; if I want you to-mor
row I sh.all pass by your station,' Now, this gentleman puts to me some
questions. He asks me, 'Has this young lady got handsome furniture.'
I answer him, ' Yes, Sir (a shrug). I saw a good bed, a convenient writ
ing-table, a beartiful oloek on the chiraney-piece, and the floor was ear.

208 -^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
' un tapis clone au parterre. Ainsi (shrug). Monsieur, voild tout ce que
' j'ai vu. Monsieur, je m'en retourne a ma station.' ' Eh bien! fa suffit,
' commissionnaire I Si j'ai besoin de vous, je vous ferai demander.' ' Je
' vous remercie. Bon jour. Monsieur ' (shrug). Maintenant, quand un
concierge me refuse le nom de la personne que je lui designe, par exemple,
une grande blonde qui vient de rentrer a I'instant meme, qui est aliee au
fond de la cour, a I'escalier k droite, je dis au concierge, ' Monsieur le cou-
' cierge ! seriez-vous ajsez bon pour me donner le nora de cette grande
' dame qui vient de rentrer toute seule la ?' Le concierge me dit, ' Mais
' qu'est-ce que vous voulez faire de ce nom-l& V Je lui dis, C'est un
' monsieur qui m'a charge la commission de savoir le nom de cette de-
' moiselle-la (correcting himself), de cette personne-la,' — parceque je ne
savais pas quelquefois si c'est une dame ou une demoiselle. Le concierge
me dit, 'Si c'est ainsi, pour vous obliger, je vais vous le donner. C'est
' Mademoiselle (un tel).' Moi je fais une honnetete au concierge; en lui
payant (shrug) un verre de vin.
" Alors il y a une autre question que je vais vous expliquer. Quand
un Monsieur n'a pas confiance en sa femme, U la i ait suivre par un com
missionnaire, quand elle est aliee se promener toute seule. Alors le mon
sieur dit au commissionnaire, 'Suivez cette personne-la; vous me direz en
' detail partout oii elle s'est arretee ; je viendrai prendre la reponse a votre
' station ce soir.' Alors je dis a monsieur. Monsieur, Madara s'est arretee
' rue — (shrug), numero — (shrug). Madame est restee une derai-beure dans
' cette raaison-ld ; pendant ce teraps-la je faisais faction en face la porte-

peted. In short (shrug), Sir, I have told you all I saw. Sir, I am going
back to ray station.' * Well ! that will do. Commissioner ! If I want you
I will let you know.' ' I thank you. Good day. Sir ' (shrug). Now,
when a doorkeeper refuses to tell me the name of the person whom I de
scribe to him — for example, a tall fair lady who has just come in, who
has crossed over to tbe back of the courtyard, to the staircase on the right
hand — I say to the doorkeeper, ' Monsieur doorkeeper ! would you be so
good as to tell me the name of that tall lady who has just gone in there
all alone ?' The doorkeeper says to me, ' But what do you want with her
narae ?' I say to him, ' It is a gentleman who has given rae the commis
sion to le.arn the name of that young lady (correcting himself) — of that
pei-son, because I have not known sometimes whether she was a married
or an unmarried lady. The doorkeeper says to me, ' If such is the case,
to oblige you, 1 will tell you. She is Mademoiselle ' (such a one). On
my part, I show a Uttle civility to the doorkeeper, by giving him (shrug)
a glass of wine.
" Now there is another subject which I will explain to you. When a
gentleraan has no confidence in his wife, he employs a commissioner to
follow her when she goes out alone. Then tbe gentleman says to the com
missioner, ' Follow that lady ; you raust tell rae in detail every place where
she stops : I shall come to your station this eveuing for .in answer.' Then
I say to the gentleraim, ' Sir, Madame stopped iu (sjirug)  Street,
Number  (shrug). Madame remained for half an hour in that house •
during that time I walked up and down opposite the caniage-gate on the

TEE COMMISSIONNAIRE. 209
' cochfire de I'autre cote de la rue, pour savoir quand elle sortiraitde cette
' rue-la, Madame a ete au magasin de nouveautes, rue — (shrug), numero
' — . De la Madame a monte dans une voiture cit.adine, qu'elle a an-etee
' dans le rue en sortant du magasin de nouveautes, Moi j'ai couru de
' toutes mes jambes pour suivre la voiture, Madame est desceudue rue —
' (en fin viola), numero — . Madame a renvoye la voiture apr^s avoir
' paye. Madarae est entree dans cette raaison-la, et elle y restait une
' heure et deraie. De la sortie de cette raaison-la, madame est aliee
' directement chez elle. Madame est rentree a cinq heures et demie. Je
' n'ai vu personne, en fait, de monsieur qui a parle a Madame. Ainsi,
' Monsieur, voila tous les renseignements et tous les details que je peux
' vous donner (shrug) pour aujourd'hui,' Le monsieur me dit, ' C'est bien,
' commissionnaire ; combien vous dois-je ?' Je dis, ' Monsieur, vous etes
' assez genereux pour comprendre combien que ca vaut cette commission-
' la,' ' Voici, commissionnaire, deux francs, Etes-vous content !' ' Oui,
' Monsieur, je suis content,' ' Si j'ai besoin de vons demain je vous ferai
' dire, ou j'irai vous dire moi-merae a votre station.' Je lui dis. ' Oui, Mon-
' sieur (shrug), c'est bien, Je vous reraercie ; bon jour, Monsieur (shrug),
' voila' (shrug). Le lendemaln voila le monsieur qui arrive, ' Dites donc,
' commissionnaire, faites-moi la meme commission qu'hier, — vous savez ?
' Venez avec moi ; vous vous tiendrez en face de ma porte-cochere ; quand
' il sortira une dame — une petite brune — elle doit sortir dans_une demi-
' heure ; elle a nne robe de sole Ecossaise, un chapeau vert, et un grand
' schal, a fond bleu, a fleurs rouges — vous suivrez cette dame la ; tenez-
' vous k une distance, un peu eioignee, que cette dame-la ne se mefie paa

other side of the street, in order to know when she would leave the street.
Madarae went to the warehouse for novelties,  Street (shrug), Nura
ber  . Frora thence Madame got into a hackney carriage, which she
stopped in the street on coming out of the warehouse. As for rae, I ran as
fast as ray legs could can-y rae to follow the carriage. Madame got out of
it in  Street, say Number  . Madame sent away the carriage, after
having paid for it. Madam went into that bouse, where sbe remained an
hour and a half On going ont of that house, Madame went straight home.
Madame returned home at halfpast five. I did not see any description of
gentleraan speak to Madame. In short, Sir, these are all the details and
information which I can give you (shrug) for to-day.' The gentleman says
to me, ' Well done, Commissioner : how much do I owe you f I say, ' Sir,
you are generous enough to comprehend how much that commis.sion is
worth.' ' Here, Coraraissioner, are two francs. Are you satisfied V ' Tes,
Sir, I ara satisfied.' ' If I want you to-morrow, I -will let you know, or I
will go to your station myself.' I say to him, ' Very well, Sir (shrug), it is
all right. I thank you. Good day. Sir ' (shi'ug). Well (slirug), the next
morning the gentleraan arrives, ' Tell me, Commissioner, can you do the
same commission for me that you did yesterday ? you understand ? Come
with me; you will keep yourself opposite ray carriage-gate ; when a lady
comes out— a little brunette — she is to come in half an hour ; she has a
go-wn of Tartan silk, a green bonnet, and a large shawl, with a blue ground
and red flowers — ^you will follow her. Keep yourself at a distance, some

210 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
' que vous la suivez ; rendez-moi la reponse bien exacte ; vous me direz
' partout ou elle s'esi; arretee, le nom de la rue, et le numero de la maison,
dans toutes les maisons oii eUe s'arretera. Je viendrai prendre la reponse
' ici a votre station ce soir k (shrug) sept heures.'
" Voila sept heures arrivees. ' Monsieur, j'ai fait votre commission bien
' exactement. Madame s'est ai-retee en partant de la roaison sur le boule-
' vart chez un marchand de chaussures. Madarae s'est arretee quinze mi-
' nutes ; de lk Madame est allee rue — , numero — ; Madarae est restee
' deux heures dans cette maison-la ; de la Madame est sortie, elle est aliee
' au Jardin des Tuileries ; Madame a cause une demi-heure avec un mon-
' sieur, tres bien mis, pas trop grand, un brun ; un monsieur qui peut avoir
' trente-huit ans ; ce monsieur porte moustaches, De lk Madame a quitte
' ce monsieur ; elle est rentree a la maison k (shrug) six heures et demie.
' Voila tout le trajet que Madame a fait aujourd'hui.'
" Quelquefois une dame rae fait egalement suivi-e son mari que je cou-
nais ; pour que ce monsieur ne me reconnaisse pas, je ra'habille en bour
geois propreraent. Mon camarade, en face, a suivi un monsieur pendant
dix jours a six francs par jour : dans ces dix jours 11 n'a pu rien decouvrir,
ni rien savoir 1
As soon as the commissionnaire, who, excepting to draw
breath, had never onoe stopped for a single moment, had con
cluded describing to me in his own way, and in his own ex
traordinary words, his various qualifications, I asked him why
he wished to go to England. He replied he could not now
gain his bread.

w.ay off, so that she may not suspect that you follow her ; bring me back
a very exact account ; you must tell me wherever she has stopped, the
name of the street, and the number of the house, of all the houses where
she may stop. I sball come and get your answer here at your station this
evening at (shrug) seven o'clock.'
" It is now seven o'clock. ' Sir, I have done your commission very
exactly. On leaving her house, Madame stopped on the Boulevard, at a
shoemaker's shop. Madame stayed there fifteen minutes; from there
Madame went to  Street, Nuraber ; Madame stayed two hours in that
house ; frora thence Madame carae out ; she went to the Garden of the
Tuileries ; Madame was talking there for half an hour with a gentleman,
weU dressed, not very tall, of a dark complexion ; a gentleman who may
be about eight-and-thirty ; this gentleman wears moustaches. From thence
Madame parted from this gentleraan ; she returned home to her own house
at (shrug) half-past six. This is aU the tour that Madame has made to
day.' " Sometimes a lady in the same way raakes rae foUow her husband,
whora I know. In order that this gentleraan may not recognise me, I
dress myself decently, like a citizen. My comrade, opposite, once followed
a gentleman for ten days, at the rate of six francs a-day : in those ten
days he was not able to discover or find out any thing ! "

EALLE AUX VINS 211
" Has the revolution prevented people from sending messa
ges 1" I observed, rather incredulously,
" Monsieur," he replied, " on ne fait rien. Les choses
cheres ne s'achetent pas a present !"*
" But," said I, " people have the same money as before —
why don't they spend it as before ?"
" Everybody," he replied, " is afraid of the future. Every
body is economical ; everybody is hiding, hoarding, or saving
his money, because he knows that afi'airs cannot continue as
they are, that sooner or later there must be another revolu
tion I"
I asked bim whether, generally speaking, the commission-
naires of Paris were now as well ofi', better off, or worse off,
than in the time of the monarchy 1
His answer was. that since the revolution he had not taken
one-half of what he used to gain in the time of Charles X. and
Louis Philippe,
" Why hav« you not ?" said I,
The Commissionnaire's reply struck me very forcibly : —
" Monsieur," said he, " parce qu'il n'y a pas de luxe I"
After a short pause he added, " Le luxe c'est la plus belle
brauche du commerce — c'est ce qui fait sortir I'argent. Les
choses cheres ne s'achetent pas a present parce qu'il n'y a pas
do luxe !"t He then explained in very good language that
the poor lived by the luxury of the rich, aud that when artifi
cial wants were discouraged the receipts of the commission
naire were proportionately diminished In short, he merely
explained to me what two or three bloody revolutions, ending
in a republic, had practically expounded to him.

HALLE AUX VINS.
Close to the Seine, and to the " He St. Louis,'' adjoining the
Jardins des Plantes, and opposite the " Port Aux Vins," there
* Sir, nothing is going on. At present nobody buys expensive things.
-j- Because there is no luxury. Luxury is the finest branch of com
merce. It is what causes money to raove. Expensive thinga are not
purchased now, because there is no luxury.

212 -1 FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
exists, on the site of the celebrated abbey of St Victoire, sur
rounded on three sides by its own wall, and on the side look
ing upon the Seine by iron railings, a little city, morc than a
quarter of a mile long by nearly a quarter of a mile broad,
founded by Napoleon in 1813, and since finished, for the wel
come reception in Paris — the merry heart of France — of about
five hundred thousand casks of wine.
On entering a large gate in the eastern half of the iron
railings, I saw running straight before me a paved road, and at
right angles to it, and consequently parallel to the Seine,
another one equally broad. On the left, close to the entrance-
gate, was the great Government bureau, besides which, in the
space between the railings and the pave, and also along that at
right angles to it, I beheld, shaded by a triple row of trees, an
innuraerable quantity of little wooden, zinc-covered oifices, of
various colours, teeming with windows looking all ways at onoe,
each belonging to a wine or spirit merchant, whose name was
painted thereon. On the side next the Seine there were no less
than 99 of these little shanties, to eaoh of which was attached
a tiny garden. The interior of this immense space, nearly
surrounded by trees, is principally composed of rectangular
blocks of low buildings, divided into broad streets or boulevards,
also shaded by trees, appropriately designated by names suited
to every palate, and, indeed, alraost suificient to make a per
son's mouth water to read or even write, namely, —
1, Kue de Champagne,
2, Rue de Burgogne,
3, Hue de Bordeaux
4, Rue de Languedoc,
5, Rue de la Cote dOr
As a certain animal is recorded to have stood starving be
tween two bundles of hay, so, with so many delicious streets
before me, I hesitated for some time as to which I ought first
to enter ; at last I determined to engage as my conductor a
man in a blouse, who happened to be standing near me, and,
committing myself entirely to his guidance, we entered the
Rue de Bordeaux, a fine, handsome paved street, sixty-six feet
broad, bounded on each side, first by a double row of oaks and
horse-ohesnut trees, and then by a row of long, low, substantial
etone buildings, divided into seven arch-doored vaulted com
partments. In this street not a cab, a hackney-coach, a carriage,

HALLE AUX VINS. 213
person on horseback, a clergyman, gentleman or lady, on foot,
were to be seen ; but along its whole length there were, as
might naturally be expected, arranged twelve rows of casks,
full of a bright red fluid, in many instances like a blush on the
human cheek, to be seen oozing through and sufl'using the
staves: Over every arched door there was written upon the white
washed stones, in letters of black, the name of the wine mer
chant to whom it belonged. On entering one, instead of
being asked what I wanted, I was with the utmost kindness
invited by the master, who then immediately walked away,
to remain in it as long as I liked. In various directions I
heard, in utter darkness, little, refreshing, trickling, guggling
noises ; and as I stood listening to them I indistinctly, — by
the faint light of a tallow candle, afiixed here and there to a
tin slide, stuck sometimes into the head of a barrel, and some
times into its ribs or hoops, — perceived human fingers in mo
tion, amidst seven piles, one above another, of barrels enjoy
ing absolute rest. On coming out in several direotions were
to be seen a man or two rolling a barrel towards a one-horse
dray. In the Rue de Champagne, each side of which, shaded by
trees, was divided into fourteen lofty vaulted cellars above
ground, similar to those just described, the street was nearly
full of men hammering and hooping up barrels. From the
centre of this street I entered a subterranean cave or gallery
of only ten yards less tban a quarter of a mile ! — containing
cellars on each side. On the floor of this dark-arched alley,
intersected in the centre by one at right angles of similar
length, I observed a pair of wooden rails, along which men in
white tucked-up shirt-sleeves were rolling casks of wine ; here
and there in the arched roof was a small square hole, through
which streamed a corresponding patch of sunshine, illuminat
ing the ground beneath. I purposely trod on one of these
and instantly my boot, which I had not seen for some minutes,
became visible.
In one part I heard a violent hammering, and on arriving
at the point from which it was proceeding, I found men on
Doth sides of the rails oocupied by candlelight in belabouring
the convex surfaces of empty casks, until each bung, as if it
could stand the din of war no longer, began flrst to loosen.

X

214 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
and at last almost to jump out, whicb was the object desired.
Within the cellars, as I passed them, I occasionally caught
glimpses of men tapping casks with syphons. On arriving
into the open air, we ascended by a flight of broad stone steps
to a series of magazines for spirits, built of hollow bricks, of
the same enormous size ; indeed, after I had been for some
time walking through the long galleries I havc described, I
fancied as I pas.sed the casks which were being emptied of their
contents that I felt almost giddy.
After taking leave of the spirit department, we proceeded
to a large long shed close to the great south surrounding wall
of the establishment for measuring the exact quantity of
brandy contained in each butt. For this purpose, on a plat
form about ten feet from the ground, were ranged in a row
twenty large open copper vats ; above them was a small rail
way, upon whioh the barrels to be tested, hoisted by a crane,
were rolled along, until each was exactly over the copper vat,
into which its contents were to be decanted ; the bung was
then extracted, and the ardent spirit rushing out was accu
rately gauged by a glass tube and brass scale outside the vat ;
by the turning of a large cock in the bottom of the vat, by a
second transmigration it again rushed back to the butt from
which it had just departed, and which, during the time of its
measurement, had been lowered beneath to receive it, The
exact contents of each cask were then ofiicially marked upon
it in red by gentlemen inhabiting a bureau or office in the
middle of the twenty vats, in front of which were lying, wait
ing to be gauged, several rows of large butts of spirits.
I was now conducted into an upper gallery, containing a
series of cellars on each side, such as I have described, full of
casks of wine of all descriptions. The odour was so strong,
that, as my guide in his wooden shoes clattered along at my
side, we often, I observed, were slightly disposed to reel
against each other. Sometimes my hair and clothes smelt
of brandy ; sometimes as a whiff of claret passed me I tossed
up my head and thought for the moment of " absent friends,"
— a younger man would probably have put it " Sweejthearts
and wives,"- — in short, by the time I had visited the contents
of the Rue de Champagne, de Bourgogne, de Bordeaux, de
Languedoc, and de la Cote-d'Or, I felt that by highways and
byways there had reached me rather more wine and brandy"

/S

EALLE AUX VINS. 215
than I had desired and yet my guide assured me that out of
Paris at the Port de Verois on the Seine, there are magazines
of wine containing more than three times as muoh as in the
whole of the cellars around us. How truly therefore may
every inhabitant of Paris sing, in the air of '" Vive Henri
Quatre," " J'aimons le bon vin!" "'^
At the west end of the establishment I found ranged in a
row, and shaded by trees, twenty-three little wooden offices, of
various colours, belonging to difi'erent wine-merchants, also six
large offices for " sappeurs, pompeurs," &o.
In my progress through the various streets and cellars I
have described I did not see a single drunken or even intem
perate-looking man, and all (it was on a Monday) wore clean
shirts. As I had now gone through the interior of the Halle aux
,Vins, I walked through the shaded Rue de Champagne, to the
bureaux of the Government, situated close to the great gate by
which I had entered. These offices, by notices over their re
spective doors, are desoribed as follows : — " Conservation,"
" Inspection," '¦¦ Controles et Comptes Generaux," " Declara
tion de sortir pour Paris." " Recette de 1' Octroi I" f above
them is a story inhabited by the " employes" of the depart
ment. As I wished to speak to the " Conservateur," % I asked
one of the porters in attendance if he was at home. The
moment I opened my mouth I perceived the old man's coun
tenance gradually to lower, until at last out it oame — head
over heels — that he had been eight years in the English prison
of V6vtsmooih." Poor fellow ! the recollection of it naturally
enough haunted him ; but as he talked to me a little sulkily
on the subject, I submitted to him that he had only suffered
one of the numerous evils which his " Empereur" had without
mercy inflicted upon the whole of Europe. The old porter
shrugged his shoulders, his countenance relaxed, and we ended
by a joyous talk together about war and wine.
As fast as the one-horse carts, heavily laden with wine,
* I love good wine.
¦|- General management, Inspection, Accountant's oflBce, Declara' on
for Paris, Receipt of Duty.
X Principal manage'.

216 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENOH STICKS.
continued entering the gate, they were severally stopped by
two officials in blouses, who — one on each side — walking for
ward, struck a gimlet into whichever barrel he fancied, ex
tracted the instrument, held a small pewter dish beneath the
tiny hole it had made, caught a little of its contents, stuck a
peg into the hole, hammered it, broke it off, gave it a tap,
tasted the wine, spit it out on the pavement, whioh was quite
red with the operation, and then made a signal to the carman
to drive on.
As wines entering the Halle aux Vins do not pay the oc
troi, the object of this analysis is merely to ascertain and re
cord the description of fluid contained in each cask; but on
my proceeding to the gate at whioh the wine goes out, and at
whioh the octroi is levied, I found the operation conducted
with greater accuracy.
The three tasters there had in front of their blouses a small
pocket like that in a lady's apron full of little white pegs,
the ends of one of whioh next for duty were almost constantly
to be seen protruding from their three mouths. Every day*
there pass them about fifteen hundred barrels, every one of
which has to be tasted. As soon therefore as a cartload ar
rives, each of these men, walking quickly up to it, stabs a bar
rel from whioh usually there instantly — like what is called
breathing a vein — spirted out a red stream, flowing sometimes
vigorously, soraetimes feebly, and sometimes so indolently that
it merely trickled down the cask, in whioh case he pushed in a
long wire, on extracting which, the wine flowed in a stream.
The tasters are not only apparently steady, sober men, but
I observed they had particularly clear coraplexions.
While one of them was very busily labouring at his voca
tion, I ventured to ask him what was the amount of duty
which wine paid on leaving the '• Halle" to go into Paris, In
stead of being angry with me for bothering him, the man, with
a kind countenance and with great politeness, after spitting
out half a mouthful of Burgundy on the pavement between
us, told me that whatever might be the quality, good, bad, or
indifferent, the octroi was at the rate of twenty-one francs for
100 litres,'
On going out of the gate of the Halle aux Vins, open to the
public from six to six in summer, and from seyen to flve in
winter, I found on the banks of the whole of that portion of

VERSAILLES. 217
thc Seine which bounds it on the north, a beaoh or paved in
clined plane, sixty yards broad, on which were lying in groups
barrels of wine that had just been disembarked. Beyond
them in the river were moored four barges laden with wine ;
and as I had now seen all that I or that Bacchus himself eould
have desired, I told my friend in his blouse and wooden shoes
I was much obliged to him, and, suiting ray action to my word,
I made him a little present,
" Comme qa, mon garqon," said he, holding out his hand to
me that I might shake it, which I did very cordially.
" . . Je vous reraercie !" * and so we parted.

VERSAILLES.
It was Sunday, and not only Sunday, but it was the Sunday
which, in the chain of Time, followed the Sunday on whioh
there had been the great Sunday fete in celebration of the Re
public, I had therefore concluded that it would be a day of
rest, instead of which I found myself between Scylla and
Charybdis ; — that is to say, I was to choose whether I would
remain in Paris, to be hurried with the crowd to see a magni
ficent boat-race, whioh by the inundation of the Seine had not
been able to oome off on Sunday last, or whether I would go with
another crowd to a fete at Versailles, Of the two evils I
thought the latter was the least, and therefore, after church,
I walked to the Versailles railway-station, took a first-class
ticket, and having, as it were, got into the mouth of a funnel.
I found myself without the slightest mental anxiety gently
pressed and pushed out of the little end into a narrow passage,
which I had scarcely entered when my " bright course to the
Occident" was suddenly checked by two gentlemen in reddish-
brown coats, with scarlet collars, scarlet edging, and scarlet
stripes down their trowsers (the colour of the latter I really
had not time to discover), who politely asked me for my ticket,
tore a piece off it, and then giving me the remainder, pointed
* Well, mv boy .... I thank you 1
10

218 -^ FAGGOT- bF FRENCE STICKS.
to the one of the three large public rooms for first, second, and
third class passengers, which I was authorized to enter.
The two latter waiting-rooms were nearly full of persons so
respectably dressed, that but a very slight shade of difference
could be detected between them and the aristocratic chamber
in which I had scarcely time to ruminate, when all of a sudden
a large double sliding door on my right was rolled open, and,
like the lifting of a curtain at a theatre, were to be seen on the
wooden stage before us a nuraber of officials in uniform in front
of a long train of railway carriages, headed by a glittering
engine all hot, hissing, ready, and anxious to be off.
As soon as the inmates of waiting-room No, 1 — thus enjoy
ing the precedence they had purchased — had left their hand
some chamber, a door communicating from it with the waiting-
room No. 2 was unbolted, and a loud trampling of great feet
and little ones, of thick shoes and thin ones, through No, 1,
and then along the platform, had scarcely subsided, when, by
the withdrawal of a similar bolt in a similar door in the parti
tion between waiting-rooms Nos, 2 and 3, the latter room. No, 2,
having been also trapped, another rush of feet, of both sexes
and of all ages, walking, trotting, and cantering, passed through
Nos. 2 and 1, and along the platform, until, the whole of the
passengers having, under the direction of three officers wearing
scarlet collars richly embroidered (one of them I observed had
on his breast the crimson riband of the Legion of Honour),
taken their seats, a little flag, the emblem of liberty, fraternity,
and equality, was slightly waved, the engine shrieked, gave a
violent plunge, which made the heads of all passengers sitting
towards it nod backwards, and the heads of those seated with
their backs to it nod forwards, then a smaller one, after whioh,
like a boat pushed from rough shingle into deep water, the
train glided along, comparatively speaking, as smoothly as if
its rails had been oiled.
Previous to starting I asked the superintendent why the
first, second, and third class passengers had been cooped up in
different waiting-rooms, instead of being allowed, as in England,
to roam about the platform, and take their own places in their
own way ?
" If," said he, " they were permitted to congregate on the
platform, they would never take their places."
" What then, would they do?" I asked.

VERSAILLES. 219
" Talk," he replied, " and the train would go off without
them 1"
In the carriage in which to my great satisfaction I found
myself, by myself, was appended a list of commandments I was
especially directed not to break, I was not to enter without a
ticket, or remain in it with a wrong ticket : I was not to smoke
in it : I was not to jump out of it while it was in motion, or get out
of it except by the door next to the station : I was not on any
aooount to lie at full length on the cushion : lastly, I was not
to do, or carry with me, anything hurtful or disagreeable to
other passengers.
As Paris has no suburbs, we were almost immediatel}' in the
open country, and, as I glided along, I soon perceived that the
non-observance of the Sabbath was not confined to the metro
polis from whioh I was fiying, or to Versailles, to which I was
proceeding, for in the fields and nursery-gardens through whioh
we fiitted we not only passed several carts at work, but I saw
on the roof of a white house as I rapidly glided close to it,
several men employed in covering it with red tiles.
Between the countenances of a Frenchman and of an Eng
lishman there exists only a trifiing difference, but between the
faces of France and Great Britain, said I to myself, there is
no resemblance whatever I
The country was divided into little patches and long strips,
in which nothing seemed to grow as it was growing in Eng
land ; besides which, there were small vineyards so full of lit
tle sticks, — in fact, displaying so much more dry wood than
green leaves, — that one raight have fancied they were intended
to grow barrels as well as wine. Excepting a young railway
hedge close to Paris, and that a lath barrier, hardly strong
enough to keep out chickens, nowhere in any direction, was a
fence of any sort to be seen. Even the roads, whioh, except
ing the great pave, all appeared as crooked as if they had
been traced by a tipsy surveyor, were so destitute of boundary
of any description whatever, that, on riding fast along them on
a shying horse, a man would inevitably sometimes find himself
galloping aoross a bed of spinach, sometimes through a row of
peas, and sometimes over young asparagus, kidney beans, early
rye, &o. In the immense plain nothing was conspicuous but the
acropolis of Montmartre, Every now and then there fiitted
before my eyes, as if it were a living milestone or direction

220 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
post, the figure of a railway guardian dressed in a blouse with
a scarlet collar, with a scarlet stripe down the legs of his blue
trowsers, and with a hairy old cloak of deer-skin hanging neg
ligently but picturesquely on his shoulders. As the train
rushed past him, his right hand, with its fingers extended, was
invariably placed flat on his heart, and the foreflnger of the
other extended arm pointing to us, — upon his honour, — the
way we were to go.
As we flew along, here and there I saw labouring in the
fields one or two women, in carnation-coloured bonnets, with
lappets of the same covering their necks. The houses were
mostly white with green Venetian blinds. The station men
were dressed in blouses of a beautiful blue with crimson col
lars. Their whistles had silver chains. Their caps black
peaks edged with brass.
The four leagues we had to travel were very soon accom
plished, and accordingly, almost before I had begun to enjoy
my journey it was over, and I found myself walking among a
dense well-behaved, well-dressed crowd, all going I knew not
where, to see I knew notwhat; for although I had heard over and
over again there was to be a " fete" and had come to witness it, of
how many dishes, or of what description of cookery, it was to
be composed, I had totally neglected to inquire ; indeed, as I
was sure I should be perfectly satisfied with the repast, what
ever it was made out of, I did not even care to know.
Nearly forty years ago I had been quartered for a few days at
Versailles, but it or I was so altered ; it recollected so little
of me or I of it ; that, as I walked in procession up its streets,
I could recognise nothing I had ever seen before. The shops
were all open, and, as nobody within them appeared to take
the slightest notice of the ascending crowd of whioh I was an
atom, it was evident to me that the arrival of a flock of visit
ors from Paris on Sunday was an object of very common oc
currence. After crossing a square we at last reached the limit of the
upper portion of the town, and I was intently looking over a
moving mass of hats, parasols, and beautiful bonnets, at the
wild, magnificent glimpse I caught of the palace, when I found
a considerable portion of my companions turning to the left,
through some splendid iron gates, over which were inscribed,
on a temporary board, in very large letters —

VERSAILLES. 221
"REPUBLIQUE FRANCAISE.
CONCOURS NATIONAL
D'ANIMAUX REPRODUCTEUES
MALES,
D'INSTRUMENTS, MACHINES,
ET PRODUITS AGRICOLES."*
Immediately within the gate sat a man with an immense
pile of pamphlets before him, and, as everybody seeraed to
take one, when I reached the table I took one up too. In do
ing so, as a matter of course, I rapidly ejaculated the word
stereotyped in the mind of every English traveller, and which
of its own accord comes out of his mouth whenever, wherever,
and by whomsoever he is stopped, " Combien ?"f
Without even raising his eyes to look at me, and yet
slightly bowing to his own table, the man replied, " Rien a
payer. Monsieur !"J and I thus found myself the proprietor
of a large well-printed pamphlet of seventy-nine pages, con
taining the regulations and contents of the national show
whioh all of a sudden I found myself gratuitously invited to
witness. It appears that on the 22nd of January of the present
year (I'SSl) the minister of agriculture aud of commerce, in
concurrence with the report of a commission authorized to in
quire into the subject, ordered —
1, That a public exposition of male animals (d'animaux
reproducteurs males) shall take plaoe every year at Versailles,
under the direction of the National Agronomic Institution,
2, That at the sarae time and in the sarae establishment
there shall be every year an exposition, also public, of instru
ments, machines, implements and apparatus for the use of ag
ricultural industry,
3 An exposition of the different products of agriculture
or of agricultural industry.
The railings I had entered, the large open space in which
* FRENCH REPUBLIC.
NATIONAL CONGREGATION
OF REPRODUCING ANIMALS
MALES,
OF INSTRUMENTS, MACHINES,
AND AGRICULTURAL PRODUCE.
f How much? X Nothing to pay, Siri

222 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
I stood, and the magnificent buildings around me, formed the
northern half of what were formerly the royal stables of the
palace to which they still belong. The other half, also enclos
ed by similar lofty iron railings, the tops of whioh are gilt, and
which, on the other side of the " Avenue de Paris," forms a
corresponding set of stables, are now occupied by troops.
Following a crowd of people, each of whom, besides a stick,
umbrella, or parasol, had the large white pamphlet in hand, I
entered a magnificent arched stable 210 feet long, as high as a
church, the walls coloured yellow, the floor covered with bright
yellow sand, the lofty windows all open. On a litter of straw,
as white and olean as if it had been just thrashed, and bound
ed by an exceedingly neat platted border of straw, a yard
broad, there lay in line throughout the whole length of this
once royal and now republican stable — in the full enjoyment
of Liberty, Fraternity, and Equality — seventy six bulls, so fat
and so full that theywere evidently careless not only of the nume
rous human eyes gazing at them, but of the heap of loose, coarse,
fresh hay lying before them, close to the wall to which their
long halters were affixed ; in fact, they cared for nothing and
for nobody. Everybody, however, appeared to care a great
deal about them ; and as moreover everybody — ladies and all
— appeared first of all to look at a bull and then very inquisi
tively into the pamphlet for his history, I of course did the
same. My eyes rested on a red and white one my book told me
was called " Vert-galant ;" that he was of the Durham breed
" race ;" that his " father " was Vespuoius ; his " mother "
Martinette; that his great-great-great-great-great-great-great-
grandmother, by Favourite, had been sold for one thousand
guineas at the sale of Charles CoUing, in 1810; and finally
that by his father, the son of Europa, he belonged to a family
of remarkable milkers, " une famille delaitieres remarquables."
Another Durham bull, called " Va-de-bon-coeur," was the son
of " Willy, par Young Wellington, par Sir Thomas." His
great-great-great-great-great-great grandmother had — the book
said— been a cow of excellent character. The bull " Canning,"
who lay chewing his oud all the time I was looking at him, had,
I found, a pedigree as bright as his eyes, and almost as long
as his tail. After remaining for some time in this magnificent
stable in which not the slightest odour of bulls or of anything

VERSAILLES. 223
disagreeable was perceptible, I wandered with the crowd into
a very spacious yard, full of ploughs, implements, instruments,
and agricultural inventions of every sort.
Among the latter there stood, performing the double duty
of a scarecrow and a weather-cock, the figure of a stout man,
seven feet high, wearing green gloves, a blouse, a black glazed
hat, an immense black beard, with long curling mustachios ;
and although the very sight of such a being would be sufficient,
one would conceive, to throw a cock-sparrow or robin-redbreast
at once into hysterics, the fellow, as he kept turning with
the wind, presented a gun which, by machinery, exploded at
intervals. There were winnowing machines, scarifying machines, " ex-
tirpateurs," carts, waggons, machines for brick-making, tile-
making, and for the construction of draining pipes. Also new
inventions of harness, with one of collars for heavy draft which
appeared very likely to answer.
I next visited a yard in whioh were standing 126 rams,
horned and hornless. The first on the list, a powerful white
ram called " Robert Peel," was the son of a ram which for the
sum of 355 francs had been purchased by '• M. le Directeur de
la Colonie de Petit-Bourg," The genealogy, which I could
not understand, of another personage, whose crumpled horns
had attracted my attention, was described as follows :-p'- Ce
belier appartient a la sous-race creee a la Charmoise par la
reunion du sang New-Kent, du cote des peres, et des sangs
solognots, berriohons, tourangeaux, et merinos par les meres."*
In another corapartraent I found a quantity of boars, so dread
fully fat, that as they lay on the ground on their sides, with
their upper legs sticking out as helplessly as if they had been
frozen, it was alraost impossible for any one to succeed in
making thera exert themselves enough even to wink, I pulled
at one of the ears of the son of " Wiley et Dulcinea del To-
boso," imported from England, with nearly all my force, but in
vain; he looked at me, breathed very short, but could do no
more. The only exception was a lean creature, whose head
was not only curved concavely, but was literally half as long
* This ram belongs to the cross breed created at Charmoise by the re
union of the blood New-Kent on the side of the fathers, and of the
breeds of the Sologne, of Touraine, of Berry, and merinos on the mothers'
side.

224 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
as his body ; his snout turned upwards, his ears were bent, and
so was his back. I "never before saw such a crooked creature,
and, indeed, he was surrounded by so great a crowd of people,
that I could succeed in getting only a glimpse of his extraor
dinary outline.
I now entered another stable, as large and as high as a
church, full of bulls and stallions. The latter, a lot of coarse,
half-bred brutes for harness, were making a vast deal of unne
cessary noise ; and as it was evident to me at a glanoe thoy
were fit for nothing else, I left them alone in their glory. In
tbe catalogue, wbich had nothing to say in their favour, the
colour of each, called in French his '' rde," was as follows : —
" Gris clair, gris de fer, bai-rouge, rouan, gris pommele, rouge
clair, bai chatain, bai-bruu marque de feu, gris fence, gris
blanc, bringee, rouge et blanche, &c. &c.
In France everything is licked by the tongue of science
into a magnificent shape, and accordingly, instead of using
homely names, the " show" I had just witnessed was described
on a long piece of canvas, surmounted by a tri-colour flag, as
" Institut Agronomique."
The prizes and medals it annually bestows for the improve
ment of the breed of horses, cattle, sheep, and pigs, and which
amount to 69,024 francs, are distributed equally among eight
districts ("circonscriptions regionales") as follows : —
Prizes for animals acknowledged to be the most perfect
for the uses for which they are respectively destined : —
Espfice ChevaUne (draft stallions), not leaa than 2 years old.
Fr.
1st Prize .... 1000 )
2nd do  '700 }¦ 2200
Srd do  500)
Eapfece Bovine (buUs) not less than 1 year old.
lat Prize .... 2000')
2nd do  1000 (
Srd do  800 f 4400
4th, do. .... 600J
Espfece Ovine (rams), not leas than 8 months.
1st Prize .... 500 )
2nd do  300)- 1000
3rd do  200 )

VERSAILLES. 225
Esp6ce Porcine (Boars), not leas than 6 raonths.
1st Prize . . 300 )
2nd do. . . . 200 \ 600
Srd do  100 )
All the first prizes are accompanied by a gold medal, the
others by a silver one. The sura of 500 francs for eaoh of the
eight regions is awarded with a medal to farm servants distin
guished by the care and intelligence they have bestowed on
animals. Medals of gold, silver, and copper, are also given to
the inventors of the best description of agricultural instru
ments, machines, and utensils ; moreover to the foremen and
workmen who have most distinguished themselves in the con
struction and execution of the machinery, and of those imple
ments that gained the prizes.
On coming out of the iron gate, whioh, with a correspond
ing range of iron railings, gilt at top and at bottom, enclose
the magnificent stables and yards I had been perambulating,
I found myself in front of the palace of Versailles, on the
great Place d' Arraes, a noble esplanade, 800 feet broad, formed
by the concentration of the Avenue de St Cloud, 98 yards
broad ; the Avenue de Paris, and the Avenue de Sceaux, eaoh
77 yards broad.
On approaching the parapet and iron railings, which sepa
rate this esplanade from the Cour d'Honneur, I mingled with,
and stood for some minutes among, a crowd of gentlemen,
ladies, and children, watching a large covered van, choke-full
of fire-works sorae men were tumbling very roughly to the
ground, upon which there already lay several loads ; and while
labourers in blouses were hauling at these fire-works, by pul
leys, to raise, adjust, and fix them to the lofty temporary scaf
foldings which had been constructed to receive them, soldiers
were indolently smoking all round.
In the upper part of the Cour d'Honneur, surrounded by
various groups of figures in stone, and by sixteen marble sta
tues, removed in 1837 from the Pont de Concorde at Paris, I
observed a splendid colossal equestrian statue of Louis XIV. :
on the frieze of a pediraent, supported by four Corinthian
columns, and at the base of whioh, seated on a bench, were
a number of soldiers in red trousers, listening to a brass-
band playing beside them, there was inscribed, in large let
ters — 10*

226 A FAGGOT GF FRENCH STICKS.
"A toutes les Gloires de la France."*
I now proceeded with a stream of people, wbo, regardless
of fireworks, music, soldiers, or statues, were flowing — and
ever since I had been on the Cour d'Honneur had been flowing
— towards a door on the left of the palace, which I had scarcely
entered when a person in uniform, pointing with his open
right hand to a small chamber, said to me very gravely, but
witb a slight bow, ''Votre baton, s'il vous plait. Monsieur."!
The little hooked stick of which he spoke was a gnarled,
knotted piece of common English oak, for whioh I had paid
in London fourpence; and as at almost every institution at
Paris open to the public, visitors are prevented from entering
with umbrellas, or sticks of any sort, and as two sous are in
variably charged for taking care of the inadmissible article, I
had already paid ten or twenty times as muoh for my stick
as it had cost ; and as I naturally felt proud of the noble ad
valorem revenue it was continually conferring upon the
French people, with great pleasure I handed it and a penny
to an elderly lady, whose daughter in return gave me, as she
gently shook her curls, an inflnitesimal portion of a smile and
a blue card ; and as everybody who entered this chamber left
it stickless, umbrellaless, but with a blue card, I instinctively
followed them into the first of a magnificent suite of rooms,
with polished oak floors, full of living people, gazing at,
crowding around, and gliding past, most beautiful pictures of
the dead.
Almost the first that attracted my attention was a very
exciting one, representing General Augereau at the battle and
on the bridge of Arcole. At the head of the grenadiers of the
guard, who, dressed in high fur caps, with their muskets in
front of them, were impetuously leaning forward as they ad
vanced, was to be seen the General most gallantly leading
them on to glory and victory. As a contrast, however, to his
excessive valour, or rather as a representation of that discre
tion with whioh it is said the virtue should be accompanied,
the painter had very ingeniously inserted a short sturdy
drummer, who, leaning backwards the opposite way, in the
attitude of a man holding a wilful pig by the tail, was tugging
* To all the Glories of France.
X Your stick, Sir, if you please.

VERSAILLES. 227
with all his force at the skirt-tails of the coat of General
Augereau. A little farther on was a picture of Napoleon's
marriage with Marie Louise, both being blessed before the
altar by the Pope, I now found I had entered a labyrinth
of wonders, of a very small portion of which I could only enjoy
a passing glance. Indeed, for hours I went through one splen
did suite of apartments after another, containing the armorial
bearings of French knights who had fought in the Holy Land ;
colossal pictures of battles during the Crusades ; portraits of
the Kings of France, from Pharamond down to Louis Philippe,
King of the French ; pictures illustrating all the most re
markable historical events ; all the principal battles, naval
and military, whioh have, from the earliest periods, charac.-
terized the arms of France under the monarchy, the empire,
and the republic.
To attempt to delineate all I saw would be as impossible
as it would be to depict every leaf of a forest, I can there
fore only say, that I followed the crowd through the interior
of the palace of Versailles, with very little more knowledge
than is experienced by a log of timber passing through the
mazes of the block-machine at Portsmouth.
Of the historical pictures, as might naturally be expected,
a vast number represent the progress of Napoleon, who, not
only in all his battles, but often in different attitudes, and
in various positions in each, is represented with a spirit and
effect which must be highly exciting to the French people,
and whioh, indeed, I felt oould not be witnessed even by a
stranger without emotion. As his extraordinary history ap
proaohed its climax, a whole room was, and occasionally two
rooms were, devoted to the victories of eaoh year of bis life.
On entering room 1812 I began to feel curious and anxious
to know in what manner the termination of his victories would
be recorded on canvas. On entering room 1813 these feel
ings increased. On entering room 1814 they became intense,
inasmuch as I felt that in the next room, 1815, I should see
and know all I The historian, however, had it appeared sud
denly broken his wand of office ; for from room 1814, when
I entered what I expected to be room 1815, I was altogether
bewildered at finding myself in a chamber, the last but one
ofthe whole suite, entitled 1823, containing among a chance-
medley of pictures, an unusully large one of " Louis XVIII,

228 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
aux Tuileries,'"* At any other moment, and in any other
place, the subject might have been highly interesting to me ;
but when the human mind is in full cry on any other scent,
it cannot suddenly run riot on another. Instead, therefore,
of looking at the large picture, around which almost every
other spectator was crowding, for a considerable time my eyes
wandered vacantly from one wall to another, until, all of a
sudden, they pounced upon a small insignificant space, not
only over and between the windows, but devoid of light in
which there was affixed a picture simply representing a large
flagstone, — some willows weeping over it, — some figures I
could scarcely decipher standing beside it, and above the
whole the brief inscription, —
" Sepultdke de Napoleon a St. Helene, 1821." -]¦
The moral it offered was so overwhelming that, to prevent
observation, I deemed it right immediately to walk away into
the last room, where, without a possibility of wounding the
high, sensitive feelings of any one, I was enabled to rest and
reflect on the beginning, the middle, and the end of the career
of that extraordinary man, whose pictorial history, like a dis
tempered dream, had for nearly two hours been rumbling and
tumbling before my eyes.
But besides Napoleon's history, I had seen represented in
sculpture as well as in painting the chief events of the Empire,
of the reign of Louis XVIII., of Charles X, and of the bat
tles fought in Algeria ; with portraits not only of the Grand
Admirals, Constables, Marshals, and celebrated warriors, who,
individually and collectively, have reflected honour on the an
nals of France, but of persons of note (including portraits of
Pitt, Fox, George IV,, and Duke of York) of all ages and
countries. In the " grands appartements," whioh occupy the whole of
the first floor of the central projecting building facing the
garden, I had seen the salons d'Hercule, de Diane, de Venus,
de I'Abondance, des Etats Gfineraux, de Mars, de Meroure,
d' Apollon, de la Guerre, du Conseil, &c, &c, I had beheld
ceilings, paintings, and sculpture of great beauty ; and in the
¦» Louis XVIIL at the Tuileries.
f The Grave of Napoleon at St. Helena, 1821.

VERSAILLES. 229
" chambre a coucher " * of Louis XIV, I had seen oppoaite to
the windows — the light from which shines directly upon it —
the bed in which that despotic King had died Its canopy
and counterpane are of ancient tapestry ; but, with very ques
tionable taste, the ceilings and walls of the room have lately
been completely covered with bright gold, whioh, like
"The gay streara of lightsome day,
Gilds but to flout the ruins grey."
From the balcony of tbis chamber, whioh had never been
slept in by any sovereign since the death of the monarch
whose name it bears, on the 6th of October, 1789, Louis
XVL, attended by his wife and children, addressed the infu
riated mob, who, notwithstanding his remonstrances, forced
him from them to his prison in Paris,
In " the chambre a coucher de Marie Antoinette " I beheld
the room not only in which that unfortunate Queen gave birth
to the Duchesse d'Angouleme, but from which, on the fatal
night of the 5th of October, above referred to, she was aroused
from her bed to escape, by a small corridor leading to the "ceil
de boeuf," from tho mob which had burst into the palace.
As I had followed the stream here, there, and everywhere —
sometimes along a gallery, sometimes up a staircase, then into
a chapel, then up another staircase, and then down one — I
often observed with pleasure the interest which men in blouses,
accompanied by their wives and daughters, seemed to take in
the historioal pictures, portraits, busts, statues, and monumental
effigies, &c,, whioh not only gave them a pretty good idea of
the meaning of the superscription outside of the Museum —
namely, " A toutes les Gloires de la France," — but which must
have the effect of elevating their ideas. At all events, I can
truly say that nothing could be better behaved than tbe con
duct and demeanour of the various grades of people with
whom, in my peregrinations through the galleries, I had the
pleasure to associate.
After I had feasted on infinitely more pictures and works
of sculpture than I had power to digest, from one of the cen
tral western windows-of the palace I gazed through the mas
sive walls at various circles and a long, narrow, rectangular
* Bedchamber.

230 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
piece of water, ornamenting gardens, terraces, lawns, shrubbe
ries, and walks, all swarming alive with people ; and the busy
scene on the foreground of the picture was strongly, strangely,
and beautifully contrasted with the woodland scenery which,
in its new May dress, bounded the horizon at a great dis
tance. On descending I found a contrast equally remarkable, for,
while nothing could exceed the ease with whioh the various
groups of people were harmoniously enjoying themselves, it is
scarcely possible to describe the stiff, rigid formality of the
vegetable world they inhabited.
Not only was every border in the garden as full of sharp,
uncomfortable angles as an old maid, but the high, broad, lux
uriant box hedge which bounded it was chopped as flat as a
table. The trees — even the cypresses — were all cut into cones
and pyramids ; the lawns were rectangular, every path was
straight ; in short, lawns, paths, trees, and shrubs all looked as
if, instead of being under the mild, gentle care of Nature and
a Republic, they were subjected to the domination of a tyran
nical sergeant-major, who, just as I had entered the garden,
had vociferated to them the word " Attention !" in obedience
to which nothing moved, nothing even fluttered.
After walking, or rather marching, for some minutes, I
reached the commencement of the " tapis vert,"* a long lawn
of grass beautifully green, but in substance as inferior to Eng
lish turf as a transparent Venetian carpet is to one of those
thick luxurious ones from Axminster, On this space, at all
times the principal rendezvous of the little world that sur
rounds it, I witnessed one of the most pleasing, quiet, orderly,
tranquil scenes that can possibly be conceived.
At the head of the lawn, attended by three sentinels, slowly
pacing around them, was a brass band, holding in various atti
tudes all sorts and shapes of wind instruments, pot-bellied,
straight, crooked and serpentine. In the middle of this soci
ety of odd fellows, whose cheeks sometimes appeared as plump
as those of cherubim, and sometimes as concave as if they had
suddenly become " sans teeth, sans everything," stood erect
and conspicuous to the assembled multitude the band-master,
beating time with his key-bugle, whioh he kept contiuually
waving through the air, as if, besides giving lessons in music,
* Green carpet.

VERSAILLES. 231
he was slowly performing the six cuts of the broadsword exer
cise. Although this magic circle was surrounded by people of all
classes in various attitudes of attention and of placid enjoy
ment, no one pressed either upon the band or upon each other,
and accordingly the sentinels continued to pace to and fro, un-
interrupting and uninterrupted. The music, executed with
great taste, was usually soft, and consequently its occasional
bursts produced a very striking effect. Among the crowd, who
either stood silently around, or slowly sauntering in the vicin
ity, were a number of women in clean crimped white caps, and
men in blouses — the national costume of Frenchmen out of
Paris — clean neckcloths, and good waistcoats. About one-
third of the ladies had bonnets and parasols. Moving among
this mass I observed here and there a hussar, whose bright
blue jacket, silver helmet, and scarlet trousers flashed like a
tropical bird or a flre-fly
On the tapis vert were to be seen a congregation of people
of all descriptions and all ages, worming their way araong eaoh
other with the greatest propriety ; indeed, to tell the truth, I
repeatedly felt the propriety of the children to be quite pain
ful ; and as I looked at little girls of ten years old, dressed as
if they were " out," looking as if they believed it, and walking
under parasols, with little boys of four and five years of age,
one of whom, gently brandishing a cane, wore spectacles — an
other had a cross and scarlet ribbon at his breast — I longed to
set them all together by the ears ; raake them cast aside their
good behaviour ; thump each other's faces ; spoil each other's
clothes ; — in short, do anything rather than continue such ar
tifioial patterns of politeness.
On each side of the lawn, seated in groups, on chairs hired
for a penny, and of which the number appeared to be infinite,
were a number of people, young and old, the forraer eagerly
and sometimes rather ardently conversing with eaoh other, the
latter placidly enjoying the happy scene before them.
From the " tapis vert" I strolled in various direotions into
the woods on either side ; but, go where I would, it was always
in a straight line. In fact, it appeared to me that, inasmuch
as the fiower-borders of Versailles have evidently been con
trived by a geometrician instpad of a gardener, so have the
woods been intersected by broad paths for the object of demon-

232 -i FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
stratmg some of those simple theorems of Euclid which begin
with " Let A B C be a triangle, A B C D a rectangle, &c. &c.
On reaching the row of iron rails which separate the tapis
vert and fountain of Apollo from the " grand canal," I came to
a house or lodge, over whioh was inscribed " Secours aux
Noyes,"* at the door ofwhich there appeared — sometimes sep
arately and sometimes together — a landlord and a landlady,
grinning, happy, and in a state of violent perspiration, not so
muoh from assisting drowning persons, as from selling innu
merable bottles of beer and unwholesome-looking cakes (it was
Sunday) to a group of joyous, thirsty people, seated on chairs
all round their door.
In one of the magnificent, broad, green hunting rides into
whioh the wood is here divided, I found about two hundred of
the young soldiers of St, Cyr, an establishment for the instruc
tion of officers for the French army, dressed in blue coats,
scarlet trousers, blue shakos, and knapsacks, surmounted with
a great-coat. While they were gambolling in a variety of
ways, their muskets witb fixed bayonets were piled on the
grass. Just as I arrived a drum beat, on which, running
towards their respective piles, they grasped their weapons, fell
in, in less than a minute with trailed arms marched away, and
they were thus proceeding up a green road, when all of a sud
den they broke out into a loud manly song, which, keeping
time with their feet, echoed and re-echoed through the woods.
On returning through the forest to the palace. I found, just
arrived from Paris by the train, apparently as great a crowd as
ever of people who, in endless succession, first of all deposit
their sticks and umbrellas at the little door, and then, over oak
floors as slippery as glass, make the grand tour of those pic
tures, statues, &c,, which the living wprld, animal and vege
table, I had just left, had already almost obliterated from my
memory. On passing through the iron gates in my way to the rail
way station, I found on the " Place d' Armes " swarms of people
watching the hoisting up oflarge wooden frames bristling with
the fireworks, whioh were to conclude the fete.
In the town of Versailles, at the insertion of four large
paved streets, I came to a dodecagonal grande plaoe, in the
centre of which, on a pedestal, appeared the statue of an officer
* Assiatance to drowning people.

VERSAILLES. 233
in uniform, without any hat leaning on his sword ; beneath
him was inscribed — Hoche,
n^ a Versailles
le 24 Juin, 1768,
Soldat il 16 ans,
General en Chef h 25,
Mort a 29,
Pacificateur de la Vendee.*
On reaching the railway station, the Paris train, heavily la
den with people, almost all of whom were evidently quite full
and quite happy, started, and in less than an hour those who
had been enjoying the fete of Versailles, and those who, on the
same Sabbath-day, had been enjoying the fete of Paris were
once again mingled together.
As I was strolling towards my dinner through the Champs
Elysees, I found reposing beneath the shade of the trees, at
some distance from the promenade, a congregation of rush-
bottomed chairs, almost new, waiting to be hired. In front of
them, and along the whole length of the avenue, on similar
chairs, were seated in groups leaning towards each other, and
puffing into one another's faces, gentlemen dressed in the very
height of the fashion : behind whom, on the cold hard stone
benches of the avenue, sat ruminating, with their chins resting
on their sticks, several veterans olotbed in the respected uni
form of the Invalides. The object of the assembled multitude
was to gaze at the endless chain of carriages of all descriptions
that still kept continually rolling backwards and forwards
What, however, most attracted my attention were the eques
trians.. I am quite unable to account for it, but it is a fact which
must, I think, strike every stranger in Paris, namely, that the
French, who excel us all in walking, dancing, and fencing, are,
without exception, the worst riders in Europe. In all other
* Hoche,
born at Versailles
the 24th June, 1'768,
a Soldier at 16 years of age,
a General-in-Chief at 25,
Died at 29,
The Pacificator of La Vendee.

234 -4 FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
countries, a man, grasping more or less firmly with his knees
his saddle-flaps, allows his body freely to partake of the motion
of the horse, until, with our best riders, the two, as they skim
together over rough ground, appear to form one animal.
In France, however, the rule is diametrically -the reverse,
for, the moment the horse begins to canter, the rider's legs be
come like a pair of scissors astride an iron poker, and, while
they appear useless, his back assumes the shape of a new moon.
In fact, the French have no more seat on a horse than a parched
pea has on a shovel ; and as they trot along, hopping up and
down at one pace, while their fine English quadruped is boldly
striding onwards at another, I have constantly expected to see,
even a dragoon trotting along with a despatch, hop, hop, hop,
over the tail, to his mother earth. In short, their uncomfort
able appearance always reminded me of the toast proposed by
an inhabitant of the State of Mississippi ; —
" Gentlemen, I give ye ' A high-trotting horse, cobweb
breeches, and a porcupine saddle, for the enemies of our glori
ous institutions !' "
While 'the spectators in the Champs Elysees were, like my
self, each indolently employed in making his own observations
on the moving objects that in delightful succession passed before
his eyes, workmen were employing their Sunday in taking down
the ornaments of the bygone fete of the preceding Sabbath.
Three I observed busily occupied in undoing the magnificent
colossal statue which had been constructed at the " Rond-
Point." The arras of " France," with a crown of laurels in
each hand, were still extended, and yet one man in a blouse,
seated on her shoulders, and looking by comparison like a pig
my, was hammering at her neck ; another was destroying her
middle ; of her legs nothing remained but bare poles. On the
pedestal there, however, still survived the inscription : —
"Aux Gloires de la Fi'anoel"
While the lower labourer, without remorse, was pulling the
straw out of France's belly, with my little English oak stick I
pointed at this inscription to a couple of Frenchmen who were
at my side, and, with that good humour which distinguishes
their race, they laughed at it as heartily as I did.

DES JEUNES AVEUGLES. 235

INSTITUTION NATIONALE DES JEUNES
AVEUGLES.
On arriving at the corner of the Boulevart and Rue de Se
vres, I saw before me a large handsome building, forming
three sides of a square, of which the middle compartment
contained fifteen windows in front, the two ends six windows
each, — total of windows facing the Boulevart, twenty-seven.
In. the year 1784, a Monsieur Havy, who was himself
sightless, benevolently established for blind children a sohool,
whioh, in 1791, was created by Louis XVI. a Royal Institu
tion, In 1843 it was removed from the Seminaire St Firman
in the Rue St. Victor, to the locality above described. The
day on which the public are admitted to this admirable insti
tution is Wednesday, from one to five.
Not being aware of this arrangement, I unfortunately went
there on a Tuesday at two o'clock. As, however, I had re
ceived from a person in authority in Paris a note of general
recommendation in my favour, to be used if requisite, I deter
mined to avail rayself of my firman, and I accordingly informed
the concierge, whose face, on my tolling the bell over which
she presided, had appeared peeping through a gate whioh she
continued to hold in her hand, that I wanted to see the gov
ernor of the establishment, and I had scarcely entered his
apartment when the door opened, and in he walked. I found
Monsieur Dufau, for such was his name, an exceedingly intel
ligent man. He was the author of a very able work on the
treatment of the blind, which has been translated into Gerraan
and Russian ; besides which he wore in the button-hole of his
coat the riband of the Legion of Honour.
The first part of the establishment to which hewas so good
as to conduct me, was a small airy room, in which the parents
and friends of tbe blind are allowed to see and converse with
them. Beyond it we entered the boys' dining-room, contain
ing two long tables, at the end of which, placed transversely,
was a table for the professors, all of whom are blind. Be
neath these tables was a row of small pigeon-holes, in each of

236 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
which was a napkin, knife, and fork, scientifically adjusted so
as, when he was seated, to be exactly opposite the stomach of
the person to whom they belonged. In another part of the
establishment there existed a similar dining-room for the girls.
We next proceeded into a nice garden, which we had
scarcely entered when four blind boys, all walking together,
arm in arm, passed us. The grounds were divided into two
compartments, one for lads and big boys, the other for little
ones._ In both, the blind were amusing themselves by playing
at ninepins, set up in a circular space of about five feet in
diameter, which, as well as a passage along whioh they threw
the balls, were sunk about a foot beneath the surface of the
ground. Beneath the shade of trees many of the lads were
exercising theraselves at gyranastics.
On entering the first hall of study I found a gentleman,
with eyes, reading to several benches of blind boys history,
the taste of which they certainly did not appear very particu
larly to relish : however, the good labourer in the vineyard
was diligently sowing the seeds of knowledge, and I felt was
only to be pitied if they fell, as I fear they did, on a sterile
ground. We next entered a very large room, beautifully lighted,
and, what was much more useful to those that could not see,
admirably ventilated, in which there sat four blind professors,
distinguished from their scholars by a uniform, the collars of
which, for the purpose of distinction — lucus a non lucendo —
were slightly embroidered.
On their right and left stood, indolently leaning against
the wall, two large tall double-basses ; before them, in rows
on long benches, sat, dressed in blouses, the blind pupils they
were in the habit of teaching to sing. We afterwards enter
ed three other lecture-rooms, in which blind professors were
teaching blind pupils reading, arithmetic and knowledge of
various sorts.
While we were in a long healthy passage, communicating
with these halls, all of a sudden, a bell rang, when up jump
ed the whole of the 120 students in order to proceed to their
respective workshops. Several, with as much confidence as
if they could see, ran by us ; a few — those, probably, who had
lately joined — held out their hands ; but the rest, without
any such precaution, walked along the passage until they

DES JEUNES AVEUGLES. 237
came to their respective staircases, down which they instant
ly disappeared frora our view. Four or five I observed walking
close along the side of the wall, at a particular part of which
they not only stopped, but remained so closely packed that
the breast of every boy, excepting the first, seemed to press
against the back of the lad before him. Monsieur Dufau told
me that the point at which they had halted was the door of
the " Principal" Professor, and their object in doing so was
to speak to him.
After sufficient time had elapsed to allow the blind to
reach the different points of their destination, we proceeded
to a room containing compositors' frames, fitted in the usual
way with type, and several small printing-presses.
By desire of Monsieur Dufau two or three blind lads and
boys set up some type very adroitly ; but what most attract
ed my attention was a simple alphabet, invented by a blind
professor of the establishment about ten years ago.
In England the blind are, I believe, required by touch
to read symbols invented for the eyes, and which, because
thcy are perfeotly well adapted for one sense, have not very
logically been deemed equally valid for another, the two not
having together an idea in common ; for instanoe, to the eye
gifted with the power of looking over, almost at a glance, a
territory of many miles' extent, it is but little trouble to ob
serve the difference between the diphthongs oe and se, or be
tween long-tailed and short-tailed letters of equally compli
cated forms. To the touch, however, which is stone blind, the
operation is difficult, tedious, and, after all, unnecessary.
The following will, I believe, explain the practical inven
tion to which I have alluded : —

238 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.

Ecriture a I'usage des Aveugles,
proced6 de L. Braille, Professeur a
I'lnstitut IST des J°«» Aveugles.

k 1

abode fg hij

mnopq rst

u

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Now, not only are Monsieur Braille's embossed symbols
evidently better adapted to the toifch than the letters and
figures which have been so cleverly invented for eyesight, but
to the blind they possess an additional superiority of inesti
mable value, namely, that they, the blind, can not only read
this type, but with tbe greatest possible ease make it ; and
as I witnessed this very interesting operation, I will endea
vour briefly to describe it.
DES JEUNES A VEUGLES. 239
A blind boy was required to write down before me, from
the dictation of his blind professor, a long sentence.
With a common awl, not only kept in line, but within nar
row limits, by a brass groove, which the writer had the power
to lower at the termination of each line, the little fellow very
rapidly poked holes tallying with the letters he wished to
represent. There was no twisting of his head sideways — no
contortion of face — no lifting up of his right heel — no screw
ing up of his mouth — no turning his tongue from beneath the
nose towards one ear, and then towards the other, in sym
pathy with the tails of crooked letters, which, in great pain
and difficulty, in ordinary writing, the schoolboy may be
seen successively endeavouring to transcribe. On the con
trary, as the little fellow punched his holes he sat on his stool
as upright as a cobbler hammering at the sole of a shoe. On
the completion of the last letter he threw down his awl, took
up his paper, and then, like a young author proudly correct
ing his pres.s, with his forefinger instead of his eyes, — whioh,
poor fellow, looked like a pair of plover's eggs boiled hard, — ¦
he touched in sucoession every letter, and, all proving to be
correct, he stretched out his little hand and d-elivered to me
his paper.To test the practical utility of the operation, a blind boy
was sent for from another roora. The embossed paper (for
what was a hole on one side was, of course, a little mountain
on the other) was put into his hands, and, exactly as fast as
his finger could pass over the protuberances made by his
comrade, he read aloud the awled sentence which I had heard
dictated, I may observe that, besides letters and figures, notes of
music are also done by the awl.
In the room in which we stood, besides the printing-
presses, were frames for the construction of embossed maps,
not only showing the positions and relative heights of moun
tains, but by various distinctions of surface denoting the dif
ference between the aqueous and terrestrial portions of the
globe ; and as all these divisions are originally traced from
ordinary maps, it was, of course, found that, when by the
moistening of the paper the mountains, &c., were embossed, a
proportionate contraction of the superficial area of the pappr
unavoidably ensued.

240 , A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
This inconvenience has been remedied by the very inge
nious invention of a blind man, which stretches the paper
exactly sufficient to compensate for its contraction by em
bossment. After witnessing the various processes in the art of book
binding executed by boys who had never seen a book, bound
or unbound, we proceeded to a shop, wbere I found several
engaged in making brushes, under the direction of a trades
man of Paris, to whom they had all been apprenticed. In
anotber room I found a gang of blind carpenters, one of
whom was working with his foot a vertioal saw, whioh, every
moment, as I stood beside him, I expected would cut his
fingers off; he, however, managed it with great dexterity. In
the next shop, full of turning-lathes at work, it was really
astonishing to see boys stone-blind not only using, but with
great rapidity continually selecting, the variety of edged
tools requisite for lumps of ebony and ivory whirling beneath
their faces. In a long room several were employed in weav
ing, others in knitting..
Monsieur Dufau now led me to a part of the building, in a
room of which I found, seated at a pianoforte, a Mind teacher,
before whom sat ten sightless boys, listening to the air he
played. In a small chamber adjoining I saw a blind profes
sor of music, with a boy at his side, every half-hour excha.ng-
ed for a fresh pupil. Several adjoining rooms contained a
pianoforte and a blind boy with his mouth wide open, and the
combined results of all their labours were to my ears anything
but pleasing ; indeed, it appeared to me that all the boys in
the universe were discordantly singing together. However, I
was informed that those only were being instructed who had a
" disposition pour la musique "* — namely, about one-third.
I was going — I did not exactly know where — when, on en
tering a large and lofty door, I found myself in the chapel of
the establishment, in the middle of which stood a large organ.
Before me was the altar, painted blue, with pillars on each
side • in front of it was burning a solitary lamp, surrounded
by a quantity of candles, above which was a picture whioh, in
cluding angels, was composed of thirty-four persons ; on the
ceiling I observed a variety of gilt rosettes. Immediately in
front of, and beneath, all these decorations and ornaments, in
* Taste for music

DES JEUNES AVEUGLES. 241
two galleries — one for boys, the other for girls — are to be
seen arranged in tiers, one above another, the dull inanimate
eyeballs of the blind inhabitants of the asylum. Every in
mate is allowed to follow the religion in which he or she were
educated by their parents. With the exception, however, of
one Jow and one Protcsant. all are Catholics of the Churoh of
Rome. We now proceed to the opposite wing of the establishment,
exclusively occupied by inmates of the gentler sex. In walk
ing down a long passage I observed through a glass door a
blind girl of about fourteen playing on the pianoforte ; she was
in a small roora, entirely by herself As I was looking at her,
a young person in black approaohed and passed rae. It was a
blind professor, in the garb of hor offico. Through another glass
door I saw a blind teacher, reading from an awled book to a
girl of about sixteen, who, from her dictation, was writing with
her awl very fast. I then entered a large school, full of young
persons knitting or plaiting straw ; but, although I was muoh
interested in theirbehalf it was painful to me to witness in the
rows of young faces before me how dull, sodden, and unintel
lectual the human countenance becomes when the mind of
whioh it is the reflection has been immured — ab initio — in total
darkness. Unlike the deaf and dumb I had visited, they oould
neither see what they themselves were doing, uor what those
around them were doing ; there was. therefore, no emulation ;
in fact, they were engaged in occupations which, though useful
to the community at large, appeared to afford thein no mental
enjoyment. They are. however, all deeply indebted to the
charitable institution into which they have been admitted for
the absence of various sufferings to which they might otherwise
hav* been exposed.
Their three dormitories — into which I was next conducted
—are exoeedingly clean, airy, healthy rooms, teeraing with iron
bedsteads without curtains, divided from each other by a chair,
Eaoh girl has a separate bed, whioh she makes herself, and as
it was covered with a nankeen counterpane, ornamented with
two scarlet stripes, the appearance of the whole was very pleas
ing. For the boys, there are, in their department of the build
ing, flve large, healthy dormitories similaidy arranged.
We next entered the girls' washing-room, a light and well-
ventilated apartment, on eaoh side of which there protruded
II

242 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
from the wall ten water-taps, all of which flowed simultaneously
into a leaden trough beneath.
On entering the infirmary, whioh was beautifully arranged,
and which contained clean beds with white cotton curtains, we
were received by one of the four Sisters of Charity who bene
volently attend it.
On descending to the ground-floor I was led into au airy
kitchen, larger than that of the H6tel des Invalides, which, as
I have stated, is capable of cooking for 6000 persons. It con
tained, however, only one hot plate, composed of ovens and
caldrons, with a variety of bright copper saucepans, of various
depths — indeed, some appeared to have no depth at all — which
are daily in requisition. The blind inmates of the establish
ment breakfast at eight, generally on soup ; at twelve they dine,
sometimes on meat, and sometimes on eggs and vegetables ; at
half-past three they have eaoh a bit of bread ; at seven thev
have supper, and shortly afterwards go to bed.
As I fancied I had now seen everything, I endeavoured to
express to M, Dufau my gratitude for the very obliging atten
tion he had shown me. He stopped me, however, by observ
ing, almost in the words of Portia — ¦
"Tarry a Uttle, there is something yet!"
and he accordingly led me into a large chamber in the vicinity
of the kitchen, in which I beheld sixteen large zinc baths, be
sides whioh there were scattered over the floor thirty large
round iron pots, about 18 inches in diameter, with a small hole
in the botte m like a garden flower-pot; to each was attached a
wooden stool. I could not conceive what these vessels and
their satellite attendants could possibly be for The utter
darkness of my mind was, however, suddenly illuminated by
M. Dufau kindly explaining to me that, with the assistance of
the stools, the iron pots were baths for the feet ; and acoord-
ino-ly, on M. Dufau turning one of two cocks,, marked hot and
cold water, there arose in all the thirty pots at once the fluid
to whatever height might be desired. When the blind bathers
had left their stools, by turning another cock the whole of the
water they have been using disappears.
Between the bath-room and kitchen 1 observed two
larsre courts, for the admission not only of provisions, coals

MONT DE PIETE. 243
&c,, for the use of the establishment, but of plenty of good
air. Into this well-conducted institution pauper children, be
tween the ages of eight and fifteen, are received gratuitously
on the production of certificates of their birth, freedom from
contagious disorders and from idiotoy. Children of persons
capable of paying are received as boarders. On the last
Saturday of every month there is an examination of the pupils
of both sexes, at which foreigners are allowed to be present ;
and four or five tinies a year public concerts are held in the
chapel, to which any person is admitted.
After taking leave of M. Dufau, on ooming out I pro
ceeded, as I thought, towards an institution I was desirous to
visit ; but somehow or somewhere taking a wrong turn, I went
astray a little, then a little more, and then — as is usual — a
great deal more, until I felt not only very hot and tired, but
quite bewildered.
" Madame I" I said to a nice comfortable looking lady, of
about forty years of age. who. grasping the handle of a para
sol she held so perpendicularly that it prevented her seeing
me, happened to be passing at the moment I was pitying my
self, " will you be so kind as to inform me of the road to the
Convent des Lazaristes ?"
•• Monsieur," she replied, lowering her parasol to the
ground as if it had been the colours of her regiment and I
her sovereign — " Monsieur," she replied, with a look of gen
eial benevolence, "vous prendrez la premiere rue a droite, la
seconde a gauche, vous la suivrez jusqu'a ce que vous arrivez
a une statue a moitie nuc ; c'est preque vis-a-vis,"*
I thanked her, bowed, and, implicitly following her prescrip
tion, in due time I reaohed, first the statue, and then the
building in its vicinity.

MONT DE PifiTfi,
In the yard of that portion of the building appropriated for
the reception of pawned goods, '' engagemens," there appeared
f Sir, you must take the, first turning to the right, then -(he second to
tha left until you come to a statue half-naked : it is nearly opposite.

244 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
before me four covered hand-carts, just trundled in, laden with
effects that had been pledged at the branch establishments.
Ou entering the portion of the department headed " En
gagemens," I proceeded up stairs, and along a rather crooked
passage, to its " bureau," a little room in which I found a
stove, a large open sort of window with a broad counter be
fore it, and round tbe other three sides of the apartment a
wooden bench, on which were sitting in mute silence, with
baskets or bundles on their laps, ten very poor people, of whom
tbe greater portion were women. As I entered I was fol
lowed by an old man with a parcel in his hand ; and without
noticing or being noticed by any of those who had come be
fore us, we sat down together side by side on the bench, where
we remained as silent as if we had been corpses.
Before me was the back of a poor woman, looking upwards
into the face of an employe wearing large long mustachios, who
was untying the bundle she had humbly laid on the counter be
fore him. In about a minute, like a spider running away with
a fly, he disappeared with it ; very shortly, however, after the
poor woman had returned to her hard seat, he reappeared,
looking as if he had forgotten all aboiit it, and received from
a man a parcel of old wearing appai el — " most probably,"
said I to myself, " to be converted into food for a starving
family !" The scene altogether was so simple and yet so sad,
that I felt anxious to decamp from it ; however, before doing
so I was determined, whatever might be the penalty. I would
peep into the window ; and accordingly, walking up to it, and
to the broad counter before it, I saw on the right of the gen
tleman in mustachios a large magazine fitted up from ceihng
to floor with shelves, upon which were arranged the heteroge
neous goods as fast as they were pledged. In hurrying from
the scene of misery I had witnessed, 1 almost ran against a
man in the passage holding in his hand a frying-pan he was
about to pledge, and into which I managed to drop a small
piece of silver which fortunately for him happened to be
lying loose in my waistcoat pocket
In an adjoining still smaller room, the furniture of which
also consisted solely of a stove and wooden benches against
the walls, and which was devoted, I believe, entirely to " bi
jouterie " or jewellery, I found a similar window and broad
lattice, at which a poor woman was pledging a ring. After

MONT DE PIETE. 245
she had left it, there walked up to the pawning hole, leading
a thin dog by a very old bit of string, a young girl, who de
posited a spoon. There were four or five other woraen,
all of whom, as well as myself, became cognizant of every
article that was brought to be pawned.
Within the window before me, as well as within that ofthe
chamber I had just left, there existed, out of sight of us all,
an appraiser, whose duty it is to estimate everything offered,
in order that the regulated proportion, namely, four-fifths of
the value of gold aud silver articles, and two-thirds of that
of all other effects, might be offered to the owner of eaoh,
" Huit francs, Madame !''* said the man at the window who
had received the ring ; the poor woman, whose heart had uo
doubt erred in over-estimating its value, began to grurable a
little. Without a moraent's delay a voice from within called
the next number (for every article as it is taken is numbered),
and the clerk in the window briefly informed the woman to
whose property it had applied the amount of money she might
obtain. Those satisfled with the sums they were to receive
had to appear before a little door on whioh was written the
word " Caisse,"t and underneath it " Le public n'entre qu'a
I'appel de son nuraero,"j: Accordingly, on the calling out of
each number, I saw a poor person open it, disappear for a few
seconds, and then come out with a yellow ticket, an acknow
ledgment by the Mont de Piete of the effects held in pawn,
and for whioh, from the hands of the cashier within, at a
wire-work grating, covered with green dingy stuff, upon which
is inscribed " Parlez bas, S. V P.,"§ she received her money.
There exist several bureaux sirailar to those above desoribed.
Having very cursorily witnessed the manner in which,
with the assistance of one " succursale," two other auxiliary
offices, and twenty-two coramissions, established in different
quartei-s of the city, the Mont de Piete of Paris has received
on an average of the last fifteen years, 1,313.000 articles, on
which it has advanced per annuum 22,860,000 francs, averag
ing 17 francs 40 centimes for each, I proceeded to a different
part of the building, upon which is inscribed " Coraptoir de
* Eight francs, Ma'am I
¦f Cashier's office.
X No one to enter until, his number is called,
§ Speak softly, if you please !

246 'i FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
la Deliverance,"* in which I entered a large gloomy room,
full of benches, separated by an iron rail from a narrow pas
sage leading close round the walls of two sides of the apart
ment to a small window. By this simple arrangement no one
can take his seat on the parterre of benches until he has re
ceived from this little window, in acknowledgment of the re
payment of the money he had borrowed, a small ticket, on
which is inscribed his " numero," and which forms his passport
through a narrow wicket-gate, sufficient only for the passage
of one person to the benches, in front of which is a long square
opening, which can be closed by a sliding shutter.
On the right of the benches, on which were seated in mute
silence about twenty persons, many of whom were very res
pectably dressed (one was a poor woman with a baby fast
asleep on her lap, or rather, on the brink of her knees, for al
though her eyes were fixed upon it, she did not touch it with
either of ber hands), was inscribed on the walls the following
notice : —
" Toute personne qui aura attendu pendant trois quarts d'heure la re
mise d'un nantissement est prifee de se plaindre de ce retard k Messieurs
les Chefs du Service du Magasin."-|-
At the largo open window stood an employe who succes
sively called out the numero of each person seated before him.
In obedience to his voice, I saw one respectably dressed wo
man rise from a bench, walk up to him, produce her numero,
in return for wbich he handed over to her a bundle of clothing
and a cigar-case. To. another woman, on the production of
her numero-paper, he professionally rolled out upon the coun
ter about a dozen silver spoons ; in short, as in the case of
the act of pawning, everybody saw what everybody received.
One respectable-looking woman of about forty, dressed in
deep mourning and in-a clean cap, on untying the bundle of
linen whioh she had just redeemed, and which, in the moment
of adversity, she had negligently huddled together, carefully
folded up every article, and then packed it in a clean basket,
the lid of which was held open for the purpose by a nice
* Dalivering Department.
-f Any pereon who shall have waited three-quarters of au hour for
tJie restoration of his pawned goods is requested to make a complaint of
the same to the Superintendents.

MONT DE PIETE,

247

little girl at her side : — the storm bad blown over and sun
shine had returned !
As soon as each transaction was concluded, the recipient
of the goods departed with them through a door pointed out
by the words " Degagemens sortie." In the vicinity is ano
ther hall, similar to that just described.
For the rederaption of articles of jewellery a rather dif
ferent arrangement is pursued. At the end of a long passage
I observed written upon the wall thc words " Delivrance des
effets,"* Close to this inscription appeared three windows,
over which were respectively written — 1"'" Division, 2°"' Divi
sion, 3'"" Division, To prevent applicants from crowding be
fore these windows there had been constructed in fror^t of
them a labyrinth of barriers reaching to the ceiling, of the
following form: —

Fl,t Eiitranee anlij.

Only
breadth-
to gel tmt.

Paaaage
Departure iml,/.

By this simple sort of sheepfold management, characteris
tic of the arrangements whioh at Paris in all congregations
for business or amusement are made to insure the public from
rude pressure, every person in the order in which he arrives
successively reaches the line of windows, from which, on the
presentation of his number paper, is restored to him the ar
ticles of jewellery he had pledged. There exist seven bu
reaux of this description.
In another portion of the building, on the ground-floor, I
visited the department for " Renouvellemens," in which in a
number of very little rooms I found a quantity of mustachioed
clerks writing. The approach to this department, the princi-
* The delivd'y of arti -les.

248 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
pal duty of whioh is to renew the duplicates of those unable to
redeem goods according to their engagements, is guarded from
pressure by a series of barriers such as have just been deli
neated. There are throughout France forty-five Monts de Piete,
conducted on the principles above described. In 1847 there
were pledged therein 3,400,087 articles, valued at 48,922,251
francs. A system of such extensive operation must, of course, be
liable to error, and occasionally to fraud, I must own, how
ever, that although the interior of the Monte de Piete was re
pulsive to witness, I left its central establishment with an im
pression which reflection has strengthened rather than removed
— that that portion of the community of any country, whose
necessities force thera occasionally to pawn their effects, have
infinitely less to fear frora an establishment guided by fixed
principles, and open every day from nine till four to the pub
lic, than they would be — and in England are — in transacting
the same business in private, cooped with an individual who,
to saythe least, may encourage tho act which nothing but cruel
necesuitv can authorize.

THE CHIFFONNIER,
At both sides of every street in Paris, at a distance of a few
feet from the foot-pavement, and at intervals of twenty or
thirty yards, are deposited from about five to seven o'clock in
the morning, a series of small heaps of rubbish, whioh it is not
at all fashionable to look at Every here and there, stooping
over one of these little mounds, there stands a human figure
that nobody cares about. By nearly eight o'clock the rubbish
and the figures have all vanished. By the above process
twenty thousand people, termed chiffonniers, maintain them
selves and their farailies ; and as I therefore, notwithstanding
the furious part they have taken in the various revolutions,
could not help feeling some interest in the subject of their
avocation, in my early walks I occasionally, for a few seconds,
watched the process.
As soon as the heaps begin to be deposited, fsr they are

TEE CHIFFONNIER. 249
ejected from the various houses very irregularly, there are to
be seen in eaoh street two or three men and woraen walking
upright with, at their backs, a long narrow basket, rising a few
inches above their s;houlders. In their right hand they carry
— swinging it as they walk — a little thin stick, about a yard
long, with an iron pointed hook at the end of it. Bending over
a heap, each chiffonnier first of all rakes it open with his stick,
and then, with great dexterity, striking the sharp hook into
whatever he deems to be of value, he whisks it high over his
right shoulder into the basket on his back. The object is to
get the first choice of every heap ; and accordingly, while the
chiffonnier is greedily hastening from one to another, the heaps
he or she has scratched abroad are often almost immediately
afterwards again overhauled by another. The contention is
one of considerable excitement ; and although it was appa
rently conducted by the chiffonniers uuder certain rules of
their own, I one morning saw an old woman, wearing black
gloves, bright gold ear rings, and a handkerchief wound round
her head, like a vulture at its prey, drive away with great fury
from the heap she was scratching at a young chiffonnier boy
of about fourteen, who, at a few yards distance, stood, wolf-like,
eyeing and longing to approaoh it.
As their time was valuable, I did not like to trouble them
while they were at work with any questions, but I told a com
missionnaire to select one of experience and good character,
and to bring him to ray lodgings after his work was done.
Accordingly, two or three days afterwards, as I was sitting in
my room writing, a hard lean knuckle struck my door, and, on
my calling out '¦ Entrez," * there appeared at it my commis
sionnaire, dressed in his usual suit of blue velvet, and a slight,
thin, ereot old man, in a blouse, whom he informed me was the
chiffonnier I wanted. The introducer, with a slight bow, in
stantly retired, shutting the door, close to which the poor man
remained standing.
'• Avanoez, mon ami !" \ I said to him, pointing to a chair
beside me. For sorae time he seemed very unwilling to do so :
at last I prevailed upon him to sit down ; and, as he was evi
dently alarmed at the sight of me, my papers, my pens and
my ink. I talked to him about the weather, and about the fete,
uutil by degrees he became comparatively at his ease.
* Come in ! \ Come forward, ray friend !
11*

250

A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.

His manner was exceedingly modest, mild, and gentle , and
although he was very poorly dressed, he had under his faded
blouse a white and almost a clean shirt.
He told me he was fifty-nine years of age — he looked se
venty — and that fourteen years ago, having sustained an injury
which incapacitated him from heavy work, he purchased from
the police, for forty sous, the plaquet of a chiffonnier, which
was on his breast, and to which he pointed. It was a round
brass plate, bearing in hieroglyphics — which, although he could
not decipher them, were no doubt well enougb understood by
the police — the following description of his person, &c ¦ —

With reference to his vocation, he informed me that, by
a law among themselves, the heap from every house is consi
dered to belong to the first chiffonnier that reaches it, but that
they usually work constantly in the same districts, where they
are known.
My principal object was to ascertain what were the articles
they obtained, and, although I fully expected my friend would
be exceedingly eloquent and well informed on the subject, I
had the greatest possible difficulty in extracting it from him,
" But what do you get from these heaps ?" I repeated to him
for the third time,
" Tout ce qu'il y a I Monsieur," * he replied, in a faint, gen
tle voice. " And of what is that composed?" I repeated, also for the
third time. * All that there ia !

TBE CHIFFONXIER. 251
" Toutes sortes de choses," * he answered ; and whon
pressed for an explanation he again added, with a shrug of
despair, as if I was torturing him with most difficult questions,
" Enfin, Monsieur, je ramasse tout ce jwi'ily a !"t
At last, by slow degrees, I extracted from him that " toutes
sortes de choses" was composed of the following articles, sold
by the chiffonniers at the undermentioned prices ; —
Bones .... 8 francs per 100 kilos.
Scraps of paper . . 9 "
Cbittous (rags) of Unen . 30 "
Ditto of cloth . 2 J
Bits of iron . . 8 "
Broken glass . . 2^ "
Brass .... 120 "
Broken china ... 20 "
Old shoes ) j- * iu • i
Old clothes \ according to their value.
Corks of wine-bottles sold to tbe chemists, who- ) „ ,
cut them into phial corks ... j *
The restof the rubbish, consisting principally of salad, cab
bage, beans, refuse of vegetables, straw, ashes, cinders, &c., con
sidered by chiffoniers to be of no value, is, at about eight
o'clock, carried away in the carts of the police.
He told me that sometimes the chiffonniers pick up articles
of great value, whioh they are required to return to the houses
from which the rubbish had proceeded, in failure of which the
police deprives them of their plaquet, A few weeks sinoe he
himself had restored to a lady a silver spoon, thrown away with
the salad in whioh it had lain concealed, Sorae years ago, a
chiffonnier, he said, found and restored to its owner a portfolio
containing bank bills amounting in value to 20,000 francs. If
they find coin, they keep it. He informed me that on an aver
age he found a silver ten-sous piece about once a fortnight ;
" Mais !" said he, very raildly, with a light shrug, " qa depend
de la Providence." f He added that the chiffonniers of Paris
worked during the hours at whioh people put out their rubbish,
namely, from five in the morning till ten ; and at night from
sunset till eleven ; that the latter hours were contrary to the
regulations of the police, but that, as it was the habit, they
were always in attendance. Lastly, he informed me that the
unmarried chiffonniers principally lodge in the Faubourg St.
* All sorts of things ! f In short, Sir, I pick up all that there is!
X But that depends on Providence !

252 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
Marcel, where they obtain half a bed for from two to four sous ,
a night, whioh they are required to pay in advance.
I asked him how much the chiffonniers obtained per day.
He replied that the value of the refuse depended a good deal
on the district, and that accordingly they gained from ten to
thirty sous per day, according to the localities in which they
worked. He added that for several years he himself had gained
thirty sous a day, but that siuce the departure of Louis Phi
lippe he had not, ou an average, gained fifteen. "In the month
of February," he said, " we did nothing, parceque le monde
s'etait retire."*
" But now that tranquillity is restored," said I, " how comes
it that you do not gain your thirty sous as before ? "
¦' Monsieur," he replied, " depuis la revolution le monde est
plus econome ; la consommation est moins grande dans les
cuisines ; on jette moins d'os et de papier dans les rues,"t He
added that sorae farailies that used to consume ten pounds of
meat a day subsisted now ou only four, and consequently that
the chiffonnier loses like the butcher.
•' Si la tranquiUite vient, nous ferons peut-etre quelque chose ;
mais," he added, very pensively, and apparently without the
slightest idea of the important moral contained in the words
he was about to utter, " quand il n'y a pas de luxe, on ne fait
rien I" j: (a shrug).
'• What a lesson," said I to myself, — looking at his brass
plaquet, faded blouse, and pale, sunken cheeks, which, beneath
his thin whiskers, kept quivering as he talked, — '¦ am I receiv
ing in the Capital of the Republic of France from a poor, half-
starved chiffonnier ! What would the Radical Members of
both Houses of the British Parliament, who unintentionally
would level the distinction and wealth they themselves are en
joying, say, if they could but hear from the lips of this street
scavenger the practical truth that, when they shall have succeed
ed, they will deprive, not only the lower, but the very lowest
classes of their community, of one half of the sustenance they
are now receiving from the ' luxury' of the rich I"
* Because everybody had left,
f Sir, since the revolution people have becorae more economical ; the
consumption in their kitchens is less ; people throw less bones and paper
into the streets,
X If tranquillity comes, we shall, perhaps, do something; but when
Jiere is no luxury we can do nothing.

MY LODGING.

On my return from my stroll, at about ten o'clock p.m, of
the day of my arrival in Paris, to Meurice's well-appointed
hotel, I was conducted by one of the waiters to my " apparte
ment ;" and as on introducing myself to, or, to speak more
correctly, into its bed, I found it to be a particularly warm,
comfortable poultice, whioh seemed to draw from my body
and bones every ache or sensation of fatigue, I soon ceased
to admire it, France, England, or indeed, any body or any
thing. "Heaven bless the man who first invented sleep!"
The next morning early, awakening quite refreshed, and
with a keen appetite for novelty of any description, I was
amused to find not only that I myself had become, and as I
lay iu my bed was, a great curiosity, but that apparently the
whole hotel was looking at me 1 My room, an exceedingly
small one, on the middle floor of six stories, owned only one
Mindless, shutterless, window, upon which, from above, from
beneath, from the right, and from the left, glared, stared, and
squinted, the oblong eyes of the windows of three 'sides of a
hollow square, so narrow that it appeared like an air-shaft,
excavated in the middle of the enormous building of which
in fact, it was the lantern.
On eaoh side of my window, like the lace frills on either
side of a lady's cap, there elegantly hung a slight thin mus
lin curtain ; but, as in point of fortiflcation this was utterly
inadequate for the defences I required, I ventured after

¦254 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
breakfast to ask for a larger room that looked anywhere but
into that square.
Nothing could be more polite than M, Meurice was on
the subject, but eighty thousand strangers had fiocked to
Paris to attend the grand Fete of the Republic ; his hotel
was perfectly full ; and as it was evidently impossible for
him to alter figures or facts, I sallied forth to seek what I
wanted elsewhere.
My applications were at first to the best hotels, then to
the middling ones, and at last to the worst ; but good, bad,
or indifferent, they were all full, " Monsieur, il n'y a pas de
place !"* with a quick shake of the head, and with or without
a shrug, was said to me not only everywhere, but usually on
the threshold.
Finding it impossible to obtain shelter in a caravansary,
I determined to take refuge in a lodging, and observing on a
board close to me the very words I was in search of, namely,
" Chambres a louer,"t rang at the belL On the door opening
of itself I walked into a clean-looking court, and addressing
the concierge I had scarcely said two words when, as if she
had become suddenly and violently disgusted with me, she
shook her head, waved her hand before my face, and said,
" Non I Non ! I Non I ! I Monsieur !" and turning on her heel
left me.
I had scarcely proceeded along the same street — the Rue
de Rivoli — fifty yards, when I had come to an exactly simi
lar announcement, and as, on ringing the bell, I was very
nearly, as before, interrupted by the same signs, the same
actious, and the same demonstrations of disgust, I asked the
porter, with a very small proportion of his own impatience,
why, if he had no lodgings, he continued to display his board?
'¦ Pa's garnics, Monsieur !"J he briefly replied, and he then
very civilly and good-humouredly explained to me that, had
I not been a stranger, I should have known that, from his
advertisement being on white paper, whereas, by an order of
the police, rooms to be let furnished must invariably be
placarded in yellow-
Brimful of knowledge, I now felt myself to be a Parisian,
and accordingly, shunning the alluring invitations of several
white boards, I determined with an air of importance, to pull
* No room, Sir ! f Lodgings to let X Not furuished.

MY LODGINGS. . 255
at the bell of a yellow board. In vain, however, I searched
for one ; and although I was quite determined to emanci
pate myself from the domination of those three Argus-eyed
walls, the windows of which were still haunting me, I was
beginning almost to despair, when, on passing a commis
sionnaire sitting reading a newspaper at the corner of a
street, I enlisted him in my service, and then told hira what
I wanted, " Menez, Monsieur !"* he said with a sraile which at once
promised success ; and sure enough, after walking and talk
ing for sorae little time, he suddenly halted before a yellow
board, on which were beautifully imprinted the words I
wanted. By the daughter of the concierge I was conducted up a
broad stone staircase composed of innumerable short flights
of steps and little landing or puffing places up to the very top
of the house, where I was introduced to'the proprietress, a
pleasing-looking, respectable, short lady, aged about forty, to
whom, without hesitation, apology, or preliminary observa
tions of any sort, I at onoe, in Frenoh, popped the important
question, '• Have you, Madame, a furnished apartment to let?"
Not only her mouth, but her eyes, and every feature in her
healthy countenance, said " Oui, Monsieur I"
On my asking her to allow me to see the room, she con
ducted me towards a door on the upper floor, on which she
herself resided. On opening it I saw at a glance that its inte
rior possessed all the qualifications of the simple hermitage I
desired. Nothing oould overlook me but the blue slated roof
of the houses on the opposite side of the broad, olean, handsome
Rue de  , one of the finest streets in Paris,
Outside the window, whioh opened down to the floor, was
a narrow promenade, that ran along the whole length of the
street, and which, in case of fire, would, said I to myself, fully
atone for the extra trouble in ascending to such a height, A
secretaire with shelves, two chests of drawers, a cupboard, and
a clock, were exactly the sort of companions I wished to live
with ; and accordingly, without a moment's hesitation, I told
the landlady i should be delighted to engage her apartments.
As, however, instead of looking as happy as I looked, there
* This way. Sir!

256 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
was something latent in her heart which evidently remained to
be divulged, I feared I had been too abrupt in concluding my
arrangements in so few words. At last, out it came that she
had a similar apartment, two stories lower, which was also at
my service in case I should prefer it.
Now I had taken such a fancy to the atrial abode in which
I stood, that I felt quite disappointed at her intelligence.
However, as in Paris high life is low life, and low life high
life — that is to say, as it is reckoned a fine thing to live very
near the earth, and unfashionable to approach the blue sky 
I descended with her to the second story of her house, where
she introduced me to an apartment, a secretaire with shelves
two chests of drawers, a cupboard, and a clock, all exactly like
those I had left, excepting they were all decidedly better
dressed. The floor was more slippery, the furniture more
highly polished, the dial more richly gilt ; lastly, in the price
of the whole there decidedly existed more silver.
Had I been fairly left to myself I should have remained
faithful to my flrst attachment ; but Fashion, Folly, and Pride,
first joining together hand in hand and then dancing around
me, bewildered me with suoh a variety of false reasons, that,
seeing the landlady was also entirely on their side, I ended
the short unequal struggle by telling her I would abandon the
apartment above for that in which I stood. " Bien, Mon
sieur !" * she replied, with placid satisfaction ; and, as I had
now become her lodger, instead of acting as if she felt that
nothing remained but to get her rent and as much as she
could besides, she instantly evinced a desire to shield me from
every possible imposition and to render me every friendly
assistance in her power — duties, or rather virtues, which,
during my residence under her roof, she unremittingly per
formed. As ray hotel was scarcely a hundred yards off, I returned
there for my portmanteau and letter-box, and after parting
with M, Meurice, who again very civilly expressed his regret
at his utter inability to accommodate me, I put my small
amount of luggage into a voiture de place, and, walking by its
side, returned to my own street, my own porte-cochere, my own
concierge, my own staircase, and — on entering my apartment
and dismissing the porter who had followed with my baggage —
to my own home, * Very good. Sir !

MY LODGINGS. 257
Everything within it looked quiet, comfortable, and sub
stantial ; and as in the book of one's every-day life there is no
thing like beginning from the very beginning, before I allowed
myself to go into the street, or even to look out of my window
at the charming novelties — for every thing in Paris was new
to my eyes — that were passing and repassing, I unpacked my
little property, put ray clothes into my two chests of drawers,
my papers into my secretaire, my portfolio, inkstand, pens, and
pencil on a good-sized table, and then, completing my arrange
ments by carrying to and placing before the latter a comforta
ble arm-chair, like Robinson Crusoe I looked around me with
an inward satisfaction it would be difficult to describe ; and
I was standing very much in the attitude of a young artist
joyously admiring the painting he has just concluded, when,
with great velocity, there shot past my nose — to tell the truth,
it actually hit it — an arrow of arr, about a foot long, but no
thicker than a piece of packthread, that did not smell as it
ought to do. ' It is the breath of envy," said I to myself,
"mortified at my happiness !" and discarding the green-eyed
monster from my thoughts, and again admiring my location, I
bade it a short adieu, and descended into the street.
At about six o'clock I returned to my apartment, and, like
a young lover, was again adrairing its charms, when anothei
little arrow, from an unpleasant quiver, flew by me,
"It's all fancy!" said I to myself; "it can't come fron.
my kind landlady, nor from my chests of drawers, I'm two
stories above the drains, and two stories below the gutters of
this world. Paris is outside my window, and a passage outside
my door. The thing" — I did not know exactly what to call
it — " is impossible,"
I had a most amusing dinner I had left it entirely to my
landlady to decide what was good for me ; and as I sat alone,
sometimes I could scarcely help laughing aloud at her prescrip
tion, and from the end of a silver fork I was placing between
my lips a small portion of one of the unknown ingredients, for
the purpose of analysing its composition, when, as nearly as I
could guess, about an inch and a half above it there whizzed by
another very little arrow. In less than the twinkling of an
eye it had completely passed, and where it had come from, or
where it had gone to, I was alike utterly ignorant.
After dinner I rambled about the streets until il was time

258 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
to go to my bed, which proved clean and comfortable. In tho
morning — quite contrary to my habit — I awoke with a slight
headache, and I was lying on my back conscientiously recapitu
lating the nameless items of my dinner, when there rushed
past the uppermost feature of my faoe, not an arrow, but a
javelin. During the day, on being half a dozen times similarly as
sailed, I became slightly dispirited for a few moments, until,
rallying my forces, — I mean looking at my chests of drawers,
secretaire, and other comforts that surrounded me, — and mut
tering the words •¦ home, sweet horae !" I determined during the
day not to notice the contemptible little demon that was assail
ing me, but at night to reraove my bedding from its alcove to
the floor near the window. I did so ; but again awaking with
rather a worse headache, I felt it was in vain to endeavour to
hold out, and that I had therefore better at once sound a re
treat Accordingly, ringing my bell, I requested the garqon to
ascertain whether Madame would be visible to me?
In a few minutes she entered my room, with the same
placid smile which had adorned her countenance when it last
left me,
'¦ What," she kindly inquired, '' could she do to serve me?"
It required the whole of ray resolution, and, indeed, almost
more than I possessed, to answer her friendly query by telling
her, in broken sentences and in faltering accents, that the room
was in every respect all I could desire, " but that . . it
. . had at times . a very unpleasant
smeil." " Non, Monsieur !" she replied, with great gentleness, I
assured her it was the case,
" Non, Monsieur I" she replied, with greater gentleness.
" Madame," said I, " it has twice over given me a headache,
from which," laying my right hand flat on my forehead, " I am
suffering at this moment."
''• Non, Monsieur 1 1 !" she replied, so gently and so faintly
that I could hardly hear it,
" But, Madame," I added, " I have no desire to leave you.
Would you be kind enough to allow me to remove to the
apartment at the top of the house which I first saw, for which
I should wish to pay the same as for this one?"
" Certainement, Monsieur I"* she replied, gently bowing
* Certainly, Sir!

MY LODGINGS. 269
her head, and looking as placid, as kind, and as anxious to
oblige me as ever, and, accordingly, in less than a quarter of an
hour, with the assistance of the garden and a commissionaire, not
only the migration but the distribution of my property was
effected, " On retourne toujours, toujours,
A son premier amour 1"'*
From the above anecdote, trifling as it may sound, Mr.
Chadwick and the Board of Health would no doubt be able to
draw a most important moral. Leaving thera, however, two
stories below me, to trace to its secret source a tiny cause which
in a region high above cesspools and drains had created a
stratum of impure air, which, had it been inodorous, I should
most certainly have reraained in, and which, in a locality where
nobody would look for it, has been and ever is ready to nourish
fever, I must proceed with the history of my new abode, the
outward appearanoe of which was, as if in a looking-glass, " veluti
in speculum," reflected to me from the opposite side of the street
by a range of windows eaoh forming a sort of portico, opening
to the floor exactly as mine did, and communicating with a
narrow leaded passage, protected by a line of substantial iron
balustrades. In the roof above me there was (at least so I conjectured
from what I saw in the opposite houses) a tier of garrets in
habited by human beings of whom nothing was to be seen but
occasionally a hand pushing a few inches upwards a glass win
dow that lay flat on the slates, and which opened like a valve
at the bottom, tho upper part being fixed by two hinges. The
chimneys were as lofty, and the chimney-pots as grotesque, as
those in London, and yet never, during the short periods that
I looked at thom, could I see exuding from them the slightest
appearanoe of smoke.
In the handsome, broad-paved street, which, on looking
over the balustrades, .appeared to be at an immeasurable dis
tance beneath, were to be heard the rattling of carriages — the
rumbling now and then ofa heavy diligence — the trot of cavalry
- — the beating of drums — the sound of bugles ; — in short, the
sense of hearing at Paris has no protection. Every morning,
'from half-past seven till nine, martial music of all sorts an-
* One always returns to one's first love !

260 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
nounced the march beneath of various bodies of troops to their
respective guard-mountings. Sometimes fifteen soldiers would
pass, preceded by a key-bugle ; — then eighteen, headed by a
single drum.
As they and their musical accompaniment passed, I almost
invariably — stepping out on the leads — peeped over my balus
trade, A lady from the window adjoining mine as regularly did
the same. I never looked at her — never spoke to her. She
could have walked along the leads into" my room, but in the
exalted region in whioh we lived it was a point of honour not
to do so, and her honour, I am exceedingly happy to say, she
never broke.
In Paris a man may live like a gentleman in all sorts of
ways — in a lofty palace, or " au sixieme" in a house containing
hall, parlour, bedroom, kitchen, &e, all squatted as flat as a pan
cake ; but. although the altitude of his lodging does not depress
his position in society, although rather an uncomfortable smell
in his staircase is passed perfeotly unnoticed, although economy
is respected, and although a person of small fortune in Paris is
never by the French allowed to feel he is poor, yet no wealth
can sugar over an ill-mannered man.
I had hardly been in my new domicile two hours, when,
all of a sudden there flitted by me, not an arrow or a javelin,
but, without metaphor, an exceedingly strong smell of warm,
nourishing soup. Although almost in the clouds, I was evi
dently in the neighbourhood of a capital kitchen I " however,"
said I to myself. " I am not to be driven from a post of im
portance by the smell of hot onions I" indeed, I found I had
only to contrast this smell with t'other one, quite to enjoy it ;
during, however, my residence in Paris, it never came again,
and in every respect my lodging pleased me.
My housemaid was a lad of about eighteen, who used,
while he was sweeping the floor with a hair broom, to polish
it with a brush affixed to one of his feet. To every wish I
expressed he had a particularly soft gentle way of replying,
" Bien, Monsieur !" His only fault was, that when I pulled
at my bell he did not corae ; but others, on five different
floors, were pulling for him at the same time.
My breakfast consisted of a large white cup a quarter of
an inch thick ; a coffee-pot not so high as the cup ; a shining
tin cream-jug, with a little spout about the thickness of the

MY LODGINGS. 261
small end of an English clay tobacco-pipe ; a long roll, and,
on the flrst day, one pat of butter of about the size of a
Spanish dollar, and as thick as the skin of a mushroom,
" More butter I" I exclaimed in French.
"'¦ Shall I bring another portion ?" said the garcon,
" No I half a dozen of them !" I answered.
" Bien, Monsieur I" he gently and politely replied, to an
order as preposterous, I dare say, in his mind, as if I had
ordered for my dinner half a dozen legs of mutton.
Just within the entrance of my porte-cochere lived in a
small room my concierge, his wife, and his daughter. The
first time I descended my staircase, the old woman, who was
nearly seventy years of age, made a sign she wished to speak
to me. On going into her room, she asked rae to be so good
as to give her my passport, that she might take it to the
police to apprise them of my residence in the house. Hap
pening to have it in my pocket-book, I instantly complied
with her request, and was about to leave her, when she very
politely asked for my card, in case any person should call to
see me. I immediately put one into her hands. She looked
at it — handed it to her old husband, who looked at it too.
They then both looked first at me — then at my card — then
at eaoh other. They were evidently quite puzzled, I had
no gender I I was not a monsieur, a madame, a mademoiselle,
an admiral, a general, colonel, captain, or lieutenant I My
name they could not pronounce ; and so, after turning it into
exactly twice its number of syllables, they bowed, and, with
a very slight shrug, placed the enigma on their little mantel
piece, to speak for itself
By the time I left Paris I had become thoroughly ac
quainted with my staircase.
Within the porte-cochere, and immediately opposite to the
tiny residence of the concierge, were two steps, leading to a
swinging glass door, behind which, on the right, were ten
steps, rising to a landing-place, on which was a mat. From
it twelve steps led to another landing-place, in which, close to
the ceiling, was a high window of two panes. Then came
seven steps, leading to a landing-place, on which was a door
marked A Then, again, ten to a landing-place, on which,
apparently for variety's sake, was a small window of two
panes close to the floor, also two panes touching the ceiling

262 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
(the one too high to look out of, the other too low). Then
came seven to a landing-place, on which was a mat and three
doors, on one of which was inscribed " ler Etage," on first
floor. By a similar series of steps, passages, and odd win
dows, I ascended to floors 2, 3, and eventually to my aerial
paradise, No. 4.
Within the door marked " ler Etage " every lodger
throughout the house was expected to deposit, on a hook
numbered consecutively, the key of his room, which, whenever
negligently left in the door, was invariably brought to this
rendezvous by any of the servants of the house, or by
" Madame," the instant they or she discovered it. Under the
arrangement just described it of course became necessary for
every lodger to call at this point for his key, I found it,
however, quite impossible during ray short residence in Paris
to learn this French rule, and accordingly, when after a
heavy day's walk, I had ascended, quite tired, to ray door, I
almost invariably had ,to descend three stories to get my
key, which I had negligently passed in my ascent. As soon
as it became dark every one of these keys were taken frora
their hooks and deposited, acoording to their respective num
bers, each on the brass bed-room candlestick that belonged to
it. One evening, at twilight, I was looking among this row
for my candle, which, like all the rest of the lot, was about
the thickness of my fore-flnger.
" Monsieur," said a servant, popping out of a small room
adjoining, and making me a low bow, "votre flambeau n'est
pas encore descendu." *
On the " premier etage," or first floor, was a spacious
drawing-room, very handsomely furnished, open to every
lodger in the house. I, however, never entered it, and only
once peeped into it.
On taking my first prescription from Dr. S. to the
chemist, I ascertained that tho ointment with which I was to
rub my forehead and teraples four times a day was as nearly
as possible as black as new ink. This affliction, which was
indeed a very great one, and which lasted almost the whole
of the time I was at Paris, seemed at flrst not only to forbid
my seeing any sights, but to make tne a sight for any bne else
* Sir, your Sambeau has not been brougiit down yet

MY LODGINGS. 263
to see ; however, after sitting in my sky-parlour for some
minutes in an attitude of deep reflection, I determined to dis
pose, and accordingly I did dispose, of my misfortune as fol
lows : —
At five I used always to get up, and, after my usual ablu
tions, I obediently blackened myself in the way prescribed ;
and, ornamented in this way, I occupied myself for an hour
and a half in writing out the rough notes whioh, while walk
ing, talking, and often while rumbling along in 'buses, I had
taken on the preceding day. At a quarter past seven I un-
smutted myself, and walked about the streets until eight,
when, on returning to my lodging, I rubbed my forehead
black again, and sat down to breakfast. At a quarter before
ten I — what maid-servants call — " cleaned myself." and, like
Dr. Syntax, went forth in search of the Picturesque. At six
I returned, and dressed for dinner, — that is to say, I anointed
myself again. After my repast I unniggered my brow and
went out. At ten o'clock p, m. I be-devilled myself again,
and, after a sufficient interval, ended the strange process of
the day by going to bed,
while I was seated at breakfast or at dinner, painted like
a wild Indian in the extraordinary way I bave described, it
repeatedly happened that, after a slight tap, my door was
opened, sometimes by a shopman with a band-box, inquiring
if I had ordered a hat ; sometimes by a boy, bringing a letter
addressed to he knew not whom ; and two or three times by a
lady, sometimes an old one, and sometimes a young one,
who called on me, intending to call on somebody else. In all
these oases a long apologetic dialogue ensued ; and although
my visitors had thus abundant opportunity to observe my
grotesque appearance, whioh in England would, I truly be
lieve, have made even the Bishop of London bite his lips or
smile, yet such is the power of politeness in the French
people, that in no one instance did any one of my visitors
allow me to perceive from his or her eyes, or from any feature
in his or her countenance, that he or she had even observed
the magpie appearance of my face.
While I was following my prescription I explained to
the concierge that in case anybody called — I had no ac
quaintances in Paris — I was not at home. When it was over,
which was only two days before I returned to .England, the

264 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENOH STICKS.
old Woman walked up stairs to congratulate me, and then,
addressing me and my tiny apartment, as if we were of vast
importance, she said to me, " A present. Monsieur, que vous
pouvez recevoir votre monde !"*
On the day I left Paris I received from my obliging
landlady her account, in which in no instance was there the
slightest departure from the agreement I had verbally made
witb her, I gave the servants and concierge what I chose,
but no demand whatever was made upon me. And, " Adieu,
Monsieur ! bon voyage ! !"t were the last words of the old
wife, as she waved her shrivelled hand to a foreigner whose
occupations were incomprehensible, .whose appellation was
doubtful, and whose name was unpronounceable.

IMPRIMERIE NATIONALE. 1
In the year 1552 Francis I, first established in the Louvre
an Imprimerie Royale, a portion of which, under the appel
lation of Imprimerie des Bulletins des Lois, was in 1792
transferred to the Elysee Bourbon, inhabited at present by
Prince Louis Napoleon, In 1795 these two establishments
were united in the Hotel de Toulouse, now the Bank of
France, and in 1809 they were finally transferred to their
present locality.
This public establishment is shown to visitors every
Thursday, and accordingly, at ten minutes before the hour
" precisely" indicated in the ordinary printed permission
which, in compliance with the advice contained in Galignani's
guide-book, I had obtained, I knocked at its gate, and walk
ing across a court and up a staircase, I was directed to go to
the Waiting-room, in which I expected to have found a hard
stool or two to sit on, and sundry drops and slops of ink on
the floor to look at. However, on reaching the landing-place
I was shown into a drawing-room handsomely carpeted, con-
* Now, Sir, that you can receive the world !
f Good bye ! a good journey to you !

IMPRIMERIE NAnOXALE. 265
taining four pier-glasses, one ou eaoh wall ; a scarlet damask
ottoman ; a scarlet cloth sofa ; fourteen scarlet chairs ; scar
let curtains ; white blinds ; a'nd in the middle a fine mahog
any table oovered with greeu cloth.
As I was the sole monarch of all I surveyed, I reclined
on the sofa, and was admiring the arrangements made every
where in Paris for the reception of strangers, when the door
opened, an,d in walked a gentleman with two young ladies,
who had scarcely looked at themselves — "vue et approuvee"
— in the glass almost immediately above me, when in walked
four more youug ladies and a gentleman, then three middle-
nged ladies and two geutlemen.
As soon as the clock of the establishment struck, there
stood at the door a porter, making dumb signals to us to ad
vance, and accordingly nine bonnets and five black hats
hastened towards him into the passage, where we found
waiting, and ready to conduct us. an exoeedingly pleasing-
looking intellectual young man of about twenty years of age.
Everybody, excepting myself, appeared to be in tiptop spirits ;
but as the object of my visit was solely to make myself ac
quainted with a very important establishment, I could not
help for a few moments inwardly groaning when I reflected
that a guide of twenty years of age for thirteen people —
were he even to be fairly divided among them all — would be
equal only to a sucking tutor rather more than a twelvemonth
old for each ; besides which, it was but too evident that as
my nine sisters, in the exercise of their undoubted preroga
tive, would very probably not only constantly encircle the
young guide, but would each and all at once be continually
asking him questions of different degrees of importance, I
should not only have no instruction at all, but should be
obliged to go through the establishment exactly at the une
qual rate the nine ladies might prescribe ; that I should have
to stop whenever they stopped, and, what was still worse, to
hurry by whatever they happened at the moment to feel in
disposed to notice.
As the disorder, however, was evidently incurable, I re
solved to join in and get through the merry dance as well as
I could, I therefore introduced myself to a partner, who, in
return for the confidence I reposed in her, very obligingly
teazed the young guide until he told her whatever I wanted ;
12

266 ^ FAGGOT OF FSENCH STICKS.
and by means of tbis description of spoon-diet, I obtained, I
think, rather more nourishment than my share.
Our tirst introduction was to a room which none of the
ladies would stop to look at, surrounded by mahogany presses,
containing the punches, matrices, and ligatures (the largest
collection in Europe), including those for Greek type, for a
fount of wbich, in 1692, the University of Cambridge applied.
On entering the exceedingly well-lighted hall, No. I. of
the Imprimerie Nationale (in tbe whole of which nearly a
thousand people are employed), the first object that caught
my eyes was a large tricolor flag, upon which was inscribed
in gold letters, — " Vive la Republique I"*
In different directions there appeared seven stoves, around
four of wbich were standing, closely shaved, without coats or
waistcoats, and in very clean shirts — the sleeves of which
being tucked up disclosed their bare arms — five men at each
stove, engaged in what a novice of their art might have sup
posed to be some strange religious ceremony, for they kept
stretching out tbeir right arms, — then closing both hands, —
then jerking 'them four or five times over their heads, —
pausing ; and then, extending their right hands, they repeat
ed the operation commonly called type-casting, whioh may be
explained as follows. From the stove before him each man
with a ladle dips out a small quantity of liquid metal, which
pouring into a small matrix he jerks upwards, until, cooled
by its rapid passage through the air, he is enabled to drop
the type he has created on the table before him, and repeat
the process.
From these stoves the fluid metal, in the mode described,
is converted into the type of forty-eight different alphabets,
speaking the languages of almost every nation on the globe.
Indeed, while Pope Pius the VII. was inspecting the estab
lishment, the Lord's Prayer was not only printed in one hun
dred and fifty languages, but was bound up and presented to
him. As satellites to the seven furnaces, I observed several
men employed in breaking off to its proper length, as fast
as it was east;, ths type, then handed over to four old wo-

IMPRIMERIE NATIONALE. 267
men, eaoh wearing on her thumb and forefinger a thick
black leather case, with whioh she first made eaoh rough-cast
letter smooth, and thon — as our Universities treat " a fresh
man" — she polished it. These types, packed in parcels, con
taining each only one letter, and which resemble octave vol
umes, are then shut up in a dark closet adjoining, where they
remain until summoned to perform their high literary du
ties. On entering a room of 150 feet in length, my heart re
joiced within me at the welcome sight of two long rows of
compositors, all dressed in blouses and black silk neckcloths.
At proper intervals were also to be seen, each within a wire
cage, that valuable, well-educated member of every printing
establishraent — a reader. On the first coup-d'ceil the whole
appeared in busy operation ; as, however, we passed along,
one raight have fancied we were a body of magicians, witches,
and wizards, whose breath had power to stop the whole sys
tem ; for however sedulously the compositor had. from the
small " case " before him, been snapping up letter after let
ter to fill his " stick ;" whatever might be the subject on
which he was engaged ; he stood spell-bound in his operation,
not only while we were approaching, but for several seconds
afterwards he was to be seen standing with a type between
his finger and thumb.
" I saw a smith stand with his hammer, thus,
The whilst his irou did on the anvil cool."
The sudden appearance of six young ladies and three
rather old ones produced upon 150 Frenoh compositors the
strange symptoms above described. Indeed, every workman
— even the jaded reader — stopped to enjoy a good, long,
hearty, refreshing look at them ; after which one by one faith
fully returned to his work. In another room, about 1 80 feet
long, were distributed in a similar manner a double row of
compositors, closely packed along each wall. On descending
to the ground fioor we passed through a long, dark store
room, which reminded me of a coal-mine, about 150 feet in
length, filled almost from the fioor to the ceiling with " type
in forms," that is to say, in the square frames in which they
had been fixed, and in which they were reposing until again

268 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
required for a reprint. Twelve thousand of these forms were
so arranged that, like the tray of a wardrobe, any could at
pleasure be drawn out without moving the one above or be
low. The very first compartment of this dark receptacle, prin
cipally filled with government publications, was labelled —
" GUEEEE."*
From it we passed into a beautiful yard, covered with
skylights like a greenhouse, and surrounded on every side by
low cisterns, above each of which appeared, protruding from
the wall, one or two cocks for filling them with water. In
this cheerful workshop we found several men employed in
damping paper for the press.
We next entered a beautiful printing hall, 180 feet long
— with hand-presses on each side — in which, in a glass frame,
I observed inscribed in large letters —
"Atelier de la REruBUQUE."f
On walking down this gallery we found it intersected in
the middle by another at right angles of about 100 feet in
length, also occupied by a double row of printing-presses.
From this point the cruciform view was extremely interesting.
Two hundred and thirty printers in shirts (it was Thursday)
as clean as the paper they were imprinting, were to be seen
at 115 presses, working not only the white paper to which I
have just alluded, but of all colours, especially pink, blue, red,
and yellow. Strange as it may souud to people accustonied
to the cold, steady business habits of England, which nothing
can either excite or subdue, the whole establishment stopped
working, and for some minutes assumed a grin of delight at
the sight of the ladies. Several of these pressmen, who were
all remarkably well dressed, shook hands with tbree or four,
who appeared to be well acquainted with them. One press
man with very long block mustachios, offered the prettiest of
the young ladies a pinch of snuff, which she accepted, and
which caused her to stop — I suppose merely to thank him
 a considerable time ; and as our guide for the moment
* War. t Workshop of the Repablia

IMPRIMERIE NATIONALE. 269
was completely deserted, I managed to elicit from him that
all the pressmen, as well as the compositors we had just left,
work from seven in the morning till seven at night, excepting
from twelve to two, which period they devote to " dinner and
recreation ;" lastly, that they are paid according to the
amount of work they perform. In these halls are daily struck
off on an average above 350,000 sheets, besides about 12,000
sets of what are called in England court cards ; namely,
kings, queens, knav»s, and aces, the printing of which, in
France, is monopolised by the Government.
So many of the pressmen were talking to our " ladies,"
that the young guide had some little difficulty in inducing
them to follow him into a long chamber, in whioh we found
seated nearly in pairs, and very busily at work, twelve young
well-dressed men, with mustachios. and twelve very pretty-
looking young ladies in caps of all colours. On the table at
which they were seated stood basins full of flowers. The
work they performed consisted mainly of now and then mak
ing a dot — then a little scratch — then a slight turn of the
head — then a smile — then a very long scrub — then three dots
— and so on ; in short, they were correcting and finishing off
lithographic maps, painted in most beautiful colours ; at
which they continue to work from seven to ,seven, with two
hours of " recreation," as aforesaid, which very probably con
sists of the dissyllable imprinted in the left hand corner of a
London " At home " card of invitation, namely, " Dancing "
About this happy hall we found sixteen lithographic
presses, whieh besides the maps from below, were busily
striking off government papers of various colours and sizes.
At several tables I observed otherwise occupied well-dressed
and apparently well-conducted persons of both sexes, and yet,
as indeed throughout the whole establishment, it was evident
that at a single blast of a trumpet the men, like Roderick-
Dhu's " warriors true," would have, one and all, started up
soldiers !
Below stairs we entered a room full of larger lithographic
presses, and then a magazine that looked like a universe of
white paper.
We were now conducted into a large, light, airy chamber,
in which were to be seen, hard and steadily at work, four
huge steam-presses, eaoh of which, as compared with the

270 -^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
m
strength of the human beings that environed it, looked like
Gulliver snoring in the land of Lilliput.
On the sumrait of each of these powerful machines, in
stead of a boy, as in England, I observed sitting up aloft a
young girl, who, at every aspiration of the giant over which
she presided, fed hira with a large sheet of cool darap milk-
white paper, no sooner in his power than it was remorselessly
hurried over a sort of iron cataract, at the bottom of which it
came out printed, on both sides, into the hands of a young wo
man, a little older and a little stouter, by whom it was scarcely
laid aside when, the operation having been repeated by the
angel above, there came out, for onr weal or woe, another sheet
full of the knowledge of good or evil. With the assistance of
its two hand-maidens, and of some men seated at tables close
behind them, employed in preparing the paper for the opera
tion above described, eaoh of these great presses, whioh cost
10,000 francs, strikes off from 1000 to 1200 sheets per hour
In an adjoining room wc witnessed a siraple and very in
genious invention for rapidly drying the paper thus imprinted.
A hot iron cylinder, of about six foet in diameter, encircled by
coarse brown canvas, and made to revolve by the power of
steam, is attended by a woman, who keeps putting between the
heated metal and its linen covering one sheet after another of
printed paper, which is not only dried in the hotbed in which
it is obliged to revolve, but, as in the case of the printing
presses just desoribed, is delivered into the hands of another
woraan seated by her side to receive it. There are three of
these machines, eaoh attended by two deliverers and two re
ceiving women.
In the kaleidoscope we were viewing there next in an open
yard appeared, guided by men, a powerful machine for cutting
paper ; and in an adjoining well-ventilated chamber we found
sixteen woraen and girls, very quietly and neatly dressed, em
ployed in placing each printed sheet between two pieces of
glazed pasteboard, and in then submitting the whole to a hy
draulic pressure of 300,000 pounds.
We were next conducted to a department of the establish
ment called " La Reglure," a long room, containing eleven ma
chines for ruling lines of various sorts. Each was attended by
three young woinen ; one for regulating it ; one for feeding it
with paper ; the other for receiving the paper when ruled.

IMPRIMERIE NATIONALE. 271
The lines, twenty-eight of which oan be made at onoe, were
drawn by pens supplied with ink from a roller. For official
documents, in which the lines required were so numerous that
they exceeded the breadth of the machines, other young women
were employed in executing them by hand, by means of combs,
the teeth of whioh, confined in an iron frame, were raade to cor
respond in number and position with the lines required. In
consequence of this room being rather overheated, the young
woraen employed in it had all a very high colour ; they were,
moreover, not only exceedingly well dressed, but apparently
quite as well behaved. Indeed, from their appearanoe and de
meanour, no one in England would have judged them to be
mechanics. In a small chamber we came to four tables, at each of
which were sitting six young women, busily occupied in fold
ing and sewing sheets, under the direction of a superintendent,
securely seated in a wired caged cell at the bottom of the apart
ment, which opened into an immense room, 400 feet long, in
whioh we found in full operation the Binding Department, in
all its branches. For nearly 100 yards we passed through piles
of half-bound books — principally edged either with bright yel
low or bright scarlet — waiting to undergo that variety of tailor
ing and millinery operations necessary to enable them to ap
pear before the literary world in quarter, half, or full dress.
The labourers in this immense and important workshop were,
as nearly as I could judge, composed, in about equal parts, of
young men and young women ; and with the curiosity natural
to their age, they all stopped work as our party passed the ta
bles on the right and left, at which they respectively were seat
ed ; however, I could not but feel they had as much right to be
curious about us as we had about them.
Like a hen preceding a brood of motley-coloured chickens,
our young conductor now led us along a passage to the sum
mit of a very broad staircase, where, gradually stopping, he
turned round, took off his hat, and, with a slight bow, announc
ed to us that " we had seen all," My right hand, as in duty
bound, dived straight into my pocket ; but as I felt it was
grasping at a quantity of loose silver, of all sizes, without
knowing how much to select, in a whisper I asked my fair in
terpreter who had been labouring hard in my behalf, to be so
good as to ascertain for me what I ought to give. Our young

•27-2 --1 FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
conductor must have instinctively understood the question 1
was asking, for, with that pleasing manner and mild expres
sion of countenance which had distinguished him throughout
the many weary hours we had been bothering him, he said to
me, before the whole party, " Monsieur, il nous est expresse-
ment defendu de rien recevoir I"* Indeed I could not induce
him to accept anything.
His parting words, and a sketch of the interior of the draw
ing-room in which strangers are received in the " Imprimerie
Nationale'' of Paris, ought, I submit, to be hung up in Prince
Albert's Crystal Palace, as a specimen of Frenoh politeness,
not only to be admired, but to be copied by the governments
and by the people of every other nation on the globe.

LA MORGUE.
At Paris every faoe I met appeared to be so exceedingly
happy and so remarkably polite that from the hour of my ar
rival I had been in the habit, without the slightest precaution,
of walking anywhere at any time of day or night. Happening,
however, to mention to a French gentleman the late hour at
which, entirely alono, I had passed along a certain district, he
told me, very gravely, that there were in Paris — as indeed
there are in all countries — great numbers of men, never to be
seen in daylight, who subsist by robbery and oocasionally by
murder ; tbat after dark they haunt lonely spots, and that not
unfrequently, after knocking down and robbing their victims,
they have summarily chucked them over the bridges they were
in the act of crossing into the Seine,
" You must, my dear (• mon cher'), be more careful," he
said to me. with very great kindness, ¦¦ or you will find your
way to the Morgue !" and as I had often from others heard it
was the place in which all dead bodies found in the streets
of Paris or in the Seine are exposed, and as on the following
day I had occasion to be in its neighbourhood, I determined
I would fulfil my kind friend's prophecy by " finding my way
* Sir, we ore expressly forbidden to receive anything!

LA MORGUE. 273
to it," Accordingly, walking along the Quai, I perceived on
the banks of the Seine, close before me, touching the extremity
of the Marche Neuf— -indeed, thc nice, fresh, green vegetables
in the last of the booths ranged along the wall of the Quai
actually touched it — a small, low, substantial Doric building,
constructed of massive, roughly-hewn stones, as large as those
commonly used in England for a couuty jail.
On gazing at it attentively for a few minutes, a stranger
might consider it to be a post-office, for a certain proportion
of the crowd that was continually passing along the thorough
fare in whioh it stood, kept what is comraonly called "popping
in," while about the same nuraber — ^just as if they had depos
ited their letters — were as regularly popping out, and then
proceeding on their course.
On the east wall of this little building there hung, singing
in a cage, a bullfinch, belonging to one of the vegetable-selling
women in the market. On the right, standing on a chair
and surrounded by a gaping crowd, was a travelling conjuror,
who appeared to possess the power of making every faoe ofhis
attendant asserably smile or grin with more or less delight.
After standing for some time, listening sometimes to the
bullfinch, sometimes to the conjuror, but more constantly
looking towards the little building between them, I approaohed
its door, from which, just as I entered it, there walked out
arm-in-arm two well-dressed ladies, with fiowers in their bon
nets. On entering a small room — it was La Morgue — I saw
immediately before me a partition, composed of large clean
windows, through eaoh of which a sraall group of people, look
ing over each other's heads, were intently gazing. Within
this partition, on the wall opposite to me, was hanging, and
apparently dripping, a long, thin mass of worthless and non
descript substance that looked like old rags. On approaching
the smallest of the groups I saw close to me, on the other side
of the glass partition, five black inclined planes, on one of
which there lay on its back, with a nose crushed fiat like a
negro, with its cheeks swelled out exactly as if it were loudly
blowing a trumpet, the naked, livid corpse of a robust, well-
formed young woman of about twenty years of age. The face,
throat, chest, arms, and legs below the knees were deeply dis
coloured, and yet, for some reason, the thighs werc quite
white I The soles of her feet, which were stiffly upturned.
12*

274 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENOH STICKS.
had been so coddled by the water in which she had been
drowned, that they appeared to be almost honeycombed.
Frora the wali above there projected eight little strearas,
about the size of those which fiow from the rose of an ordinary
garden watering-pot, arranged to fall on her face, throat, neck
and legs (round her middle there was wrapped a narrow piece
of oil-cloth), to keep the body wet and cool.
Above ber, hanging on pegs, was the miserable inventory
of her dress : a pair of worn-out shoes, ragged stockings, shift,
and the dripping mass (her spotted cotton gown and petticoat)
whioh I had already observed, A more revolting, ghastly,
horrid, painful sight I fancied at the moraent I had never be
fore beheld ; and yet the living picture iramediately in front
of it was so infinitely more appalling, it offered for reflection
so important a moral, that my eyes soon turned from the
dead to the v.arious groups of people who were gazing upon it ;
and as my object was to observe rather than be observed, I
managed, with some difficulty, to get into the right-hand cor
ner of the partition, where I was not only close to the glass,
but could see the countenance of everybody within the
" Morgue." At first I endeavoured to write down, in short-hand, merely
the sexes and apparent ages of the people who kept dropping
in ; the tide, however, in and out was so great, the stream of
coraing-in faces and departing backs was so continuous and
confiicting, that I found it to be utterly irapossible, and I can,
therefore, offer but a faint sketch of what I witnessed.
Among those whose eyes were steadily fixed upon the
corpse, were four or five young men with beards ; among them
stood several women, old and young, two or three of whom
had children in their arms. One boy, of about five years old,
came in, carrying an infant on his back. Many people en
tered with baskets in their hands. One man had on his
shoulders, and towering above his head, half a sack of coals.
" Oh, Dieu! que vilain !" said an old woman in a white cap,
uplifting the palms of both hands, and stepping backwards as
her eyes first caught sight of the corpse. Then came in two
soldiers ; then a fashionably and exceedingly well dressed
lady, with two daughters, one about sixteen, the other about
eleven, all three with fiowers in their bonnets ; then a well-
dressed maid, carrying an infant. " MoN Dieu 1 1 1" exclaimed

LA MORGUE. 275
an old woman (the old women appeared to me to shrink from
the sight most of all), as on a glance at the corpse she turned
on her heel and walked out ; theu in ran a number of lads ; a
wrinkled old grandmother, with all her strength, lifted up a
fine, pretty boy of about three years old, without his hat.
The point at which I stood, I was afterwards informed,
was that which had been selected by a well-known Frenoh
actress, who, with an esprit de corps, to say the least, of an
extraordinary character, has been in the habit of repeatedly
visiting La Morgue professionally to study the sudden changes
of countenance of those who, as they continually pour into it,
first see the ghastly objects purposely laid out for their in
spection ; and certainly a more dreadful reality oould not be
beheld, and yet, the more I refiected on what I saw, the more
dreadful it appeared. The fiashes of horror and disgust that
suddenly distorted the faces of most of those who consecu
tively approaohed the glass windows, were certainly very re
markable ; and yet the utter nonchalance of others, both young
and old. and of both sexes, approaching sometimes almost to a
sraile, was infinitely more appalling, because it but too clearly
proved how easily and how effectually those beautiful feelings
in the human heart which are raost adraired may, by the scene
I have imperfectly desoribed, be completely ruined.
Of the dreadful history of the bruised, livid, young crea
ture lying prostrate close to me, I was, of course, utterly
ignorant. Her raind might have been ornamented with every
virtue ; she might have fallen into the river by accident On
the other hand, she might have committed every description
of crime, and in retribution thereof have been murdered by
some one as criminal as herself, with whom she had criminally
been living ; and yet, whatever might have been her guilt, to
be exposed for three days (for such was the time she had been
sentenced to lie in La Morgue) naked, in a great metropolis,
to the gaze of all ranks and conditions of life — to men of all
ages — was, I deeply felt, a punishment so cruel and inhuraan
that it might almost be said to have exceeded her offence ;
and yet, if she could have felt the shame that was inflicted
upon her, her sufferings individually would have been utterly
unimportant when compared to tbe wholesale injury — and,
may I not add, disgrace ?— -whioh the people of Paris wera
suffering, from the possibility of being, first, by curiosity ab

276 -¦• FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
lured, and, after that, by vicious inclinations habituated, to a
scene raore contaminating to the inorals of all classes than
anything it could be conceived the ingenuity of man could
have devised. Indeed, when I looked at the mingled faces of
young men, young women, children, infants, and old people,
all pointing towards an object which modesty, nay, which
common decency would have told them — at all events in
combination — to avoid, I could scarcely believe that I was
existing within 800 yards of the Louvre, the guest of a brave
and intellectual people, whose politeness and amiable civilities
I had so much reason to acknowledge ! And the more I re
flected, the greater was my astonishment ; for not only was the
exposition before me cruel to the dead, and destructive of the
morals of the living, but, after all, it was utterly useless !
A person's clothes, instead of being an impediment, are the
greatest possible assistance in substantiating his identity ; and
accordingly in a court of justice it is not unusual for a witness,
who had previously been unable to recognise the prisoner at
the bar, to exclaim, the instant the latter is forced to put on
his head the hat he had been holding in his hand, that he is
the person who had committed the crime alleged against him.
A set of dripping-wet clothes and rags, hanging on pegs
over a body which, when living, had probably rarely, if ever,
been seen by any one uncovered, are, practically speaking, al
most useless ; whereas, if a corpse were to be exposed in the
well-known dress iu which it had been found, not only every
garmeut individually, but all collectively, would form the best
possible evidence of its identity. In short, leaving morality
out of the question, nothing surely can be more foolish than
for a nation, a government, a police, and a people, to devise to
gether a mode of idcntiflcation which, while it jumbles and
conceals all useful data, exposes in their stead data which, in
ninety-nine cases out of one hundred, are practically useless.
Indeed, the fallacy of the system was lately demonstrated aa
follows : — A poor mountebank, in passing La Morgue, follow
ing the example of many of the gentlefolks who had walked be
fore him, strolled into it for a lounge. On one of the black in
clined planes he beheld, lying between the naked corpses of
two men, his own " auld respected mither '" To redeem her
from such a neighbourhood, and from suoh neighbours, he de
termined to spend, if necessary, all he had : and accordingly,

/.

DOG MARKET. 277
with praiseworthy affection, he followed her to her narrow
grave, in the " fosse commune" of the cemetery of Mont Par
nasse, He was, however, so haunted by the horrid picture he had
witnessed, that, to relieve his mind, and also to console his
only surviving sister, he determined to return to his distant
motherless home, and on his arrival at its door he was, as he
well deserved, most affectionately embraced — by . . his
mother I It need not be said that the person he had seen ly
ing on the table of La Morgue, disfigured by death, was not
hers ; whereas, had the corpse, instead of being naked, been
dressed, he would, no doubt, have at once perceived that it was
not his mother, whose costume du pays, and particular dress,
were, of course, imprinted in his mind.
The number of bodies annually exposed for three days in
La Morgue amount to about 300, of which above five-sixths
are males. The clothes of one of the latter who had been
buried without being reclaimed were still hanging near me.
A considerable proportion of the corpses are those of suicides
and of people who have been murdered.
On the whole, I left my position in the corner impressed
with an opinion, since strengthened by reflection, that La
Morgue at Paris is a plague-spot that must inevitably, more or
less, demoralise every person who views it. On going out of
the door I observed dangling over my head a small tricolor
flag, garnished as usual with the words " Liberty, Fraternity,
and Equality."

DOG MARKET.

At Paris, on one day in every week, namely, on Sunday, there
is a dog market, held in a plaoe whioh on Wednesdays and
Saturdays is a horse market, and whioh, wearing, as is lawful
in heraldry, its highest title, is called " Le Marche aux Che
vaux."* On proceeding there on Sunday, at about half past one
* Horse-market.

278 -^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
o'clock, I found myself in a rectangular open space, 240 yards
long by 44 yards broad, surrounded by a high wall, divided
lengthways down the middle by a stout oaken post and rail
fence, on ea-ch side of whioh was a paved road, bounded by
grass, shaded by a triple row of trees. In the centre of the
oak fence was a large fountain of water. Beneath the trees,
and parallel with the two paved roads, were stout oaken rails
divided into pens, each bearing the name of the horsedealer to
whom it belonged, and whioh, even if empty, no one unautho
rised by himself can use. The horses, affixed to these rails by
rings which contiuue the whole length of the market, stand
shaded by the trees. Near to them is an office on whioh is
painted, in large black letters. " Bureau du Veterinaire et de
I'Inspeoteur charges de la surveillance du Marche aux Che
vaux."* At the entrance of the market there exists a little wooden
office, on which is written, in letters bearing in size about the
same proportion to those of the above superscription that a dog
does to a horse, —
"Le concierge reQoit le signalement des chiens perdus, ct cn fait les
recherches. S'addresser sous la vestibule en face, la porte k gauche."-]-
Taking off my hat, I introduced myself as a stranger seek
ing for information to the concierge, or keeper of the dog mar
ket, before whose tiny office were arranged on a table — several
were hanging on both sides of the door — a great variety of
muzzles to be hired for the day by dogs, none of whom are al
lowed, under any pretext, to enter the market without one.
After talking some time to the concierge during the short
intervals in which he was not professionally engaged, I entered
the market, in which I found about 280 arrant curs, all wear
ing very odd-looking wire nose-gear, which, projecting about
two inches t)eneath their lower jaws, gave their mouths the ap
pearanoe of being what is called " underhung."
Dogs were barking — dogs were yelping — dogs were squeal
ing in all directions. Several were surrounded by a crowd of
* Office of the veterinary surgeon and of the inspector charged wife
the superintendence of the horse-raarket.
\ iThe concierge receives the description of lost dogs, and endeavours
to recover them. Apply under the archway in front, to the left.

/'

DOG MARKET. 279
spectators, silently gaping down at them. In one direction I
s-iw a fox-dng — retained bj' a string tied to the oaken horse-
raii.s — ou his hind legs, pawing with both feet to get to an
other dog about twenty yards off', that appeared equally anx
ious to come to him On the ground there lay panting a
large, coarse-looking Newfoundland dog ; near him a basket
of fat puppies whining; behind them a woman nursing one of
the family in her lap. A servant-maid, as she kept Strolling
about, was leading, as if it had been a child, an Italian grey
hound. One sandy-coloured dog, little bigger than a very
large rat, and with cropped ears which made him look as sharp
as a flea, I was assured was a year old. Near him stood a
dog barking to get at his master, dressed in a blouse, who had
not only tied him to a post, but who every now and then
" saorebleued" him for barking. Beside him, looking at the
faithful creature with infiuitely kinder feelings, was standing
in wooden sabots, with a crimson-coloured handkerchief wound
round her head so as to leave tho ends sticking out, the dog's
master's wife, — in shert, his own '• missus," who evidently did
not like to see him sold. In another direction I observed a
great mastiff standing near two women, one of whom held in
her arras two puppies, the other a small dog with very lank
rough hair, that stuck out all around him like the prickles of a
hedgehog. Close to a very savage-looking yard-dog tied to a rail,
which no one seemed disposed to approach, two women were
seated on the ground, each with a dog in her lap. Near them
a stout, tall peasant in a blouse held out and up in one hand,
at arm's length, a puppy, looking, in comparison to his own
size, like a mouse. On the ground were seated several men,
with baskets full of yellow greasy-looking cakes ; beside them
appeared stretched out for sale an immense dog-skin.
The owner of every dog pays for the use of the muzzle —
if he has hired one — five sous, but the animal himself is ad
mitted into the market free ; whereas on Wednesdays and
Saturdays each horse pays 10 sous, carriages on two wheels
15 sous, on four wheels 25 sous, goats and asses 4 sous
apiece. At the farther end of the market is a place of trial of
strength of the draught horses, composed of a steep, circular,
paved ascending and descending road, surrounded by posts

280 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
and rails, and shaded by trees. At the entrance stands a
small bureau, for levying a payment of five sous for each horse,
and a chain for preventing its admission uutil the money has
been paid.
As there is nothing like getting to the bottom of a sub
ject, on leaving the dog-market I walked for some little dis
tance to the Rue Poliveau, a large paved street, principally
bounded on each side by dead walls, between which meeting
an old woman, I asked her to be so good as to tell me where
" La Fourriere "* was. A dog, about thirty yards off, imme
diately answered my question by a loud melancholy bark ;
and as the woman pointed to the direction from which it pro
ceeded, and as I now distinctly heard there other barks, I
walked towards them, until, entering a large gate, I found in
a small yard seven or eight poor unfortunate dogs, tied up by
chains and collars to a rail inserted in the wall,
I was in the dog-pound of Paris, to which all dogs straying
about the streets are sent by the police to be kept for a week,
and then, if not owned, to be sold, if they are worth anything,
and, if not, to be killed. The dogs impounded — who were
evidently leading a very dull life, and who all looked at me
with more or less attention — eonsisted of t«to Italian grey
hounds ; a mastiff, with a collar and a padld"^ ; a mongrel
pointer; a dog very ill, that never moved, and tMat hjr coiled
up in a circle, with his dry nose resting on Jiis 'empty ifank;
and various other curs. One, standing ^' the \extremity of
his chain on his hind legs and pawing 'at me", whined and
barked incessantly. The latter noise was so sharp that it
went entirely through my head and partly through my heart.
The poor creature seemed to know he was going to be hanged
merely because he was friendless, and his pawing proposal to
me was that /should be his master; in short, by noises, as
well as by gestures, he entreated me to take him away.
In the yard there was nothing but stables, and I could
find no human being to converse with, until, looking upwards,
I saw the faoe, shoulders, and stout arms of a great, strong,
coarse-looking woman, looking down at me from a second-
story window, over which, and immediately over the lady's
head was written on the whitewashed stone in buff letters the
word "Fanny." * The pound.

HOSPICE DE LA VIEILLESSE. 281
I talked to her a short time about dogs in general, and
about the dogs in the fourriere, over which she and her hus
band presided, in particular ; but as she answered my ques
tions rather gruffly, and as the poor dogs' countenances had
told me all and infinitely more than I desired to remember,
our missuited acquaintance soon came to an end.
After leaving the poor animals to their fate, I passed, as
I was walking along a large street, an immense timber-yard,
in whioh the scantlings for a large roof were all planned and
lying on the ground. Among them, with bare throats and
moist faces, I saw, hard at work, thirty men dressed in blouses.
Further on I observed forty or fifty men, paid partly by Gov--
ernment and partly by the city, busily employed in completing
the demolition of a condemned street. It was Sunday, I
may here remark that, out of the seven days of the week, the
seeond Sunday in Blay of the fourth year of the presidentship
has, by a law of the Republic, been selected for the hardest
political work known, namely, the election throughout France
of a new President,

. HOSPICE DE LA VIEILLESSE.
With my mind overrun in all directions by dogs whining,
yelping, and barking, I proceeded along the Boulevart de
I'Hopital until I found myself on a large esplanade of grass,
dotted with trees. Across it were two paved roads converg
ing to a handsome Doric gateway, supported by a pair of
massive lofty columns, above which were inscribed in black
paint, " Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite," and beneath, deeply
engraved — Hospice de la Vieill^se
Femmes.*
This magnificent hospital, commonly called " La Salpfi-
triere," — from its standing on ground formerly occupied as a
" Hospital for Aged "Women.

282 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
saltpetre manufactory — and which in the year 1662 contained
nearly ten thousand poor, is 120 yards more than a quarter
of a raile in length, by 36 yards more than a fifth of a mile
in breadth. On arriving at its gate, always open to the pub
lic every day in the week, from ten in the morning till four
in the afternoon, I was accosted, and after a few words of
civility on both sides, was accompanied, by a very intelligent
red-faced official, dressed in a blue coat, scarlet collar, with
cooked hat worn crossways a la Napoloon, and ornamented
with a tricoloured cockade, who conducted me into a fine,
large, healthy, grass square, teeming with old women, sur
rounded by trees, bounded in the rear, right, and left by
buildings, and in front of the entrance-gate by a very hand
some churoh, subdivided oruciformly into four chapels. As
we were walking across this spacious promenade my guide
informed me that there were present in the Hospice about
five thousand old women, all of whom — excepting on Sundays
and fete-days, when they are allowed to dress as they like —
wear the uniform of the establishment, which is blue in sum
mer and grey in winter. He added that their qualification
for admission was either bodily or mental infirmities, or with
out either of those afflictions, having attained seventy years
of age. On the principal of tbe four altars in the church, I found
eighty wax candles standing before a statue of the Virgin,
behind which was the wall, painted light blue, thickly covered
with silver stars. In front of the whole of this costly finery
I observed upon ber knees, on the hard pavement, a poor old
woman. Beyond the church I was conducted through a variety
of extensive gardens, grass plots covered with trees and in
tersected by paths, in which old women in all directions were
enjoying themselves ; indeed, although the institution is, I
believe, the largest of its sort in the world, it had the appear
ance only of a place of pleasure.
Here were to be seen old women ruminating on benches ; there
others seated in groups on grass emerald green. On Sundays
and Thursdays their friends are allowed to come and see them ;
and accordingly, in many places I observed a young woinan
neatly, and, by comparison, very fashionably dressed, sitting
on a stone bench by the side of her aged mother clad occasion
ally in the uniform of this noble charity.

HOSPICE DE LA VIEILLESSE. 283
On entering the laboratory, a detached building, instead
of finding in it, as I expected, nothing but a strong smell of
rhubarb and jalap, I perceived several persons engaged in
preparing, in five great caldrons, what they called " tisane" a
sort of weak gruel, which in large zinc pails — a variety of
whioh of different sizes were in waiting — is carried all over
the establishment. Adjoining is the " Pharmacie" a light,
airy room, in wbich, ranged on shelves, were a number of
bottles containing the various elixirs — whatever they may be
— that are good for old women, and which appeared, at all
events, to be inodorous.
I was next conducted to the hospital, a splendid detached
building of twenty-four windows in front, and three stories
with an attio in height. On entering its iron gates, adjoining
a porter's lodge, I found myself in a court full of lilacs in
blossom. In this hospital, whioh can contain 400 persons,
there were 300 sick old women in twenty-four " salles des
malades."* In walking through one of them I found, in
twenty-four beds protected by white curtains, and arranged
throughout the whole length of the hall in two rows, very
nearly two dozen of old women, who, apparently without suffer
ings of any sort, were just going off, or rather out. Naturally
attached to the fashions of their early days, most of them
had tawdry-colored handkerchiefs wound round their heads ;
and as the bright eyes that still enlivened the fine features of
several were consecutively fixed on me, as I slowly walked
by them on a floor so slippery that every instant I expected
to fall on the back of my head, I could not help feeling that
I had lived to see withering before me many of those beautiful
flowers which, in the year 1815, when theywere in full bloom,
had been unkindly accused of assuming as their motto,
' Vivent nos amis les ennemis !"
In the garden attached to this hospital, and which was
full of large beds of tulips, &c., in flower, I found only one old
woman. She was sitting on a chair, reading, with her right
foot resting on a pillow lying on a stool. At a little distance
beyond her I came to a " rotunde," entitled " saile aux
bains,"t containing sixteen baths, eaoh surrounded by white
curtains, and heated by a large "chaudiere"| adjoining.
* Siek-wards. \ Bath-roora. X Stove.

284 -1 FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
After meeting and overtaking a number of old women crawl
ing and hobbling in various directions, I was conducted into
the kitchen of the establishment, a long, narrow room, con
taining, in separate corapartraents heated by coal, three hot
plates, each comprehending twelve coppers. There was also
an oven for roasting. The gods and goddesses of this crea
tion consisted of seven young men-cooks, in white jackets,
white waistcoats, white trowsers, white night-caps, and two
maids in nice black gowns and black caps edged with
white. From the kitchen I proceeded to an eating-hall (there are
five of them), admirably lighted at both sides, containing
three rows of tables of light oak colour, at which on rush-
bottomed chairs, 700 old women, in two batches, dine per
day. It appears that between sunrise and sunset these tooth
less old goodies are fed three times, as follows : from seven to
eight, in two squads, they drink, in their second infancy,
warm milk ; between eleven and twelve they have soup, with
the bief that made it ; between four and five they munch
" legumes et dessert,"* the precise meaning of which it would
be very difficult to detail.
There are forty-six dormitories, some of which contain
100 beds. The one I entered, and which, as is usual at Paris,
was lighted throughout its whole length on both sides, con
tained in three rows forty-six beds. The pillows, counter
panes, and window curtains were all white.
In a large detached building aro 1200 lunatic women,
who, I have been informed, are admirably attended to, but
whom the public are very properly not allowed to visit
I was now conducted to a range of buildings, built by
Cardinal Mazarin, upon which I observed inscribed " Bati-
ment Mazarin, lere Div. Reposantes," a receptacle for aged
and infirm women who, during their youth, were servants in
the establishment, and who, in consideration thereof, besides
gratuitous lodging, have the same food whioh they had been
in the habit of receiving, but no wages. In 1662 nearly ten
thousand poor people were received here. At present the
number of " reposantes" amounts only to 350, divided into
three grades ; — * Vegetables and dessert

CONSERVATOIRE DES ARTS ET METIERS. 285
1st, Those who were " surveillantes"* have three rooms
each, 2nd. " Sous-surveillantes,"t two rooms eaoh,
3rd. " Filles de servioe,"j: one room each.
Beyond this building is the " cours d'ouvriers,"^ contain
ing shops for carpenters, joiners, carriages, and eight horses
for bringing provisions to the establishment.
As I had now hastily gone over this magnificent hospital, I re
turned with my guide through the great green entrance square,
and a more merry, happy scene I never beheld. Not a bon
net was to be seen, but either in caps white as snow, or in
gaudy-coloured handkerchiefs, the old women were walking,
talking, and sitting with their friends, who, as I have stated,
on Sundays are allowed to visit them from twelve to four,
during the whole of whioh time a sergent de ville (agent of
police), in his cocked hat, uniform, and sword, is to be seen
walking magnificently up and down before the great entrance
gate, to guard the establishment from improper intruders.

CONSERVATOIRE DES ARTS ET METIERS. ||
From the Hospice de la Vieillesse I hastened in a small
four-wheeled citadine to a vast building in the Rue St
Martin, formerly the ancient abbey of " St Martin des
Champs," upon the outside of which is inscribed^
" Conservatoire des Arts et Metiers :"
a magnificent establishment, maintained by the public purse,
for the instruction, — by gratuitous lectures, especially on
Sundays, and by the exhibition of machines, models, draw
ings, and apparatus of tbe most scientific nature, — of mechan-
* Superintendents X Female servants.
¦f Assistant ditto. §Work-yards.
I Museum of Arts and Trades.

286 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
ics and workmen of every description. In this laudable
object are employed fifteen professors of practical geometry
and mechanics, natural philosophy, manufactural economy,
agriculture, manufactural mechanics, descriptive geometry,
manufactural legislation, practical chemistry, and the ceramic
art. On entering the great gate of this college for the indus
trial classes, gratuitously open to the public on Sundays and
Thursdays, from ten to four, and before whioh I found pacing
two sentinels, I passed through, in succession, a series ol
splendid exhibition rooms, of which I can only atterapt to
give a very faint outline.
In the lower halls I found, admirably arranged and beau
tifully lighted, models of cranes and of machines of various
descriptions, of powder-mills, and of the apparatus employed
for elevating the obelisk of Luxor to its present site on the
Place de Concorde, At the latter a meehanio, dressed in a
blouse, was vcry clearly explaining to three or four workmen,
similarly attired, the power and application of the ten sets
of double blocks that had principally performed this mechan
ical feat. Adjoining, two soldiers in green worsted epaulets
were pointing out to each other the operative powers of a
spinning-machine ; a little farther on, groups of people werc
looking in silence at models of silk-mills under glass, of
various powerful -processes, furnaces, gasometers, &o.
In a large arched hall, lighted at both aides, I found in
two divisions a variety of ploughs, spades, shovels, and tools
of all possible and impossible forms of application ; waggons,
carts, harrows; model of a horse skinned, showing the posi
tion and mechanical bearing of all the great muscles ; models
of windmills, threshing machines, farm-buildings, farra har
ness, &c., &o.
After ascending a very handsome double stone staircase,
I entered on its summit a fine hall, close to the door of whioh
was appended the following notice ; — -
" Avis-Conformement aux ordres de M, le Ministre de I'Agriculturs
et du Commerce, et de I'Avis du Conseil de Pei-fectiouncment : — 'La
belle collection d'instruments de physique que poss^de le Conservatoire
des Arts et Metiers sera ouverte a. I'avenir. —

CONSERVATOIRE DES ARTS ET METIERS. 9.87
" ' Aux pliysiciens, au.x artistes, aux ouvriers en instruments de phy-
e:i_r.e, etc, les Jeudis et les Diraanches, k partir du Jeudi, 24 Janvier.
" ' L' Administrateur du Conservatoire, "'A. MOEIN.'*
"Paris, 22 Janvier, 1850."
In a room headed " Physique et Meoanique,'' besides
chemical and physical instruments of various sorts, were col
lected models of railroads, locomotive engines, tenders, car
riages, furnaces, air-pumps, galvanic batteries, also a powerful
electrifying machine, which apparently possessed the faculty
of attracti-ng to itself every human being within sight of it.
On approaching it I perceived a circle of faces, all convulsed
with laughter at the sudden loud, healthy squall of a fine-
looking young woman who, from possessing in her composi
tion a very little of Eve's curiosity, had just received a
smart shock,
" Tout-partout !"t she exclaimed, as soon as she repovered
herself, to the inquiry of her little sister, who, with an uplift
ed face of fearful anxiety, affectionately asked her " Where
it had struck her?"
In a department headed " Verrerie" I found on one side
models of glass houses of various constructions, and on the
other an omnium-gatherum of locks, padlocks, mechanical
instruments, and models of various descriptions. In this
room I passed, carrying an infant, a maid-servant dressed in
a conical cap like a sugar-loaf, more than a yard high.
In a hall headed " Geometric" were models of breakwa
ters, bridges, arches, staircases, cast-iron roofs, of all descrip
tions ; also, a model of a temple. In a splendid gallery 136
yards long, and headed " Ceramique," were various specimens
of glass, porcelain, &c. In a room headed " Chauff'ages.
Eolairages" were patterns of lamps, stoves, and furnaces.
* Notice, — By order of the Minister of Agrieulture and Commerce,
and by tbe advice of the Couucil, —
The beautiful collection of instruments, <fec., for the improvement of
arts and trades, shall be opened in future, —
To m-en of science, artists, and workmen, on Thursdays and Sundays,
frora the 24th January. A. Morin,
Paris, 22nd Jan., 1850. Chief of the M-iseum
f All over me I

288 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENOH STICKS.
In one, not very correctly named " Acoustique, Geodesic,"
I foiind almost every visitor within it congregated in the
vicinity of some mirrors that so distorted the countenances
of every one who looked at them that several ladies, in
spite of the most earnest entreaties, positively refused to
approach them. The few who did, suddenly screamed, and,
putting both hands befere thoir faces, ran away amidst roars
of laughter. On looking into the first I was introduced to
my own faoe flattened in so extraordinary a inanner that it
resembled John Bull himself, under a free-trade pressure
that had made his features twenty tiines as broad as they
were high. On standing before the next I appeared as if I
had suddenly had the honour of being created President of
the United States, for my face, which was a couple of feet
long, was as sharp and narrow as the edge of a hatchet, and
yet overy feature was distinctly perceptible.
On coming out of this admirable institution I inquired of
a very Intelligent young mau dressed in a blouse the way to
the General Post Office, at the " Bureau Restante" of which
I had been informed tiiere were lying some letters to my
address ; and although it was raining, he iusisted on accom
panying me through three crooked streets, in which he said
he was afraid I should otherwise lose my way.
As we were walking he told me he was a " mecanicien,"
and that he had just returned to Paris from the Great Exhi
bition in London, where he had been einployed to unpack and
arranp-e the machinery he had taken over. I asked him how
he haij fared. He replied, "Parfaitement bien!"* but after
praising the intelligence of the English people, he said, " II
y a trop de severite dans leurs moeurs ;"t and he then theoret
ically explained to me what apparently unconsciously he was
in person practically demonstrating, namely, the advantages
to a country of politeness. In reply to these remarks I repeat
ed to him the observation of an American who, in preaching on
the same text, very cleverly and truly said " I guess, my
friends, you can catch more flies with molasses than with
vinegar !" * Perfectly well !
f Tbere is too much severity in their manners.

PANTHEOl^. 289

PANTHEON,
On getting out at the office of the Omnibus, I saw immediately
before me, in the middle of a great square, a magnificent
building, composed apparently of an ancient teraple and a
church. The forraer — whioh forms, in fact, the portico of the latter,
and which stands above a fiight of eleven steps, extending for
its whole length, and overlooking the iron railing that divides
it from the square — is composed of a triangular pediment
129 feet long by 22 feet high, supported by eighteen very
handsome Corinthian columns 6 feet in diameter and 60 feet
high. The church-looking building contains three domes — a very
large one, a srhaller one, and a lantern surrounded by a gallery
and balustrade — one above another.
The object of this splendid pile — for it is not a church — is
sufficiently explained by a series of figures in relief by David,
representing on the triangular pediment of the portico, France,
a figure 15 feet high, attended by Liberty and History, sur
rounded by, and dispensing honour to, Voltaire, Lafayette,
Fenelon. Rousseau, Mirabeau. Manuel, Carnot, David, and, of
course. Napoleon and the principal heroes of the republican
and imperial armies. Beneath, in letters of gold, is the fol
lowing inscription : —
"Aux Grands Hommes la Patrie Reconnaissante."*
On entering this splendid edifice, the interior of whioh, 80
feet high, is a cruciform, 302 feet long by 255 broad, enlightened
from above by the beautiful dome and cupola, surmounted by
the lantern I have described, and by six semi-circular windows
in the massive walls of the building, I was much surprised to
find that, comparatively speaking, it was as empty as an empty
barn ! From the lofty cupola there slowly vibrated a pendu
lum, the lower extremity of wbich, slightly touching some

* To great men by a gratefid country
lo

290 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STIOKS.
loose sand on the pavement, was very beautifully demonstrating
the earth's movement round the sun.
Within the immense almost vacant space I observed three
statues, namely, of Clemency, of Justice, and, lastly, of Im
mortality, who, in June, 1848, while she was standing with a
pen in one hand to record the " deeds " of Frenchmen, and
with a crown of glory in the other to reward them, was sud
denly almost shivered to pieces by a cannon-shot, which for
the moment threatened, so far as she was concerned, for ever
to destroy the immortality she was so generously dispensing
to others. After, however, having been very cleverly stuck
together again, she returned to her everlasting occupation and,
so far as I could judge from looking at her, is not a bit the
worse for the accident
On the four pilasters that support the great dome there is
inscribed — " Noms des Citoyens
Morts pour la defense des Lois et de la Liberie.
Les 2Y, 28, 29 Juillet, 1830."*
Their names were, however, in letters so small that I could
not read them, and I was beginning to think I had come a
long way to see a very little, when I observed a handsome-
looking priest, three or four soldiers, and two persons dressed
en bourgeois following an official very finely attired, who had a
lantern in one hand with a few tallow candles dangling in the
other ; and I had scarcely joined the party when we were con
ducted by our magnificent guide to a door or opening, where
we descended some steps into a series of vaults containing, in
various descriptions of tombs, the bones of great men, whose
names the guide repeated so monotonously, so glibly, and so
fast that it was with difficulty I could only occasionally com
prehend him. At the tomb of Voltaire, whose splendid tab
ents had been so grievously misapplied, I had but just time
very hastily, by the light of one little thin tallow candle, to
copy the following inscription : " Aux manes de Voltaire,
* Names of Citizens
who died in the defence of the Laws and of Liberty,
on the 28th, 27th, 29th of July, 1830.

PANTHEON 291
I' Assembiee Nationale a decrete le 30 Mars, 1791, qu'il avait
merite les honneurs dus aux grands hommes !"*
From it the guide, in mute silence, led us circuitously into
a corner in which was apparently nothing at all to be seen ;
he however, struck the wall very violently with a board, lying
on purpose beside it, and there immediately resounded from all
directions a loud report which echoed and re-echoed along the
passages and over tbe bones of the dead.
We now retraced our steps through darkness rendered vis
ible by the gleam of light the thin little candle oocasionally
cast upon the soldiers' bright buttons and on the gold lace of
the cooked hat of our guide. On ascending into the world —
that is to say, into the Pantheon — we ail trudged hastily aoross
its stone aud marble pavement to the foot of a small staircase,
leading by 441 steps to the highest of the three domes. The
young, idle soldiers abandoned the undertaking, but the two
citizeus followed the guide, the priest followed them, and I fol
lowed hira.
On reaching the top of the first dome, from which we were
enabled to look down into the great Pantheon beneath, " Mon
sieur I'Abbe," as we all called him, who, I had observed, had
been slightly puffing for sorae time, took out frora underneath
his very handsome gown, a large tobaooo-bag, a lucifer-matoh,
a small pipe, which he lighted, and then, adjusting his three-
cornered hat, and looking at us all very good-humouredly, he
stuck the thing into his mouth, its wire cover, suspended by a
short, little, silvered chain, dangling beneath it He was a
remarkably fine, handsome, able-bodied, useful-looking man of
about thirty-five years of age, and his black bands, edged with
white, ornamented a neck and throat of unusual strength and
thickness. On arriving at the top of the interior dome, supported by
thirty-two Corinthian columns, resting on the lower dome, we
all found ourselves more or less out of breath.
" Sacre nora !"* said Monsieur I'Abbe, wiping his brow with
his hand, as bis stout foot attained the last step. Above us
on the ceiling of the dorae I beheld a picture, containing 3256
Superficial feet, of Clovis, Charlemagne, St Louis, Louis
¦* To the Manes of Voltaii-e, the National Assembjy decreed on the SOtb
of March, 1791, that he bad ra^aiiedthe honours due to great men.
f Holy name !

292 ¦* FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
XV UL, and three gigantic fluttering naked angels, holding in
their hands a scroll, on which, in large letters, was inscribed
the word •' Charte,"* garnished with innumerable heads and
wings. During the third ascent, the staircase, although not
very narrow, was so steep that my face was constantly within
a few inches of the black, stout balustrade calves of the legs of
Monsieur I'Abbe, whose gown, twitched up by a loop, left them
at liberty ; and soraehow or other I was thinking of English
" navvies," when, happening to look upwards, I saw descending,
feet foremost, a pair of white-stockinged legs of a totally dif
f'erent description. I can say no more of them, for infinitely
'ooner than 1 oan write the words there rustled by me a lady's
silk gown.
On arriving at the object of our ambition — the small balus
trade surrounding the lantern whioh forms the sumrait of the
Pantheon — there burst upon us all a magnificent panorama it
would be utterly impossible to describe. The whole of Paris
— every window, every chimney, were distinguishable ; and as
the atmosphere was as clear as that of the ocean, and as the
sun was shining with its full power, the contrasts between
strong lights and deep shadows was most beautiful. Immedi
ately beneath was the green water of the reservoir. From it
my eyes irregularly wandered — or rather revelled — along the
course of the Seine with its various bridges, to palaces in all
directions ; to the Tuileries ; to the Louvre ; to the Arc Tri-
omphale de I'Etoile ; to the dome of the Invalides ; to Mont
martre ; to the distant Fort St Valerien ; to the Gardens of the
Luxembourg ; to the gilt, dazzling, Mercurial-looking figure on
the summitt of the monument on the Place de la Bastille, &o.
Amidst the mass of houses in all directions prostrate beneath
me, two or three broad, straight paved streets, diverging to their
respective destinations, were strikingly contrasted with the in
numerable crooked ones whioh here, there, and everywhere ap
peared for a short distance until they dissolved into roofs and
stacks of chimneys of different colours and shapes. In an an
cient picture of Paris forty-six years before Christ, which but
the day before I had been looking at, the isle of Paris only
contained a few rudely-constructed huts without chimneys I
The view was as instructive as it was fascinating, and I should
say no one can truly declare he has seen the metropolis of
France who has not witnessed it.
The Charter.

PANTEEON. 293
On thc summit of the Pantheon I was so impressed with
the utter insignificance of the deeds of " great men," in compa
rison with light, air, and other natural beauties aud blessings of
creation, that I would fain have enjoyed my location. As,
however, my worthy corarades. Monsieur I'Abbe, and the rest
of my party, had, I found, on looking around for them, left me,
—id as I was afraid if I remained I might be locked up, I de-
ocended to the cold pavement of the interior beneath, and after
again wondering at its emptiness I deterniined to take my de
parture. On approaching the door I observed on the walls the
following notice, which appeared at the moment to be rather
inconsistent with the inscription on the magnificent triangular
pediment above it : —
" L'Inspecteur du Pantheon soussigne declare que les huit gardiens de
ce monument n'ont d'autre salaire que ce que dounent les visiteurs. —
BOUCAULT." *
On coming into the warm open air ray ideas of grandeur
were also, I must own, a little disconcerted by seeing on the
iron railings whioh encircled the Pantheon, on a tiny tricolor
flag, affixed to a staff not bigger or longer than a raopstiok, the
words " Liberte, Fraternite, Egalite,"
Crossing the square, I descended in a cabriolet on two
wheels towards the Seine, through a street (the Rue St,
Jacques) so delightfully crooked, irregular, and so sociably
narrow, that people living in opposite houses could, apparently,
frora tbeir windows shake hands with each other. Beside me,
in the carriage, sitting on a piece of sheep-skin doubled, was
the driver, dressed in rusty black, with a broad pieee of dingy
crape round his hat He had a club-foot, only half a nose,
but was, nevertheless, loquacious, and so, almost of his own
accord, he explained to me that a small four-wheeled public
carriage that passed us was called " un milord ;" that a "cita
dine " is also sometimes called a " coupe ;" and that a " flacre "
has two horses.
As, according to custom in Paris, he was driving me on the
wrong side of everything we met, I asked him whether he found
any difference, good or bad, in his occupation since the Revo-
* The Inspector of the Pantheon declares that the eight guardians of
this monument have no other salary than that given to them by visitors.
Signed Bouoault.

294 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
lution ? He answered he did not gain now half as muoh as
before. "Why?" said I
" Monsieur," he replied, " quand le commeroe marche " —
here he gave his poor horse a hard whip on his shoulder — " il y
a beaucoup de gens qui font leurs courses ; quand il n'y a pas
de commeroe, ils font leurs courses a pied," *
" Have you ever been to the top of the Pantheon?" said 1,
ruminating on the magnificent prospect it had afforded me.
" No, never," he replied. " I have been thirty years in
Paris," he added, " but have never mounted to that I"

HOSPICE DES ENFANS TROUVilS.
Once upon a time, a gentleman, entering a fiacre after rather
too good a dinner, desired the coachman to drive him " to the
Devil," After rumbling through Paris for some time tho
carriage stopped suddenly at the corner of a street. " Quel
numero, Monsieur ?" t said the driver, speaking very quietly
over his shoulder. The gentleman, on looking to his right,
saw just above him, inscribed on the wall, " Rue d'Enfer " I J
In the sarae street, almost immediately opposite to that mag
nificent observatory — the eastern front of which is considered
to be the latitude of Paris ; in one of the rooms of which
French philosophers have also traced its longitude ; in which
are telescopes for looking into the heavens ; an anenometer for
indioating the direction of the wind ; pluviometers for ascer
taining the amount of rain that falls at Paris during the year ,
astronomical instruments of every description ; a theatre capa
ble of holding 800 persons, in which M, Arago gives hts lec
tures ; also a magnificent library of 45,000 volumes — I came,
before dinner, to a small tricoloured fiag, dangling at the end
of a sort of barber's pole, pointing upwards, over a square hole
in a wall, about 18 inches high by 20 inches broad, filled up
* When trade prospersj a number of people ride ; when there ia no
trade, they walk.
\ What number, Sir ? X Hell-street,

HOSPICE DES ENFANS TROUVES. 295
with a black circular board, that looked as if it were a letter
box, but whioh is in fact, a " tour," or little turn-about, for the
reception of " babbies ;" and as the idea, on the mere showing
of the case, appeared an odd one, and as the institution is open
to the public, I rang at the large gate, and as soon as it was
opened I was intending to explain the object of my visit, when
the porter, who knew what I wanted before I mentioned it,
told me to sit down on a bench in the hall, and then, ringing
a bell, added that a person would almost immediately come to
attend me.
With the concierge or porter, who now walked into a small
room in front of me, there sat a nice, homely, benevolent-look
ing Sceur de la Charite, placidly occupied in mending, through
spectacles, her coarse rough blue serge gown, which having, for
that purpose, been turned up on her lap, showed me about a
foot and a half of a white, very thick, soft, warm, comfortable-
looking cotton petticoat. After I had been sitting about three
or four rainutes, the bell I had pulled rang again, and the
porter, who had admitted me, opening it, a woman in a bright
scarlet cloak, surmounted by a white cap with a profusion of
blue ribbons, entered, stating she had just come from Valen
ciennes to see her niece.
The porter looked as stout as if he himself were going to
be confined, — I mean by gout His collar was red, his face
was red, and, apparently from constitutional reasons, rather
than from any other cause, it instantly became much redder.
Somehow or other, the woman in scarlet, rightly or wrongly I
kuow not, had inflamed it She very quietly, after passing by
me, walked into the little room opposite.
" Madame est tres cavaliere I " * said the porter to the
soeur, pointing to the person who had offended him ; the soeur,
however, desisting from her work, but without dropping her
gown, spoke to the culprit softly, gently, and kindly.
A door on my left now opened, and I perceived a respecta
ble-looking woman, who, without entering, by a signal with her
hand gave me to understand she was ready to accompany me.
As soon as I was beyond the door she had opened, I found
myself in a large hollow square, formerly the convent of the
PrStres de I'Oratoire, surrounded by the buildings of the in
stitution. In the centre of the front range, three stories high,
there beamed that emblem of order and regularity which cha-
* Madame is rather too free !

296 -^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
racterises every public establishment in Paris, a clock. On
the left were inscribed over two adjoining doors the generic
words " Bureaux," " Eoonomal," On the right was a lofty
chapel, containing two tiers of windows.
About eighteen years ago there were in France no less
than 296 foundling-hospitals, into which babies — often carried
through the streets three or four together in a basket at the
back of a porter employed to collect them — were injected
without the slightest inquiry. In 1833, in consequence of the
great mortality that had been observed to take place among
them, and for other equally cogent reasons, the permission to
do so was so far restricted that it was deemed necessary the
infants should be presented with " a certificate of abandon
ment," signed by a commissary of police, who, although he
was permitted to admonish the mother or person abandoning
the child, was not authorised to refuse the certificate required.
This check, natural as it sounds, reduced the number of found
ling hospitals to 152. The restraint, however, was so unpopu
lar that in 1848 forty-four councils general, out of fifty-five,
voted for its abolition ; and accordingly at present babies are
received through the black turn-about as before. They are
also received from almost any mothers who declare themselves
unable to support thera ; besides which, by order of the Pre
fect of Police, the establishraent is obliged to accept orphans
(from two to fourteen years of age), and also the children of
any persons who will certify that they are too poor to maintain
them. Almost as fast as the babies arrive, the healthy ones are
despatched into the country to woraen who receive for them, at
first, four francs per month, which, if they live to grow older,
is gradually increased to eight ; and it has not unfrequently
happened that a young mother, who had abandoned hor own
child, has applied to the foundling hospital into which she had
poked it, to job, for the sake of the money, as a public nursling,
an infant who, for aught she knows, may possibly be her own !
With these extraordinary data rumbling about in my mind
I followed niy attendant, who wa,s evidently in a great hurry,
into a very large, long apartment, called the " Creche."
Before me, but rather to the left, I saw, as might be ex
pected, the head of a baby noddling in the arms of a woman,
and, walking up to her, I found seated with her, on sixteen
- chairs which touched each other, sixteen country-looking wo-

HOSPICE DES ENFANS TROUVES. 297
raen, each in a peasant's dress, every one of them with a baby's
head resting or noddling on her left arm ; and the reason of its
noddling was, that the whole of the rest of its person was
swaddled as tight as if it had been a portion of the limb of a
tree. As several of these women appeared to me to be old enough
to be grandmothers, I was not'at all astonished at hearing sev
eral of the infants, as I walked in front of them, cry ; the noise,
however, was altogether greater — the ohorus infinitely louder —
than I could account for, and I was alike stunned and astonished
by it, when, on reaching the end of the line, I saw, to my utter
astonishment, lying in one tray, jammed closer to each other
than the notes of a piano-forte, in little black-edged caps, twelve
babies, apparently born at the same minute, rather less than a
week ago,
Suoh a series of brown, red. yellow, pimpled, ugly, little faces
I never beheld. Every one of them were not only squalling,
but with every conceivable, as well as inconceivable, grimace,
were twisting their little lips from one ear towards the other,
as if all their mouths had been filled with rhubarb, jalap, aloes,
mustard, in short, with anything out of the pharmacopoeia of
this world but what they wanted. There appeared to be no
chance of their ever becoming quiet ; for one squalled because
its tiny neighbour on eaoh side squalled, and that set them all
squalling ; and indeed, when the chorus, like a gale of wind, for
the reasons explained in Colonel Reid's history of .hurricanes,
to a slight degree occasionally subsided, their little countenances
evinced suoh real discomfort, that if they had had no voices,
and for want of them had made no noise at all, it would have
been impossible to have helped pitying them. Nobody, how
ever, but myself took the slightest notice of them. The nurses
walked about the room ; the sixteen women, leaning their bodies
sometimes a little backwards, and soraetimes a little forwards,
seemed to be thinking only of lulling to rest their own new
charge. For some time my attendant had been trying to hurry me
away to what she considered more important scenes, but, without
attending to her repeated solicitations, I stood for some minutes
-¦-'cted to the ground ; and afterwards, in turning round to
take a last, lingering, farewell view of the tray-full of babies, I
observed, pinned at the back of each of their caps, a piece of
13*

298 -^ FAGGOT OF FSENCH STIOKS.
paper, whioh my attendant told me was the infant's numbet,
which, in the register, records the day or night and hour at
which it was received,— but too often that is all that is known
on earth of its unfortunate history.
As I was walking through this lofty and well-lighted room,
the floor of which I was astonished to find so polished and so
slippery that, even without an infant in my arms, I could
scarcely keep on my legs, I perceived, on looking around me,
that I was in a little world of babies ; in fact, there were no less
than 120 iron cradles full of them. In different places I ob
served several women feeding them with fiat glass bottles, in
tended to represent their mothers. At the end of the room
stood a statue of our Saviour.
My attendant now led me into a hall full of babies' cradles
on one side, and beds for matrons on the other. Then to
anotber room, containing thirty-eight cradles ; but as soon as,
on the threshold of the door, she infm-med me theywere full of
infants with all sorts of diseases in their eyes, I wbisked round,
and, without giving her my reasons, told her I had rather not
enter it. I, however, followed her through a long room full of
cradles, surrounded by blue curtains, within every one ofwhich
was a sick infant, many afflicted with the measles ; and suoh a
variety of little coughings, sneezings, cryings, and here and
there violent squallings. as loud as if the child had some cutsn-
neous disorder, and they were skinning it, it would be very
difficult to describe.
There were two rows of buildings, whioh I had observed
from the windows, and which mv attendant told me were full
of great children, whom the public are not allowed to see. She,
however, with evident pride, showed me a large laundry, two
stories high, and a drying ground ; a farra-yard for cows and
pigs ; some large gardens ; and an establishment of thirty yel
low 'buses, with a cabriolet on the top, for transporting sixteen
country nurses at a time (the very number I had seen sitting
in a row waiting for their 'bus), with their sixteen babies, to the
various termini of the railways on which they were to be in
jected into the country.
My attendant told me that the number of babies and chil
dren the establishment received last year amounted to abouJ
5000 ; besides which, they have, in what she called " en dep6t,"
1500, belonging to women who are ill and in hospital, in which
case the establishment relieves them of all their children. 0/

HOSPICE DES ENFANS TROUVES. 299
the 5000, all will be supported by the " Hospice " until they
are twenty-one years of age, or are apprenticed, or otherwise
provided for. Besides the necessary amount of servants and
nurses, there are thirty-four Soeurs de la Charite. three Priests
(freres), and one " Instituteur." The total expense of the in
stitution amounted, in 1848, to 1,378,213 francs.
My attendant now led me to what, instead of the last, ought
to have been the first letter ofher alphabet, naraely, the " tour,"
or turn-about, in whioh babies, as soon as the laraps are lighted,
are received. At first I saw nothing but a small piece of dis
mal-looking dark wood, but on turning it round, there gradually
opened to view a little cushion of straw, covered with faded
green stuff; and yet, simple as it was. I felt it impossible to
look at it without being deeply impressed with the political
fallacy that, with good intentions, offers to the women of France
in general, and of Paris in particular, a description of relief and
assistance whioh, strange and dreadful to say, of all the animals
in creation, no other living mother but a woman would accept !
On inserting an infant into this tiny reooptaole, — whioh not
only severs it for ever from maternal oare, but whioh I have no
doubt has produced, on the hard pavement of the dark street
in which the act has been so repeatedly committed, unutterable
feelings and raving attitudes of misery, altogether beyond the
power of the poet or the painter to describe, — a bell is either
rung by the depositor, or, ou the child squalling, it is turned
round by the guardian in waiting, lifted out, nurabered, and on
the following day baptised with a name.
I was now at the door at whioh I had entered ; but as I
had been thinking of a few statistics I wished to obtain, after
remunerating my attendant, I walked by myself aoross the
interior hollow square into the department headed " Bureaux."
The superintendent was out, and, seated in the office, I was
awaiting his return, when, looking into an interior room, I saw
several of the clerks engaged in kindly trying to pacify a gen
tleman who, for sorae reason or other, appeared considerably
excited; and who, after various gesticulations, suoh as placing
his two elbows almost together in front of his chest, opening
and clenching the fingers of both hands, and lifting up one
foot after another, as if the floor was unpleasantly hot, at last,
in a very squeaking tone, and with tearful eyes and cheeks,
expressive of the most bitter grief, cried exactly like a child.
The picture under any circumstances would have attracted a

300 -1 FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
moment's attention ; but what rendered it to my mind more
than ordinarily amusing was, that the fellow had a very long,
well-combed, black beard, which, as he shook it in crying, kept
tapping the buttons of his waistcoat I

LEFAYE ET LAFITTE.
My purse, when I left London, had contained but little money,
and as that little, for a variety of very small reasons, no one
of which could I recollect, had every day grown rather less,
unlocking my writing-box, I opened my letter of credit, which,
I felt quite proud to read, was adressed to what appeared to
me to be the California of Paris — namely, " Lafitte and Co.
Maison Doree,* Rue Lafitte." Carefully putting it into my
pocket, I descended my staircase into my street ; and while
everything, influenced probably by my letter, was appearing
to me " en couleur de rose," I saw ^proaching me a 'bus,
driven by a coachman in a beautiful glazed, bright yellow hat,
a crimson waistcoat, a nice chocolate coat with crimson facings,
and fine blue trousers, perched high above two white very
little punchy horses, carrying their heads low, and at perfect
ease. The picture exactly corresponded witb my mind, and
accordingly, holding up my stick, I soon found myself in the
interior rumbling sideways along the Rue de la Paix. Unfor
tunately, however, alike unknown to rayself and to her, I had
sat on tbe cowl of a young Soeur de la Charite. I had never
seen her face, and probably never should, had it not been that,
as I sat in silence by her side, I felt a very little twitch, and,
looking round, to ray deep regret found that, in turning her
head, her cowl had twisted itself, — or rather I had twisted
it, — so that what ought to have been exactly under her chih
was on her cheek, I looked very sorry ; she looked very
kind ; as quickly as I could I jumped up ; she gently shook
her feathers, and then everything appeared as delightful as
before. After proceeding a short way along the Boulevart des Ita-
* The gilt house.

LEFAYE ET LAFITTE. 301
lien.s, the conductor stopped the carriage, and. moving his hand
at me, I walked along the 'bus, descended the steps, and at the
corner of the street before me read the cheering words " Rue
de Lafitte." On inquiring in a shop for the house of Mon
sieur Lafitte, I was desired to go nearly to the end of the street,
to No, 24, As, however, I approached my goal, I began to
feel that either I or the nurabers of the houses were a little
tipsy, for above my head I read 15 and 21. then 17 and 23,
and then 25. At last, after gaping around me for at least two
minutes, I discovered over a rich substantial-looking door the
number I wanted, and, .accordingly, ringing at the bell, I told
the concierge, apparently I have no doubt rather haughtily,
but really and truly with harmless joy, that I wanted to see
" Monsieur Lafitte,"
" II ne reste plus ioi, Monsieur I" said the woman ; and on
my declaring to her that he did, she added very quietly, "Non,
Monsieur, il est mort, et sa femme aussi !"*
" He can't be dead !" said I to myself, as, slowly walking
away, I took from my pocket the letter of credit which had so
delightfully inflated me
I was wondering where in the whole world I should find
the house of " Lafitte," when, close before me, I saw, in large
letters, the word " Lefaye."
The house of Lefaye, as it stood before my eyes, was com
posed of a thin narrow shop-door, iraraediately above which
was a little dark boarded-up window, flanked on eaoh side by
a Venetian blind, a few inches long and broad, giving air to
some dark interior cupboard. Above, was a tiny window of
four panes, surmounted by an arch. One side of Lefaye's
door from top to bottom was garnished with a bunch of onions,
a small bundle of feather brushes, some dry and very old let
tuces, six little rush brooms, and four bundles of yellow things
that looked like carrots stunted by adversity into radishes.
On the other side of tbe door, above a tiny window, was
inscribed in three lines — Bouilon et
Boeuf;
on the right of which, one above another, hung four bundles
of yellow radishes, a little salad, and a bunch of carrots.
* No, Sir. he is dead, and his wife too.

302 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
The whole of the house of poor " Lefaye" occupied a
space of about twelve feet broad by flfteen in height, and as I
looked at it I could scarcely believe that close to it in some
direction or other was the " Maison Doree" of " Lafltte."
As, however, the above address was contained on my
letter of credit, with the utmost reliance on its integrity I
asked the flrst gentleman I met to be so good as to tell me
where was the " Maison Doree." With a kind bow he in
formed me it was at the corner of the Boulevart des Italiens,
and, accordingly, retracing my steps to the point indicated, —
that at whioh I had descended from the 'bus, — I saw sure
enough a large house, of which the doors, windows, balconies,
and spikes on the roof were all gilt I The whole of the lower
floor, however, consisted of a magniflcent cafe ; and as that I
knew was a place for spending money and not for receiving it,
I ascended a staircase which conducted me into rather a
handsome passage, at the end of which I indistinctly saw a
harmless, infirm-looking gentleman, towards whom I walked,
intending to ask him whereabouts in tbe Maison Dor^e I
could discover Monsieur Lafitte? On approaching him, I
found he was myself! or rather a reflection of myself in a
very handsome looking-glass, which covered the whole of the
end of the passage, I turned back, and in due time, at the
end of the opposite passage, I saw myself again I and as I
could see nobody else, I descended the staircase, and, going
into the cafe, ascertained that Lafltte and Co, lived witbin the
porte-cochere adjoining the staircase I had ascended ; and,
accordingly, within a very handsome yard, and occupying very
good apartments, I succeeded, after shooting so often at the
large target of Rue Lafitte, in placing my arrow into the
golden ball.
In returning homewards through the Boulevart des
Italiens, I found the whole breadth of the footway occupied
by a crowd of well-dressed people watching a man balancing
four eggs on the points of four spikes which he had affixed in
the ground,
A little farther on was rather a smaller orowd around a
man jabbering praises, till he almost foaraed at the mouth; in
behalf of a combined inkstand, penknife, and pencilcase, tho
parts of whioh, with a great deal of action, and with the
finger and thumb only of each hand, he kept separating and

LEFAYE ET L.iFITTE. 303
theu uniting. Beside him, with a tuft of hair on the point of
his chin, and with his sword pendent at his side, was pacing
very slowly a sergent de police, but, as is usual with respect
to every thing that affords amusement in Paris, no notice was
taken of the obstruction of tbe highway, which in London,
where pleasure is subservient to business, would not have
been allowed to exist for two minutes.
Farther on a tall man in mustachios was selling cotton
cravats. He trhew down on the pavement, with a theatrical
air, a large bundle of them, from whioh, after extolling them
for a long time, he selected a black one, then a green one,
then a spotted one, which with muoh action he successively
tied round his own handsome bare throat, the eyes of the
crowd gravely following every handkerchief throughout its
various manoeuvres. A short dowdy-looking shopkeeper,
stepping forward, purchased a red one, with which he walked
off, no doubt expecting that it would look as well around hia
neck as it had just appeared around that of the tall seller.
As I was observing this group there passed me several
girls of about 13 or 14 years of age, dressed in white, and
half veiled, exactly like brides. Many were accompanied by
boys of their own age, in new clothes, with a white and silver
scarf on one arm. On inquiry I found they were going to be
confirmed, and I then recollected having observed, in shop
windows, a quantity of little manniken shirt-fronts, with
turned down collars, over which were inscribed, " Chemises
pour Irs Gommunistes."*
On turning round the corner I almost ran against four
soldiers, carrying on their shoulders a bier or tressel, con
cealed by little hoops about two feet high, covered with brown
canvas, and evidently containing a human body. On inquiry
I ascertained it was a sick soldier, going to hospital.
The streets of Paris at once announce to any stranger
that he is in a dry climate, inhabited by a gay people.
In passing along them, on whatever subject I was reflect
ing, the extraordinary startling clearness of the atmosphere,
whicb descended to the very pavement, continually attracted
my attention, I used sometimes to fancy I saw before me
the picture of a town with people walking about it, in which
* Shirts for first Communicants.

304 -^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
the painter, like the man who built his house without a stair
case, had forgotten to insert the smoke. The air was as clear
as, indeed much clearer than, Englisb country air usually is.
Early in the morning the roofs and grotesque shapes of the
tall crooked chimneys were to be seen reflected in sunshine on
the opposite houses, while the remaining portion of the build
ings, as well as the pavement, which had just been swept,
were cool, clean, and distinct.
But the streets, especially the narrow ones, have at all
times a picturesque appearance, the cause of which I was
unable, for some time, to comprehend After a little observa
tion, however, I found it proceeded from the jumbled com
bination of an infinite variety of faqades. For instance, even
in the Rue St, Honore, the houses are like a box of mixed
candles, composed of short sixes, long fours, " bed-rooms," and
rushlights ; and, besides being of different heights, the aligne-
ments are different. Some of the houses have stepped a few
inches forward, some have retired backward : again, some
have attics, aome have spikes on the roof, others neither the
one nor the other. Some have balconies only at top, some
only at bottom, others from top to bottom. Again, the shops
are uot only on the basement, but often in the middle, and
occasionally at the very top of a house. There exist scarcely
two together of the same height. Some have two, some
three, advertising boards over them. Above the row of shops
on the ground floor there exists an entresol, or low, inter
mediate story, exhibiting a stratum of windows of the most
astonishing variety ; one contains a single pane of glass, ia
the next house are seen two one above another, in the next
two alongside of each other, theu sixteen, then four, then an
arched window. In one single compartment of the Rue St.
Honore, namely, between the Rue des Frondeurs and Rue St
Roch, the number of panes of glass in this stratum eccen
trically run as follows,— 20, 4, 8, 12, 12, 4, 16, 2, 2, 8, 8, 8, 9,
4, 9, 16, 16, 12, 12, 12, 12, 4, 12, 2, 2, 8, 2, 12, 8, 8, 16, 6, 2,
18, 12. Of the above the smaller number often form larger
windows than the greater, and of those marked 16 and 12
almost all are of different shapes. Lastly, the chimney-stacks
and chimney-pots are of every possible shape, size, and color ;
and as the street itself is not straight, but writhes, its motley-
colored architecture appears twisted and convulsed into all

X'

TEE ELYSEE. 3O5
sorts of picturesque forms. But besides this extraordinary
variety I found, at first to my utter surprise, that the houses
of Paris during the day actually change their shapes, and that
an outline, which in the morning had been imprinted in ray
memory, appeared in the evening to be quite difi'erent, simply
because every house in the French metropolis has Venetian
blinds, which, according to the position of the sun, and
occasionally in spite of the sun, at the whim of the inmates of
the different stories, are opened and closed in an endless variety
of forms. There is one other change whioh often attracted
my attention. In driving through Paris towards the east, I
always observed that, as the poor horse that was drawing my
citadine slowly trotted on, the wealth of the shops, especially
in the Rue St, Honore, appeared gradually to die away.
During spring, summer, and autumn, the people of Paris,
as might naturally be expected, are infinitely fonder of their
atmosphere than the inhabitants of London, Besides balls
and concerts in the open air, in the boulevards, avenues, and
outside all the great cafes, crowds of people are to be seen
seated al fresco on chairs. The windows of the 'buses, no
one of which has a door, are, even when it is cold, usually
all down, and not only are many windows in the streets wide
open, but they are almost invariably made with a contrivance
for keeping them throughout the day ajar.
But the climate of Paris has two extremes, and I was
informed that in winter, just as if all had suddenly become
chilly, the clear, fresh air, so profusely enjoyed in summer, is
carefully shut out from almost every habitation.

THE BLYSl^E.

As the ordinary Paris fiacres, wbich go anywhere within the
city for twenty-five sous, are not allowed to drive into the
great gate of the Elysee, the residence of the President of
the Republic, and as the " entree" is granted to those of forty
sous, regardless of expense I hired one of the latter, and had
not rumbled in it a hundred yards when I came to the lino

306 -1 FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
of carriages proceeding there. As my coachman, however,
was for the occasion gifted with an ambassador's pass, we
were permitted to break the line, and we accordingly at once
drove into the court, in which I found assembled a strong
guard of honour. On walking up the long steps, and enter
ing the great hall, I saw in array before me, in very hand
some liveries ornamented with broad lace, several stout, fine-
looking, well-behaved servants, one of whom took my hat, for
which he gave me a slight bow and a substantial round wo.od-
en counter. I tben proceeded into the first of a handsome
suit of small rooms, in which I found Prince Louis Napoleon,
surrounded by a circle of people, principally in uniform. He
looked pale and, generally speaking, pensive, but he had
sometbing kind to say to everybody ; his manner was exceed
ingly mild, affable, and gentlemanlike ; and yet it was inter
esting and at times almost painful to me to observe that, al
though at every new introduction his countenance beamed
with momentary pleasure, it almost as invariably gradually
relapsed into deep thought ; indeed, his position — from what
is termed the mere showing of the case — was evidently an
impracticable one.
For a considerable time his visitors, of their own accord,
appeared around him in a formal circle, of which he was the
ornamental centre, and then all of a sudden — like the change
in a kaleidoscope — the party broke into little groups, and he
stood almost alone ',¦ nay, in the mere act of bowing, at one
moment the scene, as it were instinctively, represented mo
narchy — and the next, as if the visitors had suddenly and
uncomfortably recollected something, a republic.
Nevertheless, throughout the whole of the rooms, there
existed that striking anomaly which characterises the Frenoh
nation — a crowd without pressure. In conversing with one
of the principal aides-de-camps I asked him which was the
room in which Napoleon had passed his last night (I did not
say slept) before he took leave for ever of Paris, In reply
he was obliging cnough to take me into a private chamber,
when, pointing to the ceiling above our heads, he said to me
— " Le voila !"*
On returning to the suit of rooms which, constructed in
1718 for the Count d'Evreux, had since been the residence of
* This is it!

/-¦

MARCHE DU VIEUX LINGE. 307
Madame de Pompadour, mistress of Louis XV,, of the Mar
quis de Marigny, of M. Beaujon, (a great banker), of the
Government Printing office, of Murat, of Napoleon, of the
Emperor of Russia, of Napoleon again, of the Duke of Wel
lington, of the Duke de Berri, of the Duke de Bordeaux, and
now of Prince Louis Napoleon, President of the Republic, I
stood for some lime close to two of the bearded party called
Red Republicans, and, having thus rapidly glanced at all I
desired, I retired into the entrance-hall, where I received my
hat from one richly-dressed servant, just as another liveried
menial of Democracy, with a magnificent voice, was calling
out very lustily and with beooming importance — " La Voi
ture de Madame la Comtesse de . . ! !"*
As the strange political history of the building I was
leaving flitted across my mind,
" Here,'' said I to myself, "we go up, up, up,
Here we go down, down, down;
Here we go backwards and forwards,
And here we go round, round, round!"

MARCHE DU VIEUX LINGE.f
" What do you lack ? What do you lack?"—" Qu'est-ce que
vous cherchez. Monsieur ?"j: said a young woman to me very
sweetly : " Qu'est-ce que vous desirez ?"§ repeated one of
myown age, rather hoarsely, "qu'est-ce qu'il vous faut ?"||
" Dites donc. Monsieur !" said another.
What I really wanted was to be allowed to walk througb
the busy hive I had entered unmolested, but that I soon
found was utterly impossible, I had evidently corae to buy
something, and innumerable mouths of all ages, on my right
and on my left, one after another, and occasionally half a
* The Countess of  's carriage stops the way I
f Rag-market. 1 What are you looking for f
§ What do you desire ! | What do you wantf

308 -A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
dozen together, were anxiously inquiring of me what that
something was : " Qu'est-ce que c'est que Monsieur desire ?"*
The ancient Temple of Paris built in 1222, originally
contained — besides the Palace of the Grand Prior of the Or
der of Knights Templars of Jerusalem, with hotels, gardens,
and dwellings in which debtors might seek refuge from arrest
— a large tower flanked by four turrets, in which Louis XVI.
and his family were not only imprisoned, but from whioh, on
the 21st of January, 1793, he was separated from them for
ever, to be murdered on the Place de Louis XV.
In 1805 the tower — every dog has its day — was demolished,
and in 1809 Napoleon, whose extrordinary mind in the middle
of all his victories conceived the formation at Paris of a rag-
market I converted a portion of the ancient Temple into the
present " Marche du Vieux Linge," which consists of an estab
lishment of 1888 little low shops, about the size of an English
four-post bedstead, covering a space of ground 580 feet in
length by 246 in breadth, divided by a cruciform path, in the
centre of which, isolated from the hive, is a bureau full of Ar
gus-eyed windows looking in all directions. Besides the four
divisions I have mentioned, this rectangular space, covered by
an immense wooden roof, is subdivided lengthways into thirty-
six alleys or paths, barely broad enough for two persons to
walk together ; and breadthways into thirteen passages of the
same narrow dimensions. Eaoh little shop is usually com
posed of two large sea-chests, which at night contain its pro
perty and by day form its counter.
From the name which this market bears I had fully ex
pected to flnd within it nothing but a sort of ragcfair, instead of
which, its little shops contain an infinite variety of cheap mil
linery, linen, clothes, boots, shoes, and iron-work, old and new.
As, like Gulliver, I strolled through the strets of this Lilli
putian city, which appeared to be almost exclusively inhabited
by females, I was pleased to find as much propriety and polite
ness within it as could exist in the Rue St Honore ; and ac
cordingly, although everybody was bargaining for rags, &c,,
with more or less energy, I heard " Oui, Madame I" " Non,
Madame l" resounding from various directions.
In one tiny shop as I passed it I observed a lusty pay
sanne, with a good deal of agony in her countenance, sitting
* 'What does the gentleman desire S

MARCHE DU VIEUX LINGE. 309
with her sturdy right leg cocked out and up as if it had been
of wood. " Ca vous va tris bien, Madame!"* observed the
lady of the shop, who had just succeeded in forcing her cus
tomer's big foot into a little narrow shoe, at whioh, with well-
feigned admiration, she kejit bowing her bead with delight
As I was sauntering through the next alley I saw a woman
all of a sudden dart out of a shop and whip a diminutive, new,
bright blue satin eap on the head of an infant in the arms of
a very short countrywoman, who for some time had been de
murely waddling on before me, and who, indeed, was so stout
that there had been hardly space enough for me to pass her.
The poor good mother had no more intention of buying a little
bright blue satin cap than I had, but her child looked so beau
tiful iu it that she evidently had not heart enough to take it
off. and I left her firmly fascinated to the spot, whioh I have
no doubt she never quitted until she had been persuaded to
buy the cap.
Again, a milliner had inveigled in a shop, about the size of
a sea-steward's cabin, a young lady who, as I passed, was in
the dangerous attitude of looking into a large glass, while the
woman, with a delightful smile on her faoe, was gracefully tying
under her victim's chin the strings of a new bonnet.
For a considerable time I wandered between shops full of
old iron, locks, thousands of old keys, warming-pans, saws,
sauce-pans, rat-traps ; then through a region of old and new
slippers, shoes, half-boots, boots, and jack-boots. Then I got
into the latitude of darned stockings, as clean as new ; shirts,
old and uow ; empty stays that had, once upon a time, evidently
been brimful ; 'faded handkerchiefs, washed till the spots had
almost disappeared ; gloves, blankets, coloured gowns, that
had — as if in the river Styx— been washed into the pale ghosts
of what they had been. In one of these shops I observed an
old woman trying to sell an old sheet to another old woman,
whose shrivelled forefinger was unkindly pointing to a great
hole in it.
On changing my longitude I found myself amidst new mil
linery, artificial flowers, fine gold sprigs : " Qu'estoe qu'il vous
faut. Monsieur ?" said a pretty milliner, screwing up her
mouth, to me as I passed her. Then I came to parasols, and
my mind finally rested on a whole world of mattresses,
* It fits you beautifully.

310 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
On entering the little isolated glass " bureau," or office, in
the middle of the establishment I had just visited, I found two
officers, one of whom, to a question that I put to him, briefly
replying, " Je ne sais pas. Monsieur,"* walked out As soon
as he was out of sight the other officer, with great politeness,
expressed to me his regret that, as a stranger, I should have
received an answer " si malhonnete ;"t he begged me to pardon
it, .to give myself the trouble to sit down, and to allow him to
afford me every information in his power. Accordingly, he
told me that the 1888 shops committed to his surveillance, and
open from sunrise to sunset throughout the year, are let by
the week at one frank and forty centimes each, with an extra
charge for insurance of five sous a-week, for whioh the chef of
the establishment not only furnishes guards by day and four
watchmen by nigbt, but holds himself responsible for theft,
which he added had, although a large portion of the goods are
left on the counters at night, scarcely ever been committed ;
indeed, the demand for these shops is s,o great that there are
many respectable people who have been applying for one to the
police for upwards of three years.
He added, that the four squares formed by the two cruci
form roads, which in eaoh direction bisect the establishmenfi
are — 1 . The " Palais Royal," containing modistes, soieries, robes
de bal ; in short, said he, it contains " tout oe qu'il y a de
beau \"t
2. Le Carre-Ncuf, containing " modistes et lingeries,"^
3. Le Carre, containing " batteries de cuisine en lingerie,"!
4, The Foret Noir,ir containing shoes, with old ironmon
gery of all descriptions.
He inforraed me that in the establishment many persons
had occupied their stalls since they were originally constructed
by Napoleon in 1809, and that several had made "fortunes
colossales."** Lastly, he told me that underneath the " March6
du Vieux Linge," in the centre ofwhich we were sitting, are sub
terranean vaults wbich for many ages had been used as prisons.
At a short distance eastward from the market just de-
* I don't know, Sir. -| So uncivil.
f Milliners, silks, ball dresses, every tbing that is beautiful.
§ Millinei-s and Unen. |{ Kitchen utensils and linen.
^ The Black Forest. ** Colossal fortunes.

LA CRECEE. 311
scribed is a circular building, erected in 1 788, when the Temple
was a sanctuary for debtors, called the "Rotonde," composed
of arcaded shops overflowing with all sorts of old uniforms,
from that of a drummer to a fleld-marshal. In one I saw piles
of old epaulettes, belts, and shakos ; in others, knapsacks,
pouches, and red tufts ; in another, bales of dragoons' old
leather-lined trowsers, neatly folded ; in another, a medley of
military gloves, eocked hats, and gaiters ; in another, heaps of
blue trousers ; in another, a quantity of old trunks, also balls,
two feet in diameter, of broad woollen list.
With brains almost addled by the variety of old clothes I
had been visiting, on leaving the Rotonde I stood for a few
moments before the only part of the Temple that now exists,
namely, the ancient palace of the Grand Prior ; whioh, built in
1566, was converted in 1814 into a convent belonging to the
" Dames Benedictines de 1' Adoration du St Sacrement," Over
the entrance-gate of the ancient chapel of the Temple I ob
served, deeply engraved, the words '' Venite adoremus :" and
strangely mixed up with this sacred invitation there appeared
on each side, painted in large black letters,
" liberte, egalite, fraternite."

LA CRECHE.

In the Rue St. Lazare, over a gateway, No, 148, leading into
a small yard, I observed, printed in letters of various sizes.
the following inscriptions : —
"Le Roy, Peintre."*
"Ds. Ride, Serrurier."-)-
"Fleury, Tourneur sur Bois en tous genres." X
Lastly, — " Creches St. Louis d'Antin."
On the right of the gateway, on a board, was written, " A
* Le Roy, Painter. t L. Ride, Lockmaker
X Fleury, Turnei of wojd cf oil sorts.

312 -4 FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
lour de suite, grand et petit atelier."* On the left was af
fixed a little red box, bearing the word " tronc,"t and in
white letters below, —
"Pour les pauvres petits enfants.":|:
In tbe yard I saw the staircase of the creche I had come
to visit, and accordingly, ascending it, after two little turns,
hardly worth recording, I found myself in the first of a suite
of three small rooms lighted by ten windows, several of
which were closed only by Venetian blinds. The rooms were
full of iron cradles, and the cradles were full of babies, and
the babies were evidently brimful of something or other, for
they were as silent and quiet as if they were dead. At the
end, ou the wall of the first room, was a statue of our Saviour
on the cross. In the second, dressed in coarse black gowns,
on the shoulders of which hung a white napkin, covering the
head, stood two Soeurs de la Charite ; and as one, wearing a
long blaek rosary terminating in a black cross, on which
there appeared a figure of Christ in silver, was very young
and pretty, I addressed myself to the other, a nice, warm,
comfortable, honest-faced, ruddy woman, of about forty-five,
who was leaning against a desk, over which was affixed a
statue of the Virgin and Child, with the following inscrip
tion : —
" lis ttoubcrmt I'jnfaitt xoucfiE liana unt ntt\t, tt, ouitaitt Ituia
IrfBota, lui Dttrirent tits lroM."§
In each of the twelve arrondissements of Paris is estab
lished a " creche," or house of reception for enfants, under the
following regulations : — ¦
1. That the mother be poor.
2, That she works out of her own house.
3. That she conducts herself well.
4. That her infant is not siok.
5. That it has been vaccina'^ed.
* To let, a large and a small workshop.
f Money-box,
X For the poor Uttle children.
i; They fonnd the child lying in a manger, and opening their treas
ures they offered him gifts

LA CRECHE. 313
6, That its age does not exceed two years,
Eacb creche is governed by a Conseil d' Administration,
composed of two or three priests, three or four gentlemen,
and two or three ladies ; a committee of ladies, composed of
Madame la Presidente, six vice-piesidents, Madame la Tre-
soriere, the President of the Medical Committee, and about
forty or fifty Ladies luspectresses ; a Medical Committee,
composed of three or four physicians and an oculist ; and,
lastly, it, Lady Treasurer. These twelve little petticoat legis
latures are under the direction of a central committee or par
liament, which from tirae to time frame and issue general
regulations for the government of the whole.
Every creclie is open from half-past five in the inorning
till half-past eight at night every day, excepting fete-days,
for the reception of all who have been reoommended by the
ladies vice-presidents, and infants examined by one of the
physicians of the creche. The mother is required to bring
her child in a clean state, to furnish linen for the day, and,
if she can afford it, to pay twenty centimes [id.) per diem for
its management She is required to suckle it when she
brings it ; to come and repeat the dose twice during the day,
and again at night, when she takes the thing (" la creatura")
away ; for under no circumstances is it permitted to sleep in
the creche.
The kind sister, having very good-humouredly explained
to me these preliminaries, conducted me into room No, 1, in
the centre of which there was what she called a " poupon-
niere," or pound, in which those little errant infants that can
stand are allowed to scramble round a small circular en
closure, composed of a 'rail, just high enough for them to
hold. Within it were seven or eight, all dressed in red caps,
little blue frocks covered with white spots, and very clean white
pinafores, in winter exchanged for colored ones with sleeves.
Every ohild on its arrival in the morning is stripped of its
own clothes, which are hung up in a closet, and instead there
of it wears throughout the day the costume, or, as my soeur
termed it, " I'uniforrae de la creche," as described. At night
it is again washed and re-dressed in its own clothes.
Around the pouponniere, against the walls of the room,
there stood shaded by white curtains fourteen little iron bed
steads, 2 feet 8 inches high, on each of which was appeuded a

3U A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
black plate of iron, bearing, in white letters, the name of the
charitable person who had given it (the bedstead, not the
baby) to the creche. The bedding consists of two clean
mattresses, both filled with oat-chaff, a soft white pillow,
blankets, but no sheets.
In every one of these cradle bedsteads, in each of the three
rooms, I found, as, in passing along with the soeur, I peeped
into it, an infant in a pink cap fast asleep. One, as I gently
withdrew its curtains, suddenly twisted round, as if I had
stuck a long pin through it. Another lay quite exhausted,
with its little toothless mouth wide open, and with a fly on its
nose. One had flushed cheeks like roses. Another, only
twenty-five days old, looked flabby, and breathed very quick
ly. Another was sleeping with a fist on its left eye. Another
had his right arm extended, with its tiny empty hand wide
open. Some were lying on their sides, some on their backs.
One, with its eyes open, was sucking the whole of its hand,
Anotber was crumpled up with its head under the clothes,
and its little wrong end on the pillow. One slept with its
elbow up ; one, with its hand under its cap, was pinching
and pulling at its oWn ear. Of one nothing was to be seen
but the back of its pink nightcap.
In each roora, close to the windows, which were all wide
open, stood a row of white basins, with two small sponges in
each. In the middle of the room hung a thermometer Out
side the windows of the three chambers, in a balcony 30 feet
long and 4 feet broad, covered with a chequered awning, and
wired at the sides, I found a number of infants in " uniforme,"
enjoying the fresh air,
the soeur, now taking hold of a-bunch of pohshed keys,
which, beneath the black rosary, had been dangling by her side,
led me to the door of a cupboard, quite full of bottles of nau-
seousdooking medicine of various sorts. She then showed me
the " lingerie," a large wardrobe, replete with blue and white
clothes, neatly folded, and beautifully clean; a passage, in
which the clothes belonging to the children were hanging for
the day; a small kitchen, about 10 feet square, containing in
the middle a hot plate, not a yard square, with a number of
little pans hanging on the walls ; aud, lastly, a little room,
contaii.ing two rows of exceedingly small, low, rush-bottomed
chairs, all possessing a certain strong family likeness, which
need not more accurately be desoribed.

LA CRECHE. 3],ii
As we were walking through the establishment, I observed,
attending to the children, three or four young women, dressed
in blue gowns, with white handkerchiefs covering their heads,
and ending in a corner dowu their backs, Eaoh of these " ber-
ceu.ses" is required to take charge of six infants not weaned,
or twelve that are weaned, or twenty that can eat and run
alone. The youngest, besides the natural nourishment their
mothers are required to give to them, are kept quiet [i e, full)
during the day by means of what the soeur called a " biberon,"
Anglice, a bottle with a zino top. The weaned are collected
together into a pouponniere, where they are filled with soup
and bread.
Among a long list of very sensible regulations, by whioh
the creches of Paris are conducted, and whieh the soeur was
good enough to explain to me, the following are submitted for
the consideration, not only of such of my young readers as
may lately have happened to set up a baby, but of any one
who secretly believes that some of these days he, she, or both,
may perhaps have one or possibly two : —
No fiowers are admitted into the creche.
No bonbons — no cakes — no painted toys to suck.
The curtains of cradles should never be entirely closed.
Every baby should enjoy " pieds chauds, ventre libre, t6te
fraiche," *
It should never be lifted by one arm.
It should be caressed, but — (the following regulation applies
only to the baby) — seldom kissed.
It should not be awakened when asleep.
It should be seldom scolded — never beaten.
If an infant begins to squall, the best way to quiet it —
"calraer ses oris" — is to play to it gently on an accordion.
Lastly, its mother, however poor, should teach it " a etre
aimable, ainiant, poli, bon, reconnaissant," f
The good soeur, now taking me to her desk, showed me a
book, containing the daily report of the physician, whose state
ments, open to the public, may thus be verified or complained
of; also one, ruled like an almanac, containing the addresses
of the sixty children (the present number of inmates), to whose
names she is required to make a cross every day they eome ;
* Warm feet, an unconfined stomach, and a cool head.
¦f To be amiable, loving, polite, good, grateful.

316 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
another book, for tbe lady inspectresses of the day (there are
no less tban sixty of them), stating, in a report whicb they
then sign, the number of children received ; another, detailing
not only the number of children admitted per annum, but a
little history of each, i. e. their names, residences, dates of ad
mission and departure ; deaths, if any; their parents, with the
profession of ^ch. An account-book, very clearly written, of
receipts and expenses. Lastly, a list of the contents of the
creche. In this inventory the furniture of the rooms is de
soribed as follows : —
Room No. 1. " Un Christ, un benitier, un trone."
Room 2. " Une vierge, une horloge, et un autre trone." *
Lastly, the soeur gave me the following blank printed for
mula, which the ladies inspectresses (among them are twenty-
three baronnes, one comtesse, and one marquise) are daily re
quired to fill up : —
Questionnaire sur la Tenue de la Creche pour M"^- les Inspectrices. f
Mesdames les Inspectrices sont priees de donner un rapport dans le cou
rant de chaque mois. Ce rapport continent les reponses aux questions ; et
si Madame I'lnspectrice juge a propos d'y mettre quelques observations,
le Comite les examinera tres attentivement
Jour et heure de la -visite:
1. L'escalier est-il propre ?
2. Combien de degres marque le thermometre !
3. Les salles ontelles de I'odeur ?
i. Sont-elles bien rangees ?

¦f List of Questions on the State ¦ of the Creche for the Lady Inspectresses,
The Lady Inspectresses are requested to give a report in the course of
each month. This report contains the answers to the questions ; and if the
Lady Inspectress thinlcs proper to add any observations to it, the Com
mittee will examine them very attentively.
The day and hour of the visit :
1. Is the staircase clean ? ,
2. At how many degrees does the thermometer stand ?
3. Is there any bad sraell in the rooms ?
4. Are they well arranged !

* A Christ, a holy -water pot, and a money-box A Virgin, a clock, and
another money-box.

LA CRECHE. 317
5. Reste-t-il des vetements accroches au mur ?
6. Les couches sedient-elles autour des poeies !
7. Les lits sont-ils propres ?
8. Les paillassons sont-ils mouUies ?
9. La cuisine est-elle propre ?
10. Les potages sont-ils bien faits?
11. Les lierceuses sont-elles propres sur eUes S
12. Sont-elles toutes a leur poste ?
13. S'occupent-elles bien des enfants?
14. Ne regoivent-elles pas de visites particuUeres ?
15. Ne travaillent-elles pas pour elles?
1 6. Parlent-eUes durement ou grossiercment anx enfants ?
17. Mangent-eUes dans les saUes des aUments qui ont de I'odeur?
18. Repnndent-elles avec politesse aux Inspectrices et aux visiteurs?
19. SurveiUent-elles les enfants lorsqu'ils sont aux lieux d'aisances ?
20. Ne laissent-elles pas trainer des epingles a terre ou sur les ber-
ceaux ?
21. Les enfixnts sont-ils bien propres ?
22. La surveillante est-elle a son poste?
23. La lingerie est-elle en ordre ?
24. Les registres sont-ils bien tenus?
25. Les meres sont-elles contentes des soins que la Creche donne k leur'
enfants ?

5. Are there any clothes left hanging up on the wall !
6. Are the children's n.ipkins drying around tne stoves ?
7. Are tbe beds clean ?
8. Are tbe straw mats wet ?
9. Is the kitchen clean ?
10. Are the broths well made ?
11. Are the nurses neat and clean in tbeir persons ?
1 2. Are they all at their posts ?
13. Do they attend carefully to the children?
14. Do they not receive private visits ?
15, Do they not work for themselves?
16. Do they speak harshly or coarsely to the children ?
17. Do they in the rooms eat any food witb a strong smell ?
18, Do they answer with politeness the lady patronesses and visiters?
19. Do they watch the children when they are on their chairs?
20. Do they not drop pins on the floor or on the cradles ?
21. Are the cliildren perfectly clean ?
22. Is the Superintendent at her post ?
23, Is the linen in good order ?
24, Are the registers carefully kept ?
25, Are the mothers satisfied -with the care and attention bestowed on
their cbildren at the Creche ?

aiR A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.

INSTITUTION NATIONALE DES SOURDS-MUETS.*
This charitable institution (situated in the Rue de St, Jacques),
for the reception of deaf and dumb children, from eight to
fifteen years of age, whose parents have not the means of edu
cating them, is open to public inspection on Mondays, Wednes
days, and Fridays, from three to five o'clock, and accordingly,
on calling on the latter day at the hour appointed, I was po
litely received, and cheerfully conducted by one of its princi
pal superintendents into a sort of garden, in which I found,
under the charge of the " surveillant en chef," himself deaf
and dumb, 116 fine, healthy-looking deaf and dumb boys,
dressed in blouses, amusing themselves at gymnastic exer
cises, at bowls, and at a Frenchified descriptiou of leapfrog,
A happier, ruddier, and more joyous set of countenances I
have seldom beheld, and I was returning to several of them a
small portion of the smile or grin with which they had greeted
me, when all of a sudden a drum beat, on which, just as if
they had heard its roll, they all instantly desisted from their
games, fell into line, and by beat of drum, with whioh their
feet kept perfect time, they marched away, following the drum
mer-boy, who was also deaf and dumb.
" They cannot be perfeotly deaf," I said, " if they hear that
drum ?"
In reply my guide informed me its roll had no effect on
their ears, but created an immediate vibration in their chests,
which, although in describing it he had put his hand thereon,
he termed " dans I'estomac, "
As we were following the young soldiers, " Where are the
sixty little girls ?" said I.
Stopping shortly, he replied, very gravely, " Visitors are
never allowed to see them,"
" Why ?" I asked.
" Monsieur." he replied, '' parce qu'elles ont des yeux. Elles
* National Institution for the Deaf and Dumb.

INSTITUriOX y.-iTIONALE DES SOURDS-MUETS. 319
ne sont pas comme des aveuglss, II n'y a que les pretres qui
peuvent y entrer !"*
On entering the Salle des Exercices, whioh I found full of
empty benches, and in which I was introduced to an exceed
ingly intelligent-looking deaf and dumb professor, wearing a
long black beard, I was shown a fine picture of the 'original
founder of the establishment, the Abbe de I'Epee, embracing
the young deaf and durab Count de Toulouse, whom he had
educated. There was, moreover, a bust of the founder, as also
one of the Abbe de Sicard, who, on the death of the Abbe de
I'Epee, in 1796, undertook the management of the establish
ment, which, during the revolution of 1789, had been trans
ferred from a convent of Celestines to the buildings of the
Seminaire de St, Magloire, where it now exists.
After proceediug along a passage, my guide opened the
door of a large room, whioh I found nearly full of the boys I
had found playing, now as busily engaged in tailoring, uuder
a person for whose benefit, in return for his instruction, they
were sewing and stitching with great alacrity.
On my asking this professor of the needle and shears whe
ther his pupils understood him when he spoke to them, he
good-humouredly replied, " We have no occasion for many
words ; they see by my eyes if I am not satisfied," I next en
tered a room in whioh about twenty boys were engaged in
lithography, the details of which they executed very credit
ably. Several of their drawings on paper, afterwards to be
transferred to stone, were very beautiful, and, while they were
thus engaged, others at the end of the room were working the
lithograthio presses.
In the next room we entered I found seated on stools,
hammering, grinning, laughing, and altogether looking as
merry as grigs, twenty-two young shoemakers, among whom I
recognised the drummer. To this boy, while the professor
was gravely explaining to me his own duties, I made a slight
military movement witb my wrists and elbows, at which he in
stantly grinned, and the boys all — for all had watched me from
the moment I had entered — grinned too ; the professor smiled,
my guide smiled, and I left them happy and hammering, as I
had found thera, to enter a room in which, under a deaf and
* Sir, because they have eyes. They are not like the blind. No
persons but priests are allowed to go to them.

320 -i FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS,
dumb instructor, I found a number of boys employed in
turning. In the drawing room are eight double benches, on which
successively every boy in the establishment takes his seat, for,
although in other studies they are allowed to a certain degree
to follow the bias of their own inclinations, yet all are taught
to draw, for the purpose of enabling them with facility to de
lineate the signs and the alphabet by whioh they are enabled
mutually to communicate their ideas to each other. The dis
position of their time is as follows : — throughout the year they
rise at five, in order at half-past to be at their studies, at
which they remain till seven, when they breakfast, and at half-
past seven enter the various workshops, in which they continue
till ten, when they are taught reading, writing, arithmetic,
geography, and history till twelve.
Frora noon until half-past they have their dinner, or, as
my guide called it, their "grand dejeiine."* They then play
for half an hour till one, when they go, on alternate days, to
writing for an hour, till two. They are employed in reading,
&c., till four, when they have half an hour allowed them for a
"pettt repas "t and play. From half -past four, for two h ars
and a half, they are again in the workshops, and from half-
past six at study till half-past seven, when they go to supper ;
after whioh they are again allowed recreation till half-past
eight, when they all go to bed.
In a long room supported in the middle by a set of plain
stone columns, lighted by windows on each side, also at both
ends, and with a floor of oak, waxed, polished, and as slippery
as glass, I found sixty plain iron bedsteads, each of which, be
sides comfortable bedding, had an exceedingly clean counter
pane. At the foot of every bed was suspended the name of
its temporary tenant, and between each bedstead a small "ta
ble de nuit" At one end of this airy hall there stood a large,
luxurious bed, in which, blinded by curtains, and deaf and
dumb, reposes and snores the " Surveillant :";{: at the other
end, in a smaller bed, lies, curtainless, the " Garcon de Salle."§
Between the two, on little iron pedestals, I observed, stand
ing erect, six glass tumbers, half full of oil, to give a feeble
light at night. The lofty windows on both sides, as also at
* Great breakfast. \ Slight refreshment.
:j: The superintendent § The hall servant

INSTITUTION NATIONALE DES SOURDS-MUETS. 321
each end, were wide open, and at each end of the hall was a
large orifice in brass for the admission of hot air in winter.
Adjoining to this healthy, well-ventilated dormitory, I
found an admirable long washing-room, containing along its
two sides a leaden trough, above which protruded from the
wall sixty water-cocks, and above them a pole, on which hung,
touching each other, sixty towels. In the corner was a large
tap, which on being turned by my guide, there instantly rushed
very violently from each of the sixty smaller ones, along the
walls of the room, a little stream, by which arrangement every
boy enjoys exclusively his place, towel, stream, and, moreover,
his proportion of that commonwealth the public trough. In
the middle of the room was a long table, or dresser, beneath
which in pigeon-hole shelves were their dressing-boxes.
On entering the chapel, I saw above a plain homely altar
— surrounded by rails, and on which there were only six can
dles — a fine and appropriate picture of Jesus Christ giving
words to the dumb and hearing to the deaf There was also
an affecting picture, drawn by Peyson, a deaf and dumb artist,
of the demise of the good Abbe de I'Epee, around whose
death-bed there appear the Abbe Sicard, and a young man,
Antoine Dubois, now ninety-four years of age, who was a pupil
ofthe Abbe de I'Epee, under whose will he continues to enjoy
the benefits of the institution.
In thc middle of the chapel there stood in rows twenty oak
benches for the boys, and above them a gallery for the girls
scientifically arranged, so as to allow them to see the altar
without being able to look at the boys. The service is con
ducted in the ordinary manner, — that is to say, the priest,
sometimes facing his deaf and dumb congregation, and some
times turning his back upon them, chants and sings to them
just as if they all heard him.
Although, in an establishment open to the public three
days a week, visiters are, as I have stated, not allowed to in
trude into lhe department allotted to the girls, and although
every judicious precaution seems to be taken to shield the
whole of the young inmates from evil, all are very properly
allowed to go to their parents whenever they may apply for
them ; moreover, on Thursdays and Saturdays they are taken
out to enjoy a walk through the gay noisy streets of Paris.
which to their senses must appear as silent as the grave,
14*

322 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
From the chapel I was conducted into tbe cleanest and
most airy dining-room that can possibly be conceived. On
eaoh side of this hall, the floor of whicb was flagged very
neatly in squares placed diagonally, were a series of lofty
windows, most of them wide open, and in the middle three
long tables of conglomerated red and yellow marble, beneath
which, on a narrow wooden shelf, were arranged the napkin
and silver mug of each boy ; besides which, I observed, lying
close to one of the common benches which surrounded these
three tables, a very large basket brim-full of silver spoons and
silver four-pronged forks, marked with the letters " S, and M,"
— a just satire, I whispered to myself, on the inconsistency of
feeding with plate deaf and dumb boys, whose certificate for
admission into the establishment must be "utter destitution!"
At each end of the hall are arranged crossways three tables in
a row for the masters and professors — all deaf and dumb,
I was now conducted into the open air to a sanded prome
nade or terrace for the boys, broad enough and handsome
enough for a palace, overlooking a large walled well-stocked
kitchen-garden, full of fruit, at which they are permitted only
to look. From the end of this terrace was a flight of steps
descending into a large space shaded by trees, the playground
and gymnasium in which I had found the boys.
Prom the dining-room I secretly prophesied that I should
be — and I was — conducted into the kitchen, which, in keeping
with the rest of the establishment, was light and airy. In it,
as is usual in all the public establishments of Paris, I found
the application of heat so scientifically arranged, that within
one hot plate, only eight feet in length by five in breadth, the
smoke of which was carried down below, the whole diurual
cookery for governor, professors, boys, girls, and servants was
easily performed.
In this well-arranged charity, the deaf and dumb inmates
of both sexes are instructed by means of two different lan
guages, namely, by alphabet, and by what is significantly
termed " signes mimiques."* In their various studies, where
accuracy of expression is required, the former only is permit
ted : for the purposes of rapid conversation the latter is not
only taught, but is generally used. The one slowly but surely
reaches its point, while the other dashes towards it with a ge
nius and impetuosity which are highly interesting to witness,
* Mimic signs.

INSTITUTION NATIONALE DES SOURDS-MUETS. 323
For instance, as I was descending a winding staircase,
conversing with my guide, I observed a fine healthy merry
boy rapidly but inquisitively, as he passed us, touch with the
fore-finger of his right hand his eyes and mouth. It was to
ask if the chief superintendent (he who sees all and talks all)
was ooming. Another boy, in running fast by us, interroga
tively made with his right hand two slight undulating motions.
I asked my guide what that meant
" He asked me," he replied, " whether you were not a for
eigner (' d'outre-mer'),* which he represented by figuring with
his hand the waves of the sea. You might have perceived as
I was talking to you I repeated his ' signe mimique,' by which
I informed him that you -were ' d'outre-mer' "
In taking leave of this interesting establishraent, I stood
for a few moments in the entrance square to look at an object
of great curiosity, — an enormous elra (orme), 246 years of age
and 90 feet in height, which had been planted by Sully, minis
ter of Henry IV. For about fifty feet its tall straight stem
has, in accordance with the fashion of the day, been lopped,
but the remaining forty feet of branches, the bark, and fabric,
show no signs of age : indeed, it is considered to be the finest
tree in the neighbourhood of Paris.
On re-entering the Rue de St, Jacques, I met a procession
of children, from three to five years of age, preceding a crooked,
withered woman, who from old age was apparently able to
hobble on just about as fast as they had learned to walk.
One little fellow, without a hat, and with black shaggy hair,
had on the bosora of his frock a snip of scarlet riband, from
which dangled an eight-pointed cross of sorae sort, the ancient
order of sugar-plums, I suppose. As I was looking at them,
we were overtaken by a line of schoolboys, dressed, as is usual
in Paris, in tight blue coats edged with red, with a jiggamaree
ornament embroidered on their collars. All this is well
enough ; but when I refiected that a boy's stomach is the en
gine that is to propel hira to advancement in the army, navy,
law, chnrch, — in fact, in every profession of life, — I could not
but lament the foolish French practice of allowing the rising
generation to pinch in their waists with black patent leather
belts, which must surely not only impede the circulation of
their young blood, but seriously interfere with the healthy
* From beyond the sea.

324 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
digestion of their food ; and, as all the schoolboys in Paris are
thus waspified, the distinction, after all, is nil !

ROULAGE.
I had rumbled along for a considerable time in an omnibus,
wben tbe conductor — dressed as usual in a blue coat, em
broidered silver collar, blue trowsers, with black leather imi
tation boots, silver plaquet, and a variety of little silver
chains dangling across his breast — pulling his string to stop
the carriage, made a signal to me to get out, and, as soon as
I had obeyed him, pointing to a small office, the carriage
drove off.
On entering it I found no one but its superintendent, who
in exchauge for my ticket gave me another, and he had hard
ly done so when several people, one after another, came in to
wait for the same 'bus I was waiting for. On its arrival it
was raining hard, and, although I was pressed for time, I felt
that, as those who were in the room were principally ladies,
it was hopeless for me to expect to get away, especially as the
carriage, excepting one place, was full, and therefore, while
most of the expectants walked towards it, I remained in the
office. All of a sudden, however, I heard the superintendent
call out " Numi'ro 1," and, as that was my number, I emerged
from my den, ascended the step, and had scarcely filled the
vacant place when the vehicle drove on. leaving all the ladies
in the street, and the carriage being now full, the conductor
affixed to it, over his head, a board on whioh was inscribed
the word " complet," a signal to lusty ladies and gentlemen
not, as in England, uselessly to run after it.
On sitting down, without looking at anybody, but, on the
contrary, fixing my eyes on that part of the woodwork of the
roof immediately before my eyes, I, with the forefinger of my
right hand, slightly touched the brim of my hat. The effect
it produced was that which I had repeatedly observed. The
people of Paris, though they are too polite to appear
even to notice it, are constantly offended by the devil-may-

ROULAGE. 325
care way in whicb an Englishman, pulling his hat over his
eyes, takes his place in a public conveyance ; whereas, if he
will perform but the slight homage to their presence I havc
described, he will perceive by a variety of little movements
that his desire has not only been understood, but appreciated.
By performing this small magic ceremony, I observed that
the 'busful of people were anxious to befriend me in any way,
and although it is not the custom in France to talk in an om
nibus, yet even that rule was broken in my favour ; indeed,
I had scarcely seated myself when a young Frenchman oppo
site to me spoke to me in English ; and, as I wished in return
to please him, I told him, in reply to his query, that I under
stood him perfectly, and, to reward him still more, I repeat
ed it in Frenoh, that everybody in the 'bus — they were all
listening — might hear it. With satisfaction that could scarcely
conceal his humility, he told me could read English quite
as well as Frenoh : " Boat," said he, pronounoing every sylla
ble very slowly, " eye arm vairi opaque een spaking de Aing-
leesh," I told him that, on the contrary, he expressed himself
very transparently.
In a Paris 'bus it is, very properly, deeraed unpolite to
encumber fellow-passengers, especially ladies, with help ; and
as the carriage has been made broad enough for its purpose,
and as to the roof are affixed two brass hand-rails, people
enter and exeunt without touching or being touched by
any one.
One of the raost pleasing of the doraestic habits of the
French 'bus is, that it is left to everybody's honour to pay his
fare. As people keep thronging in, they sit down, and, al
most on purpose, look as if they were thinking of anything
but money ; the conducteur also looks anywhere but towards
them ; however, in due time, they are observed to fumble in
their pockets or in their reticules, and at last out comes the
six sous, which, handed from one to another — from a priest to
a peasant, and from an officer to a Sister of Charity — at last
reaches him whose duty it is to pay to his employers the
number of fares denoted by the finger of the tell-tale clock,
which, as I have before stated, is required to toll " one" on
the entrance of every passenger whose age exceeds four years.
Statesmen, warriors, and divines who have not attained that
period of life enjoy the privilege of travelling free.

326 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
There arc in Paris thirty-five establishments, " message
ries," for the transport by " roulage" of 'heavy goods. The
largest in tbe Rue de Chabronne, I had intended to visit ; but
as, after leaving my 'bus, I was walking through the Rue de
Quatre Fils, bappen'ing to see on my left, through a great
porte-cochere, one of tbese establishments, on the spur of the
moment I reeled into it.
Under a large shed, covered with packages of all sorts, I
found only one crane in a space in which, in London, there
would have been seen half a dozen, lifting and dry-nursing all
descriptions of goods. The consequence was, that a vast
amount of unnecessary labour, set to musie by a deal of un
necessary talking, was being expended in hauling at, and ar
guing with, heavy packages, hanging in the air, that might
have been made to fly in silence to the carts that were wait
ing to receive tbem.
There was, however, one feat which in Paris I constantly
admired, and which might be introduced into England with
great advantage — namely, the mode of packing an enormous
araount of weight and bulk on a vehicle of two high wheels,
which not only pass easier, but only once, over every obstacle
in the road which the low wheels of waggons have twice to
encounter and surmount.
Behind and beneath the warehouse, in rear of the plat
form, I found a number of stables, very fairly ventilated, for
the horses of the establishment.
As I was returning home through the Rue de Grenelle
St, Germain, I observed, a few feet from the outside of the
second story of the line of houses on the south side, fourteen
wires of the electric telegraph, along whioh intelligence of
every possible description was flying at the rate of 280,000
miles per second. " What a contrast," said I to myself, " to
the one-horse carts I have just been admiring !"

EOSPICE DES FEMMES INCURABLES. 327

HOSPICE DES FEMMES INCURABLES.
On arriving at No 42, Rue de Sevres, I saw on my left the
vast establishment I had come to visit, namely, the hospital
for poor, old, indigent, incurable woinen.
As it is open to the public every day from one to four,
aud as the great portal of entrance happened to be unclosed,
instead of addressing myself to the concierge, or even looking
towards his windows, I walked quickly by them into a large,
square, open court, in whioh I found myself surrounded on all
sides by the buildings ofthe charity.
Immediately before me stood a church, erected expressly
and exclusively for the pauper inmates of the institution. On
entering it I was surprised to find it exceedingly handsome
and highly ornamented. Before a sniall side altar, on her
knees, motionless as a statue, was a Soeur de la Charite,
whose attitude and devotion I could not but respect.
At the great altar appeared a workman, dressed in a
blouse, with a ladder, and a Soeur de la Charite assisting him
to hang up some roses, gilt festoons, &c. Sometimes the
soeur mounted to the very tip-top of the ladder, which was
nearly fourteen feet high, to fix some rectangular pieoes of
crimson velvet, about four feet long by eighteen inches broad,
trimmed with gold lace and gold bullion, and containing in
the middle a device beautifully erabroidered. Then the
workman ascended with his arms full of wreaths of artificial
roses with large gold leaves ; then they hung up some bunches
of grapes in gold, and then some in silver.
At this single altar, in four handsome lustres and in two
gilt candelabras, I counted eighty-two wax candles, besides
eight more, each about eight feet high. There were also can
dles at the two small altars, especially at that at which the
smur was kneeling. The windows in rear were covered with
figures in stained glass. In front of the great altar, which
the workman and the Soeur de la Charite were adorning,
were endless rows of rush-bottomed chairs, on several of which

328 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
reposed cushions, so roughly made out of such coarse mate
rials, of so many conflicting colours, that it was evident they
had been created only to be soft, A couple of these homely
seats were occupied by two poor incurables, who, with the
sceurs, the workman, and myself, were the only persons present
in the church.
On coming out into tbe court of entrance, I saw above my
head the largest dial I have ever beheld. The minute-hand
was dreadfully infirm, and, like an old, poor, incurable wo
man, who was traversing beneath, it kept tottering as it went.
I asked a man belonging to the establishment, who stood
evidently longing to talk to me, why they were decorating
the great altar of the church ?
" Ah !" he replied, with a shrug, " c'est pour une petite
ceremonie !"* After a short pause up came and out came
what, ever since I entered, had been lying uppermost in my
mind, namely —
" Whether Monsieur would approve of his taking him over
the establishment?"
I told him he was exactly the person I wanted, and pleas
ed with the compliment, and still more so with the fact, with
out further ratification of our treaty he led me off with that
sort of indescribable triumph with which an expert angler
plays with a salmon he has hooked, to the refectory of Notre
Dame, a large, long, brick-floored hall, full of windows. The
floor was paved with octagonal red glazed bricks, and along
its whole length were two narrow green dining-tables, studded
on each side with rush-bottomed chairs. The number of in
curables that can dine in this room is 206,
In his eagerness to take me into the eating-room — whioh
I observed in the various charities of Paris is usually looked
upon by the servants as the point of primary importance —
my conductor neglected to conduct me through the mazes of
the establishment he had proposed to show me according to
any flxed plan, I am, therefore, only able to describe what
I saw in the order in which he was pleased to show it to
me. The flrst infirmary we entered was more than 200 feet
long ; it contained two rows of nice clean-looking beds with
white curtains, and at different distances in the fore-ground,
* Ah I it is for a little ceremony !

//

HOSPICE DES FEMMES INCURABLES. 329
in the middle, and in tbe back-ground of the picture, I ob
served, circulating among the beds, several sisters of cbarity,
strong, good-looking women, with great benevolence of man
ner, and, generally speaking, with very pleasing counte
nances. As, following my conductor, I was walking slowly through
this long ward, from the third bed I heard a little cough, and,
looking towards it, I saw, considerably raised on three pillows
(all the .beds have this number), a fine-looking old woman,
with an arched nose, bright eyes, and with a brilliant-coloured
handkerchief wound round her head. Then I passed an old
woman taking from the Soeur de la Charite a glass full of
what every feature in her face declared to be exoeedingly
nasty physic. In the next bed another was reading a prayer-
book, 'Then I passed one sitting almost upright, with a buff
handkerchief fantastically twisted round her head, and with
a pair of spectacles pinching her nose — as school-boys say —
" for fun," for she was doing nothing. Then one seated on a
chair at her bedside, with her right foot resting on a cushion.
In the middle of this long room I found against the wall
a nice, plain, white statue of the Virgin and Child, a few flow
ers, a little "sacristie," two small, white plaster angels, and a
couple of candles. Beyond them a poor woman lay in her
bed fast asleep ; in a chair by her bedside, there sat another
knitting. We next entered a long room paved with octagonal bricks,
with windows not only at both sides but also at both ends.
It was as light as the open air, and although it contained
twenty beds, half of which were occupied, and although it was
an exceedingly cold day, I observed with much astonishment
that ten of the windows were wide open from top to bottom.
On inquiring I was informed that it was because they had
just been cleaning the room. As I was proceeding through
it I saw, lying on a small table on my right, a large quarto
book, bound in purple leather, with a cross in gold stamped
on the top of it. Hoping — and, indeed, believing that it was
tbe Bible, I tried to turn over the leaves, instead of which I
opened the lid of a writing-desk. In one of the beds I ob
served a poor old woman, very ill, indeed, intently reading a
letter. In a room for convalescents, containing eight beds, I found

330 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
all sitting up except one, bitterly sobbing about something.
In the adjoining room, containing four beds, were two old
¦women. In the upper story of this compartment of the build
ing were nine beds, exceedingly clean, airy, and all empty.
Their owners, seated at a table at work, were thin, but healthy.
In another room I found, sewing, nine old women, in very
clean white caps, around which several bad twisted bright
scarlet handkerchiefs, exactly in the fashion which had flour
ished at Paris in 1815.
In a long, rectangular room, containing windows on all
four sides, and twenty-six beds, were a variety of aged women,
who, fixing their bright, hazel eyes upon me, often bowed
feebly to me as I passed ; and in a garret above I counted
eighteen beds as clean as the rest.
As I looked up at the clear blue sky through the window
at the summit of the building, I was not a little pleased to
think I had got to the end of my job ; indeed, I fancied I
must have seen nearly all the incurable old women of this
world. My attendant, however, led me down stairs, and then
along a passage, until, opening a door, I found myself in a new
creation, called " La Salle des Grands Rideanx," composed
of four long rooms, or galleries, radiating at right angles from
one central point, at which, as soon as I reached it, I found a
nice-looking altar, with pots of real flowers before it. For
some minutes I stood at this point, admiring the perspective
of the four great roads, full of clean beds, which diverged from
me towards the east, west, north and south. The picture was,
indeed, most interesting ; but as I found it quite impossible
to count or even to guess at the number of beds in any one of
the four galleries, I inquired of my attendant how many there
were ?
" Ma soeur Anne !" he said gently to a Sister of Charity
who happened to be passing at the moment, " ce monsieur
voudrait bien compter combien ily a de lits en tout?"*
The good sister, addressing me with great kindness, said
she would most readily give me whatever information I desir
ed. Pointing to the names of each of the rooms which I had
* Sister Anne ! the gentleman wishes to know how many beds there
ore iu all.

EOSPICE DES FEMMES INCURABLES. 33 1
not before observed were written on the walls of each, exactly
in the position and in the manner in which the streets of Paris
are designated, she informed me that the number of beds in
each of the four halls was as follows : —
In Ste. JuUe,  26 beds.
Ste. Ludevine,  22 "
Ste. Therese  22 "
Ste. Catherine  22 "
Total, ... 92

B

'A Altar.
B Stove.

I may here observe that every chamber and dining room
in the establishment is called after some saint, whose name is
inscribed over the entrance-door.
In eaoh of these four halls a number of old woraen were
strolling about ; several hobbling together arm in arm. On
one of the beds I observed as I passed it a counterpane of
beautiful patchwork. At the head of raany was affixed, about
a yard over the pillow, a statue of our Saviour on the cross.
In others, at about the same place, were little altars, fitted up
with great taste.
On proceeding to the first floor of another compartment of
the building, I was conducted into the " grand infirmary," com
posed of four long halls, at right angles, exactly like those
just described, excepting that they were occupied by themost
infirm of the old women
" Ma .soeur Therese !" excliamed my attendant, of his own
accord, " combien y a-t-il de lits dans les quatre apparte
ments?"* The sister carefully counted all her fingers — put
* Sister Therese! how many beds are there in these four apartments?

332 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
one of them to her lips — tben, turning her head a little aside,
reflected — then looked up one ward — then up another — then
reflected again — at last she kindly told me there were in all
131. In this ward I saw a great number of the " Sceurs de la
Charite," benevolently employed in nursing, waiting-upon, and
watching over poor fellow-creatures, to whose expiring wants
they were so devotedly attentive, that I passed almost all
without their being even aware of the presence of a stranger
in the room. On several pillows I beheld faces sometimes
pale as death, sometimes fearfully flushed as if the spark of
life was making one last convulsive effort to shine before it be
came extinct for ever I In one bed I heard a poor creature
breathing very hard ; iramediately over her head was the faoe
of a soeur of whom I could see nothing but her black bent
back. I had now as I thought finished , my mournful job, and I
would willingly have ruminated for a few moments on what I
had beheld, but my relentless conductor led me to the ground
floor, into another set of four'long halls, of the same shape and
dimensions. Instead, however, of forming open roads, eaoh
hall, leaving a narrow passage in common, was parcelled off
into little compartments, giving to eaoh of ninety-two old wo
men a tiny room, in which she could end her days with the in
estimable enjoyment ofa dulce domum. Accordingly, peeping
out of one of the rooms, I beheld with great satisfaction, glar
ing at me, the yellow, oblong eyes of a tabby cat, the only one
I had seen in the establishment,
" We have now finished ?" said I to my conductor
" No," he replied, with great unkindness ; " there exists in
the story above us another set of four halls, divided into rooms
similar to those.before us."
" Bless me ! !" said I to myself, " all the incurable old
women in creation must surely be here !" However, I did not
like to give up, so, resolutely sighing out the word " Allons I"
I followed him up stairs, where I found exactly what he had
described, and nothing more.
In descending into the great court, — the excessive fresh
ness and freedom ofwhich I perceived Ihad before completely
neglected to appreciate, — after passing the church, we entered
a lofty sacristy, lighted by seven windows, full of altar orna-

HOSPICE DES FEMMES INCURABLES. 333
ments packed in milliners' long pasteboard boxes. From them
we went into the kitchen, as usual coraposed of one hot plate,
containing six boilers, surrounded on all sides with shining,
healthy-faced copper saucepans. From them we proceeded to
sorae shady walks in two gardens, to which it was evident very
little attention had been paid, but the inmates were no doubt
too old to enjoy them.
My conductor, who, like an evil companion, kept on lead
ing me I knew not where, now brought me to a door on which
was inscribed " Lingerie Generale,"* composed of six long
chambers running into each other, full of shelves up to the ceil
ing, filled with strata of coarse linen, whioh looked and smelt
beautifully olean and fresh. The waxed floor was not only as
slippery as ice, but as clean as the sheets, pillow-cases, and
towels ranged above it ; indeed, I quite fell in love with the
nice toothless old soeur who had oharge of the establishment,
, aud whom I perceived gliding or rather skating along the
floor, on two pieoes of quilted green baize, cut rather bigger
thau her shoes. On her kindly proposing to show me the
contents of her shelves, seeing there was on the floor a spare
pair of these baizes, I stepped upon them.
" Oh ! ne vous donnez pas la peine. Monsieur !"t I an
swered I would not dirty her floor for the whole world. So
we glided aud slided together, thinking of and talking about
nothing but linen, until we came to the sixth room, at the end
of which I saw, sitting remarkably still on a very low chair, a
little Sister of Charity that appeared to be scarcely three feet
high. On walking up to her, I found her to be a doll, Her
cap and white stomacher, most beautifully worked, formed a
striking contrast with her course black gown, and with three
black crosses suspended from her neck. In her right hand
was a prayer-book, and on her lap a little empty green boat.
Pointing to it — for I did not know how to call it — I asked the
good sceur what it was for. To my great satisfaction she an
swered, " Pour les pauvres. !"j:
She then led me into a small room called " le Pliage," in
which I found, busily occupied iu arranging and folding clean
linen, three work-women in ordinary clothes and frilled caps,
* Linen Departraent.
f Oh ! do uot give yourself the trouble. Sir.
X For the poor 1

334 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
and two Sisters of Charity, one of whom, a tall, slight, elegant
looking, very ^oung person, appeared to me to be transcend
ently beautiful. My eyes, however, through life have so re
peatedly deceived rae ; I have so often on quitting the desert
regions fancied every gnarled tree and patch of stunted pas
ture I beheld to be " transcendently beautiful ;" that, having
for nearly two hours gazed very attentively upon nothing but
incurable old woraen .of every possible description, I think it
more than possible my erring vision, on suddenly beholding a
young woman, altogether over-estimated the intrinsic value of
her appearance ; and accordingly that her " transcendent
beauty" might correctly be denominated mere fancy.
" Tutto il bello che voi avete
E un' idea che in noi si fa !"
My conductor, with a signiflcant bow which seemed in some
way or other to be indescribably connected, although very dis
tantly, with my pocket and his own, now informed me " I had
seen all," There immediately flashed across my memory the
following lines : — " As I was going to St. Ives,
I met seven wives ;
Each wife had seven sacks ;
Each sack had seven cats ;
Each cat had seven kits.
Kits, cats, sacks, and wives —
How many were there going to St. Ives?"
" How many incurable old women have I seen ?" said I to
him, " He could not," he replied, " tell me exactly, but I could
easily inform myself at the bureau ;" so, after settling accounts
with my friend, whose hand had scaroely left mine when he
vanished I hardly know where, I walked into the office, where I
was very obligingly informed that the number of aged inmates
in the various buildings I had visited was 595 ; that on an
average about 60 die off per annum; that there are, as as
sistants in the establishment, 36 Soeurs de la Charity and 18
"gardens" Of the former I feel it impossible to speak too
highly During my short residence in Paris, into whatever
abode of poverty and misery I entered, whether for helpless

HOSPICE BES FEMMES INCURABLES. 335
infancy, for those Buffering under sickness, or from imbecile
old age, there I found them intently oocupied in doing good to
their fellow-creatures. To say that all cannot be perfect is but
to repeat the threadbare axiom of human nature. I deem it,
however, only just to these good people to say that, in reply to
several inquiries I made respecting them, of persons who I
well know would willingly have scoffed at the bigh principles
whioh guided the earthly career of these Sisters of Charity, I
was invariably informed that the breath of slander, even in
Paris, has not ventured to impeach the purity of their conduct.
If this be- true they are indeed objects of admiration and
respect As my watch told me I should just have time enough to
visit the Artesian well nearly a mile off, I was walking towards
it about as fast as I oould, when I suddenly stopped for a few
seconds at the corner of la Rue Mayet, spell-bound by a picture,
superscribed by the name of " M™"- Perez," and subscribed by
the appellation, " Sage Femme."*
On attentively studying this painting, it appeared to be as
follows : — On rather a handsome chair was seated a lady
dressed in a cap, with flowers for each cheek, and in a blile
gown, the body of which half thrown aside disclosed the lady's
bare neck and arms, from one of whioh, in a most beautiful
arch, there was, into a quart basin beneath, flowing a streara of
blood, from whioh a maid on her knees, in order to hold the
basin, was averting her eyes and face. During the whole of
this operation the arm of the lady in the cap and flowers and
blue gown was firmly grasped by " M'"'=- Perez," the " Sage
Femine," a tall and exceedingly fashionable-looking young
lady, dressed in a black gown, without any cap, and with long
curls. The " wisdom" of the woman, the resignation of the
lady, and the modesty of the maid, mixed all up together,
formed as interesting a subject as poet could imagine, or as
artist could desire to execute. * Midwife.

336 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.

THE ARTESIAN WELL. ,
In driving through the gay, beautiful streets, squares and
boulevards of Paris, a stranger has every reason to believe
that the capital he is admiring is singularly endowed from the
laboratory of Nature not only with the purest description of
air, but a superabundant supply of water, which from upwards of
a hundred different fountains is to be seen, like fireworks of
various names, furiously rushing, rising, streaming upwards,
breaking, and then, in myriads of small particles, slowly de
scending in prismatic radiance to the earth frora whence they
sprang. Nevertheless, notwithstanding this magnificent out
ward demonstration, Paris is very poorly supplied with water ;
indeed, while the fountains of the city are gambolling, dancing,
and revelling in the way I have described, lean horses and
jaded donkeys, with drooping heads, are drawing carts full of
this simple necessary of life, amounting in cost to four million
francs per annum, A considerable number of houses, from
top to bottora. are supplied with water from large barrels on
wheels, which no sooner arrive at their doors than the donkey-
driver going to the rear, is seen to pull out a plug, from which
there instantly flows into a bright tin pail, which but a moment
before he had placed at a considerable distance off, a stream of
water that looks exactly like a very long serai-parabola of
glass. As soon as one pail is full, with scarcely the loss of a
drop it is replaced by another, and when that is filled and the
plug stopped, both, suspended, fore and aft, across one shoulder
on a short stick, are carried across the foot pavement, and up
stairs to their destination, often the highest story of the house.
With this uncomfortable fact sticking fast in the gizzard of my
mind, I own I never passed a fountain in Paris without com
paring it to the immense ring which, in certain countries so
often glitters on a very dirty forefinger, or to the flashy waist
coat and gaudy stock which are in every region occasionally to
be seen blooming together over a rumpled shirt.
" Verily,
I swear 'tis better to be lowly bom.
And range with humble livers in content.
Than to be perk'd up in a glistering grie^
And wear a golden sorrow."

'THE ARTESIAN WELL, 337
As thc rocky strata on which Paris stands are to a great
depth barren of springs, immense sums have at different periods
been expended in bringing water to the city.
In 1613 Louis Xltl, laid the flrst stono of a magniflcent
aqueduct, 18,-200 yards long, from Arcueil to the Chateau d'Eau,
near the Observatoire, and whioh crosses the valley of Arcueil
upon 25 arches, 72 feet high ; this aqueduct was repaired in 1777,
since whioh period the municipal authorities of Paris, at a con
siderable cost, have enabled it to supply the city with 36,000
hogsheads per day.
From the Canal de I'Ourcq, 24 leagues in length, and which
cost 2.j,000.000 francs, about 260,820 cubic metres of water
per day are consumed for the purposes of the navigation, for
the lockage of the two canals St Denis and St Martin, and for
the supply of the public fountains, markets, and houses of the
capital. In 1809 an immense reservoir, 740 yards long by 77
broad. called the ¦¦ Bassin de la Villette," was constructed outside
the Barriere de Pantin to receive the water from the northern
extremity ofthe Canal de I'Oureq. From this reservoir there
is an aqueduct 10.300 yards in length, called I'Aqueduc de
Ceinture, whioh, bounding Paris on the north, supplies by five
branches — 1. The Chateau d'Eau, Boulevart St, Martin, la
Plaee des Vosges, le Marche des Innocents; 2. The Faux
bourgs Montmartre and Poissonniere. with the Palais National ;
3, The Chaussee d'Antin, the Quartier des Capucines, and the
Marche St, Honore ; 4. The Champs Elysees. the Tuileries,
the Invalides, and thc Ecole Militaire; 5, The splendid foun
tain j in the Place de la Concorde,
Prom the suburb of Belleville, built on a hill abounding
in fprings, there is conducted into two large reservoirs (one
of vrhich. situated at the Barriere de Menilmontant, receives
43fi hogsheads per day) a considerable supply of water. From
thc heights of Romainville, Bruyeres, and also from Menil
montant, flow per day into a reservoir about 648 hogsheads
of water. From the Seine pipes are also laid acrcss the plain
of St. Denis for the supply of Batignolles and Montmartre,
At the corner of the Rue St, Paul, in a building a portion of
which was formerly a royal residence, is an establishment be
longing to a company for distributing the water of the
Seine, raised by a steam-engine, and filtered through char-
co.al. There are in Paris, at Montmartre, Belleville, and
15 -

338 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
Passy, eight great reservoirs ; besides which the city has
lately voted a million of francs for the construction of a very
large one near Buo, capable of containing 1,000,000 cubic
metres of water.
Of tbe water wbicb flows into the large reservoirs enumc--
rated, a considerable portion has, under Providence, been
summoned by science to arise from a dark subterranean depth,
exceeding, by 1 00 feet, five times the height of the cross on
the summit of St. Paul's church in London I
Although I was aware that there exists in the localitj in
which this feat has been performed but little to behold, I felt
on arriving at the gate of Grenelle, that sort of satisfaction
whicb every pilgrim enjoys in reaching the shrine he haslong
desired to worship. On ringing the bell, the gate was quickly
opened by a very young lady in curls ; and on my stating I
had come — I was so tired that I must have looked as if I
had walked from Jerusalem — to see the Artesian well, she
replied, with evident satisfaction, that she would be happy to
show it to me. and accordingly, without putting on her bonnet,
or granting me the smallest opening to remonstrate, she con
ducted me, tripping by my side, to the foot of a weather-
beaten scaffolding, 1 1 2 feet high, containing a rude ladder-
staircase, and encircling three iron pipes. My first object
was to get myself quietly divorced ; and as soon as this im
portant measurse — which, after all, only cost me a few civil
words, two or three bows, and tenpence — ^was consummated,
I enjoyed for some moments reflections which, like the water
passing up the central tube before me, arose from beneath
the ground on which 1 stood.
On the first day ofthe year 1834, M. Mulct, after having
entered into the contract which eventually immortalised his
name, commenced the work that had been entrusted to him,
of endeavoring to tap the subterranean supply of water which
it had been calculated must exist about 1200 feet beneath
the dry, deep, rocky strata upon which the gay city of Paris
'has been constructed.
During the operation of piercing through successive beds
of flint and chalk, the borer several times broke, and the
fragment by dropping to the bottom of the excavation, —
deserting as it were to the enemy, — suddenly became the
most serious opponent of the power in whose service it had

THE ARTESIAN WELL. 339
been enlisted. Indeed, on the occasion of one of these acci
dents, it required, at a depth of no less than 1335 feet, four
teen months' incessant labour to recover it !
After working for rather more than seven years without
any apparent encouragement, on or about the 20th February
there was drawn up a small amount of greenish-coloured sand,
indioating that the borer was approaching water. At two
o'clock on the 26th February, 1841, there arose through the
tube a tiny thread of the element whicb had been the object
of such ardent and long-protracted hopes ; and the welcome
omen of success had scarcely diffused joy and gladness among
those who witnessed it, when, as if the trumpet of victory had
been sounded, there arose from the depth of 1800 feet a col
umn of warm water of 83J° of Fahrenheit, which, bursting
through the machinery that had called it into existence,
rushed upwards with a fury it appeared almost incapable to
control, Thc height to whioh through an iron pipe it rises above
the earth is, as has been stated, 112 feet ; and thus not only
is Paris gifted with an everlasting supply of water amount
ing, at the surface, to 660 gallons per minute, and at the sum
mit of the pipe to 3 ' 6, but the latter quantity, in virtue of
its elevation, and in obedience to the laws of hydrostatics
which it is sworn to obey, can be made to ascend to the vari
ous floors, including the uppermost, on which, one above an
other, the inhabitants of Paris reside.
The concealed tube or passage, through which, by the
magic influenoe of science, this valuable supply of water is
now constantly arising from the deep, dark caverns in which
it had been collected, into the lightsome painted chambers of
the most beautiful metropolis on the surface of the globe, has
been lined throughout with galvanised iron. Its diameter is,
at the bottom, about 7 inches, and at the tope 21 inches.
The water, when I tasted it, was not only warm, but
strongly impregnated with iron. As a dog grows savage in
proportion to the length of time it has been chained to a bar
rel, so does the temperature of imprisoned water increase with
its subterranean depth ; and accordingly it has been oalou-
lated by M. Arago and by M, Walferdin that the heat of the
water of an Artesian well whioh, previous to the revolution
of 1848, it had been proposed to bore in the Jardin des

340 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
Plantes to a depth of 3000 feet (nearly nine times the height
of the cross on the top of St, Paul's), would amouut to about
100° of Fahrenheit, sufficient not only to cheer the tropical
birds and monkeys, the hothouses and greenhouses of the
establishment, but to give warm baths to the inhabitants of
Paris. As the Artesian well of Grenelle is within tbe precincts
of the abattoir or slaughter-house for cattle of tbat name, I
felt desirous to look over it, particularly as the hour (it was
past six o'clock) was one at which it is rarely visited by
strangers. Without repeating details which, I am aware, are not very
acceptable to most people, I will briefly state for the infor
mation of the few who take an interest in the subject, that,
although the establishment is not as showy as the abattoirs
of Montmartre and of Popincourt, it is essentially the same.
On entering the several bouveries, in which there was
plenty of straw, with an abundance of cool fresh air, I found
the bullocks that next day were to be slaughtered tranquilly,
nay, happily, occupied in eating up plenty of good hay. The
sheep, most of whom were also lying down with their knees
tucked under them, appeared perfectly quiet and undisturbed ;
and although certainly a few odd strange sounds occasionally
assailed their ears, they munched, looked at me only one mo
ment, and then, with their lower jaws moving sideways —
thoughtless of to-morrow as those for whom they were to be
slaughtered — they went munching on.

HOTEL DES MONNAIES.
In ancient times the Royal Mint of France existed somewhere
imthe Royal Palace of the " He de la Cite ; it was next domiciled
in a part of the metropolis which still bears the name of " Rue
de la Monnaie ;" and was finally established on the site of the
H6tel de Conti in its present structure, the foundation stone
of whioh was laid on the 30th of April, 1768, by the Abbe

HOTEL DES MONNAIES. 341
Terray, comptroller-general of the finances, under whose di
rection it was completed in 1775,
This vast building, including no less than eight courts, is
situated on the Quai Conti, between the Pont Neuf and the
Pout des Arts, and consequently nearly opposite to the muse
um of the Louvre, Its principal faqade, which looks upon the
Seine, is composed of three stories, 360 feet in length and 78
feet in height, containing 27 windows in eaoh. In the centre
is a projectiug mass of five arcades on the ground fioor, form
ing a basement for six columns of the Ionic order, supporting
an entablature and an altar, ornaraented with festoons and six
statues. The front facing the Rue Guenegaud is 348 feet in length.
Two pavilions rise at its extreraities, and a third in the centre,
surmounted 'oy a square cupola. On the altar are to be seen
four statues, representing a " happy family," naraely, fire, air,
earth, and water.
The establishmejit of the Hotel des Monnaies is composed
— 1st, of the laboratory, workshops, and machinery of the
mint, for permission to soe whioh it is only necessary for a for
eigner to address a letter by post to the " President de la Com
mission des Monnaies ;" and 2ndly, ofa museum of coins. &c.,
open to the inhabitants of France, and to strangers, on Tues
days and Fridays, from twelve to three, besides which, on their
merely producing their passports, the museum most liberally
again opens its doors to foreigners on Mondays and Thursdays
during the same hours.
On arriving at the Hotel at a few minutes before noon, with
my passport, I found assembled there about half a dozen other
persons, each of whom I observed had dangling in his hand a
printed authority, and accordingly, as soon as twelve strokes
of tho clock announced to us all that our brother traveller the
sun had finished one half of his daily work before we had be
gun ours, and, indeed, before many people in Paris had had
their breakfast, the door of the museum was opened, and in we
all walked. In a suite of rooms, the principal one of whioh is oalle(J
the Musee Monetaire, I found admirably arranged a most in
teresting series of copper, silver, and gold coins, detailing
chronologically the principal events of the world in general,
and of France in particular. There were, also, most valuable

342 'i FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
specimens of the coins of different countries which had been
current in various ages, but at whioh the stranger now gazes
with astonishment. For instance, there was Mexican money,
composed simply of square lumps of gold, their value being
that of the weight stamped upon them ; Turkish money, of
almost pure gold ; specimens of rude money of the United
States of America ; of some money roughly staraped by Na
poleon during the siege of Cattaro, &o,, &c.
These moneys and historical coins were beautifully arrang
ed in glass cases, lying on a series of low narrow tables in
each room ; and as every apartment was brimful of light, the
study, to any one competent to appreciate it, must be highly
gratifying : for instance, in brown copper history I observed a
series of the most remarkable events, chronologically arranged
in cases as follows : —
1. From Charlemagne to 17. RepubUc.
Francis L 18. Louis XVIU.
2. Reigns of Henry IL 19. Charles X.
and Charles IX. 20. Particular Medals of
3. To Henry IIL aud Louis XVIH. and
Henry IV. Charies X.
4. To Louis XHL 2L Do. of Louis Philippe L
6. Ditto. 22. Do. (The Largest in this
6. Supplement to ditto. lot is one of Louis
7. To Louis XIV. Philippe L, Roi des
8. Suite to ditto. Francis.)
9, 10, 11, 12. Ditto. 23. Particular Medals of
13. Louis XV. Louis Philippe.
14. Ditto. 24. Ditto.
15. Louis XVI. 25. Ditto, down to case 34.
16. Louis XVI. and Re
public.
In glancing over these historical medals, as well as those
in the succeeding rooms, there were some which for a few mo
raents particularly attracted my attention ; for instance, in
Table No, 17, which concludes the history of the French Re
public, the details of which, even when represented to me in
cold copper. I found it difficult to recall to mind without one
or two involuntary shudders, I observed on the last medal of
the lot inscribed, of al' words in the dictionary of this world. —
" Innocence
Reoonnce."*
* Innocence acknowledged.

HOTEL DES MOXNilES. 343
Again, on the largest medal of the twelve tables full, com
memorative of the history of that poor exiled monarch who
died last year at Claremont, there had been inscribed by him
those fatal words, which he had vainly hoped would have raised
him to distinction, —
"Louis Phujppe I., Roi Des Feanqais."*
And yet, after having tried seventeen cabinets, and after hav
ing escaped from nine deliberate attempts upon his life, with
only five francs in his pocket he fled from the Palace of the
Tuileries ; muffled up, disguised with spectacles, and, under
the assumed name of M, Lebrun, he hurried through France ;
and with an English passport, and under the appellation of
" Mr, William Smith," he, queen, children, and grandchildren,
finally fled from " the French People" to seek protection from
the Sovereign of " Great Britain and Ireland,"
As, gazing at his features embossed on the large round me
dal, I recalled to mind his miserable career, I oould not help
saying to myself, '¦ Oh, Louis Philippe, when every male in
habitant of France was nobly priding hiraself upon being a
Frenchman, how oould you, as a king, surrender your royal
title to a country, which, after you had disowned it, as if in re
tributive scorn, disowned and for ever discarded you.
In another room, full of medals commemorative of " the
Emperor,'' who. with all his faults, was twice over
" Deserted at his utmost need
By those his former bounty fed,"
tbere is inscribed on the concluding one of the series, —
"A LA FlDELITE."f
On one medal I remarked, beautifully erabossed, a portion
of the terrestrial globe, above which hung two wreathes of
laurel and the word " France." To the westward appeared the
sun shining upon the world, with the sarcastic inscription — '
" BoNHEUE AU Continent." X
* Louis PhiUppe I,, King of the French. f To FideUty.
X Happine-ss for the Continent.

344 A IiAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
In another room, " Galerie metallique des grands hommes
J^rancal.s"* was mcribed over a table, on and close to which
were two large series of beautiful medals illustrative of the
carapaigns and reign of Napoleon,
An adjoining table contained medals entitled " Suite des
Campagnes et du Regne de I'Empereur,"! Above it on the
left stood, most admirably executed, a colossal figure in white
marble of Napoleon, a strong likeness, but. as a matter of
course, purposely flattered. Beneath, on 'a plain bronze
cushion, lay uncovered the celebrated brass cast taken from
the very plaster of Paris which in a liquid state had been
poured over the pale features of Napoleon immediately after
his death ; and as there was at all events no flattery in this
representation, I gazed upon it for some time with intense
interest, forit may truly be said every portion of the counte
nance of this extraordinary man was of itself unusual The
features were so remarkably regular, that the nose, neither
leaning a hair's beadth to the right or to the left, appeared
with mathematical precision to bisect the face. The upper
lip, although it had evidently become slightly swelled after
death, was unusually short, the cheek-bones very high ; the
breadth behind the temples was also astonishing ; in short,
although the forehead was not nearly so much developed as
in the bust above it, and although a slight cast of anguish
appeared to flit over the whole countenance, I oould not
help feeling how much more striking and handsome was the
real image of his death than the much-admired marble repre
sentation of the living man.
On leaving this beautiful rauseura of coins I proceeded
to that department of the H6tel des Monnaies which eon-
tains the laboratory, workshops, and machinery of the Mint,
On entering a large rectangular room, the ceiling or
rather roof of which is composed principally of glass win
dows, through which was streaming a profusion of light, I saw
steadily labouring before me, without the smallest apparent
desire either to hurry or rest, two large sturdy steam-raachines,
of 32-horse power. At every pulsation each of these moun
tains in labour produced, I observed, an exceedingly little
* MetaUic Gallery of the great men of France.
¦f Conclusion of the campaigns ind reign of the Emperor.

HOTEL DES MONNAIES. 345
mouse, or, to speak without metaphor, at each stroke they
punched out what only appeared to be a small copper button.
Near the engine I perceived, strewed on the ground, a
quantity of thin, white, metallic bars, about two feet long ;
and lying about in various directions were baskets full of very
large, round, white, dull, stupid-looking ploughmen's buttons,
which, in fact, were flve-frane pieces. The bars were of sil
ver of the exact thickness 0/ a flve-franc piece, rather more
tban twice its breadth, and rather more than twelve times its
length. From each bar, therefore, were formed twenty-four
pieoes of a total current value of 120 francs.
As fast as these large basketfuls of white butte ns were
punched into life tbey were carried off to an adjoining table,
to be — like jockeys starting for the Derby — weighed. Those
that caused the scale in which they were tossed to preponder
ate were again chucked into the basket, while every one that
proved to be too light was sent back to the foundry to under
go the uncomfortable operations of being re-melted, re-cast
into bars, re-rolled to the proper thickne,ss, re-punched by one
of the steam-engines, — -in short, by main predestined force,
utterly impossible to resist, to be born again as a button.
As I proceeded through the great hall I came to a table
covered with a heap of those large silver buttons which had
caused the weighing scale to preponderate. The workmen
to whora they had been handed over, takirig them up one by
one, scrubbed eaeh, rubbed eaoh, or flled each, — in fact, teaz
ed It in all sorts of ways until it became exactly of the
proper weight, when off it and its comrades were despatched
to be coined.
While I was witnessing this operation, whioh reminded
me a good deal of the way in which all our great statesmen,
divines, lawyers, generals, and admirals, were dealt with,
when boys at school, there passed me in a wheelbarrow a
quantity of what appeared to be brass busks for ladies' stays,
— thin plates of gold, going to be punched.
On reaching that part of the building in wbich the opera
tion of coining is performed, I came first of all to a machine
the strong arm of which was slowly, without intermission,
ascending and decending. Beside it stood an attendant
whose sole and simple duty was every now and then to feed
or drop into a small upright pipe a handful of very small
15*

346 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
copper buttons, which, just as tbe head of a man wbo is guil
lotined falls neatly into the canvas bag placed on purpose to
receive it, kept dropping out through a spout into a little
sack, into which they arrived coined on both sides, also beau
tifully milled round the edges. The rate at which they fell
I counted to be one per second. Tbere were in tbe room
before me thirteen of these machines. The largest and
stoutest, which stood eight feet high, were for coining five-
franc pieces ; the rest, only five feet, were for smaller gold
and copper money.
At the time I visited the Mint it had refrained for about
a fortnight to coin silver, in consequence of the National
Assembly not having decided as to the hew coinage ; they
had, however, been stamping about a million of francs in
gold per day, and a trifling quantity of small copper money,
the form and impression on which are to be altered as
soon as the Assembly can devise the means of overcoming
the inconvenience that would arise from the necessity of
calling in all the old copper of the monarchy. In fact, like
the population of France, a republic of bags of buttons, gold,
silver, and copper, are quietly waiting to know, if possible,
which way the political cat of their destiny next intends to
jump. The Hotel des Monnaies, which has the exclusive privi
lege of coining medals, gained by the monopoly, in 1848, the
the sum of 25,637 francs.
In that year it coined —
Gold medals - ... 663
Silver , - - - '76,029
Platina .... 2
Copper or bronze - - 17,118
93,712
Besides the above the Mint has coined —
Medals of Saints - - - 212,000
At the hdtel are also performed the various operations
for assaying articles of jewelry, of gold and silver, which,
until duly stamped, are not allowed to be offered for sale.
On quitting the H6tel des Monnaies I found my mind
so uncomfortably full of a confused mass of rumbling, indi
gestible, windy recollections of all I had witnessed ; of gold

HOTEL DES MONNAIES. 347
busks ; silver bars ; of conjuring machines, which stood
swallowing buttons, and handing out bullion'; of long histo
ries in copper, of battles, conquests, revolutions ; of military
government, civil government, glory, and all of a sudden no
government at all ; in short, a series of chronological
events, — "Never ending, still beginning,
Fighting stiU, and still destroying," —
that, to change the subject, turning to my right, I stood with
my face to a dead wall, to look at a quantity of cheap prints
and pictures hanging on strings upon it ; and as among them
was one the subject of which I had often before observed,
and had wished to obtain, I managed, without rudely pushing
any of my fellow gapers, to get before it. As soon, howev
er, as I began to copy what I wanted, so many eyes were fix
ed upon me, that, shutting up my little book, I went away.
In a few minutes the crowd I had left, having been satiated,
were replaced by another set of idlers ; accordingly, as a
stranger to them all, I walked up to the old man that owned
the pictures, and who, like a spider watching his net, was
sitting concealed in a little wooden shanty just big enough
to hold his chair, and, describing to him the one I wished to
look at, I gave him half a frano for permission to turn him
out of his habitation, and to occupy his chair ; in short, for a
few moments to reign in his stead. The proprietor was
quite delighted with the reckless liberality of my proposal ;
and accordingly I had scarcely been seated a minute when I
saw him at the door with the print in question, entitled as
follows : — "TABLEAU DES PRINCIPAUX
GRANDS HOMMES
Qui se sont illustres dans toutes
Les Parties du Monde
Par leurs belles Actions, leur
Genie, ou Leue Courage."*
* TABLE OF THE PRINCIPAL
GREAT MEN
-Who have made themselves illustrious in all
Farts of the World
Bt theie great Actions, theie
Genius, or their Courage.

348

A FAGGOT OF FRENOH STICKS.

Beneath this heading was of course a large picture of the
Temple of Fame, upon the pediment of which there appeared
inscribed —

On both sides of this Temple was an alleged portrait or like
ness, with a short history, of eaoh of the following list, which
had tickled my fancy, not so much for the names it contained
as for those it omitted : —

Moses. Solomon. Romulus.Confucius.
Themistocle. Leonidas. Cyrus. Pericles. Socrate. Alexandre. Annibal. Constantin le Grand.
Beiisaire. Kosrou le Grand.
Mahomet. Omar ler.
Arame.

Charlemagne. Haroun. GuiUaume le Conque
rant
Saladin. Richard Coem- de Lion.
Genkiskan. Louis IX.
Guillaume Tell.
Edward III.-
Duguesclin. Tamerlan.Charles le Temeraire.
Christophe Colomb.
Gonsalve de Cordoue.
Ferdinand V.
"Gama.

Leon X.

Gustave Wasa.
Frangois I.
Jules n.
Charles Quint
Sixte V.
Heniy II.
Cromwell. Turenne. Conde.
Louis XIV.
Pierre le Grand.
Charles XIL
Cook.Washingtoa
Napoleon Buonaparte.

* To illustrious men

WASHING BOATS. 349

WASHING BOATS.
On the south wall ofthe line of " Quais" that overlook the Seine
are neatly arranged for sale a great quantity of secondhand
books, ticketed in batches, from two sous a volume to a franc,
a franc and a half, two francs, and occasionally more I had
bought and sent to my lodging a few of them, and was saun
tering along the banks of the Seine on the Quai de la Megis-
seric, when I observed beneath me in the river, hauled along
side of the wharf and of each other, several barges laden with
charcoal ; and as in eaoh of these boats was a gang of men
whose profession it is to unload them, I walked down to look
at them. Their faces, clothes, and hands were of course all
professionally begrimed with black. On their heads were im
mense broad-brimmed wideawake hats, several of which, to my
astonishment, were ornamented with a long ostrich feather,
full of the black dust of charcoal
" Are there many of you that wear feathers like that ?"
said I to one of them.
" Mais oui, Monsieur !"* replied the republican, quietly
spitting into the water
" What would our London coalwhippers say to suoh a fine
hat?" I muttered to myself as I walked away.
Along the banks of the river, moored close to the quay,
were several long, covered boats, full of women washing clothes.
On stepping into one, the chef, a short, intelligent-looking
man of about forty, walking up to me, inquired very civilly
what I wanted ? and as soon as I told him, with the greatest
kindness and politeness he said he would have much pleasure
in showing me everything.
On each side or gunwale, 104 yards long and about two
feet above the water, was a table flfteen inches broad, before
wbich, under cover of a flat zinc roof, containing in the centre
a series of glass frames, I found, every one separated from her
neighbour by a small compartment, 320 women, in the act,
--f^ Oh yes !

350 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
flagrante delicto, of belabouring, beating, and scrubbing to death
clothes of all descriptions. Each pays eight sous (fourpence)
a-day for permission to wash with cold water only from five
o'clock in the morning till nine at nigbt ; her implements of
torture, such as brushes for scrubbing, and flat boards like
battledores for beating, she finds for herself. For permission
to boil her clothes (if she wishes to do so) the cost is two sous
a bundle. The charge for washing for a single hour is one
sou and a half
Tbe 320 women were all dressed in clean caps. Besides
the narrow tables on the gunwales, was a parallel and broader
one witbin the boat, on which they comnleted their work ;
and accordingly, they were to be seen, first, with their faces
towards the city, dipping their linen into the Seine, rapidly
running beside them, and then lustily beating it on the narrow
board ; and afterwards with their backs to the metropolis,
smoothing and laying out their clothes on the opposite boards
of tbeir cell, within each ofwhich was just room enough for an
industrious, lusty woman to turn herself round. In that por
tion of the Seine which flows through Paris there are no less
than twenty of these boats, large and smaU, in which the linen
of the poor and sorae of that of the wealthier classes is pum
melled till it is clean.
As the chef was conducting me to a portion of the boat in
which was a little steam-boiler for heating water, one of the
320 women suddenly stopped in the act of belabouring an aged
shirt, and, with it in one hand, and with her wooden battledore
uplifted in the other, she made to me a very short, shrewd re
mark, indirectly expressive of thirst " C'est une malhon-
netete," said the chef to her, with a very angry countenance,
" de vous adresser comme ca a un etranger !"*
The woman, with great humility and volubility, assured
hira she did not mean the slightest harm. He told her she
ought to be ashamed of herself, that it was not her first offence,
that she was much too fond of talking, that she talked to
everybody, " Si le bon Dieu viendrait abord," said he to hor,
shaking his hand close to her face, " vous lui parleriez !"t
The chef, kindly accorapanying me to the gunwale of his
boat now took off his hat and gave me his " adieu ;" and as it
* It is very uncivil of you to speak to a stranger like that !
f If the Almighty were to come on board you would speak to Him !

WASHING BOATS. 351
was raining and hailing hard, I ran across the street into a little
wine-shop, the counter of which was covered with very small
tumblers. Close beside me stood a gentleraan who, to save his
new hat from the rain, had economically put over it a white
pocket-handkerchief, the ends of which were amusingly con
trasted with the black beard under which they were tied.
During the few rainutes I was in this cabaret, men in blouses
and woraen in white caps and occasionally in gold ear-rings
kept dropping in to drink a glass, and soraetiraes two, of bright
red wine (worth about fifteen sous a bottle, containing eight
glasses), for each of which they paid two sous ; and as soon as
the amount purchased was tossed off, the customer, sometimes
wiping and sometimes licking his or her healthy lips, walked
out of the door, which, even during the storm, was always wide
open. What a difference between this simple refreshment and
the horrid interior of our fine London gin-palaces, in which,
in an atmosphere stinking of gin, young girls, old women,
" ladies " with parasols and silk bags ; men of all ages, from
shabby genteel attire down to jackets out at elbows, and with
a bit of shirt inquisitively poking out of trousers behind, are
to be seen entering througb a swinging door, constructed on
purpose to conceal them, to drink, at a zinc table slopped by
the unsteady bands ranged in front of it, a liquid, the first
effects of which may be seen in the ghastly countenances and
collapsed attitudes of a row of drunkards seated on a bench
opposite to the counter, in order to recover their senses suffi
ciently to enable them to walk " home."
The poisonous consequences of a system whicb, by en
feebling the stomach, enervating the mind, debilitating the
frame, and eventually ruining the happiness, character, and
prospects of hundreds of thousands of people, may roughly be
estimated by the dreadful fact (tide our Parliamentary re
turns) that there is annually consumed by the lower classes
of Great Britain and Ireland, in beer, spirits, and tobacco,
the enormous sum of fifty-seven millions sterling, and in
spirits alone thirty millions I
On leaving the cabaret I had occasion to call at a shop,
on the counter of which were lying a number of extremely
dear but very good British tooth-brushes. The owner, a
Scotchman, told me he sold a great number of that price and

352 A FAGGOT OF FRENOH STICKS.
quality ; " and yet," said be, with a slight smile, " one house
m Paris sent to England last year a thousand dozen of cheap
bad ones !"

. THE PLACE DE GREVE.
Among the various colours and the innumerable lights and
shadows composing those pictures which the painter is in the
habit of exhibiting to the eye, and the moralist to the mind,
of man, there exists no contrast more striking than that
wbich distinguishes the present and past tenses of the his
tory of Paris, In the metropolis of France the surface of
society is so smooth and unruffled, there exists everywhere
such highly polished politeness, suoh gaiety of heart, such
hospitality to strangers, so many amusements, and such a
variety of apparently innocent amusements, that I often felt
it almost impossible to believe that the place on which I stood
basking in the sunshine I have described had been the scene
of, and the people around me the actors in, a series of trage
dies exhibiting the most furious passions and the most fear
ful results. The Place de Greve is, in the history of Paris,
one of the most revolting localities the stranger could be in
duced to visit. For many centuries it was the spot on which
criminals were executed ; and besides having been thus ap
propriated to scenes of horror, its pavement has been stained
with the blood of the victims of almost every revolution that
has occurred. On the 17th of March, 1848, it was the scene
of a frightful mutiny in favour of the Provisional Govern
ment ; and on the 16th of the following month an attempt
to overturn that Government was foiled here by the steady
attitude of the National Guard.
I was desirous to visit the apartments in the H6tel de
Ville, and having, in reply to a written application in the
form recommended by Galignani, obtained from the Prefect
of the Seine the usual authority granted to strangers to do
so, I got with it into an omnibus, in which I proceeded until
the conducteur — who remembers everybody's wishes — after
pulling his string to apprise the coachman, told me. as soon

THE PLACE DE GREVE. 353
as the vehicle had quite stopped, that I had reaohed the
point of my destination ; and accordingly, on descending I
saw immediately before me the magnificent fatjade of the
Hotel de Ville, which formed one entire side of a large long
paved space of no shape at all.
In rumbling side-foremost through Paris in an omnibus,
one is so constantly disturbed by an endless variety of little
tantalizing peeps at objects passing and being passed ; there
enter and depart so many people whose costume and counte-
nanoes urgently require a few moments' observation ; there
are such a variety of little jolts ; and lastly, in crawling
towards the door behind, one is so exceedingly anxious not to
tread upon anybody's toes, sit in anybody's lap, or fall iuto
anybody's arms, that after the vehicle had driven away I invari
ably found it desirable to give to the feathers of my mind a
few minutes to become smooth again. Instead, therefore, of
walking straight to the Hotel de Ville, for some minutes I
stood still, exactly where, as an utter stranger, I had been
dropped, arausing myself in looking at the merry little world
upon which I had descended. Almost close beside me was a
small orowd, composed of happy people of all ages, listening
to a man singing. Before him stood his wife, very attentive
ly watching his mouth, and fiddling to it as it sang as fol
lows : —
LE SOLDAT REPUBLICAN.*
Air — du "Retour en France."
Avec ardeur je veux servir la France.
Oh ! chers parents dont j'emporte I'amour,
Consolez-vous du temps de mon absence,
Bien fier je veux vous revenir im jour.
Alors la croix de mon noble courage

* THE REPUBLICAN SOLDIER.
Air — " The Return to France."
Witb ardour I will serve France.
Oh ! dear parents, whose love I carry -with me,
Console yourselves' during my absence,
With pride shall I return to you some day.
Then the cross of my noble courage

354 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
Peut-etre bieu brillera sur mon sein.
Ou me dira, revenant au -village,
Honneur a toi, soldat i-epubUcan !
The rest of tbe open space was animated by an endless
variety of objects. There were the red tufts, bright cap-
plates, light-grey great-coats, and loose scarlet trousers of
soldiers sauntering about everywhere, excepting at their
guard-room, round which a large number stood swarming
together like bees. There were blouses of dark and of light
blue, beards of various shapes, women's caps, of various
dimensions, two dogs of different breeds ; different coloured
carriages, and occasionally very gaudy carts, appeared, slow
ly passed, and then vanished. But what most attracted my
attention was the extraordinary contrast between the magni
ficent facade of the Hotel de Ville and the irregular archi
tecture and colouring of the buildings which bounded tbe
opposite sides of the odd-shaped space before me. Not only
were the houses of all sorts of forms, heights, and hues, but it
was evident the inhabitants had been contending with each
other in painting upon the outside walls of the strata at
wbich they respectively lived, in bright colours, their names,
their trades, pictures of pots and kettles, and sometimes full
length portraits of great heroes, &c,, &c. For instanoe, I
observed announced on one floor " Baths " in light blue ; a
" Cafe ' (the whole house) in bright yellow ; the lower stories
of the " Commerce de Vins " in light-green ; an omnibus
establishment, bright scarlet ; above that, in different colours,
" Maison Poulin," " Bureau de Garqons Mds. ;" a restaura
teur, four stories high ; a dentist, two stories. In another
direction, at a considerable distanee, " Mds. de Vin," in yel
low ; " Remplacements Militaires," in yellow on bright blue ;
above that a grand tableau of a charge of cavalry with drawn
sabres, the leading dragoon in the act of cutting down a man
who, with uplifted arms, is piteously begging him on no
account to do so. On the top of all, on a wall painted jet
black — WiU perhaps shine brightly on my breast.
It will be said to me, on returning to my villago,
Honour to thee, republican soldier 1

TEE PLACE DE GREVE. 355
" A I'hotel de ville
grande
Teinturier pour Deuil :"*
the whole surmounted by different-shaped chimneys, some of
the pots of wbich were red, some yellow, some of long grey
zinc, purposely bent into various angular forms.
After admiring for a few minutes the gaudy, gay, cheer
ful locality in which the 'bus had dropped me, I felt anxious
to inform myself what it was called, but, instead of being
gratifled I almost shuddered when, in reply to my question,
a clean, quiet, happy-looking woman at my side said to me,
" Monsieur, c'est la Place de Greve." Never had I before
witnessed what, with reference to its past history, might be
more truly termed a painted sepulchre I
On entering the great portal of the Hotel de Ville, the
finest of the municipal buildings of Paris, the residence of the
Prefet, and containing the various offices of his department,
I found mjrself almost immediately lost in a complication of
magnificent staircases, landing-places, corridors enriched witb
gorgeous sculpture, ending in grand arterial and in very
little venous passages. Not seeing any one, and not knowing
how or where to proceed, I opened a door which happened to
be on my right, entered, and I had only got as far in my
simple history as "S'il vous plait, Monsieur !"t when the
gentleman to whom I had addressed myself, apparently
knowing what I wanted before I bad explained it, said, very
civilly, but very shortly —
" Montez au preraier ! "j:
Poor man I I have no doubt tbat, as almost every
stranger in Paris who visits the Hotel de Ville loses his way
in the intricacies I have described, he is bored to death by
inquisitive Englishraen throughout every day in the year
poking in their faces at his door, and saying to hira, " Mon
sieur, s'il vous plait !"
On ascending to the next landing-place I found an official.
who, on receiving my order of admission, ushered me with a
bow into an ante-chamber ornamented with gilt leather
* At the sign of the Hotel de ViUe — Dyer for mourning.
f If you please. Sir !
X Go to the story above !

356 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
hangings, in imitation of the ancient furniture of Italy and
Flanders, and leading into a suite of apartments infinitely
more handsome than I had expected to see.
Of these magnificent rooms, the state apartments of the
Prefect, the first is the "Salle d'Introduction ;" its walls are
of red damask, ornaihented by a frieze painted by Court.
From the ceiling bang hand,some gilt lustres. This room
contains a bronze statue of Henry IV, in bis youth, and an
equestrian one of the same, a copy of that on the Pont Neuf,
by Lemot, also in bronze.
The walls, as also the chairs, of the second, called the
" Salle de Jeu," are covered with light-blue satin ; the ceiling
and frieze are richly gilt and painted. In this, apartment
tbere are no tables.
The third, the " Salle de Bal," is a magnificent hall, about
90 feet long by 45 broad, 22 high, divided by pilasters into
three compartments ; the chairs, sofas, and ottomans in whieh
are covered with crirason damask, with bullions of gold about
nine inches long, v The whole is lighted by fourteen superb
lustres, also by thirty-six gilt candelabras against the wall,
each holding nine candles, besides two candelabras on chim
ney-pieces, containing twenty-four more. In fact, my mind
shuddered and my eyes almost smarted as I counted candles
enougb to vitiate the air, ruin the lungs, and destroy the eye
sight, not only of the dancers, but of the spectators of the
dance of death.
On the ceiling I observed a large allegorical painting by
Pirot, representing Paris environed by the Muses and the
attributes of art ; in the background appeared an assembly of
the most eminent men in France. The whole is surrounded
by ten hexagonal compartments, containing allegorical figures
of Theology, Medicine, Mechanics, Agrieulture, Law, Com--
merce, Natural Philosophy, Chemistry, Justice, and Geometry,
In the first section of this splendid chamber the compartments
of the ceiling are charged with the signs of the Zodiac, and
allegorical representations of Night and Day. Those of the
extreme section contain Genii holding scrolls, on which are
inscribed the names of celebrated artists. The two central
compartments represent Truth and Genius, Over the doors
are medallions of Louis XIV, and Louis Philippe, the latter
of which have been seriously damaged The walls are beauti-

THE PLACE DE GREVE. 357
fully painted in arabesque, and in the centre is a circular
divan, in whioh stands a gilt pedestal of bronze supporting
the figures of Agriculture, Commeroe, and the Pine Arts,
All over the world dancing requires refreshment, and
accordingly, after the magnificent red ball-roora comes, quite
naturally, the " salon de cafe," a beautiful room, hung with
yellow silk embroidered with white. Lastly, there appears,
as a " piece de resistance " to the gorgeous feast which the
eye has just enjoyed, a substantial dining-room, the walls of
whioh are painted in imitation of oak ; the uncarpeted floor
being of the real wood, waxed, rubbed, and slipperifled as
usual. The frieze is appropriately ornamented with subjects
belonging to the ohase, to the fisheries, &c, ; beneath are
spacious kitchens, sufficient to provide a banquet for one
thousand persons. On returning through this splendid suite
of rooms, the fioors of which, excepting the last, are all oovered
with handsome thick crimson carpet, over which hang the
series of gilt chandeliers I have described, I found, by pacing
them, that they are altogether about 270 feet in length.
Opposite the antechamber of entrance and the passage
leading thereto, is a door, through which I passed into the
ancient " salon du roi," in whioh, when the present H6tel de
Ville was a royal residence, the several Kings of France used
to dine. On the first story is the " Salle de Horloge,'' formerly
called the " Salle de Trone," occupying the whole length of
the central portion of the building, 'The walls of this mag
nificent apartment are adorned with velvet hangings trimmed
with gold ; the vast fireplaces, ornamented with recumbent
figures in white marble of the same date as the staircase, are
surmounted by mantel-pieces, on which in those on the right
is a splendid allegorical painting of the Republic by Hesse ;
while on the opposite one appear, richly executed, the arras
of the city, gules a ship argent. The square compartments
of the ceiling are charged with armorial bearings. This
splendid room has, like the fatal " Place de Greve " beneath
it, witnessed many of the most fearful acts of the Revolution
with which France has been afflicted. From the central
window of the Grand Salle, Louis XVI,, with the cap of
liberty on that head which shortly afterwards dropped lifeless
on the "as.'iby, went through the mockery of addressing " the

S58 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
people," The room in. which Robespierre held his council
and in wbicb he attempted to destroy himself is shown, as
also the window at which, in 1830, General Lafayette, em
bracing Louis Philippe, presented him to " the people," from
whom — from army, fortifications of Paris, and all — in 1848
he fled to save his life !
On descending the beautiful staircase, and ou returning
again to the Place de Greve, I paced along the western and
iKU-thern fronts, whioh I found to be respectively about 420
and 270 feet in breadth. The south front next to the Seine
looks upon a pleasing garden. On the north workmen were
busily employed in demolishing houses for the purpose of ex
tending the Place de Greve, which now forms an esplanade
only on the western side ; this expense will be exclusive of the
fifteen millions of francs lately expended in additions and in
embellishments to the building, which, as if nourished by the
bloodshed and devastation it has witnessed, has gradually
increased in size and grandeur ever since 1357, when the
municipality of Paris, or Corps de Ville (whose meetings had
formerly been held, first in a house called " la Maison de la
Marchandise," situated in the Vallee de la Misere, west of the
Grand Chatelet. and afterwards in a residence called "Parlouer
aux Bourgeois," in the vicinity of the Place St Michel), pur
chased for the sum of 2880 livres de Paris •' la Maison de la
Greve," which had formerly belonged to Philip Augustus, and
had frequently been a royal residence.
I had crossed the Pont Neuf and. tired and weary, was
walking slowly towards the fashionable west end of Paris,
when the owner of a blacking shop with a slight bow politely
pointed out to me that my boots were very dusty, and accord
ingly, thanking him for the hint, I ascended his tribune, or
exalted seat, which magnificently overlooked the crowd of foot
passengers passing to and fro beneath,
I was scarcely seated when he put into my hand a news
paper, and leaving me on scarlet plush, and with a large
looking-glass behind me to study its contents in an attitude
and position strange enough to form half-a-dozen magnificent
leading articles in tbe " Tiraes," he set to work with a brush in
each hand to put me to rights.
As the sun was very hot the application of the wet black
ing was rather refreshing, and the polishing process, whioh

ENTREPRISE DES POMPES FUNEBRES. 359
almost instantly ensued, was, I should say, something like be
ing shampooed ; but what seemed to me infinitely raore delight
ful than all was, to observe that, during the whole of the time
I sat in this description of exalted pillory, not a single indi
vidual of the hundreds that passed for a moment looked
at rae. The bench was arranged so that six persons, each seated
on scarlet plush, and eaoh with a looking-glass at his back, and
each with a newspaper in his band, could be polished off at
once I

ENTREPRISE DES POMPES FUNEBRES.
In walking along the Rue St. Honore I observed the outside
of the large churoh of St Roch to be in mourning ; and as I
had a few minutes to spare, I walked in. The organ, and
some magnificent deep voioes, which appeared to be reverbe
rating together from every portion of the celling above me
and of the walls around me, were assisting in the performance
of high mass for one whose earthly remains were in a coffin
before, but at sorae distance frora. the great altar, hung with
black cloth covered with white fig-shaped spots, representing
tears ; the steps, and everything near and around thera, were
oovered with black ; there was moreover a large congregation
of priests, all clothed in black and silver.
While this scene of woe and of deep-sounding lamentations
was going on at the great altar, I perceived a small but dense
orowd of people engaged at one of the little ones, from which
there also proceeded chanting and prayer, which occasionally
clashed and occasionally amicably mingled with the loud
swelling sounds of the organ and its mournful accompani
ments, I was observing the performance of this double service,
looking soraetimes towards the little altar, and then at the
horizontal backs of the large crowd of men and women who
with bent bodies were joining in the last sad requiem to the
dead, when I saw a slight movement among the small crowd,
which began to approach me, following a bride white all over ;

360 -i FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
in short, at one end of the church they had been most joyfully
marrying a couple, while in the middle they were as mourn
fully burying a man. It was on the 1st of May, and, as nearly
as I could calculate, the Queen, of England and Prince Albert
were at that moment within the Crystal Palace opening the
Exhibition of the Industry of all Nations. In front of the
bride there strutted, with as much pride as if she had wholly
and solely belonged to him, a tall man in a cocked-hat, splendid
uniform coat, and black breeches, carrying in his right hand a
very tall staff, with which he occasionally tapped the stone
pavement of the church, to admonish the toes of bystanders
to get out of his way, I had observed him only a minute be
fore close to the coifin, from which he must have hurried to
honour and clear a road for the bride and bridegroom to their
carriage. While they were escaping, as people in such a pre
dicament usually do. frora a little side door of the church, I
walked towards the great portal, close to which I observed
standing, or rather tottering, an old raan, holding in bis right
hand a brush, wet with holy water, whioh most people as they
passed him touched with a finger or two, and then, with the
same, crossed their faces ; and although the exertion of hold
ing a darap brush is not great, the poor fellow seeraed as if it
was altogether too rauch for him ; in fact, he appeared com
pletely worn out, and all but dead and — as all people dying in
Paris are entombed within twenty-four hours of tbeir deraise —
buried. As soon as I got into the fresh air I saw before me
in the street several mourning-carriages and the hearse, a sort
of open barouche surmounted with black ostrich feathers and
black trappings, heavily laden with silver lace. The horses
were hidden in black clothes covered with silver stars, and
traversed and bound with silver lace. The coachraan, dressed
in clothes of black and argent, wore a black cocked-hat, orna
mented with silver lace. The large entrance door and front
wall of the church were completely covered with black cloth,
silver lace, and rich similar bullion six inches long. Lastly,
above the three doors, namely, the large centre one and small
one on each side of it — from one of which there had just fiown
the beautiful white bridal butterfly, who in the chrysalis state
had been brought before the little altar — there was inscribed
in large letters, "Liberte, Fraternite, Egalite."

ENTREPRISE DES POMPES FUNEBRES, 3(
In the afternoon, as I was returning home very tired,
passing the Church of St Roch I perceived two dingy bla
vans, into whioh some men dressed in rusty clothes were stuffii
all the dark costly finery which, on the interior walls, steps
altar, and exterior of the church, had been displayed at t
morning ceremony I had witnessed. After watching t
operation for some minutes, I asked a man in a cocked-hi
very vigorously assisting, where all the black bales he was loa
ing were going, " Monsieur," he replied, '• tout appartient ai
Pompes Fuuebres !" * moreover, in reply to my further i
quiries he was good enough to add — as with the sleeve of 1
dingy coat he wiped a stratum of perspiration from the smi
portion of his face that remained uncovered with hair — th
the office was at thc top of the Rue Miromenil, just beyoi
the residence of the British Ambassador ; and as I was ar
ious to get to the bottom of my subject. I determined, inste
of going to ray dinner, to walk there,
" I shall now," said I to myself, '¦ see, I suppose, a bla
world !" and yet I own I was not quite prepared after a wea
walk to find, on turning out of the Rue St, Honore into t
one he had named, that the very water running in the gutte
down the street was black 1 " Very odd ! isn't it ?" thought
however, as I never allowed my mind to remain in Paris o
moment in ignorance of anything anybody passing me w
acquainted with, I asked a shopman who was orossing from I
door what might be the cause of the colour of the bubblr
fluid to which I pointed. " Blonsieur, (ja vient d'un teinturi
a eote un peu plus h'aut ;'' f and accordingly, tracing it tru
enough to that source, I continued to ascend the street, un
on the left I saw before me in large letters " Service Genei
des Inhumations et Pompes Funebres de la Ville de Paris."
Beneath an arch was the " Bureau," which I had scarce
entered, when I perceived from the face of the person to whc
I addressed myself that I was very particularly welcou
" What was my wish ? What would be my orders ?" As soc
however, as I replied that as a stranger I only wanted to kn(
what were the charges for different descriptions of funera
the clerk, with a countenance sickening almost unto death, j
* Sir, it all belongs to the Fnneral-pomp Association I
f Sir, it comes from a dyer a little higher up !
X General Burial and Funeral-Pomp Association of the City of Pai
16

362 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
litely referred me to his superior, who as politely told me I
could only get the information I wanted from the "chef" of
the establishment. He happened to be in the yard, and re
ceived me with great civility ; but although there can exist, one
would think, no objection whatever to telling the living what
is charged for burying their dead, yet, as soon as this stout
gentleman found I was really a nonentity in creation, that is
to say, that I possessed nobody I desired to bury, he told me
frankly he did not wish to give the information 1 desired ; he,
however, readily allowed me to walk through his establishment.
On entering the first stable I found in it no less than one
bundr~fed and thirty horses, all black. Above their heads and
mangers were affixed upon the wall the names of each. I ex
pected that among them I should, of course, find " Pluto,"
" Minos," " Charon," " Cerberus," or otber such appropriate ap
pellations ; however, in France the sound of the drum seems
more or less to influence everything, and, accordingly, almost
the first funeral horse I came to was called " Pistol," the next
" Eagle," then stood munching " Pollux," and, at last, appro
priately came " Victoire I" The stable was not ventilated, tbe
horses were only three feet apart, leaving scarcely room to pa^s
with safety between the heels of the two rows attached to op
posite walls ; they nevertheless — no doubt from tbe quantity
of walking exercise they professionally enjoyed — all looked
sleek and healthy. Aftcr going through the remainder of the
stables, I crossed the Rue Miromenil into a yard full of mys
terious uncomfortable-looking planks, treSsels, and ladders, be
yond which was a large building like a barn, replete with re
publican hearses of all conceivable and inconceivable forms,
from one apparently made of silver and as fine as the state
coach of the Lord Mayor of London, down to a rattletrap bier
on wheels, witb side rails barely high enough to prevent a
coffin from being jolted out.

fiCOLE POLYTECHNIQUE.
By a decree of the National Assembly, dated 1 lth March, 1794,
there was established in Paris a Board of Public Works, tbe

ECOLE POLYTECHNIQUE. g
central school ofwhich, by a subsequent decree, dated 1st Si
tember, 1795, took the name of Ecole Polytechnique. Its (
ject. as its name partly defines, is to shelter every branch
science ; and accordingly, from this noble institution, ii
which about 300 eleves, from sixteen to twenty years of a
are received for two years, and occasionally for three, there <
continually flowing streams of useful knowledge, of greater
less magnitude, into the following channels : —
1, The military corps of Engineers, ) whose school of i
2, The military corps of Artillery, \ plication is at Meti
3. The " Marine," or naval service,
4, The corps of Maritime Engineers, whose school is
Lorient, 5, The Artillery of the Marine, whose school is at Metz,
6, The " Eoole d'etat Major," at Paris,
7, The Eoole des Mines, i , i, i r
8. The Ecole des Fonts et Chaus- S ^^°'^ '"^""^^ "^ ^^-^
i cation are at Jf ans
sees. )
9. The School of "Poudres et Salpetres," *
10, The System of Telegraphs, under the direction of t
Minister of the Interior,
11, The National Manufactures of Tobacco, composed
ten manufactories, dependent on the central one at 63, Qi
d'Orsay. at Paris.
12. The Department of Finances, under the Minister of ]
nance. After looking for a short time at the new front, containing
bas-relief appropriately representing an amicable combinatii
of implements of war and machines of peace, I entered t
gate of the Ecole Polytechnique, and, on producing my ordi
was introduced to an officer, who was good enough, in reply
a few queries, to give me the following preliminary informatic
The establishment is governed and regulated by —

Military.

1 General.
1 Colonel
6 Captains,
6 Adjutants.

4 Serjeant Majors.
6 Drummers.
1 Soldier for the infirmai

* Gunpowder and saltpetre.

364 -4 FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.

Civil.
1 Director-in-cbief of the Studies. 6 Professors.
1 Administrateur, who has sole charge of the arrangements of
the school and buildings.
1 Treasurer. 1 Assistant ditto,
1 Commis du Materiel, in charge of linen, furniture, and bil
liards, 1 Assistant ditto.
1 Commis de Vivres, in charge of the provisions.
3 Commis des Bureaux, for the accounts, and for correspond
ence.
1 Medecin, of the rank of chirurgien-major.
1 Assistant ditto, 15 Gartjons. servants.
For board, lodging, and education, the eleves pay, for the
first year, 1500 francs (60/.; for the second, 1000 (40Z.). The
expenses of about twenty young men of distinguished talents,
but who have no money, are every year defrayed by Govern
ment. Their studies commence at six in the morning, and
end at nine at night ; between those hours they breakfast at
eight, dine at two, from half-past two to five are allowed recre
ation, sup at nine, and at half-past nine go to bed. They are
not permitted to go out of the establishment except on Wed
nesdays, from two till ten, and on Sundays, when they may be
absent from eight in the morning till ten at nigbt.
Before 1830 they possesse'd a church, but since that period
have had none. " How do they manage," said I, " without
one?" " Oh I" replied the officer, with an appropriate shrug, " on
n'y va pas I"*
" So much," said I to myself, " for abolishing what are
termed the musty evils of an established church."
On entering the " Cabinet de Physique," I saw before me
all sorts of philosophical instruments, with an electric machine
of the newest description. Among them were several tables,
on which the eleves are required to make, as well as to witness,
a variety of experiments.
In the ' saile" of fortification and artillery, among an as
sortment of shot, shells, models of fortresses and boats, I re-
* Why, they don't go to one !

ECOLE POLYTECHNIQUE. 365
marked a model showing the modern system of defence adopted
in the forts lately constructed round Paris ; also a section of
the now musket used by the chasseurs de Vincennes, which is
capable of producing such fearful effects. The invention prin
cipally consists of a short barrel, containing inside a slight spi
ral groove, down which is forced, instead of a round ball, a
piece of lead oast in the combined form of a cone and cylinder ;
the cylindrical end (in the lower portion of whioh there exists
a small iron cup or thimble) is inserted first At the extrem
ity of the ramrod is a conical hole, which, exactly fitting that
of the lead, thrusts it down without compressing it By the
force of the discharge the iron cup expands the side of the bul
let, which entering into the groove of the barrel receives from
it a rotary motion, and the centre of gravity of the ball, in con
sequence of the vacuum in its rear, being well forward, its
pointed end always goes foremost. By this simple alteration
of the old principle, this new French musket has a range of
1000 yards, equal to that of a nine-pounder cannon with two
degrees of elevation.
In the department of Chemistry I found, opening into a
yard shaded by trees, ten small laboratories, in each of which
were eight furnaces, with two eleves working at eaoh. Adjoin
ing is an amphitheatre of chemistry, capable of holding 300
students, composed of lofty benches, gradually lowering towards
the professor's large circular table, whioh I observed covered
with the objeets upon which he was lecturing. Behind him. on
the wall opposite to his audience, was a large black board, and,
in a room adjoining, laboratories, in which we found his assist
ants preparing the experiments he was about to explain. Af
ter passing through three fencing-rooms, in whioh several of
the students were displaying great dexterity, and a " saile de
danse," empty and fiddleless, I came to eight rooms, each con
taining a pianoforte, before raost of which was seated a profes
sor in rusty clothes playing : behind one. looking at white
music-paper about two feet from his nose, was standing in an
easy negligent attitude, with eyes and mouth wide open, a stu
dent singing. On each side of a very long passage, I passed
twenty-eight " salles d'etude,"* with one window in each
Above, in a gallery of the sarae length, were ranged the black
belts, bayonets, and muskets of the students, who, on first join-
* Halls of study.

366 ^ I-AGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
ing the ecole, are exercised for three months daily, and after
that twice a week during the months of June and July only.
In the " Cabinet des Modeles d' Architecture"* are some
very beautiful models of arches of various descriptions, stair
cases, steam-engines, cranes, also of an ancient temple. After
looking into two amphitheatres " d'analise physique,"t I passed
through two small gritty " yards of recreation," into a capital
billiard-room, adjoining which was a room entitled " Coiffeur,"
for hair-cutting.
I now proceeded to the dormitories, composed of forty-two
exceedingly clean, light, airy sleeping apartments, eaoh contain
ing from seven to ten iron bedsteads, with neat check side cur
tains. Above every white pillow there hung horizontally a
brass-handled sword, over which was a shelf bearing a wooden
cocked-hat box.
In four long dining-halls, surrounded by wooden benches,
were five marble tables, at each of which sat from eight to ten
students, and in the middle of every table, instead of an epergne
with artificial flowers, &c., was a tin circular basin, into which
the students as they were eating chucked their scraps. In the
vestibule were three cocks, and troughs for washing dirty hands
and hungry faces. The kitchen, which, though exceedingly
small, by admirable arrangements was quite large enough for
its purpose, contained ^our great caldrons,
I was now led to the penal department, consisting of four
teen prisons, ten feet square, containing each a table, a stool,
and a window boarded up to the upper panes. In tbese cells
refractory students are subjected to solitary confinement from
four to a period not exceeding fifteen days.
In a detached building of twelve windows in front, and
three stories high, is the infirmary, or hospital In the upper
portion, wbich only contained six patients, I was conducted in
to two apartments, with one floor, if possible, more dangerously
slippery than the other, containing in shelves and pigeon-holes
" lingerie," beautifully clean and neat, and a woman as clean,
as neat, and with a mind as strongly imbued witb soap, as the
linen over which she presided. Sbe told me with great pride
that every pigeon-hole (they were each one foot ten inches
square) had its eleve — or, rather, said she, correcting herself, it
contained the linen of eaeh Sieve, every article of which, she
* Museum of architectural models. \ Physical analysis.

EOOLE NATIONALE DES FONTS ET CHAUSSEES. 367
showed me, was marked with his number. She added, they
were allowed clean sheets once a fortnight in winter, and once
in three weeks during suramer.
In a small, gritty entrance-yard the eleves receive their
friends, who are not allowed, when visiting thera, to enter any
farther. Opposite, but within the walls of this admirable, use
ful, and well-organised establishment, is a magniflcent house,
the quarters of the general commanding.
Twice a month, by order of tho Government, there is an
inspection, " en grande tenue," of the general, colonel, captains,
and adjutants ; and the eleves, about onee a week in like man
ner, are inspected by the general.
After going through the various studies I have enumerated
a certain number ofthe students are sent to the Ecole Nationale
des Pouts et Chaussees to pass through another and a higher
course of studies, which I will now briefly descride.

fiCOLE NATIONALE DES FONTS ET
chauss£es.*
Above my head, and over a lofty gate, in la Rue des Saints
Peres, I saw drooping and dripping — for it was raining hard —
a tricolor flag, and under it, in gold letters, " Ecole Nationals
DES PoNTS ET Chaussees." Ou cach sidc was inscribed in let
ters of black paint —
" Peopribte Nationale,!
LffiERTE, Fraternite, Egalite."
After passing the lodge of the concierge, and crossing a
large open court, I ascended by a small staircase to tbe room
of the principal inspector, whom I found ready to attend me,
and who informed me — as I was aware — that he had, through
the Director, received a special order from the Minister of Pub
lie Works to give me whatever information I desired.
Commencing at the upper story, in which was his own
* National School for Bridges and Roads.
¦f National Property.

368 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
apartment, he conducted me to a passage, in which are eight
small rooras of study, each containing ten desks.
Around tbe walls of every roora, in wooden frames, three
feet bigh, oovered with glass, were arranged drawings relating
to the particular course of study of each, in order that the stu
dents, when not otherwise occupied, might have an opportunity
of regarding them. These rooms and the whole establishraent
are warmed by hot water (not steam), according to the system
now generally adopted in all the government buildings in Paris,
At the end of the passage we came to a door, on which was
written " Office de Service," Here reside two retired officers
of artillery, who form the " Police " of the establishment, who
restrain any irregularity, and who thus divest the professors
and director of all responsibility on that subject In the wall
is a " boite aux lettres," or box for letters, written by the stu
dents, all of which, whether for the purpose of science or ad
dressed raerely to their friends, are, as an indulgence, franked
to their respective destinations by the " Ministre des Travaux
Publics."* On public occasions the eleves wear a uniform, slightly em
broidered on the collar ; at their studies they may dress as they
like. They are, however, strictly forbidden to wear the uniform
of the Ecole Polytechnique, and are not allowed to smoke or
play at cards.
We now proceeded to a vestibule where was a spacious oak
table, from tbe middle of which protruded and arose a large
stove. In the adjoining library — a fine solid room, containing
16,000 volumes and 3000 brochures, warmed by two stoves, and
baving at one end, on a small platform, the elevated desk of the
librarian — ^were four tables covered with books and inkstands,
lying on loose green cloth. At each table were ten chairs, five
on eaoh side. In this reading-room, open from twelve to five
and from seven to ten, absolute silence must prevail, " Le si
lence le plus absolu y est de rigueur," A third library contains,
in cabinets, lettered, numbered, and closely packed in shelves
only a few inches asunder, 3000 valuable drawings of railways,
bridges of stone, wood, and iron, and otber engineering subjects.
Attached to these three rooms is a small one, a peaceful re
treat for the librarian.
On descending to the ground floor I entered a laboratory,
* Minister of PubUo Works.

ECOLE NATIONALE DES PONTS ET CEAUSSEES. 369
in which twelve students at a time, eaoh at his severely burned
table, and with a compartment of shelves of his own, covered
with bottles, and containing his " Pharmacie," analyser their
limes, cements, &o,
I was now led into a very handsorae stone proraenade, com
municating with a small and a large amphitheatre. In the
former I found thirty scholars, on benches, one above another.
In front of them was a large black board, at the foot of which,
in an elbow-chair, before a rectangular oak table, sat the pro
fessor. In the grand amphitheatre, wdiich, by a similar arrangement,
can contain two hundred students, eaoh bench, divided into
twelve separate seats, is numbered in front by a brass shining
plate. On the wall, close to the black board, hangs in a glass
case a tell-tale list of the names of the occupiers of each seat,
so that the professor, without moving anything but his head,
or without a word of inquiry, can by a glance at once inform
himself of the name of any one who disturbs him. Behind, in
the small private room of the professor, I found a similar black
board, exactly ofthe same dimensions, "pour s'amuser.'"* In
these amphitheatres, besides mathematical and geometrical
demonstrations, the students are instructed in geology, miner
alogy, political economy, architecture, surveying, levelling, irri
gation, draining, the construction of roads, canals, bridges, and
in the Gerraan and English languages.
On opening a door on the left, over whioh was inscribed
" Galerie des Modeles."! I entered a lofty long hall, containing
models of machinery of almost every description, of different
sorts of bridges, lighthouses, of the principal aqueducts of
France and of foreign countries, also plans of the best modes
of irrigation. There were likewise, admirably arranged and
lighted, fragments ofthe most important portions ofthe interior
of steam-engines : among these I observed a locomotive engine,
sawed and separated into two pieces, so as to enable the stu
dents, as it were by dissection, to anatomise the reality of these
powerful bodies. Adjoining were plans explaining the oon-
struction of atmospheric railways ; a very interesting model of
the " Pont au double " near Notre Darae in Paris, which,
although ofa span of 115 yards, with a rise in the arcb of only
* To amuse himself with. •)• GaUery of Models.
16*

370 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
ten feet, is composed of nothing but a conglomeration of broken
stones and cement
Among the drawings are some showing an infinity of pur
posely confused details, exhibited as a style which, instead of
being iraitated, sbould be shunned, I here inspected a variety
of plans, elevations, and sections by the students, many admi
rably and beautifully executed.
Beyond tbis interesting gallerly I entered one devoted en
tirely to harbours and canals, containing, besides various
models of both, dredging machines, bridges of boats, &c.
Above is a gallery full of theodolites, spirit-levels, and a
variety of other mathematical instruments, the cost of which in
Paris I observed to be less than half the prices in England.
Lastly, I was conducted into a hall full of specimens of
mineralogy, previous to leaving whicb I ascertained from the
superior that, for the elucidation of the details I had witnessed,
there are employed fifteen professors ; that the Government
liberally gives to each student 150 francs a month during the
tbree years wbich form the course of his education in this
valuable establishment ; besides which, there exists in " la
Rue des Coutures St Gervais" a private one on a similar
plan, entitled " Ecole des Arts et Manufactures,"* for the edu
cation of young persons (above sixteen years, and possessing a
certain knowledge of algebra, geometry, and matbemetical
drawing) who are desirous, by the aid of science, to be made
competent to practise as civil engineers, as builders, or as
directors of factories.

LES CASERNES.!
As the momentum or force with wbich a cannon shot strikes
any thing that opposes its progress does not depend solely on
its weight, or solely on its velocity, but on the product of both,
so does the real power of an army depend not solely on its
numbers, or solely on its military knowledge, but on the com
bined powers of both ; and tbus, just as a small shot can, by
* School of Ai-ts and Maijufaotures. f The barraeki

LES CASERNES. 371
greater velocity, be made to strike a heavier blow than a much
larger one propelled with little velocity, it is evident that,
although in point of numbers the army and militia in Great
Britain, Ireland, and the Channel Islands, as compared with
the Garde Nationale and army of France and Algeria, are in
the proportion of one to thirty-nine, superior acquirements in
the smaller body might compensate for its deficiency in phy
sical force. With this reasoning in my mind, I felt anxious,
during my short residence in Paris, to ascertain, as accurately
as I could, the precise point of military knowledge the French
army has attained ; and yet. although in Paris almost every
thing belonging to the public, with the utmost liberality, is
thrown open to the inspection of the inhabitants of Paris in
general; and of strangers in particular, I found that to all
ordinary applications to visit the barracks the answer of the
general commanding invariably was, " Personne n'est permis
de visiter les casernes,"* 'the only reason being, that the sol
diers, very naturally and very properly, do not like to be
treated, as they say, " like wild beasts." I found it necessary,
therefore, to obtain a special order from the Minister at War,
authorizing me to visit the various military institutions within,
and in the neighbourhood of, Paris.
With it in my pocket, I proceeded towards the Ecole
Militaire ; but on passing the entrance-gate to the temporary
barracks, one story high, for 7,000 men, lately constructed on
both sides of the Esplanade des Invalides, I determined to
test the validity of my firman, and aooordingly, on being
stopped b.y the sentinel as I was going into the barrack-yard,
I told bim I wished to speak to the commanding officer. To
my surprise, he informed me all the officers lived at Paris, and
that no one of them was in the barracks excepting the ad
jutant !
" I will, then," said I, " call upon him."
" Non, Monsieur !' said the sentinel, " personne ne peut
entrer I"!
He would, however, send for the adjutant, and accordingly
the serjeant of the guard, whom he called, despatched one of
the men on duty to the quarters of this officer, who, very
shortly coming to the gate, on reading my order, politely told
* Nobody is allowed to visit our barrack!
! No sir ! nobody is allowed to enter !

372 'i FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
me I was at liberty to enter, and he, moreover, desired oue of
the guard to take me wherever I wished.
My guide, who was an exceedingly intelligent fine young
soldier, appeared, before I had said half a dozen words to him,
to understand exactly what I wanted, and accordingly he led
me into a barrack-room (they are all alike) numbered to con
tain 108 men, but in which were 75 beds, the amount of men
in one company. On entering it I found several of the soldiers
singing, others lying on their beds reading, and, as I walked
among them, looking, possibly, as if I was not altogether unac
customed to them, I attracted very little observation. Round
the room, which had a brick floor, — no ceiling but tbe rafters
of the roof, — and which was lighted and ventilated longitudi
nally by windows on both sides, — were arranged, at intervals
of 18 inches asunder, a series of iron bedsteads, for each of
which, on a slightly inclined plane. 18 inches above the ground,
were supplied a straw palliasse, — a good wool mattress, — a
straw bolster, — a wool pillow, — a blanket, — a pair of sheets,
changed once a fortnight in summer, and three weeks in win
ter, — and over all a neat clean counterpane of a brownish-red
colour. During the day, on every alternate bedstead, is placed
two sets of bedding, and thus one half of the bedsteads form
soft sofas on whicb the men may rest, and the other half hard
healthy ones, on which they may sit. Over the head of each
bed is a shelf for the soldier's kit, including a round tin soup-
pan, with cover, holding about five pints English ; beneath a
row of pegs for his side-arms, and bag for his brushes. At
the bottom of the range of beds, every here and there, was a
stand for arms, numbered and ticketed. Opposite to the door,
at the end of the room, there hung, shining like burnished gold,
a drum. On asking one of the men in the room what was the sum
total of the '¦ charge " or weight which a French soldier of the
line carried, I was instantly surrounded by a quantity of com
rades in mustachios, who appeared to vie with each other in
explaining to me that it was norainally 60 lbs, (French), but in
reality never so much, " The musket and bayonet," said one,
" weighs from 9 lbs, to 10 lbs," His circle of comrades nodded
assent " Our knapsack full," said another, " from 20 lbs. to 301bs. ;
our cooking utensils about 4 lbs,',

LES CAiSERNES. 373
I asked what articles the knapsack contained. In reply,
several voices said, " We are allowed to carry what we
like !"
" For instance" (" par exemple"), said one, " we may carry
two or three pairs of pantaloons."
The knapsack, however, which is inspected every two or
three mouths, contains usually two pairs of shoes, one pair of
drawers, a pair of pantaloons, three shirts, two collars, two
pairs of gloves, two pairs of white gaiters, three pocket-hand
kerchiefs, and one bonnet-de-nuit.
" What !" said I with a smile, " does a French soldier re
quire a nightcap to sleep in ?"
" Mais oui !"* replied several voices.
Passing the door of several similar rooms, I now proceeded
to the canteen, open from day-break till half-past nine at night.
In it I found a room in which, at one small table, dine the
serjeant-major and Serjeants, and at two long ones the remain
ing sous-offioiers, above the rank of corporals, who live in bar
racks with the men. In the corner were neatly arranged,
on a sraall counter, glasses, bottles of wine and spirits, for
sale. Every regiment of 1500 men (i. e. three battalions of 500)
is allowed to bave four cantiniers, who, as they require female
assistance, must be married. Four washerwomen are also
allowed to live in barracks ; but no soldier in the regiment
is allowed to marry, unless a cantiniere is wanted, I asked
my guide whether it was the case, that, beyond the number
specified, soldiers' wives were not recognised ? He said that
in military law they were not recognised, " mais," he added,
witb a shrug, " il n'y en a pas,"!
" What I" said I, " are none of the men in these barracks
for 6000 soldiers married ?"
" Not one !" he replied. " The tambour-major, the maitre
d'armes, and the chef de cuisine,"J he added, correcting him
self, " may marry, but no one else !"
In eacb regiment of 1500 men about fifteen boys, of twc
years of age, are, as " children of the regimeut," allowed the
same rations as soldiers, uutil they are eighteen years of age,
* Oh yes ! ! But there are none.
X Drum-major, fencing-master, and chief cook.

374 -1 FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
when they may enlist or depart, as they may prefer ; but no
girls of any age whatever are admitted into barracks.
In tbe kitchen, a hall, lighted and ventilated on three
sides by windows, and paved with round stones like those of
a pave, I found one hot plate, 14 feet long by 3 feet 4 in.
broad, containing eight semi-elliptical " marmites," or cop
pers, 2 feet by 1 foot 5 in. ; each of which, I was astonished
to learn, cooked for a company of from seventy-five to ninety
men ! Round the room was a table, or dresser, of the ordi
nary height, 2 feet 6 in, broad, and above it a shelf 1 foot
broad. On the former were lying, in heaps, bread for soup,
cut into slices, and basins of white beans. On the ground
tubs of cabbages, with a few potatoes. The meals of each
company are prepared by two of its soldiers, changed every
day ; and the French army is thus composed of regiments,
not only of soldiers, but of professed cooks.
The ration of the French soldier consists of a loaf of 3 lbs.
for two days ; ^ lb. of meat per day, eaten at two meals of
\ lb. each, morning and evening ; | lb. of white long bread
for soup ; one to two sous worth of vegetables ; and lastly
the soup in which the meat is boiled.
'' How mucb wine have you ?" said I to my young guide.
" None !" he replied, with a toss of his head, " a la fon
taine !"* adding, " in summer, wben it is very hot, we are al
lowed one small glass of wine per day,"
" Has the soldier any other allowance ?" I asked.
" Ob yes !" he replied, with a grin. " He has ' en pro
vince' one sou, and in Paris two sous per day, pour s'amuser."!
" Happy the soldier that lives ou his pay !"
We now proceeded into a small fencing-room, in the mid
dle of which were sunk into the ground three broad boards,
separated by wooden platforms, which, in fact, were the re
mainder of the floor. Upon tbese three sunken boards, in
constant succession, three privates in masks were learning the
use of the sword under an experienced maitre d'armes, as
sisted in each regiment by six prevots, who, besides being ex
empt from all other duties, receive from the maitre " quelque
* We go to the pump ! ! To amuse ourselves -with.

LES CASERNES. 375
chose,"* Close to this " saile d'armes'' were the bo^rded-up
windows of a prison, in whioh, as there is no bed, the inmates
sleep, from two nights to a month, on the floor. Adjoining is
a " saile de police," containing palliasses on the floor, in
whioh men are confined two months, or more.
On returning to the end of the barracks at which I had
entered, I found a range of offices, superscribed as follows 1 —
" Salle de Rapport et Accessoires" (for the colonel and adju
tant) ; " Corps de Garde, et Salles de Police" (adjutant and
sous-offioiers sleep here) ; " Compagnies hors Rang" (soldiers'
tailors and shoemakers, very badly paid) ; " Sergents-ma-
jors et Fourriers," (There is one sergeant-major for each
company ; the " fourrier" ranks between him and the ser
geant,) In these temporary barracks there were, at the moment I
visited them, 5500 men, forming four regiments, namely : —
Two battalions of chasseurs a pied.
Two regiments of the line, composed of very young sol
diers. In France men are drawn by the conscription at twenty,
and become soldiers at twenty-one. Volunteers, formerly
allowed to enter at eighteen, are now received at seventeen.
My intelligent guide was a volunteer of nineteen.
On leaving him, passing round two sides of the H6tel des
Invalides, I proceeded along the Avenue Lowendal to the
Plaoe de Fontenoy, in which is the principal iron-railed en
trance gate of the Eoole Militaire, founded by Louis XV. ^
for the education principally of the sons of officers killed in
action: transformed into barracks in 1789; afterwards used
as the headquarters of Napoleon ; and now again become the
principal of the forty casernes, which in Paris, even in the
immediate vicinity of tbe palace of the President, are in
every direction to be found swarming alive with soldiers.
On being stopped by the sentinel I told bim I wantad to
see the commandant. The matter was referred to the ser
geant, wbo informed me that one of his guard must accom
pany me, and, accordingly, I found myself walking with a
soldier by my side across a spacious esplanade towards the
[quarters of the general. In a sort of corridor I passed two
* A trifle besides.

376 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
soldiers, with long mustachios and in uniform, sitting astride
a bench and playing at draughts with bits of stone of differ
ent colours, over which, -with their chains resting on their
hands, they were reflecting as deeply as if they were at chess.
On arriving at the General's house, the door was opened by
a soldier, who Conducted me to anotber private, with mus
tachios and dress exactly like him, who was writing, and
who told me the General was in Paris, and he wanted me to
take my order there to him : however, after he had read it,
he carried it away with him into anotber room, and after a
short absence returned, and told the soldier of the guard
who had brought me be was to accompany me wherever I
wished. " And where would you like to go ?" said my attendant,
as soon as we got outside the door.
I told him I did not at all know ; that I wanted to see
the casernes, &c, ; and that, as he understood what they con
tained infinitely better than I did, I would follow him'.
" Bien, Monsieur !" replied the soldier, with a look not
only of great intelligence, but of apparent satisfaction at the
confidence I had reposed in him ; and stepping suddenly for
wards as if I had pronounced to him the word " March !" he
led me up a handsome staircase into a noble apartment, from
which we walked out upon a sort of spacious balcony, beneath
a projecting portico, formed by four lofty Corinthian co
lumns, supporting a pediment, richly sculptured. From this
exalted position, which I could not help recollecting had re
peatedly been occupied by Napoleon, we had a most magni
ficent view of the Champ de Mars, a plain of sand, bounded
on the east and west by avenues of trees, on the south by the
Ecole Militaire, in which I stood, and on the north by the
bridge of lena, and the Seine,
After reflecting for some little time on the various import
ant scenes which had occurred on the great open space before
me, we retired into the " Salle de Conseil," and other apart
ments, the past and present appearance of whioh also form
ed a striking coutrast On the lofty walls, as hatchments or
memorials of departed grandeur, appeared immense gold
frames, richly ornamented, but empty; the pictures they had
contained were all gone, and the floor, composed of oak, beau
tifully dovetailed, was liberally strewed with dust and dirt

LES CASERNES. 377
As we were descending the staircase, ray guide explained
to nie that the casernes of tho Eoole Militaire, capable of
holding 10,000 men, at present contained only flve regiraents,
namely, —
One of hussars ;
The 58th and 4 1 st of the line ;
One of chasseurs a pied ;
And the 3rd regiment of artillery :
Forming a total of 4356 men.
He then conducted me through two magnificent barrack
squares, 690 feet long, separated from each other only by an
iron railing. In one were several hundred soldiers (all Very
young) listening to the soft, pure, beautiful music of their
band. The barrack-rooms, although of different sizes, were much
smaller than those I had seen in the inorning. On entering
one, I found in it, neatly arranged around the room, nineteen
iron bedsteads, 13 inches asunder. Upon them were three
boards, altogether 2 feet 2| in. broad, and 6 feet 3 in. in length,
supporting the sarae amount of bedding I had found in the
temporary barracks, with a counterpane, dark drab, with a
yellow border. Above eaoh bed, on a high shelf, there ap
peared the soldier's cap and knapsack ; on another, beneath,
were, neatly folded, two pairs of scarlet trousers, a uniform
coat, and, as ornaments at each side, a yellow epaulptte ; be
low the whole were eight iron cramps, for holding bayonet,
cartouch-box, &c. The nineteen muskets were on a stand
near the door, I took up one ; the movement of the look
was excellent. In the middle of the room, suspended from
the ceiling, was a tray full of loaves of bread. In every room
is constantly a man to watch it. Outside each door was
affixed a list of the inmates. In the long passages communi
cating with the several rooras, all the windows were open-
As the arrangements in the rooms of the cavalry and in
fantry are exactly alike, -my guide now led me to a magnificent
stable, 245 yards (25 yards more than one-eighth of a mile)
long, full of horses, separated from eaoh other by bails a little
higher than their hooks, and from which hung a matting of
straw. The horses stood on clean litter, and the ventilation
was so perfect that no smell was perceptible. Over eaoh rack
was affixed the name and number of the quadruped, and the

378 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
name of its rider, besides wbich the number of each horse
was cut on his fore foot On his near thigh was branded the
number of his regiment, with the letter H, signifying " Hus
sar." I may here add, that every article of the soldier's
dress — shirt, stockings, stock, braces, &c. — is stamped witb
his number. Excepting witb the army at Algiers, there are
no entire horses in the French cavalry.
The horses are fed at six in the morning, at eleven, and at
eight at night in summer, and half-past six in winter. Those
of the hussar regiment were very small. In a large yard I
found a rectangular bath, 60 yards long by 40 broad, sur
rounded by a low wall, and bounded on the outside by a paved
walk, along which the soldiers, who were swimming their
horses by the halters, walked. In hot weather, this cheap,
sensible, and cleanly operation is usually performed at five
o'clock in the evening. Lame horses, I was informed, derive
much benefit by standing up to their chests for some hours in
this bath. As I was leaving the yard, I stopped to listen to a
number of fine, manly voices, most joyously singing together
in chorus. " Ce n'est rien I" * said my guide. " It is only the soldiers
in prison I" I could not, however, help thinking what a de
lightful contrast it was to Sterne's captive, sitting, with a rusty
nail " notching a little calendar of small sticks all over with
the dismal days and nights he had passed there."
In the middle of one of the barrack squares, in the open
air, surrounded by a narrow earthen parapet, three feet high,
W&s a circular manege, twenty-two yards in diameter, for ex
ercising horses and for horsemanship.
My guide now led me into a kitchen for twelve companies
(averaging eighty men each), in whieh, as usual, most admira
bly arranged, within the narrow space of twenty-two feet
square, I observed twelve semicircular " marmites" or coppers,
over which were an iron shade and funnel for carrying away
the steam : there was consequently no unpleasant smell or
heat. The fires were of wood.
In a yard adjoining I found, in scarlet trousers, a number
of hussars, in various attitudes, leaning over stone cisterns, in
which they were washing their own white cotton gloves, stock-
* It is nothing I

LES CASERNES. 379
ings, handkerchiefs, and drawers, to save themselves from tbe
regimental charges, which are as follows : —
Two sous a week for washing one shirt ; for a pair of draw
ers two sous more ; gloves, a sou a pair.
" Tf a handkerchief," .said my young guide, " is tied to a
shirt, it is allowed — as a point of honour — to pass as its tail
and, accordingly, no charge is made for it ; but," he added
witb a good-humored smile, and a twist at his mustachios,
" very few of us possess handkerchiefs !"
My conductor now led me to a door, on entering whioh,
much to my surprise, I saw before me five handsome pier
glasses, and eleven marble tables, at one of which was sitting a
fine-looking sergeant of hussars, smoking ; at others, several
soldiers of the line playing at cards. Adjoining to this "cafe"
was a small shop, selling tobacco, brushes, — in short, all tb»
little things in this world that a soldier wants.
After passing through a large park of artillery and of pon
toons, I entered the gymnasium of the Ecole Militaire, a large
open court, containing, besides all sorts of strange-looking
hieroglyphics, a long, lofty gibbet, with a ladder at each end,
communicating with the beam, from which were hanging four
teen ropes ; up which soldiers were hauling themselves until
they approached the beam, beneath which they proceeded hori
zontally by unhooking the fourteen ropes from one set of
rings to another. In another direction, one or two soldiers
were ascending the lofty wall that surrounded the court by
inserting the points of their fingers and toes into slight crev
ices that had been purposely made by the abstraction of the
mortar. In front of another part of the wall men were vibrat
ing, or swinging, by means of ropes attached to the summit.
In the centre, under the command of two officers on duty,
several men were performing feats which really astonished me.
Some, with great agility and in various ways, vaulted on and
over a sort of wooden horse ; others, kneeling on it, turned
over in the air like mountebanks. In another direction, on a
pole about six feet from the ground, was seated a soldier, who,
without touching it with his hand, raised his foot up to it, and
then rose up. From a small movable scaffolding, eight feet
high, several soldiers sprang forwards and then backwards on
a lump of loose sand beneath. Two or three jumped in this
way from the top of the gibbet, fourteen feet high. Just be-

380 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS. ^
fore I entered this gymnasium for the second time, I h|id bap
pened — within the Boole Militaire — to meet Colonel Wood,
who so gallantly distinguished himself in India on Lord Har-
dinge's staff'; and as we evidently took much interest in the
feats we were witnessing, the two officers on duty called to
gether a number of the men. Eight were made to stoop, with
their shoulders resting against each otber, and, while theywere
in this position, three or four of their comrades, one after an
other, running quickly along a spring board, not only jumped
over them, but, making a summerset in tbe air, landed very
cleverly on their feet, and the officers, seeing we were some
what astonished, increased the number of stoopers from eight
to fourteen, over the whole of whom two or three men, follow
ing each other in quick succession, making a summerset in the
air, and landing lightly on their feet, ran on as if no such
parenthesis in their lives had occurred. From one of the
officers I ascertained that all the soldjgrs under thirty years
of age within the Ecole Militaire were required to perform
gymnastic exercises twice a week for two hours at a time ; but
that after the age mentioned their attendance ceased to be
compulsory. Having now rapidly passed through the largest of the
permanent and temporary barracks in Paris, I determined, as
the next step in my inquiry, to ascertain the amount of edu
cation given by France to candidates for commissions in her
army.

ECOLE SPlilCIALE MILITAIRE DE ST. CYR.
From Versailles there runs a fine new, straight, glistening
railway to St, Cyr ; but I had just come from Paris to the for
mer place by rail, and therefore preferred, as a change, pro
ceeding by road. Accordingly, clambering to the top of a 'bus,
whioh, poor little thing, was working in opposition to the St
Cyr railway, I sat looking at the pair of small punchy white
horses that belonged to it, until, there proving to be no other
passengers from the train, the coachman mounted beside me,
and on we all tottled.

ECOLE SPECIALE MILITAIRE DE ST. CYR. 381
The saddle-pads had been born red ; but as the rest of the
harness, which was equally old, was blackish, and the reins
whitish, I asked the driver what was the reason of these differ
ences. He told me that the white untanned leather of France,
from its strength, is excellent for reins, but that, as " transpi
ration" — called at a London city -ball "perspiration" — -decom
poses it. black leather is infinitely better for the back-bands,
traces, and breeching.
With a long whip my companion was continually threaten
ing rather than striking his horses ; but as it was evidently
out of their power to go beyond the first rudiments ofa trot,
his interminable conversation to me all the way to St Cyr
(two or three leagues) was about onoe every ten seconds inter
larded by three exceedingly long, but distinctly different,
drawling exclamations, which in writing can only very imper-
iectly be described as follows (N, B, The vowels raust be
pronounced in Frenoh patois) :¦ — ¦
A u \ 3. . . . i , u , , , i.
To tell the truth, the latter was almost invariably followed
very quickly by " Cre ! ore !" by "' Sacre cochon I" " Sacre
matin !" and, although the horses were, as I bave distinctly
stated, milk-white, by " Sacre bleu .'"
" Voila qu'ils se reposent jusqu'au chien !"* said he to me,
pointing with his chin to a poor man, a poor wife, three poor
children, and a lean dog. who, lying on their backs, sides, or
ouried in a ring, were all six fast asleep by the road-side.
As we were jogging along I observed on my right a series
of grass parks, separated from each other by bigh palings, in
each of which were a thorough-bred mare and foal. They
were the governraent parks for breeding horses,
" C'est une jument Irlandaise !"! said my comrade, pointing
to a fine-looking mare. About 100 yards farther he pointed
out to me with his whip an English mare, whioh, he said — so
like an English mother — would not allow man or animal to
come near her foal
On arriving at our destination, I walked towards the mag
nificent buildings and extensive lands I had come to visit
In the year 1686 Madame de Maintenon prevailed upon
Louis XIV, to found, in the obsoure little village of St, Cyr,
* Lookat 'em all resting themselves — do'wn to tlie very dog!
f That's an Ii-ish Ilia le.

382 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
for the education of 250 noble young ladies, the celebrated
Maison de St, Cyr, to which, on the death of the King, she
herself retired, and in which, in 1719, she actually died. In
the revolution of 1793 this female establishment was converted
into an hospital for soldiers, in which capacity it continued to
be used until 1805, when, by a second transmigration, Madame
de Maintenon's establishment for young ladies was converted
by Napoleon into "I'Eoole Speciale Militaire de St Cyr," to
whioh were immediately removed the young students of the
military sohool of Fontainebleau,
On producing my order of admission to the officer com
manding, he was good enough to accompany me over a portion
of the establishment, and to order one of the captains to take
me to the remainder, and, moreover, to give me copies of vari
ous lithographed papers he had shown to me.
The precautions whicb the French nation, under every
description of government, and under every species of adver
sity, political or pecuniary, take to provide their army with offi
cers competent to command, are very remarkable.
The commandant of the establishment of St, Cyr told rae
he had at present under his charge 500 young men, who, as
candidates for coramissions in the line, had at the age of
eighteen engaged themselves to serve for seven years, if requi
site, as private soldiers ; that during their residence it had
been customary for them to pay for their education, &c, 1000
francs a year, with a trousseau (bounty) of 50ii francs for the
two years, the usual period of their course of study ; that it
bad lately been recommended in the National Assembly they
should be educated gratis ; but that, although that proposal
had for the present been rejected, several, in consequence of
certificates, had lately been allowed to pay only half the sums
naraed, and a few nothing.
If they conduct themselves well, and succeed in passing
their examinations in the course of two years, they are pre
sented with the commission of sousdieutenant of cavalry, or of
the line. If the former, they are required to go for two years
more to the military establishment at Saumur; if the latter,
they are ordered at once to join their respective regiments.
If, during their residence at StCyr, they misbehave, for slight
misdemeanours they are either drilled during the hours of
recreation in heavy marching order, or are put under the po-

ECOLE SPECIALE MILITAIRE DE ST. CYR. 383
lice ; for heavier offences they are sent to the military prison
at Paris, where they are treated exactly as soldiers ; and if
they fail altogether to attend to their studies, they are des
patched as privates to a regiment in any situation. Without
permission of the general, granted only in extreme cases, no
friends or even parents of the eleves can see them, except on
Sundays, from twelve to two ; but, twice a month, if all their
work is well done, they are allowed a holiday, from 9 in the
morning till 9 at night, but never to sleep out.
As the number of young men averages from 500 to 600,
and as their course of education usually occupies two years,
there are annually poured into the army from 250 to 300 offi
cers, as follows : —
Of those who have most distinguished themselves there are yearly
sent to the Ecole d'Etat Major, to go through the whole course of
that establishment (which will shortly be described), about 20
To the military establishment at Saumur, to go through the Cavalry
course of education, as therein prescribed, about . . 50
To ofiicer regiraents of the Line . . . from 180 to 230
Total, frora 250 to 300.
Besides the praotioal education which will briefly be delin
eated, the young soldiers of St Cyr are theoretically instruct
ed in the art of war, legislative administration, topography, forti
fication, descriptive geometry, mathematics, geography and his
tory, natural 4)hilosophy, mechanics, chemistry, and drawing.
The following list of officers and professors, &c., will clear
ly show the extraordinary pecuniary efforts which the French
nation, however low may be its finances, make to impart to
candidates for commissions in their army a competent know
ledge of the art of war : — Military,
1 General of Brigade. Commandant
1 Colonel, Commandant en Second.
1 Colonel, Director of the Studies.
1 Chef de Bataillon, commanding the battalion.
2 Captains, Assistant-Directors of the Studies.
4 Captains, commanding the four divisions, each composed
of two companies (or of one eighth of the effective of the
whole).

384 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STIOKS
8 Lieutenants, comraanding corapanies.
8 Sous-Lieutenants,
1 Chef d'Escadron of )
Artillery > For the instruction of Artillery.
1 Captain ditto )
1 Captain of Engineers ) For the instruction of Fortifica-
2 Lieutenants ditto ^ tion, &c.
1 Captain of Engineers ) For the instruction of the " Art
2 Lieutenants do. ^ Militaire."
I Captain of the Corps d'Etat )
Major > Topography.
1 Lieutenant ditto )
1 Medecin Militaire, Civil
2 Surgeons ; 1 Director of the Studies (an officer of Engi
neers, of the rank of Chef de Bataillon) ; 1 professor of His
tory ; 1 Assistant ditto ; 1 Professor of Geography; 1 Assis
tant ditto; 1 Professor of Gerraan; 2 Assistant ditto; 2
Professors of Mathematics ; 4 Assistant ditto ; 3 Professors
of Drawing ; 1 Professor of Belles Lettres ; i Professor of
"Physique;" 2 Assistant ditto; 1 Professor of Mechanics;
2 Assistant ditto ; 1 Professor of Chemistry ; 2 Assistant
ditto. The buildings of St Cyr are coraposed o^ an entrance
" cour longue," or long, lofty, covered promenade, parallel to
and within which are three handsome courts, named Cour
d' Austerlitz, Cour de Marengo, Cour de Rivoli, running con
secutively east and west, each surrounded by buildings two
stories high ; beyond them is a narrow fourth court, of a less
glorious but niore useful name, called Cour de Cuisine.* Of
these buildings those of the Cour de Rivoli are occupied solely
by employes. In proceeding over the establishment I was conducted first
into an amphitheatre, large enough to hold two corapanies,
containing models of the different systems of fortification.
At one end, opposite the benches on wbich the young candi
dates for commissions in the Line, one abo-ve another, were sit
ting, was a Professor and an assistant, demonstrating with
* Kitchen Court

ECOLE SPECIALE MILITAIRE DE S'I. CYR. 385
white chalk on a black board the mode of attacking a fortified
place ; adjoining was an amphitheatre of chemistry, amply
supplied with the necessary arrangements, and capable of hold
ing 300 students.
In three magnificent lofty halls, lighted at both ends, I
found — surrounded by a variety of very beautiful models of
fronts of fortifications, tetes-de-pont, modes of encamping a
regiment, with several topographical drawings, under glass
frames — a series of double desks, on each of which were lying
a portfolio and mathematical instruments. Every eight of
these are under the charge of a student of the rank of cor
poral, on whose desk hang the names of the squad over whom
be presides In the middle of the hall, in an elevated desk, stood the
Professor ; before him was a list of the names and numbers of
the students at work around him ; between the windows were
black boards for deraonstration. At eaoh end of these halls
is a small room for the examination of the students by the
Assistant Professors, whose duty it is to explain any details
whioh the Professor may have omitted.
In a handsome room of models I observed one — which
could be taken to pieces, so as to explain every part of the in
terior — of the block-houses, surrounded by a ditch, used by
the French army in Algeria ; others of gabions, fascines,
chevaux-de-frise, pallisades, and batteries of various descrip
tions. The library coraprehends 16,000 volumes of professional
and historioal works. The chapel, which is neat, contains for
the officers a tribune or gallery, beneath which sit the students ;
before all is an altar, plain and siraple.
I was now conducted into a splendid " saile de recreation,"
in the the Cour de Marengo, enlightened lengthways on each
side by fifteen windows, from which is a fine healthy view.
From them we went into eight magnificent dormitories, each
containing in a double row down the middle and a row against
each wall 72 beds for an entire company. Above each iron
bedstead, on which there is a bair and a wool mattress, was a
bureau holding the cap and aeooutrements of the student, also
a box at the side for his boots. &c. The eleves make their
own beds, black their own shoes, soles and all, and, in turns,
Bweep their rooms, for which purpose under every eighth win
17

386 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
dow there was hanging a broom and a dust shovel At the
side of the room the bed of each corporal (an eleve) was dis
tinguished by a paper hanging at its head containing tbe names
of his squad, eight in number. At the end of these long
rooms were arranged a quantity of muskets.
As we were proceeding to a lower stratum of the building
I heard a drum suddenly beat, and almost immediately there
appeared, winding down the staircase upon whicb we were
standing, the whole of tbe eleves. Over their uniforms they
had an odd-looking sort of working pinafore of blue cotton,
wbich covered the breast and arms down to the wrists. Each
had, swinging in bis hand, or tightly compressed under his
arm, a large pieee of bread. We followed them into their
magnificent dining-hall, the tiled floor of which was dotted
with fifty oak tables, each surrounded by twelve rush-bottomed
stools, upon whicb the students in groups were hardly seated
before a string of garcons appeared, bringing to each table its
soup and vegetables. During this operation silence prevailed ;
but as soon as the tables were all served, the drummer, at the
end of the room, gave a roll, which immediately eliciting from
the eleves a general roar of applause, down they all sat with
their caps on, and they certainiy commenced their " spoon ex
ercise " with an alacrity that youth, health, good-humour, and
good-fellowship combined, can only produce. Each squad per
day is allowed 3^ bottles of wine. Their meals are as follows :
at half past seven they eat a piece of bread ; at one they dine ;
at four they bite and swallow another bit of bread ; and at
half-past eight sup. Their ration of wine is usually divided
between dinner and supper. Outside the dining-room are spa
cious washing-rooms, to which each company is marched inthe
morning by beat of drum.
From fhe dining-room we instinctively went into the large
saile de cuisine, in which within the tiny space of twelve feet in
length by nine in breadth the cooking of the whole establish
ment (which has occasionally consisted of 600 eleves and 100
employes, total 700) is, without hurry or inconvenience, per
formed ! From it we passed through the " saile d'armes," a
flnefencing-room, the ceiling of which is supported by columns,
into a " cour de recreation," a sandy play-ground with a few
trees in each corner, 110 yards broad by 165 in length.
From thence I was conducted into the gymnasium, a mosl

ECOLE SPECIALE MILITAIRE DE ST. CYR. 387
extraordinary plaoe, as high and as large as a church, full, from
top to bottom, of all sorts of oddlooking things, among which
was a wooden horse without a skin, and another with one. On
the outside, in the open air, was another, also replete witb ob
jects that looked as if they had been constructed by a mad car
penter. In the surrounding wall, fifteen feet high, were crevices
in tbe mortar, in which, by the inserfeion of toes and tips of
fingers, the young candidates for comraissions in the Line were
taught to climb to the top.
Eastward about three hundred yards, I found — in the mid
dle of a spacious well-stocked garden — the Infirmary, or hospi
tal, in which the young men who are sick are carefully watched
over by seven Soeurs de la Charite,
In front of the line of buildings surrounding the " Cour de
Rivoli," the " Cour de Marengo," the '¦ Cour d' Austerlitz," and
the " Cour de Cuisine," are extensive gardens belonging to the
General and. adjoining, a very large, rectangular, open space,
called the " Cour de Wagrara," used for railitary drill Beyond
is a large field of uneven ground, called the " Champ de Mars,"
On the right of all these runs diagonally a practising ground
for guns, mortars, and small arms, of nearly a mile in length.
On entering the Champ de Mars, at about two o'clock, I
found two companies of the eleves going through various ma
noeuvres in the presence of a Chef de Bataillon, who, in uniform
and on horseback, held in his hand the notes of duties for tbe
day ; but the words of command were given by the eleves, who
are taught — seriatim — to act the parts of all ranks, from a
private up to that of the Chef de Bataillon who superintends
them. They are also, for an hour or two every day, made first
to trace on the ground, and then practically to construct, field-
works ; and accordingly, some were employed in finishing one,
the parapet of which fourteen feet high, was surrounded by a
ditch six feet deep. Among the works they had completed, I
observed, with great interest, several ovens for campaigning —
"fours de campagne" — very ingeniously constructed beneath
the surface of the ground. Adjoining to these they had been
taught to construct, for the purpose of cooking, boiling cal
drons, &c., "en bivouac," holes, from which little subterra
nean fines, as if they had been burrowed by a raole, ran for the
admittaiice of air and for tbe exit of smoke. At the I'urther
end existed a small park of nine pieces of artillery, gabions.

388 -^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
fascines, several sheds full of spades, pick-axes, &c., a yard
containing shot and shells, and a powder magazine.
Beyond the Champ de Mars, in the long practising ground
I have described, I found a butt and three batteries, one of
which, with four embrasures, 550 yards from the butt, had
been lately made by the eleves.
We now walked up to a party of them in heavy marching
order (with their knapsacks on their backs), employed in prac
tising with the new muskets and with fixed bayonets at a target,
distant 330 yards. Some fired at it erect ; others, by bending
down on their right knee, and then placing their left elbow on
the left thigh, obtained a rest apparently of great use. The
recoil of the musket in the hands of these young men was very
violent indeed ; and yet, by the report the officer superintend
ing them showed me, it appeared they had, at the distance
above named, struck the target (6 feet 6 inches bigh by 9 feet
3 inches, made to represent four men standing together) once
in ten times, which, he observed to me, was about the usual
average. Each eleve, or candidate for a commission in the Line,
during the two years he is at the establishment of St, Cyr, is
required to fire per annum, at various distances, twenty-eight
balls for muskets, and the same nuniber for carbines, " mus-
quetons" for cavalry, and pistols, A record is kept of every
bullet tbat hits the target, and at the end of the year a prize,
consisting of a pair of pistols, is awarded to the best shot ; be
sides wbich the best thirty are assembled to fire, in presence of
the General, who gives a second pair of pistols to the best per
former before him. During the second year only, eaoh subdi
vision fire — from distances of 550, 660, and 770 yards — two
shells from mortars, one from a howitzer, and nine shot from
cannons, and, as in the case of small-arms, a pair of pistols is
awarded to the best marksman.
At a considerable distance off, in the open country, I ob
served several of the young men very intently occupied in
walking together in groups, and then suddenly stopping. On
reaching them I was introduced to the officer (the adjutant of
artillery) in charge of the party. The object of the instruction
was as follows : the officer pointed out to them a tree about 250
yards off, and calling to them by their names (in the French
regiraents of the line the men are called by tbeir numbers), he

ECOLE SPECIALE MILITAIRE DE ST. CYR. 3^9
inquired of each, before all the rest, what he considered was
that distance? and recording in the book he held in his hand
the answ'er, he repeated seriatim the same question to every
, one until all their replies were put down. The precise dis
tance was then measured with a chain by two of the eleves,
followed by all the rest. As soon as it was ascertained, the
officer, calling around him the whole of his party, announced
it to them, and having done so, he read out loud the name,
(Monsieur * * *) with the distance he had estimated, and in
like manner tbat of every one present ; several had guessed
it within ten yards. For the line, who use the common mus
ket, thc extreme distance of this practice is 440 yards ; for
the chasseurs a pied, the average range of whose muskets is
supposed to be 1100 yards, the distances practised are up to
1320 yards.
While the British army, frora motives of false economy,
has since the war ending in 1815 been gradually sinking in
its equipment, and, in exercising, to a state of inferiority for
whioh no difference in " pluck" or physical strength can possi
bly corapensate, the French army has been, and is, devoting
extraordinary attention to ball-firing.
By all high military authorities on the Continent it is con
sidered that the new French musket will, by paralysing old
routine manoeuvres and tactics, make great alterations in the
art of war.
Heavy columns can no longer, as hitherto, remain at 600
or 700 yards. Charges by cavalry or with bayonet will conse
quently be more difficult and rare. Light artillery (six-pound
ers, for instance) will no longer be serviceable at the distance
at which they will be kept by the new musket ; and accord
ingly, the contest in future must be between the superior skill
and arrangements, in all ways, oi mu.sk.6i firing.
The French attach great importance to this art ; and as
their new rausket, which in tlieory we are, I believe, partially
about to adopt, reciuires the careful study and practice which
they are devoting to it, it is evident that, if the British soldier,
who is at preseut but a very poor shot, is to continue to be
deprived of the ammunition necessary for his instruction, our
troops will, by a new eleinent of war, be felled frora a distance,
without power to return the 'olow.
In tbe mean while, the French officers do not hesitate to

390 -^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
foretell that the fate of battles will henceforward, in a great
degree, depend upon the question of which of the two armies
engaged bas attained the greatest degree of perfection in ball-
firing in general, and in the scientific application of the new
musket in particular. And it is because they practise a great
deal that it is desirable we should be much more liberal in
our consumption of ammunition for this purpose than we have
been or are.
In the British service, the half-yearly allowance for ball-
practice, totally inadequate as it is, if not demanded within
certain periods, is irrecoverable. Tbere are many of our
barracks where, for want of an appropriate place for practice,
it cannot be used ; and after all, very few, indeed, furnish a
site for a 500-yards range.
On returning to the Eoole the General commanding was
good enough to give me lithographed copies of tbe minutest
details of the different courses of studies within and without
the scbool, of tbe several companies of each division, of all
the interior regulations by which they were governed, of the
punishments awarded for different offences ; and besides this
liberal, high-minded treatment of a stranger and a foreigner,
the officer wbo had had the irksome trouble of going with
me over the whole establishment insisted on accompanying
me to the railway-station, at whicb, as soon as I had arrived,
with geat politeness he took off his hat, and unconsciously
paying an infinitely greater compliment to himself than to
me, he gave me his " adieu I"
On returning to Versailles, I again, from the great espla
nade, observed for a moment the outside of the palace, a
picturesque and rather heterogeneous mixture of lightning-
conductors, blue slates, new chimneys, old windows, white and
red walls, gilt iron railings, and statues. In the evening 1
dined with the British Ambassador, at his delightful and
hospitable country residence at Versailles.

ECOLE D'ETAT MAJOB. 39 1

ECOLE D'ETAT MAJOR,
On entering a small door adjoining to a very large porte
cochere, I saw before me two spacious yards full of young men,
apparently officers, in uniform, sitting with their coats unbut
toned in various attitudes, each busy with a pencil in his
right hand, their left arms beiug all employed in nursing or
supporting a large rectangular drawing-board, on which, from
their respective stations, they were sketching the various ar
chitectural appearances of the complicated buildings before
them. Some were stooping, with their faces only a few
inches frbm their boards ; others, erectly, with their right
arms stretched out, were measuring by their pencils tbe par
ticular angle of the lines they were copying; two -or three
bad a leg cocked up on the other knee to help to support the
hoard ; one wore spectacles, and the nose of one, apparently
for want of a shortsighted pair, kept almost rubbing itself
against its board, as if, like the pencil close beside it, it were
delineating a chimney, a window, or a long crooked zinc pipe.
The colonel comraanding was also in the yard, and, on my
producing to him my order from the Ministre de la Guerre
to see the establishment, with great kindness and politeness
he said he would take me over it himself
Previous to 1815 the French had^no special system of
education for staff-officers, but before the army of occupation
had left their territory, the Minister of War, Marshal Gou-
vion Saint Cyr, framed and presented to the legislature, on
the 10th March, 1818, the draft of a law for the establish
ment not only of a college or " ecole " for the education of
staff-officers, but wbich was to possess the exclusive privilege
of supplying to the army all it required ; and thus, instead
of allowing every general, as a little piece of private patron
age, to select as an officer of the staff of the army in which
he has to serve his own silly son, nephew, or perhaps, unsight,
unseen, the near relation of some pretty woman who bad pes
tered him for the appointment--in short, instead of staff-

392 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
officers being snatched up from bere and there, to serve tem
porarily and disconnected as before — they were henceforward
to forra a permanent, most important, and most valuable
branch of the army, under the appellation of " Le Corps
Royal d'Etat Major." This new establishment, sanctioned
and committed to the charge of General Desprez, an officer of
engineers, who in his youth had highly distinguished himself
in the Ecole Polytechnique, and had subsequently served on
the staff with great success, rapidly reached the perfection in
whicb it now exists, and wbich bas caused it to be imitated,
more or less, by most of the great continental powers of
Europe. In time of peace the " Corps d'Etat Major " of France is
composed of 30 Colonels, 30 Lieut -Colonels, 100 Chefs de
Bataillon, 300 Captains, 100 Lieutenants, — forming a total
of 560 officers (thc whole corps of British Royal Engineers
contains only 307) ; besides which there can be called forth
at any time 100 lieutenants, who, having gone through the
course of. studies at tho " Eoole," are employing themselves
as will be described, Tho in.spccting generals of infantry and
cavalry arc required, in thc course of their annual inspections.
to examine all captains and lieutenants of the Etat Major
employed on tbc staff in thc theory and practice of ma
noeuvres ; also in their own special service, by making them
execute military reconnaissances, never giving them more
than forty-eight bours to make both tbeir plans and their
written report.
The following list of the costly establishment of the
"Ecole d'Etat Major" very significantly explains the im
portance which France attaches to the education of staff of
ficcrs for hcr armies :
Thc " Ecole d'Etat Major " is commanded in chief by a
Marechal dc Camp, assisted by —
Onc Coionci of the " Corps d'Etat Major,'' director of the
studies. One Chef d'Escadron of the same corps, charged with the
superintendence of the interior, and with the instruction re
lating to manoeuvres, exercises, and miltary regulations,
'Tbree Captains of the sarae corps, assistants to the Chef
d'Escadron, besides which, one of them is especially charged
witb the instruction of the theory and practice of horse man-

ECOLE D'ETAT MAJOR. 393
agement and horsemanship ; the two others in directing topo
graphical surveys.
One Medical Officer, of at least the rank of Chirurgien-
Major, Tbe Military Professors consist of —
One Captain, or Chef d'Escadron, of the Etat Major,
Professor of Descriptive Geometry,
One ditto, ditto, Professor of Astronomy, of Physical
Geography, and of Statistics,
One ditto, ditto. Professor of Geodesic and of Topog
raphy. One Captain, or Chef de Bataillon, of the Corps of Engi
neers, Professor of Fortification.
One ditto, ditto, of the Artillery, for the instruction of that
branoh of the serviee.
One Military Superintendent, Professor of Legislation
and of Military Administration,
One Captain, or Chef d'E.soadron, of the Corps d'Etat
Major, Professor of the Art of War (" d'Art Militaire "),
Four Captains of the Corps d'Etat Major, as Assistant-
Professors of Descriptive Geography, of Geography and Sta
tistics, of Topography, and the Art of War,
The Civil Establishraent consists of —
One Professor of Drawing,
One Assistant ditto.
Two Professors of the Gerraan Language.
One Treasurer, Secretary, and Librarian.
One Assistant-Treasurer.
One Sentinel Porter,
Lastly, for the purpose of firmly cementing together the
whole of the above elements into one solid mass, —
One Drummer,
The education of the '¦ Ecole,'' already almost sufficiently
explained by the titles of the professors, may very briefly be
detailed as follows : —
Mathematics. — Arithmetic, algebra, logarithms, geometry.
Descriptive Geometry. — Construction of straight lines,
curves, and tangents ; with the various lines separating light
and shade ; principles of perspective.
Trigonometry and Topography- — Use of the plain table,
compass, spirit level, principles of reconnaissance,
17*

394 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
Cosmography. — Movement, diurnal of thc earth, of the
sun, moon, planets, satellites, comets, and stars.
Geography- — Detailed description of the surface of the
globe, also of the various governments and populations.
Natural Philosophy- — A slight course of
Chemistry-— Ditto,
Artillery. — Description of the implements of war of the
ancients ; of those of every sort now in use ; of tbe armament
of different branches of the army ; fabrication of gunpowder ;
construction of gabions, fascines, platforms, &c, ; principles of
firing artillery ; general idea of the employment of artillery in
the attack and defence of fortified places.
Field Fortification. — Explanation of the various profiles of
field-works ; application of abatis, palissades, fraises, chevaux-
de-frise, trous de loup, &c. ; general principles of tracing out
works, such as redans, lunettes, tfete-de-ponts, redouts, star-
works, barbet batteries, &c.
Permanent Fortification. — Description of the systems of
Vauban, Cormantaigne, &c. ; also of the new French system.
Assault and Defence of Places. — Description of lines of
circumvallation and contravallation ; of approach ; of open
and covered sap ; description of an attack from the opening of
the trenches to the passage of the ditch.
Military Administration. — Interior administration of
companies' pay, subsistence, forage, fuel, clothing, linen, shoes,
arms, equipment, harness, shoeing, service on the march, lodg
ing, infirmary, hospitals, field hospitals, military accounts, mili
tary justice.
Art Militaire. — The organization, tactics, and manoeuvres
of infantry, offensive and defensive. Ditto of cavalry. Ex
planation and use of outpost duties ; of rounds and patrols ;
of the conduct of detachments near the enemy ; duties of the
different fractions of a detachment under various circum
stances ; of topographical reconnaissances ; of armed recon
naissances ; of the means necessary for reconnaisances; guides,
spies, deserters, prisoners, travellers, &c. ; of convoys, their
destination, rules to be observed on tbeir march, mode of
parking them or defending them ; special rules for the convoy
of prisoners ; of the attack of convoys. Defence and attack
of villages, of woods, of defiles, according to their respective
characters ; of ambuscades, and also of surprises, different

ECOLE D'ETAT MAJOR. 395
modes of preparing and carrying them into effect under vari
ous circumstances ; of foraging by force, &c, ; of cantonments,
rules to be observed; choice of the best positions for encamp
ments, for the bivouac of infantry, cavalry, and artillery.
Rules of castrametation for troops of all arms, under canvas,
or, in barracks, billets, &c.
Manceuvres. — Of every description.
French Literature, Latin, and German Language, —
Grammar, prose, poetry of each ; rhetoric ; different descrip
tions of public speaking.
Fencing- — In the usual way.
Swimming- — Ditto.
Horsemanship. — To each student are given ninety-four
lessons, consisting, besides riding, of lectures on the anatomy
of the horse, of his principal diseases, of his treatment, food,
water, ventilation of stables ; on shoeing ; on rest ; work ;
precautions to be taken on a march, and in a campaign ; on
the purchase of horses ; and lastly, how to proceed in cases of
false warranty.
After conversing some time with the Colonel and com
mandant of the establishment, I followed him into one of the
halls of study, in which I found ten or twelve fine intelligent-
looking young men, employed in drawing plans of fortification,
the works of a siege, breaches, flying bridges, and reconnais
sances of country 2200 yards (one mile and a quarter) broad,
by 3300 yards (about two miles) long, taken by themselves by
compass only ; and as these reconnaissances had all been laid
down on the same scale, the colonel, on placing two or three of
them together, pointed out to me how accurately they coin
cided, so as to form altogether, for a general offlcer, a continu
ous carte-du-pays. Those engaged in plan-drawing were ori
ginating their own delineations from plaster models of the dif
ferent features of a country. He was also good enough to
show me a plan of Toulouse, with a written report thereon,
by one student ; a plan of Besancjon, with an historical mili
tary memoir, by another ; a plan of Dieppe by another. He
informed me that tbree times a-week the students learn land
scape-drawing, of wbich he laid before me some specimens of
extraordinary talent. In another room he was kind enougb
to show me plans by the students of tbe principal sieges of
Spain, with drawing's by them of artillery of all descriptions.

396 'i FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
In the mathematical hall I found around a black board a
horse.shoe table containing twenty-five desks ; and in the libra
ry, to which government every year gives a certain sum, 8000
volumes on professional subjects.
The hospital was what Mr ***'*, M. P., in advocating
economy, contemptuously calls a " sinecwr," — Anglice, it did
not contain a single student ; indeed the colonel told me that
any one wbo occupies it more tban thirty-five days is consi
dered to have lost bis year's study ; and as this led to the sub
ject of discipline, I ascertained that the punishments of the
students consist of, —
1. A simple order of arrest by any officer of the establish
ment, wbich, wbile it confines them to their room, does not
exempt tbem from study.
2, An " arr6t de rigueur,'' with or without a sentinel,
which confines them in their rooms from study.
3. Confinement in a military prison, to which the culprit
is conducted by the officer on duty for the week, who brings
back to the field-marshal commandant a receipt from the jailer
for his person.
The students are required strictly to attend to the orders
respecting their dress, composed of a " grande tenue," * the
uniform of the " Corps d'Etat Major," minus the embroidery
and aiguillette ; a " petite tenue,' j consisting simply of a uni
form coat, epaulettes, hat, and sword ; and a " tenue de tra
vail," j: of a uniform coat without epaulettes. The form, shape,
and colour of every article of their clothing is strictly regu
lated by martial law ; for instance, the dimensions of tbeir
hats — totally irrespective of tbe different amount of brains
witbin each — are decreed to be as follows : —

Height . I
¦I

Millemetres,
Before  140

Behind
. , 1 Before
^''"^ ¦ ¦ ] Behind
Length
Breadth Diameter of the loop
Breadth of the t-wist of the loop

205030
025 125
070080 042

Lastly, the students are required, in the " Ecole'' and out of
it, to salute all officers of rank superior to their own ; and to
* Full dress, ! Undress. X Working dress.

MCOLE D'ETAT MAJOR. 397
assemble, whenever called upon to do so, by beat of drum.
Every day they are allowed to be absent frora the Ecole from
five in the evening till eleven at night, excepting on Saturday,
when they may be out till midnight ; and four times a raonth
they are permitted to be out all night, but — what sounds
reasonable enough — not two nights consecutively. If at the
yearly examination they do not attain a certain sum total of
proficiency, they are summarily discarded from the " Eoole
d'Etat Major," and at once appointed to regiments in the army.
I was now conducted into a stable containing fifty horses,
maintained for the instruction of the students. As is usual
in the French service, the name of each was appended over his
manger: among thera I observed a mare entitled " La Milady,"
and a slight, long-legged horse, called " Le Gentlemann."
From the stables the colonel led me into an unusually large and
lofty riding-school, 264 feet in diameter, around which, followed
by a groom on horseback, there was cantering, at the rate of
very nearly three miles an hour, a thin, old, erect gentleman —
he was a stranger, and had no connection with the establish
ment — who, with a red ribbon in his button-hole, with bands
bent like the paws of a dancing-bear, and with the points of his
toes gently resting in his stirrups, was taking, as medicine, his
daily dose of horse exercise.
The dormitories are composed of moderate-sized rooms ;
containing sometimes one, and sometimes two, beds.
Lastly, I was conducted into a good garden.
The hours of labour are in summer eleven, and in winter
nine, every day in the week except Sundays and fete-days. Of
the year, eight months are devoted to studies within the
" Ecole," three to exterior reconnaissances and actual surveys
under officers of engineers, and one for the examination in two
divisions of all the students.
The period of residence at the " Ecole" is two years. The
number of students fifty, of whom twenty-five every year, after
passing their examinations in the various studies enumerated
(which in the aggregate are considered as a preliminary portion
of their education) are, with the rank only they held at the
" Ecole," namely that of sous-lieutenant, emploved /w tux, years
as " aide-majors" (assistant-adjutants) in a re^ment of cavalry.
They then, with the rank of heutenant, are required to serve
for two years mare as aide-majors in a regiment of infantry ;

398 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
and afterwards, occasionally but not always, are sent for a year
in the same capacity, first to the artillery, and then to the
engineers, which corapletes the course of military education
which France deems it advisable to give to its " Corps d'Etat
Major," a national nursery for generals whom the country may
reasonably deem competent to comraand undei* any circum
stances the various armies on which the destinies and honour
of the nation are supposed to depend. From tbe education
they have received tbey are also deemed competent to be placed
at the disposition of the French minister for foreign affairs, to
be attached to embassies, or employed in diplomatic missions.
As I was walking through the garden, I asked the colonel
to be so good as to explain to me who had the patronage of
appointing to the " Ecole d'Etat Major" the twenty-five stu
dents requisite to replace that nuraber who were annually pro
moted from it to be, with the rank of lieutenants, aide-majors
(assistant adjutants) of cavalry. He told me that no such
infiuenee was allowed to interfere with the Ecole d'Etat Major ;
and, accordingly, that by an order of Government, the yearly de
ficiency, without any patronage whatever, is supplied by three
of the most distinguished scholars of the Ecole Polytechnique,
and by twenty-two who in like manner have most distinguished
themselves in their progress through tbe military college of
St Cyr' This sensible arrangement, which, regardless of expense,
gives to the brightest talents the country can produce the best
professional education it can devise, accords witb the whole
military system of the French army, which, among other regula
tions, has ordained that no one can be appointed to the rank of
sous-lieutenant until he has either served at least two years as a
non-coraraissioned officer (sous-officier) in some corps of the
array, or for two years has been an 61eve of the Ecole Militaire
de St. Cyr or Polytechnique, and has, moreover, passed all the
examinations thereof
As I was walking homewards I could not help comparing
the system of military education I had witnessed in the Casernes,
and in the Ecoles Polytechnique, Ponts et Chausees, Speciale
Militaire de St Cyr, and d'Etat Major of France, with tho
course pursued in my own country ; and as this painful subject
is of vital importance to every member of our community, it
will I trust be deemed not unworthy of a few minutes' patient
consideration.

/

ECOLE D'ETAT MAJOR. 399
According to the regulations of the British array no young
man, whatever intei'est he may possess, can enter the corps of
Royal Engineers, or the Royal Regiment of Artillery, without
going through the military academy at Woolwich.
As a school of preparation for the remainder of the army, —
the cavalay, infantry, and staff, — there has also existed long
ago at Great Marlow, and latterly at Sandhurst, a Royal Mili
tary College ; and as it and the army have been and are under
tbe same power, it would have been natural to conceive either
that the expenses of the college, if useless, would have been
abolished, or. if deemed useful, that by a simple regulation
every candidate for a commission would, as in the oase of the
Woolwieh academy, have been required to pass through it ; by
whioh arrangement, whatever amount of education from time to
time might be deemed necessary would be equally imparted to
all our young officers, who, on joining their respective regiments,
would be known to possess military knowledge up at least to
the point prescribed. Instead, however, of issuing any such
regulation — strange to say — it bas been, and still is, left to the
father, mother, guardian, uncle, grandfather, or grandmother
sf every young man who enters the army, to determine, accord
ing to his or her ignorance or prejudices, whether he shall ac
cept this national course of education or not ! and accordingly
it is an indisputable fact that a large proportion of the ensigns
of the British army have joined their respective regiments
without having received any military education whatever.
Now, instead of correcting this anomaly by the simple
establishment of one general system, there has lately been
adopted a medium course, which, by many very faithful ad
mirers of the power from whence it has emanated, is considered
to be a very serious mistake ; and as I most reluctantly own
that I concur in this opinion, I will endeavour to explain the
objections urged against the following order, the portions of
which that are considered to be very loosely worded, are
printed in italics : — ¦
Memorandum of the points upon which Mr.  wiU have to be exa
mined when selected by the Commander-in-Chief for a Commission in
the Army.
In order to have some certainty that the applicants for commissions in
her Majesty's service have been educated as genflemen, it is directed that
each of them shaU be examined by persons appointed by the Commander-

400 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENGE STICKS.
in-Chief for that purpose, particularly on the following points, before they
can be recoramended for comraissions : —
1. The candidate must be able to read EngUsh correctly, and write it
from dictation.
2. In arithmetic, he must be acquainted with the first four rules (simple
and compound) and proportion.
3. In languages, he must be able to construe any part of Ceesar's ' Com
mentaries ' (exclusive of the portion ascribed to Hirtius), and parse ; or, if
he should not have received a classical education, he must translstte into
English a given passage from a French or German author, as he may him
self prefer, and parse.
4. In bistory, he raust be able to answer such questions as may be put
to him by the examiners.
5. In geography, he must possess a knowledge of the general divisions
of the world ; the name of the capital of each nation in Europe ; the prin
cipal rivers, seaports, and military posts in Great Britain and Ireland ; her
Majesty's dominions in every part of the world.
6. In fortification, he raust be able to trace upon paper, in presenee of
the examiners, a front of fortification, according to Vauban's first system.
if this is done correctly by tbe candidate, it will be received as evidence, at
the same time, of his having acquired some knaivledge of drawing.
1. If the candidate be a meraber of the Church of England, he wiU have
to produce a certificate of having been confirmed. If not a member of the
Church of England, he will be required to produce a certificate from a
mhdster or priest, stating that he has been well instructed in the prin
ciples of the religion in which he has been brought up.
8. A medical examination AviU take place to ascertain that the candi
date is in every point of view fit for military service.
Now, without stopping to notice any of the paragraphs in
italics — wbich (especially in requirement No. 4) are evidently
so indefinite that if the '¦'¦person " appointed as examiner
should happen to be a little bilious or out of humour on the
particular morning, he may make the examination so severe
as to reject any candidate he pleases — it may be at once
stated that the main objection to the above regulations is,
that, without imparting to a candidate for a commission mili
tary information of any practical value, they materially injure
the raw material from which the British army has hitherto
been supplied, by forcing every candidate for a commission to
leave our great public sohools in order to obtain, in what is
commonly called a " cramming establishment," on Shooter's
Hill, Hammersmith, or some of the purlieus of London, ex
actly the amount of mathematics, plan-drawing, French, and
German, that will enable him to pass the examination, or, as
it it is technically termed by tbe advertisers, " bring him up
to the mark,"

ECOLE D'ETAT MAJOR. 401
Let us for a inoment fairly weigh what is lost and what is
gained by this arrangement Although iu our public schools
education is unfortunately almost confined to a well-grounded
knowledge of those two ancient dead languages on which our
own is founded, yet there can be no doubt they offer to can
didates for the army advantages of an inestimable nature.
In their play-grounds and in their rooms courage is universally
admired, cowardice or meanness universally despised ; manly
feelings, noble sentiments, and generous conduct are fostered
and encouraged ; the spoiled child of rank, whose face had
formerly always been most obsequiously smoothed JoziViwards,
by the rough hand of the school is rubbed ;^/)wards, until his
admiration of himself, of his family, and of the extraordinary
talents of his maiden aunt, are exchanged for a correcter
estimate, which eventually makes bim a better, a wiser, and
a happier man. In short, the unwritten code of honour, which
like a halo shines around the playgrounds of our public
sohools, ever has done, and ever will do, all that can be per
formed to make those who have the good fortune to exist
under it Gentlemen.
Now when a fine, handsome, high-minded young nobleman
is torn away from advantages of this nature to be " crammed"
at a solitary house, in what position does he find himself?
Instead of the delightful society he has enjoyed, he finds
himself the guest of a needy man, whose silly wife, and whose
three or four plump daughters, are as proud of him as if he
had descended among them from the sun. They show him
off at church, have him to tea, and afraid to rebuke him,
think themselves highly honoured by almost every thing he
says or does. His companions are probably half a dozen
different shaped lads, from various ranks in life. Tliey per
haps also spoil him, and even if they do not, the association
is altogether on so small a scale, the education is in its cha
racter of so low a caste — one in which the sons of school
masters, surveyors, and the lower orders of professions are
sure to excel — that, although it may ensure him passing his
examination, his young mind becomes unavoidably injured by
the three-cornered ideas on all subjects which have been
stuffed into it.
And now, if this be true (alas ! will any one that has
revelled in the playground of an English public school deny

402 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
it?), is it not extraordinary to reflect that this alteration in
the qualification for a commission from the society and educa
tion of a gentleman to that which would be appropriate to a
clerk, to a young civil engineer, or to a superior class of me
chanic, has been concocted to prevent the very evil it is
creating ; in short, the young nobleman (vide tbe " Memo
randum ") is to be transplanted from Eton to Shooter's Hill,
" in order to have some certainty that the applicants for com
missions in Her Majesty's Service have been educated as
gentlemen I 1 "
Again, it is generally considered that the Memorandum,
dated Horse Guards, 4th July, 1851, detailing the examina
tion for tbe rank of captain, is not only far too severe to be
required from all officers, but will lead to great hardships and
inconveniences. A man may be an excellent officer ; may
have served for many years with great gallantry and distinc
tion ; he may, moreover, possess sound sense, judgment, and
zeal ; and yet be quite unequal — especially if his services
have been in remote colonies — to undergo the examination
required, and which, after all, has but very little to do with
his regimental duties, namely : —
" The first six books of Euclid. Geometry ; geometry on the gi'ound.
Algebra, comprising addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, the ex
traction of the square root, and the solution of simple equations. Plane
trigonometry, comprehending the solutions of plane triangles in the three
principal cases, with applications to the determinations of heights and dis
tances ; examples to be worked logarithmicaUy. Mensuration, including
the determination of the areas of plane figures, rectilinear and circular, -with
the volumes and sm-faces of soUds, <fec., ifec."
And thus, while in France, under a regular and continuous
system of military education, the soldiers, the officers, and the
stafi" of the army, in the various schools I have described, and
afterwards in extensive encampments, are studiously learning
grand manoeuvres and evolutions, siege-duties, ball-firing, as
well as the minutest details of field exercise, the promotion of
our officers, to whom no- such advantages are allowed, will
occasionally be stopped because they are unable to pass
through a severe examination in geometry ! — just as if,
according to Mr. Cobden's theory, disputes between nations
were hereafter to be settled by logic instead of by bullets
and cold steel.

ECOLE D'ETAT MAJOR. 403
"^ I really can't understand this fifth book of Fuclid !"
said many years ago a Woolwich cadet to that celebrated
mathematician and philosopher, John Bonnycastle,
" I don't ivonder at it, boy," was the reply ; " / can hardly
understand it myself !"
The British nation may pride itself on its wealth, and the
British array on its logic, and yet before our faces Mr, Hobbs
picks our locks, while Mr, Colt's revolvers, the French mus
ket, and the superior sailing of the yacht " America," unde
niably promise to kill and outstrip us by land and by sea.
There certainly seems to be a fatality hanging over the
protection of our country wbich, like a channel fog, renders
everything connected with it invisible.
Considering the abject respect whicb Truth meets with in
England from persons of all politics, it is certainly inexpli
cable that on the single subject of the defences of the whole
property of the nation, figures and facts have no specific
gra,vity whatever 1 On every other question tbey are not
only scrupulously weighed, but in every possible variety of
combination they are, by all ranks of people, most ingeniously
weighed over and over and over again.
On the subject of the Catholic religion, of corn-laws,
game-laws, poor-laws, free-trade, &c, &c, &c,, meetings can be
convened at almost any notice, at almost any time, and at al
most any place ; petitions can be plentifully signed ; the sub
ject, year after year, can be brought forward in the House of
Commons, debated, twisted, turned over in every possible way ;
and yet no sooner have 650 gentlemen tired themselves and
everybody else almost to death by talking about it, than —
just as if it rose out of the ground in which it had been
buried — it majestically reappears in the House of Lords, where
all its " facts and figures" are reweighed, and every argument
redisoussed. On the publication of their lordships' speeches
the subject is again debated throughout the country, and so
on, almost ad infinitum.
But besides this unwearied investigation of great subjects,
every newspaper in the United Kingdom professes to weigh,
with accuracy and impartiality, the minutest transactions, not
only of Great Britain but of every other country in the world.
The reasons for and against everything that occurs therein
are analysed ; indeed, whenever a common railway or the

404 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STI^n'S.
most uninteresting description of private accident occurs, the
community are never satisfied, until by a coroner's inquest,
or by some other offieial inquiry, they have been informed
of what are popularly called " the facts of the case ;" and yet,
if any one ventures to submit to tbe people of England, —
1 st. Figures showing that, in point of numbers, the army
of Great Britain is to that of France, in the proportion of
rather less than an inch to a yard.
2nd, Facts showing the superior military education of the
army of France as corapared witb tbat of the army of Great
Britain, — every eye is averted from tbe figures, every ear is
hermetically closed against the facts I And thus, while every
item of property within the British dominions is, as it is
termed, " ensured from loss," the kingdom itself, almost by
acclamation, is allowed, day after day, month after month,
and year after year, to exist unprotected, save by that Al
mighty power by which it has hitherto been maintained.

LA GRANDE CHAUMI^RE.
In Galignani's detailed account of tbe variety of balls which
in every quarter of Paris are to be found suited to all classes
of society, I read as follows : —
" Grande Chaumiere, No. 96, Boulevart du Mont Parnasse, is the habi
tual resort of students- and etudiantes, a title familiarly given to those
members of the softer sex who worship Minerva under the garb of her
youthful followers of the Quartier Latin. The garden of the Chaumiere is
laid out in shady walks —
' Time out of mind the favourite haunts of love.'
The dancing here is rather more lively than at the place already described,
and might possibly elicit an austere shake of the head of a sombre moral
ist, who might also think the walks above alluded to somewhat too
shady." " Where am I to conduct you ?" turning himself round
on his box to receive my orders, said the conntenance, but not

LA GRANDE CHAUMIERE. 405
the lips, of the driver of a citadine in which I had all of a
sudden seated myself at nine o'clock at night.
" A la Grande Chaumiere !" I replied.
" Tres-bien, Monsieur I" said the man wbo, suiting, as he
thought, bis action to the word, gave the poor horse a hard
cut with his whip,
¦We went I hardly knew where, turning and twisting for
about half an hour ; at last, when close to the Barriere
d'Enfer, the carriage stopped, and I was informed we had ar
rived at the point of my destination.
As soon as I had paid my driver I saw before me, illumi
nated with lamps, two lodges, at one of which I was required,
as usual, to leave my stick, andat the other, before which a
sentinel was pacing, to pay a trifie for admission.
These preliminaries having been concluded, I walked
slowly along a broad sanded path, lighted by variegated
lamps, and bounded on each side by great cubical green
wooden boxes, containing very large 'orange trees. As I pro
ceeded I heard before me a band playing, and occasionally a
strange rumbling noise like thunder. On my right I indis
tinctly saw the figures of several people, principally la'dies, joy
ously whirling in a circle on whirligig horses ; at last, after
passing under a bower, I came all at once on the grand es
planade, on which, under the Canopy of heaven, in an open-air
ball-room, beneath a magnificent chandelier of thirty large
cut-glass lamps, with fifteen more of the same form round the
magic circle, I perceived tbe heads of about thirty or forty
couple of happy people, waltzing in time to a band of fourteen
instruments seated on an elevated covered platform, shelter
ed by a boarded roof through which passed the stems of two
large umbrageous trees, besides which, by other trees the re
mainder of the esplanade was also overshadowed.
Around the railing wbich enclosed the dancers were seat
ed in chairs a crowd of young people, more or less hot, who
had either taken part in the dance or were waiting to do so,
also a number of colder and older ones acting the part only of
spectators. At each end of the dancing ellipse there stood
erect, in uniform, low cocked hat, and a straight sword, point
ing like a lightning conductor to the ground, a sergent de
ville attentively watching, by order of the police, the moye-
nients of the dancers. On the outside of the persons seated

405 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
in chairs, sauntering, talking, and listening to the music, was
a moving orowd, among whom were conspicuous the white
belts, shining sword-handles, and scarlet epaulettes of several
soldiers. Immediately facing the band, and on the left of the en
trance, there appeared, surrounded by a border full of pots
containing beautiful flowers, an elevated refreshment platform,
brilliantly lighted, and full of tables, from which people,
luxuriously sipping coffee, punch, lemonade, &c,, were look
ing, over the beads of the walking and sitting company, at the
young, dancing beneath lamps and the green branches of
horse-chestnut trees in flower. As they sat, the mysterious
rumbling sound, occasionally for a moment overpowered, and
then dying away, harmoniously blended with the music.
Whenever the dancing, merely to give a short interval of
rest to the players, suddenly ceased, everybody appeared in
stinctively to stroll into a labyrinth of little intricate dark
paths, shaded by trees and bounded by perpendicular embank
ments about two feet high. Here and there, like angels' visits,
" few and far between," there twinkled, rather than shone, a
little lamp. Here and there was ingeniously carved out of
the happy chaos a sraall dark circular space, containing some
times two or three plain, unassuming rush-bottomed stools, for
people to sit and talk on, and sometimes, in addition to these
siraple luxuries, a little table. In this chiaroscuro picture
there was occasionally a sort of dreamy appearance of waiters,
in white aprons, hurrying forwards with white coffee cups in
trays. As I happened not to be wearing a gold-edged cooked hat,
gaudy epaulettes, shining buttons, but on the contrary was
dressed from hat to foot in dark apparel, I glided through this
scene I believe almost unobserved, and yet, as I was not alto
gether unobservingv I must do it and the Grande Chaumiere
the. justice to say, that neither in the dancing nor in the laby
rinths did I witness anything to complain of Agreat many very
young people were, with a great deal of animation, emphasis,
and gesture, certainly endeavouring to explain to each other a
great many things, probably of no very great importance, but
I can faithfully declare that I saw no quarrelling nor miscon
duct of any sort
As at the last blast and scraping stroke of the band tha

LA GRANDE CHAUMIERE. 407
rumbling noise I bave alluded to invariably began to increase
and to recur at shorter intervals, I resolved to worm my way
to the point from whioh it invariably proceeded, and accord
ingly, returning to the dancing esplanade, I proceeded from it
along a broad path, on the right of which I passed an inclined
billiard-table, covered with green cloth, lighted by three bright
lamps, and surrounded by a crowd of people who were playing
for prizes — little china ornaments very alluringly displayed.
Proceeding in my course, I soon arrived at the foot of a sort
of square scaffolding, containing a small winding staircase,
which, on ascending, led me to diminutive platforms one above
another, in succession, like a Swiss cottage. On reaching the
summit I found myself on a level with a platform surrounded
by trellis-work, about thirty feet square, at the edge of whicb
I perceived a sentinel in uniform standing by the side of an
old woman seated before a little table, who, as soon as I came
up to her, said io me very civilly —
" Cinq sous, Monsieur, s'il vous plait."*
I had long been yearning to pay something to somebody,
and, accordingly, with great pleasure I put into her withered
hand the twopence halfpenny she desired. On the little ele
vated platform, over which the sentinel and this old woman,
like Mars and Venus, presided, I perceived, arranged in three
lines, eighteen very easy padded arm-chairs each on four iron
wheels. In one a young gentleman had just seated a young
lady ; and he had scarcely taken possession of another chair
himself, when, as if I were detaining them, as indeed I uncon
sciously was, two men in blouses, pointing to a third chair,
energetically beckoned to me to advance. I did so ; and one
of the men had scarcely passed a leather strap across my
stomach when we all three were slowly pushed along our res
pective set of parallel rails to the edge of a Montagne Russe,
down which, with an astounding thundering noise, and between
lamps that seemed to flash as we passed them, we rushed, um
til, on reaching the bottom, leaving their rails, the three chairs
run over some loose tan, until, eventually, they slightly bump
ed against a wall padded with a woolsack. 'The instant this
occurred, without allowing me a moment's reflection on what I
had been doing, or rather on what I had done, four or five men
rushed towards us, unhooked our three straps, handed us out
of OU' ohairB, and then, passing through a gate, in less than
""ve sous. Sir, if you please.

408 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
two minutes from the time I had been launched from tbe plat
form, we were all — ^just as if nothing had happened — quietly
sauntering among the crowd.
Ou returning to the band I stood for two or three minutes
close to one of the sergents de ville (Anglice, policemen) watch
ing tbe dancers, which gave me an opportunity of observ
ing that the ladies were waltzing not only in bonnets, but
in their cloaks of silk, and occasionally of velvet, which of
course made them look hot and clumsy. On the right, at
about thirty yards from the circle in which, in the open air,
they were enjoying themselves, I found a large, long, low,
boarded, unlighted ball-room, with a series of looking-glasses
opposite the windows. In it, although it was almost dark,
four young, foolish people, were dancing.
There now began to blister up in my mind a desire to know
how the chair on which I had so lately been precipitated from
the platform was ever to get back to it ? and as I felt myself
incompetent to determine the problem, I asked one of these
young dancers, who at the moment with his partner on his arm
was resting from his labour, to be so good as to explain it ;
and no sooner did he tell me of what the power consisted than
I determined I would not leave the gardens until I had search
ed it out Accordingly, returning towards the series of plat
forms by whioh I had ascended, I looked about me in all di
rections, until, passing under an arch which supported the
summit ofthe artificial Montagne Russe, I saw on my right a
dark-looking cell, containing about a dozen old chairs ; beyond
it I heard a slight but unceasing noise, and, proceeding to
wards it, I found, attached firmly by a wooden yolk to the
outer extremity of a triangle of beams, one of which was re
volving perpendicularly, a thin, powerful horse, with blindfold
ed eyes, and with his head drawn by a strap sideways. Within
a little traek hollowed out by his own feet, he was slowly walk
ing round and round a square log-house, just large enough for
his circle. As long as the band was playing he enjoyed com
parative rest ; as soon as it ceased he knew that he would be
.set to work. The sound of huraan feet ascending the series of
platforms warned him that his labour was approaching. The
merry voice of happiness above hira told him that he must
soon suffer ; and whenever the heavy chains rolled like thun
der over his head, he knew but too well that he would be oblig
ed by main force to pull tbem all up again. In short, when

LA GRANDE CHAUMIERE. 409
the company were happy, he worked ; as the evening advan
ced, his labour increased ; aud it was exactly in proportion as
the strength and spirits of the visiters flagged, that he enjoy
ed longer and longer intervals of rest Frora the top of a tall
post a small lamp shone upon him, but he was blindfolded and
cobld not see it ; its flickering light, however, piercing the
dark, lofty, mysterious-looking space above him, faintly shone
on a variety of beams one over another.
As I was looking at the poor creature his pace gradually
slackened till it stopped, " Ai !" exclaimed a voice abovc us.
The animal did not obey it, " A-i-« !" — he continued to stand
still " A-i-i-e !" — he immediately leant heavily forwards and
put the machinery into motion. " Alio, sacre !" exclaimed
the voice, on which he iramediately cjuickened his pace ; and
he was working, I thought, very steadily, when suddenly the
little lamp feebly illuminated the form of a man who, entering
close to where I stood, hastily walked towards the horse. He
had no whip, but he went up, walked alongside of, and did
soraething to him — I suppose he pricked hira, for the poor
jaded creature instantly increased his pace, and for a few steps,
straining his hind fetlocks, hurried rapidly round his doora.
I had now been at the Grande Chaumiere nearly an hour,
and as I had seen all that — and, as regards its horse, rather
more than — I desired, I returned to the esplanade, retraced
my steps along the illumined path, uutil, reaching the two
lodges, I redeemed my stick and with it walked out.

On coming outside the gate the driver of a citadine asked
me where he could conduct me ? and as at the moment I was
thinking I should much like to see a specimen of the lowest
description of the balls of Paris, I desired him to drive to one
which, on my naming it to him, he told me was in the imme
diate neighbourhood. Accordingly, in a few minutes he de
posited me close to a very large house, two stories bigb,
with twelve windows in front, all glaring with internal light.
On the walls of the uppermost story there appeared in largo
letters " A LA VILLE HE ToNNEKE ;"*
* The city of Tonnere.
18

410 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
and beneath, " Salons de 1200 couverts pour noces et ban
quets,"* On entering I saw on the ground-floor, in different places,
the words " Cafe," " Restaurateur," " Billiards," and at the
bottom of a staircase a little bureau, at wbich I paid for ad
mission a few sous. On reaching its summit I entered a
large room, lighted by four chandeliers and sixteen single
gas-burners surrounded by upright glass shades, containing
seventy little tables, ranged around it, so as to leave in the
centre ample space for dancing. Over the windows, which
were all open, was a scarlet frame from wbich hung, waving
occasionally in the air, exceedingly clean white muslin cur
tains. The walls painted in oak were varnished, the floor
had been watered. Above, in an orchestra, were, under thc
command of a thin, intelligent, bald-bcdded master, with
mustachios like a rat, a band of seven musicians, and one dog
with a white napkin tied round bis body. Around the tables,
each of which was covered witb a white linen cloth, were
ranged a number of people, looking at others dancing.' I
seated myself at one, and by the utterance of the two words
" Garqon, cafe 1" I found no one took the slightest notice of
me. Among the spectators who, like myself, were sipping
either wine or coffee, I observed two soldiers of the garde re
publicaine, and two of cavalry ; the elegant bright brass hel
mets, with polished steel fronts, of the latter were lying on
the table, their sabres were leaning against tbe wall. Several
of tbe party were in blouses, three or four in white linen
smock-frocks, and the remainder in the dress of the lowest
classes of bovirgeois.
All the dancers, as well as those seated, had their hats
on, excepting one of the two dragoons (he had a horsehoe on
his arm), who danced not only without his helmet but without
his stock — the reason, I suppose, being that his scarlet trou
sers, lined all round tbe bottom, all inside tbe legs, and also
up in front, with stout black leather, made him feel a little
warm ; — one man wore a tremendous beard. The ladies,
mauy of whom were upwards of forty, were all overladen
with clothes which came up to their throats, and wbich made
them get and appear very hot ; indeed, it made me feel hot
too, even to look at them.
* Acconimodation for ] 200 persons — for marriages and parties.

LA GRANDE CHAUMIERE. 411
" Voulez-vous, Monsieur," said to me a waiter in a white
apron, as he passed me with a small tray in his hand,
" Voulez-vous, Monsieur, que je vous cherche une dame ?"*
Pointing to my little oak stick on the table, I shook my
head very inflrmly and said " Non !"
The dancing was rough, and much more inelegant than I
expected to see in France. There was a vast deal of rude
joy demonstrated by kicking out violently sideways, some
times with one leg and then witb tbe other. The improprie
ties, of which I had heard much, and which I had been assur
ed were such that no Englishwoman of any description could
witness them, consisted — -
1, Of the gentleman in waltzing not only swinging his
partner enough to pull her arms off, but also sometimes actu
ally swinging her legs off — the ground.
2, Of the gentleman in waltzing invariably placing one
hand on his partner's thickly wadded shoulders, and the
other on her gown at too great a distance below her waist,
3, Of the gentleman occasionally ending waltzing by
giving his partner, during a period of about six seconds,
a downright, or rather upright, good, jolly, unmistakable
hug, 4, After the dance was over, of both ladies and gentlemen
sitting together at their tables, refreshing themselves by sip
ping from soup-plates hot sugared wine ; in doing which they
occasionally tapped each other's glasses, appearing on the
whole to be exceedingly happy, and to pay no attention what
ever to the waiter, who, while they were refreshing themselves,
was occupied in watering the floor. For every dance each
gentleman was required to pay to the chancellor of the exche
quer, who collected it from him then and there, tbe sum of four
sous. (N. B. It was to obtain this twopence that the waiter
had, apparently so kindly, proposed " de me chercher une
dame,") The ladies were allowed to exercise gratis.
Having now, as is common in fashionable life, attended two
balls in one night, I bade adieu to the merry dance, at a mo
ment when the young farrier without his stock was particularly
distinguishing himself
On descending the staircase and walking along tbe passage
* Would you like me, Sir, to get you a partner ?

412 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
into tbe avenue, I got into a 'bus that was just starting, and,
stopping close to tbe column on the Place de Vend6me, I got
out, without any headache, within twenty yards of my home.

THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY.
While I was walking across the Pont de la Concorde, and,
indeed, long before I had approached it, I saw at a distance,
immediately before me, the magnificent faqade of the National
Assembly, consisting of a triangular pediment, 100 feet long,
supported by twelve Corinthian columns, resting on a broad
pavement, approached from the bridge by twenty-nine steps of
the whole length of the facade.
The bas-relief is composed of a figure 14 feet high, represent
ing France holding in her right hand the Constitution. Beside
her are Force and Justice, with groups of figures, aUegorically
personifying Peace, Eloquence, Industry, Commerce, Agricul
ture, the River Seine, the River Marne, the Navy, and the Army.
At the foot of the whole is a strong, tall, iron railing, to protect
the members of the Asserably from being suddenly, as they
were on the 15th May, 1 848, ousted from tbeir seats by the mob.
As the gates in these railings were closed, and as the long steps
and the exalted broad stone platform beneath the pediment
were swarming alive with armed soldiers, who, lolling in vari
ous attitudes, or moving slowly one among another, presented
a confused mixture of greyish-blue and scarlet cloth, glittering
brass ornaments, walnut-wood and cold steel, on reaching the
Assembly I inquired for the gate of entrance, and, according
to the instructions I received, turning to the left, I walked
round the building till I came to a lofty gateway on my right,
which conducted me into a large court, where I wandered about,
till again, finding myself surrounded by soldiers, I was direct
ed by one of them to rather a sraall door, on entering which I
was requested to leave ray little stick, in lieu of which I re
ceived a ticket. Ascending a small staircase, I found a door
keeper, who not only conducted me into the " Tribune du
Corps Diplomatique," for which I had a ticket, but who within

THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY. 413
it sold to me, for a franc, a most valuable plan of the Assem
bly, showing the particular desk and the name of everyone of
its members. On taking my seat, I observed to him that he
and I wero the only persons in the house, whioh, he explained
to me, was from my having corae half an hour too soon, I,
however, did not regret my mistake, as it gave me an opportu
nity of quietly looking around me.
The construction and interior arrangements of the building
are so simple aud so sensibly adapted for its object, that at a
single glanoe it is easily understood. The house is in the
horseshoe form. At the heel end, surrounded, in front, by a
small empty space, and on each side by two others called the
" cote gauche" and " cote droit," is the platform of the Presi
dent, on which, elevated about six feet above the fioor of the
honse, appear his desk, an ordinary library writing-table, sup
ported in front by four brass legs, and his elbow chair, a size
larger than that usual in a library. Behind, on the same plat
form, but about a foot lower, stand, with their backs against
th^ wall, six common, English-looking raahogany dining-room
chairs, with black horse-hair seats; and on the right and left,
and about three feet below, a line of eight chairs and desks for
secretaries. Beneath, and immediately in front of the Presi
dent's chair, is the " tribune" or pulpit, from which every mem
ber may be required to speak, composed of a very small plat
form, about three feet above the floor of the house, bounded in
front only by a low narrow table, about eight feet long, and
about a foot broad, covered with red velvet, which screens and
conceals about the lower half of the speaker's person. The re
mainder of the house, excepting its narrow floor, is composed
of eleven tiers of seats, rising, like those of an ancient amphi
theatre, one above another, and intersected at right angles by
twelve narrow passages, radiating, by twenty steps, upwards
from the floor to the hexagonal walls of that portion of the
house oocupied by merabers. Each tier, which is two steps
higher than that beneath, is subdivided into separate desks,
behind each of which is a seat with iron elbows, covered with
green cloth, by which arrangement 750 merabers. whose faces
more or less converge upon the tribune, are completely separat
ed one from the other.
The interior of the house, whicb bas plenty of light and
air, is exceedingly plain. On the wall, at the back of the Pre
sident's chair, is inscribed, in gold letters, —

414 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
" Republique FaANgAiSE,
LiEEETE, Egalite,
Fkateenite."
Round the walls, which have been painted of a dingy light
grey, appear arranged, in various ways, sixty-two tricolor flags.
'The members' desks are, in front, painted oak-colour ; behind,
covered with green cloth. The ceiling is very coarsely white
washed ; tbe floor of the house and the President's platform
are covered with crimson carpet. The prevailing colours of
the whole therefore are oak, green, and crimson.
The upper surface of each of the members' desks, which
are about the breadth of an ordinary dining-room chair, and
pretty closely packed, are as like those of schoolboys as can
well be imagined ; that is to say, they are of coraraon wood, well
spotted with ink, with a little lid that opens. The stock in
trade of each consists of a tiny round inkstand, about an inch
and a half in diameter, let into the desk ; a steel pen ; half a
quire of note paper ; an upright slit for holding envelopes, and
a hole for wafers. On some of the desks were lying quite na
turally •' blue books," in quarto.
The ventilation of the house appears to bave been very
carefully attended to. In the ceiling are nine large circular
ventilators ; and in a sort of entresol, between the upper
and lower galleries, which, divided into various compart
ments for different descriptions of strangers, extend round
the walls nearly the whole of the house, there are eighty
more. In the upper windows, occupying a space where there
exist only one set of galleries, are twenty panes of glass that
can be opened ; and in the floor of the house I counted six
large air-holes. Lastly, in the walls directly opposite to the
speaker, as also in the walls on his right and left, are three
large clocks constantly ticking to each other.
Before any meraber had made his appearance there entered
at the door on the right of the President's platform six or eight
well-dressed, closely-shaved persons, — in white neck-cloths,
black coats, black waistcoats, black trousers, black gaiters, shiny
shoes, and swords with glittering silver hilts, — who, tra
versing the chamber in all directions, kept dropping on the
tables of the members a pamphlet-copy of the bill for debate.
Three of these persons had on the left breasts of their black
coats a long piece of bright scarlet ribbon, to wbich was ap
pended a silver medal.

THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY. 415
At five minutes before two, three or four members strolled
in, with their hats on ; then oame in two, then three, then seven
or eight ; until in a very short time the floor of the house was
completely covered ; besides whioh, several members, who had
taken possession of their seats, were already opening their desks,
and ferreting within them. Most of the legislators were well
dressed, in dark coats and waistcoats, with grey trousers, A
very few had waistcoats of dark cheque, but none at all fine.
Their countenances, generally speaking, were highly intelligent
and intellectual.
Of the two tiers of galleries on the right and left, behind
the speaker's platform, the front seats were eutirely occupied
by ladies ; among the remaining benches, principally occupied
by the softer sex, were here and there a sprinkling of rougher
faces. On the left of the clock, in front of the speaker, the
galleries were crammed full of soldiers. Immediately on my
right was the " Tribune du President de la Republique," Before
me were the "tribunes" or galleries for the press. On the
whole, the coup d'oeil of the well-ventilated house was exceed
ingly plain, grave, compact, and on a plan admirably adapted
for its object.
All of a sudden, three or four of the gentlemen in black
clothes, scarlet ribbons, medals, and straight swords, entering
with hurried pomp, cried out, " Chapeaux bas ! s'il vcas
plait!"* and after a short pause, there walked in, beardless
and olosely shaved, the President or Speaker — it was not M.
Dupin — dressed in a black stock, black coat, with a small piece
ofred ribbon peeping out of a button-hole, Frenob-grey trous
ers, and boots. With the perfect ea.se of a gentleman, he sat
down, smiled, looked up behind, first over his right shoulder,
and then over his left, at the gallery full of ladies, rubbed his
hands together, and, after a minute or two's most agreeable
rumination, he made a little bell with a horizontal handle be
fore him doubly strike its clapper three times. A clerk below
him instantly read the head of some paper, whioh nobody seemed
to care about. He then, just as if the work of the day was all
over, relapsed into easy enjoyment, and for some time talked
to a meraber, who, with an elbow on his desk, rested his bead
on his hand. Throughout the chamber was a general good-
humoured buzz of conversation. * Hats off, if you please !

416 -4 FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
The house was now very full ; and I was surprised to per
ceive that, excepting in the upper rows of benches on the left,
occupied by the party Rouge, or radicals, there were fewer
beards than, on an average, I had been in the habit i^f meeting
in the streets. In a button-hole in the coats of a great many
was a slight appearance, about as broad as a piece of bobbin, of
a red ribbon.
Behind the President, on his right and left, on the platform
on which he himself sat, and immediately beneath the inscrip
tion, Liberte, Fraternite, Egalite, were two tables, occupied by six
clerks, one of whom, in black clothes and a long beard, I repeat
edly observed intently mending along white goose-quill pen ; ano
ther, also in black, wore a bright scarlet ribbon ; another a long
scarlet one, and also a long yellow one. In front of the Presi
dent, on his right and left, but below him appeared also dressed
in black, and seated in chairs, eight secretaries undecorated.
The buzz of conversation lasted nearly half an hour ; the
floor of the house was covered with members in groups ; and I
was admiring the scene, and inwardly wishing its simplicity
and sensible arrangements could be copied by the British
House of Commons, when three consecutive double rings of the
President's little bell were followed bya call, by the black-coated
gentleraen with silver-hilted swords, of " En place I en place !"*
The President, totally unsupported by any distinction of
dress, struck the table witb a ruler, and then rang again. At
this moment a man in black, ascending the steps of his plat
form, brought hira, in a white soup-plate, a tumbler full of yel
low-looking water, apparently weak lemonade. " En place I en
place !" resounded from all parts of tbe house. The President
rang again, struck the table again with his ruler, waved it at
an unruly member, shook lis head violently in disapproba
tion, and, to my utter astonishment, all of a sudden, and in
one single instant, just as if a wasp had stung him, he ad
dressed the house in a state of extraordinary exoitement.
As soon as order was obtained, a member rose from his
seat, and said a few words whicb elicited loud sounds of objec
tion. He instantly fell into an astonishing passion : shaking
his right hand at the Rouge party on the upper benches, who
answered bim furiously, he became most violently excited, un
til, suddenly stopping, he sat down in a regular rage.
The second speaker, who, from the tribune below the Pre-
* Take your seats !

THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY. 417
sident, addressed the house for about ten minutes, spoke with
more energy and action than is usual among Englishmen, but
with great propriety. As, however, the merabers throughout
the house, leaning towards eaoh other, were all talking — indeed,
apparently no one was listening to him — the President, some
times sitting, soraetimes standing with his arms hanging down,
and sometimes folding thom across his breast, repeatedly tapped
hard with his ruler, but in vain, A member, stepping into the
tribune, replied for about five minutes ; then the first speaker
came back and renewed his arguments in favor of inserting in
the railway bill (which I now began to understand was the
subject of discussion) a clause, insisting on a third-class car
riage accompanying every train, as was, he said, the case in
England, At this raoraent M. Thiers, entering at the door
near the speaker, slowly walked up the floor of the house to his
desk. His gait was plain, quiet, and easy. He was very short,
had a brown face, totally devoid of any other colour, and gray,
or rather grizzled, hair.
Directly opposite to me were Generals Cavaignac and
Lamorioiere, who for some time sat talking together. General
Cavaignac's form was tall, elegant, and erect ; his hair, cut close
all over, was a little bald on the top. He was dressed in a
light olive-green coat, buttoned close up, so as to show no shirt.
With great apparent affability he occasionally conversed with
several other members ; but whenever he was not talking he
continued, without intermission, whirling his eye-glass very
rapidly round the forefinger of his right hand, and then imme
diately whirling it as rapidly back again.
The next speaker, on addressing the house from his seat,
was interrupted by raurmurs from different parts of the house,
of- On n'entend pas!"* A great disturbance and loud cries
continued, which forced bim to leave his seat and ascend the
tribune. The President now appeared to take part in the de
bate. He called, he ranted, he rang, but no one appeared to
hear either hira or his bell At this moment Lord Normanby,
the British Ambassador, entered the " Tribune of tbe Presi
dent of the Republic," and separated only by a low partition,
sat down beside me, I could not help thinking how symbolic
the uncontrolled and uncontrollable scene before us was of the
extreme difficulties he must occasionally have to encounter.
* We can't hear !
IS'

418 -t FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
As soon as order was restored, or rather as soon as disor
der was satiated, several members — a few from their seats, but
principally from the tribune — made short speeches on the
various clauses ..of tbe bill. On commencing, a glassful of
yellow fiuid, in a white saucer, was invariably placed at their
right hand, on the narrow red velvet table of the tribune, by
a servant in a blue coat, red collar, and red waistcoat. Usu
ally just before they began to speak they raised it to their
lips ; in the middle of the speeches they kept sipping it ; and
on concluding, as a sort of perquisite, they invariably, on leaving
the tribune, swigged off whatever was left, and then gently
licking tbeir lips, and sometimes their mustachios, walked
quietly towards their seats. Several, in the course of their
speeches, drank two glasses full
A young man now ascended the tribune, and with a su
perabundance of galvanic-looking action, whicb really neither
explained nor expressed anything, he opposed, in a short
speech, one of the sixty clauses of the bill.
The next member began his speech from his place, A
number of voices instantly called out, " On n'entend pas !"
on which, with the whole energy of his mind, he gave one
great convulsive shrug of his entire person, and then with
great dignity walked to the tribune.
In merely explaining that the line he advocated would be
more direct from Paris to Cherbourg than the one proposed
in the bill, he threw away an extraordinary quanty of action,
and on reading a long list of cold figures, he gradually be
came so miraculously excited — he got into such a violent
perspiration, and evinced so much activity and gesticulation
— that literally I expected to see him jump over the rails of
the tribune,
Oae of the ministers, M, Leon Faucher, now rose, and, in
repelling some accusations which had been made against the
Government, spoke with more than Englisb energy, but with
great dignity, eloquence, and effect, In the course of his
speech, starting up from his seat close to the wall on the up
permost line of benches on the left, one of the Red Republi
can members, with his hair almost cut to tbe quick, with a
beard nearly a foot long, and with his right arm diagonally
uplifted, suddenly, furiously, and very loudly exclaimed, twice

THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY, 419
over, alluding, I believe, to some statement in the Government
newspaper, " C'est un calomniateurV*
On M. Thiers ascending the tribune a marked and very
complimentary silence prevailed. Notwithstanding the dis
advantages of his voice, whioh is not only little, but that little
squeaky, he spoke with great ability and effect. Occasionally
his wit' caused from all parts of the house a joyous laugh (de-
Bcribed by the reporters by the word " hilarite "), Very fre
quently, after making an assertion, be interlaced his short
arms upon his chest, but almost before the action — -" I pause
for a reply I" — was completed, he entirely spoiled its dignity
by quickly unfolding them. In the course of his speech,
which was not long, to my utter astonishment, I saw him
drink off, one after another, three tumblers of the light yellow
mixture. Something that he said — I could scarcely comprehend a
word of it — seemed suddenly to prick very acutely the feel
ings of the house, for he was contradicted on all sides. A
general conversation took place, and for a few seconds every
body seemed as vigorously employed in making the utmost
possible noise as the fiddlers at a London oratorio, piled above
each other up to the ceiling, when they come to the word
" Fortissimo" Amidst this scene, or rather at the heel end of it, the Pre
sident, on his platform, sat ringing, — then arose, — then stood
heating the table, — then waved his ruler violently at an un
ruly member. — then shook his left hand quickly in disappro
bation, — and then, with both hands uplifted, appeared as if
entreating, — but to no purpose whatever.
Several members now spoke ; the House, however, all of a
sudden appeared to be tired ; and as the black fingers of each
of the three clocks pointed to 6h. 5m,, the impatience increas
ed. The Speaker, by bell, by ruler, and by actions of dumb
entreaty, endeavoured to prevail on the House to allow the
speech from the tribune to come to its close. Everybody,
however, seemed to object, and their determination reaching
its climax, tbe House, at 6h. 10m., arose, as if by acclamation,
and the members, crossing eacb other in various directions,
all walked out, *He is a calumniator!

420 -J FAGGOT OF FRENCH STIOKS.
On coming into the fresb air I found the courts of the
Assembly — as I bad left them — swarming alive with soldiers.
In various directions I heard sharp words of command follow
ed by the sound of butts of muskets in masses heavily strik
ing the pavement. On passing beneath the great entrance
arch, from the summit of which a tricolor flag was flying, and
on each side of which was a dragon with a drawn sword, on
horseback, I saw before me a large clock, and beneath it, in
long large letters, tbe words
" Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite."
Lastly, in the square before the entrance-gate, on a pedes
tal surrounded by iron railings, was seated a colossal statue,
holding in her left hand a long staff surmounted by a human
hand ; ber right arm was resting on a shield or tablet, on
which was deeply engraved in large letters —
DROITS
DE
L'HOMME. *

LYONS RAILWAY.
Although my rapid inspection of the terminus and workshops
of the " Chemin de Fer du Nord" had made rae slightly ac
quainted with the mode of working their line by the principal
railway company in France, yet, as I afterwards learned that
the Paris and Lyons railway was not only under the manage
ment of the French Government, but that every effort had been
made by it (the Government) to construct the line on the most
scientific principles that could be devised, I obtained from the
" Ingenieur en Chef" + an order, stamped and signed, author
ising me, without limitation, to enter every portion of the
works I migbt wish to inspect ; and as he was further obliging
enough to provide me with a very intelligent guide, I proceeded
* The Rights of Man. \ Chief Engineer.

LYONS RAILWAY. 421
to the metropolitan terminus of this important railway, for
the purpose not of tediously going over the whole of its de
tails, but merely to raake that sort of rapid inspection of them
which would enable me to judge whether in the great system
of the French there existed any striking new arrangements
which might profitably be adopted by our railways in England.
On arriving at the " embarcadere" or metropolitan terminus,
situated between the barrieres of Bercy and Charenton, close
to the Boulevart Mazas, and opposite to the prison of that
name, I was conducted by my guide into what appeared to me
— who had only read of the exhibition in London — to be a
palace of glass, into which, from which, and under which, the
various carriages employed in the working of the railway either
enter, depart, or repose.
This magnificent and beautifully-constructed receptacle,
the two ends and roof of which are principally composed of
plate-glass, not only extends 55 feet over six sets of rails, but
over a promenade on each side of them, 20 feet broad
Adjoining to and communicating with each of these pro
menades are the parallel ranges of offices, waiting-rooms, &c.,
that respectively belong to them, and which I will very briefly
enumerate in the order I entered them.
On the north or departure side the range of buildings con
nected with the glass roof are coraposed of, —
1. An uncovered wharf for the embarkation of public and
private carriages and horses, allowing plenty of room to em
bark five at a time.
2, A small room for a " corps de garde," composed of the
servants of the company off duty.
3, A refreshment-hall
4. A magnificent building, 165 feet long by 33 broad, the
interior of which, as lofty as a church, is divided into five par
titions, namely, one waiting-room for first-class passengers ;
two for second class, and two for third class. On tbe end of
the wall of the compartment for the latter class of travellers
hangs a very clearly-defined railway map of Europe.
The partitions dividing the five waiting-rooms above enu
merated are of oak. In the third-class room I observed oak
forms ; in the second class, benches covered with clean, black,
bright, shining horse-hair, well stuffed. In the first class, on
a very slippery floor, chairs, sofas, and ottomans, lined with

422 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
beautiful green plush, and a table covered with green cloth.
The walls are adorned with looking-glasses ; and on the chim
ney-piece stands, steadily ticking, an exceedingly handsome
clock. (On the outside of the above four compartments, commu
nicating with them all, is a magnificent hall or promenade ; in
a portion of it passengers for departure apply for their tickets
through five windows, around each of which there is plenty of
elbow-room) 5. A hail for baggage, containing a table 240 feet long, for
the reception and weighing of passengers' luggage,
6, and lastly. A magazine and office for merchandise and
parcels not belonging to passengers, to be despatched by trains
" a grande vitesse." * Beneath the whole length of the " gare"
or establishment I have described are a range of subterranean
stores, very valuable and dry, containing a stove or caloriform,
'or warming the establishment. Beyond, but in line with
them, there exists, in the air, a small office supported by up
right timbers, between which diligences are lifted from their
own wheels, and deposited upon trucks on rails. The length
of the office and waiting-room attached to the glass roof is
726 feet ; but the whole of what is called the " Cour de De
part," is 1419 feet, or 33 yards more than a quarter of a mile I
On ths south, or a,rrival side, of the six sets of rails, there
are, opposite to the series of offices just enumerated, a corres
ponding range of buildings, containing —
1. Under arches, two small shops.
2. An office for baggage from Lyons.
3. An office for baggage from Troyes.
4. Bureau restante, for the guardianship of passengers'
baggage, 5, Por the reception of baggage of " grande vitesse," to be
delivered in Paris, &c,, on its arrival without delay,
' 6, A hall, containing two parallel tables, 219 feet in length,
and about 10 feet asunder. On the first of these the baggage
unopened is delivered by the corapany's porters to the holders
of the tickets corresponding with the numbers on each pack
age ; and every passenger having thus secured his own bag
gage, it is opened and examined in his presence at the second
table, * Fast trains.

LYONS RAILWAY. 423
7, A hall of departure, communicating with the above,
entitled " Sortie des Voyageurs avec bagages," *
8 and 9. Two halls, entitled " Sortie des Voyageurs sans
bagages," !
On the outside of the above, and of the other halls enumer
ated, are arranged, under covered sheds, 'buses, public and pri
vate carriages of all descriptions.
Adjoining to the three halls of departure, and in continua
tion of the same range of buildings, are, —
10, An office — " Bureau de lOctroi" — ^for registering the
duties that have been paid,
11, An office for tbe '• Commissaire de Police,"
12, A room, or " Corps de Garde," for the company's ser
vants off duty.
13. Within the remaining six windows of the concluding
portion of the building are a rail and interior platform,
especially appropriated for the reception of milk from the
country. Having hastily passed through the series of halls and offices
for the departure and for the arrival of the passenger trains.
we walked among the six sets of rails basking under the glass
roof, which are appropriated as follows ; —
One for all trains of arrival. i
One for the return ofthe engine of ditto. 5
One for first-class carriages i
One for second-class do. > in waiting.
One for third-class do.- J
One for trains of departure.
For the construction of a train, the requisite number of
first, second, and third class carriages are easily transferred to
the pair of rails of departure, by means of a large central turn
table, communicating with a pair of rails at right angles to those
of the line.
The first-class carriages, painted chocolate colour, are lined
in the interior with light drab cloth, handsomely padded and
stuffed. The roof, in which is a lamp, is an imitation of maple
varnished. The carpet drab and scarlet. The long seats are
divided into two compartments : the windows are of plate-glass.
In the coupe I observed an ingenious spring-table ; and
*Door of departure for travellera with baggage.
! Ditto withont baggage.

424 -^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
throughout the whole of the carriage, beneath the carpet, is an
arrangement for warming the feet of the passengers with hot
water, changed at the principal places of stopping.
The second-class, painted yellow, and lined with blue cloth,
have well-stuffed seats and backs ; one large and two small
plate-glass windows on each side, and a lamp at top. The seat
is divided into two compartments.
The third-class, painted green, are completely closed. The
interior, which has no stuffing or padding of any sort, is painted
oak colour, the windows are of common glass. Four sets of
these third-class carriages connected together ars divided into
compartraents 5 feet wide, so as to unable the air to circulate
throughout all,
Tlie luggage-waggons, arranged on rails outside the glass
covering which shelters the first, second, and third class car
riages, are substantial vans, handsomely painted in dark green.
From the above description it will, no doubt, be evident to
the reader, as itwas on a moment's inspection to me. that even
under a monarchy, and much more under a republic, a second-
class railway carriage, lined, padded, and stuffed in the way I
have described, raust necessarily supersede the use of anymore
costly conveyance ; and accordingly, on inquiry at the office, I
ascertained that, excepting occasionally a few foolish, purse-
proud English, people very rarely travelled in the company's
first-class carriages.
Leaving the station, the six sets of rails, and the three
classes of carriages to bask within their magnificent glass-case,
we came out upon a space of ground belonging to the company,
which, including tbe statiou, exceeds, by 77 yards, a mile in
length, and whose greatest breadth is 66 yards more than a
quarter of a mile. When the Paris and Lyons railway was
the property, as it originally was, of a private corapany, only a
portion of this vast area belonged to it ; but on ite being pur
chased by the Governraent, the additional ground was secured
for purposes I will now briefly detail.
Immediately outside the glass house are nine sets of rails,
of which the two on the right are for the disembarkation of
carriages, and the other seven for manoeuvring, according to
eircumstances, the arrival and departure trains.
About 100 yards farther on (towards Lyons) are a seriea
of connected buildings (seven in number, 115 yards long by

L YONS RAIL WA Y- 425
34 broad, with stone walls and zinc roofs, lighted in the sides,
ends, aud roof, with very spacious glass windows and sky
lights), in which were reposing the company's spare carriages ;
in front of them was an eraplacement for the wheels of dili
gences, after their bodies, lifted from them by a crane and
chains, had migrated with the train, I next came to a row of
sheds, 130 yards long, for the repair of carriages ; then to a
little " bureau," or office, for this department ; then to a space
on my right, containing eight sets of rails for carriages ; then
to another large open area on my left, containing twenty sets
of rails for spare wheels and axles ; then to a very spacious
building for the reception and repair of locomotives. Close to
the latter I entered a magnificent smith's hall, 120 yards in
Isngth, by 28 in breadth, teeming with light and fresh air, and
full of forges, scientifically covered by iron shades, terminating
in chimneys for carrying off the heat At the end of this es
tablishment was a door communicating witb a square, lofty,
well lighted hall full of turning lathes, and closely adjoining to
it a long and very handsome building full of engines ; beyond
whioh I found alarge yard for the reception of carriages re
quiring repairs, I here ascertained a fact worthy, I submit,
of very careful investigation. On all our railways in England,
the respective companies, as well as the public, very constantly
suffer expensive and very troublesome delays from what are
professionally called " hot axles," which sufficiently proves that
the nice-looking yellow mixture which at almost every stop
page endeavours to prevent the evil, is inadequate for the ob
ject for which it has been concocted
Now, the French Government, invoking the aid of chemis
try, have scientifically ordained on the Paris and Lyons Rail
way the use of three descriptions of anti-attrition ointment,
namely, one for hot (pour la chaleur), one for frost (pour la
gelee), and one for wet weather (pour I'humidite). I was as
sured by the engineer that the result has been most successful ;
and as everybody who travels by rail in England w ould depre
cate the idea of a human being using one sort of dress for
every description of weather, so it sounds only reasonable that
railway axles should not be ignorantly restricted to one single
medicine, to be " taken when shaken," as a cure for tbe innu
merable ills to which under various temperatures they are ex
posed.

426 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
In an adjoining space I stood for a few minutes to admire
a magnificent crane (by Cave, the eelebrated mechanic, who
has made the French transatlantic steamers, and who was, ori
ginally, a simple workman), composed of an enormous lion
erect, firraly pressing his upper paws against the axle of the
wheel, as if to enable him mechanically to retain between his
teeth tbe extreraity of tbe lower limb of the crane, from the
chain of which there was dangling in the air tbe greater por
tion of a locomotive engine.
From this point, from wbich there is a good view, I ob
served that the immense area I have described as belonging to
the company is surrounded by a stone wall 20 feet high.
Continuing my course on the left of the main line of rails,
I found close to them a handsome circular building (Rotonde
No. 1) full of rails and intervening pits converging to a cen
tre, for the examination and repair, above, around, and be
neath, of locomotive engines. From this building three sets
of rails a hundred yards long led us to Rotonde No. 2, in the
centre of which was a turn-table of 36 feet in diameter, capa
ble of receiving an engine and tender together. Beyond is the
field for 'coke ; and as on the left of the rails there now re
mained nothing to visit, we crossed over to the right, whero
close to us and to the line we found the company's eistablish-
ment for merchandise, composed of three covered platforms,
each 300 feet long by 30 broad, for the reception and delivery
of heavy goods.
Observing to one of the company's officers that, in com
parison with the buildings I had just been witnessing, thosc
before us were rudely constructed, with rather inefficient
roofs —
" Ah, Monsieur," be replied, " ce n'est que provisoire ;"
adding, with a good-humoured smile, " comme ie gouvernement
de France !"* at which we all grinned in silence.
Each of these platforms, which, by a series of upright posts
supporting the roof, appeared divided into stations, the names
of which were inscribed, had subservient rails on one side, with
a road for waggons and carts on the other.
The first was for goods outward bound, " depart de Lyons ;"
the second for homeward bound, " arrivee de Lyons ;" the
third, for merchandise to and from " Troyes," belonged to a
* It is only provisional, like the government of France I

LYONS RAILWAY. 427
separate company. On both sides was an office or " bureau"
for enregistering goods of arrival or for departure. Lastly,
beyond these sheds were tbree temporary " corps de garde, "
for the company's servants to take shelter in and rest when
off duty. The above establishment for the reception and despatch of
merchandise, works from six in the morning till eight at night
Whole waggon-loads of goods, each packed and covered with
its cloth, leaving their wheels behind them, are despatched on
trucks by rail to the nearest point of their destination, where,
lifted and deposited upon other wheels, they proceed into the
interior. In cases where the comraunication is partly by rail,
partly by road, and then again by rail, spare wheels are car
ried. The height of these loaded waggons is, if necessary,
tested by running them under an iron arch, of the exact
height of the lowest bridge on the line.
The merchandise arrival warehouse has been purposely
placed on a spot which, happening exactly to be beyond the
limits of Paris, relieves the government (the directors of the
railway) of the botheration of the octroi, wbicb must accord
ingly be paid by the owners of the goods on their arrival at
the Barrieres de Bercy or de Charenton. almost immediately
adjoining. Outside the walls of the railway establishment there lay
beneath us at a short distance the " Camionage," or establish
ment for transporting merchandise to and from their three
platforms, and I was much interested in observing the ease
with which loaded " camions," or vans, each drawn by tbree
horses abreast, were to be seen trotting away in various direc
tions. I happened at the moment to be surrounded by seve
ral of the company's servants, and as I was expressing to one
of them how much obliged I felt to the " Ingenieur en chef "
for the gratification he had afforded me, his comrade, standing
beside me, exclaimed, evidently from his heart, " Ah, c'est la
cr^me des hommes !"*
From the very slight survey, which I had now concluded,
of the metropolitan terminus of the Paris and Lyons railway,
I am of opinion that, although the buildings, viewed separate
ly, have been admirably planned, and in most cases very scien
tifically devised for their respective purposes, they just at
* Ah, he is the cream of men !

428 -^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
present straddle over too mucb ground, and, with reference to
their existing traffic, would therefore be more valuable, if, like
those at Euston and Camden stations, in London, they had
been more corapact.
It raust bc remembered, however, that even in England
the railway is but an infant of scarcely eighteen years' growth ;
that during that time its passenger and goods traffic have in
creased in a ratio infinitely greater than was expected ; and
that it is beyond the power of the human mind to foresee to
what in future ages they will araount. In the. meanwhile, the
London and North-Western Railway Company, notwithstand
ing the foresight and admirable arrangements of its chairman,
is beginning to feel that its termini in and near London are
not big enougb for its traffic ; and as, in proportion to its suc
cess, buildings crowding around in all directions have in
creased the value of land which was before, from its price, al
most unpurchasable, the time may arrive when the Paris and
Lyons railway will derive inestimable advantages from the
grand scale on which their metropolitan terminus has been
purchased, constructed, and arranged. In the mean while, as
compared with its trade, it resembles a fine healthy boy strut
ting about in " papa's boots,"
But among the facts and arrangements I had witnessed,
there were others which I consider offered to those interested
in the success of railways — and who among us is not? — a
very important moral.
Although in tbe establishment belonging to tbe terminus
of the Chemin de Fer du Nord at " La Chapelle " were lately
employed upwards of 2000 workmen, in all tbe ateliers (work
shops) of tbe Paris and Lyons terminus there were working
when I visited it only 120 men !
Now the reason of this appears to be as follows. With
the purest desire to work the line in the most scientific and
best manner possible, the French Government, like the Eng
lish or any other governinent, are no sooner observed to pos
sess the power of enriching any one than, at all points, they
are assailed by the most ungenerous applications, so intricately
connected with parliamentary interest, that it is really out of
human power to unravel them. The only way of not offend
ing all, or rather of giving to eacb tbe minimum of offence,
is to divide as fairly as possible among all, that which each in-

/..

LYONS RAILWAY. 429
dividually would wholly engross, either for himself or for his
locality. Accordingly, instead of constructing the undermentioned
articles by wholesale, on a space of ground a mile long, walled
in and enriched with every description of workshop for the
purpose, the Frenoh Governraent — I repeat, as the English or
any other Government would, I believe, have done, bad it un
dertaken the management of a great railway — bas obtained
what is necessary for the working of the line as follows : —
The locomotives are made at Paris and Rouen :
The tenders at St Etienne and Le Creusot :
The first-class carriages at the Messageries Nationales de
Paris :
The second and third class carriages at Arras, Lille,
Alsace, and Munich :
Coke from Valenciennes, Alsace, D'Anzin, &c. &c. &c.
Again, from narrowminded but irresistible political pres
sure from without, the government railway has been forced, by
linin,g, padding, and stuffing second-class carriages (a luxury
which no railway company in France has allowed), to make
them and the third-class carriages so comfortable, that, by
attractions of their own creation, they have actually desolated
the first-class carriages.
The comparative receipts, in English money, of all the
principal French railways (namely, the Northern, Rouen,
Havre. Orleans, Bordeaux, Vierzon, Boulogne, Nantes, Stras
burg, Bale, Montreau, Marseilles, Lyons, Chartres), and the
receipts, for the same periods, of the single British London
and North-Western Railway, have been as follows : —
For the middle week of May, 1851 : —

Per Week.

Per Day.

Receipts of the French Railways above enumerated, £66,130 £9,44*7
Of the British London and North-Western Railway, 48,041 6,863
For the week ending 10th of August, 1851 : —
Receipts of the French Railways above enumerated, I 84,325 1 12,046
Of thc British London and North-Western Railway, | 70,239 | 10,032
Just beyond the barriere of Charenton, the limits of
Paris, I observed, outside a butchers shop tied to an iron ring

430 -^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
in the wall, a fat ox. over whose ruminating head was inscribed
" Durham," " Why," said I to his lord and master, who was standing at
the door, " have you decked his horns with laurel leaves, co
loured ribands, and with those two tricoloured flags ?"
" Monsieur," he replied with great gravity and pride, " c'est
pour lui faire honneur."
Which, I suppose, said I to myself, in plain English means
to turn him into beef

REVIEW.

Under the old-fashioned raonarchical institutions of Europe
there has long existed, and there still exists, a time-honour
ed series of forras of invitation, gradually descending by a
flight of steps, eaoh very accurately measured, from " I am
commanded to invite you," down to " Come along and dine
with us I "
In the Republic of France a penultimate step has been
adopted, and, accordingly, the printed form of invitation to
dine at the palace of the Elysee runs as follows : —
Presidence de la Republique.
Le President de la Republique prie M
de venir diner chez lui
Le a 7 heures.* N. Leho.
Having had the honour to receive a card of this descrip
tion, on the day and at the hour appointed I drove to the
Elysee. where, after having been received in the entrance-hall
¦by the well-appointed arrangements I have previously desorib-
* Presidency of the Repuhlic.
Tlie President of the Republic requests to
come and dine with him on at 7 o'clock. N. LEPia

REVIEW. 431
ed. I slowly walked through two or three handsome rooms en
suite, full of interesting pictures, into a drawing-room, in
which I found assembled, in about equal proportions, about
fifty welldressed ladies and gentleraen, the latter being prin
cipally officers, whose countenances, not less clearly than the
decorations on their breasts, announced them to be persons of
distinction. The long sofas and chairs, as if they had only just come
out — or rather, as if they had just come up from the country to
come out — had arranged themselves so very formally, and alto
gether behaved so very awkwardly, that it was almost impossible
for the company assembled to appear as much at their ease as,
from their position, education, and manners, they really were ;
and accordingly, biassed by the furniture, they kept moving,
and bowing, and curtsying, and " sotto-voce " talking, until they
got into a parallelogram, in the centre of whioh stood, distin
guished by a broad riband and by a mild, thoughtful, benevolent
countenance. Prince Louis Napoleon, whose gentle and gentle
man-like bearing to every person who approached him entitled
him to that monarchical homage in which the majority evidently
delighted, but which it was alike his policy as well as his incli
nation — at all events to appear — to suppress ; and accordingly
the parallelogram, which, generally speaking, was at the point
of congelation, sometimes and of its own accord froze into the
formality of a court, and then all of a sudden appeared to recol
lect that the " Prince " was the " President," and that the whole
party had assembled to enjoy liberte, fraternite, and egalite.
As I was observing the various phases that one after another
presented theraselves to view, the principal officer of the house
hold came up to me, and, in a quiet and appropriate tone of
voice, requested rae to do two things, one of which appeared to
me to be rather easy, and the other — or rather to do both — ex
treraely difficult By an inclination of his forehead he pointed
to two ladies of rank, whose names he mentioned to me, but
with whom I was perfectly unacquainted, seated on the sofas at
different points of the parallelogram, " When dinner is an
nounced, you will be so good," he said, " as to offer your arm
to  " (the one), "and to seat yourself next to  ¦" (tbe
other), Of course, I silently bowed assent ; but while tbe officer
who had spoken to me was giving similar instructions to other
gentlemen, I own I felt a little nervous lest, during the polite

432 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
scramble in which I was about to engage, like the dog in the
fable, grasping at the shadow of the second lady, I might lose
the substance of the first, or vice versa. However, when the
doors were thrown open, I very quickly, with a profound rever
ence, obtained my prize, and at once confiding to her — for had
I deliberated I should have been lost — the remainder of the
pleasing duty it had been predestined Iwas tohave the honour to
perforra, we glided through couples darting iu various direc
tions for similar objects, until, finding ourselves in a formal
procession sufficiently near to the lady in question, we proceeded,
at a funereal paoe, towards our doom, which proved to be a most
delightful one.
Seated in obedience to tbe orders I had received, we found
ourselves exactly opposite " Le Prince," who had, of course, on
his right and left, the two ladies of highest rank. The table
was very richly ornamented, and it was quite delightful to ob
serve at a glance what probably in mathematics or even in phi
losophy it might have been rather troublesome to explain —
namely, the extraordinary difference whioh existed between forty
or fifty ladies and gentleraen standing in a parallelogram in a
drawing-room and the very sarae number and the very same
faces rectilinearly seated in the very same form in a dining room.
It was the difference between sterility and fertility, between
health and sickness, between joy and sorrow, between winter
and summer ; in fact, between countenances frozen into Lap-
laud formality and glowing with tropical animation and delight
Everybody's mouth had apparently soraetbing kind to say to
its neighbour's eyes ; and the ouly alloy was, that, as each per
son had two neighbours, his lips, under a sort of " embarras des
richesses," occasionally found it rather difficult to express all
that was polite and pleasing to both.
In a short space of time I had the good fortune to gain —
sometiraes through my right ear, sometimes through my left,
and not unfrequently through both at once — a great deal of
pleasing useful knowledge, among which were the names and
histories of the guests present, especially of those opposite.
While I was thus delightfully engaged, about every two
minutes a fine, strong, manly voice, in a tone which, though
heard by no one else, was distinctly audible to me, pronounced,
close to the back of my head, a little sentence — every consonant
and every vowel beautifully accented — composed of frora three

REVIEW. 433
lo ten words of vital importance. Unfortunately, I had not the
slightest idea of its raeaning. On the other hand, as I had no
objection whatever to add to the intellectual pleasure I was re
ceiving the honest enjoyment of a good dinner, instead of al
ways shaking my head " a I'Anglaise," as if to say " nong-toug-
paw," 1 very often boldly ran the risk of nodding it ; and in the
pause that ensued, although I was conversing on various little
topics alien to the subject, and had now and then a glass of iced
champagne to drink, my mind enjoyed, beyond all power of
description, the glorious uncertainty as to the contents of the
approaching plate, which in due tirae, in compliance with my
nod, was placed before me. What I rejected I shall probably
never know; on the other hand, although I could often hardly
discriminate whether I was eating fish, flesh, or fowl, I must
say that in my lottery every ticket I drew proved to be a prize.
Indeed, as-the French are proverbially the best cooks in the
world, and as the President is said to have the best cook in
the Republic of France, it oould not very well have been oth
erwise. In England the capacity of a lady and the capacity ofa
gentleman (I do not offensively allude to their intellects) are,
by the statute law of society, decreed to be as different from
eaoh other as a pint and a quart, as a peck and a bushel or, as
in wool measure, a tod and a last In France, however, their
capacities are politely considered to be identical ; and accord
ingly, as soon as the ladies had enjoyed as much refreshment
a,s their delicate constitutions required, the whole party, like a
covey of partridges, arose at once, and, in the order in which
they had departed from it, they amicably returned arm-in-arm
in pairs towards the drawing-room. As they were in proces
sion,! observed that one gentleman only had given to his pnrtner
his left arm, by which mistake he walked conspicuously aiunig
the long line of ladies, while his partner — curls, bare throat and
gown — as incongruously appeared in that of short hair, whisk
ers, blue and black cloth backs, and scarlet legs of trousers.
The error was obvious and amusing to all, and yet, wbile I
pitied it, I could not help feeling that the sinner, poor fellow,
was, after all, correct : for unless Fashion has ordained that
man belongs to the weaker sex, and consequently that it is tbe
duty of every young woman to protect hira, surely the propet
place for a lady is- — to say nothing of his heart — on his left side,
19

434 -^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
thus granting to his right arra the power as well as the privi
lege and inclination to defend her.
As fast as the procession came in sight of the formal paral
lelogram of furniture, from whicb between two or three houra
ago it had been emancipated, its malign influence was strikingly
perceptible. Each lady, one after another, the instant she saw
it. withdrew her arm, the gentleman made to her a low, cold,
reverential bow, and, the innocent and pleasing alliance between
them having been thus divorced, the sofas were again to be seen
fringed by rows of satin shoes, while the carpet, in all other
directions, was subjected to the pressure of boots, that often
remained for a short time motionless as before. A general
buzz of conversation, however, soon enlivened the room ; and
the President, gladly availing himself of it, mingled familiarly
with the crowd.
In the course of the evening he had more than once ex
pressed to me his wish that I would accompany him to a review
which was to take place the following day ; and as, after con
versing with him a considerable time, he ended by repeating
the wish, I told him that, although I bad made all my arrange
ments for returning to England early the following morning, I
would defer them to have the honour of attending, as he had
desired, " Will you go ?" said he, very kindly to me, " en voiture or
on horseback ?"
Of course I said I should prefer the latter, on whioh he
was good enough to say he would provide me with a horse,
and that I had better call upon him in tbe morning, a few
minutes before half-past eleven, tbe moment at which he would
set outAs it was my habit to rise at flve, I amused myself as
usual, for two or tbree hours, in walking about the streets ;
and after returning to breakfast, and writing out a few of my
notes, I made the trifling arrangements tbat were necessary in
my toilette for attending the review in plain clothes. Among
so many brilliant uniforras, I deemed it would be advisable I
should wear a simple star ; and as the weather was very fine,
the pavement very clean, and tbe distance to the Elys6e very
short, I determined to walk there ; and accordingly, that I
might pass along the streets enjoying the inestimable luxury of
being unobserved, I wrapped myself comfortably up in an old

REVIEW. 435
and easy great-coat, which I knew I could discard, if necessary,
without regret " Fare thee well ! and if for ever,
StUl for ever fare thee well!"
I hid scarcely from the Rue Castiglione entered the Rue
St Honore when I heard behind me a loud clatter of horses,
and, looking backwards, I saw a mass of upwards of a hun
dred marshals, generals, aides-de-camp, and other staff officers,
in full uniform, riding towards the Elysee, to accompany the
President to the review ; and as they proceeded faster than I
desired to follow, they had not only entered but had filled the
great yard of the palace before I had reached the sentinels
and body of police, who, to keep off the crowd that were
pressing to peep into it, were pacing up and down the street
before it.
I had some little difficulties to encounter in getting to the
gate, aud I was inwardly rejoicing in having overcome them,
when, on my entering the yard, I was suddenly stopped by the
porter at the lodge, who, placing his long right arm before me,
said to me, very properly but very firmly, —
" On n'entre pa.s, Monsieur !"*
I told him that by request of the President I had come to
ride with him to the review.
" Has Monsieur any letter of invitation ?"
I repHed '¦ No,"
" Has Monsieur any card of invitation?"
I replied " No,"
" Will Monsieur have the goodness to show me his card ?"
I happened not to have one with me, and I accordingly
told him so, but I begged he would allow me to write my name
in his lodge, and he did so.
Gn reading it, he seemed — as was always the case — not
very clearly to decipher it, and casting, I fancied, a single look
of incredulity at me, or rather at my very comfortable, warm,
good old Engbsh coat, he called to a soldier, and, putting my
paper into his hand, he said, rather pompously and loud
enough for a number of the officers on horseback to hear
him, — * No one can enter, Sir !

436 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
" Vous direz que c'est un monsieur qui est venu monter h
cheval avec le Prince !"*
It certainly sounded a little like an imposition ; nevertheless,
in a very short time the soldier was seen beckoning me to ad
vance. There were, however, so many restless horses in the great
court, and So many pairs of spurs making them restless, that I
was a little time in worming ray way through them all to the foot
of the fiight of long stone steps, where I found standing — very
handsoraely caparisoned- — tbe President's borse, held by a groom
on foot, and another fine, high-bred looking English horse,
with a plain saddle and double bridle, with pink rosettes, held
by a second groom on foot
After ascending the steps, and crossing tbe spacious stone
landing-place, I deposited witb one of the numerous servants
who, with several officers in waiting, filled thc entrance-hall, my
great-coat ; and as I had reflected that on the President's de
parture every body and every horse would be in a flutter, I
descended to the second horse I have described, and, ascertain
ing from the groom it was for me, I mounted hira, and in a
few seconds, after having adjusted my stirrup leathers to the
proper length, I returned to tbe Elysee, where I entered the
audience-chamber, in which several officers were assembled.
The principal aide-de-camp requested me to advance into the
next adjoining room, in wbicb I found standing alone, in uni
form, an officer wbom I knew to be the " Ministre de la Guerre,"!
although I was not personally acquainted witb him.
In a few minutes a door opposite to that which I had en
tered opened, and in walked the President, who, after shaking
hands with the minister, introduced me to him in a capacity I
own I was totaly unprepared to hear recognized in France —
namely, as having served the British nation in North America
as  of  .
Proceeding immediately to the large room, he walked —
bowing on each side to the officers assembled there, and who
instantly formed a passage for his departure — to the stone
platform, where putting on his hat, he descended the steps to
his horse, mounted him, and in a few seconds, followed by the
prancing steeds of his brilliant staff, he was, amid the cheers
* You will say tbat it is a Monsieur who is come to ride -with the
Prince !
! Minister of War.

REVIEW. 437
of people who had long been waiting on both sides, riding down
the handsome " Avenue Marigny." As I found myself the
only person in plain clothes, I purposely kept rayself in the
rear of the procession, when an aide-de-camp, reining back his
horse till I reached him, told me that " the Prince wished me
to come up to him."
From the unfortunate political position of France in general,
and of Paris in particular, the cheers were not either as hearty
or as unanimous as in England ; indeed, after some little time
they subsided altogether. Of the upper classes, most of
them, as the President passed, took off their hats; the lowest
orders, generally speaking, very properly appeared to think it
inconsistent with democracy to do so. " Vive Napoleon !" ex
claimed a stentorian voice. The President smiled as, looking
upwards, he saw close to him, on the headless shoulders of one
of the colossal temporary statues that had been erected for the
Ffite of the Republic on the Champs Elysees, a fine-looking
young workman in a blouse engaged in destroying the statue
by a hatchet, with which he had just chopped off ils head, and
which, as he kept calling " Vive Napoleon !" he vigorously
waved over bis head. At times — like the swelling notes on an
Eolian harp — there arose a strong feeling in his favour ; but
noises of that dcsoription are so utterly valueless, that I really
hardly noticed them. At one point I observed, standing witb
hent backs, bent knees, bent elbows, large round open eyes,
and protruding chins — in short, in the attitude of tall, zinc,
crooked chimney-pots — a group of about thirty dyers, with
faces, bare throats, and hands deeply tinged with black ; " Vive
LA Republique !" they all shouted at once, at the motion of a
darkly begrimed fugleman. Poor fellows ! they little knew
how closely they resembled what they shouted for !
The shouts of France, which vary like all other factions, at
present consist of four degrees of comparison : —
1. Vive lEmpereur !
2. Vive Napoleon !
3. Vive la Republique.
4, Vive la Republique Sociale et Democratique.
Now. strange to say, on something like the Bank of Eng
land restriction principle, which says, —
" Sham Abraham you may.
But you must not sham Abraham Newland." —

43S -^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
it is considered criminal to shout " Vive la Republique Sociale
et Dfm-ocratvjue .'" and yet, as we rode along, ou every public
building I saw inscribed " Liberte, Fraternite, Egalite !" I ! !
When O'Connell — reprimanded in the House of Com
mons on all sides for having used against it the two words
" beastly bellowing" — had, mucb against his will, retracted the
latter, some one, dissatisfied witb his apology, urgently com
plained that the former word remained uncancelled. " And
sure !" said O'Connell, turning his burly head suddenly round
upon his enemy, " did anybody ever hear of bellowing that was
not bastely I"
By similar reasoning, I always felt while I was at Paris,
and particularly while I was riding with the President, that,
as nobody ever heard of a republic that was not " democratic"
or of a " fraternity" that was not at least supposed to be
^'¦social," it was alike foolish and tyrannical of the police to
continue to imprison people for the cry I have named ; how
ever, as the President rode along, I heard no single person use
it ; and indeed, with the exception of the gang of blue-faced
dyers, whom I have no doubt the Red Republicans had paid
for the job, I heard nothing but " Vive Napoleon !"
By this time my horse and I were on terms of intimate
friendship. When first I mounted him he took me, I sup
pose, to be a Frenchman, and, accordingly, there were a variety
of little nameless things that he was evidently disposed to do,
provided I would merely spur him gently and pull rather hard
at his curb rein. But when be found I rode him loosely on the
snaffle, just as if I had showu llim my passport bearing the
woVd " Palmerston," he conducted himself as a high-bred Eng
lish horse always desires to do, that is to say, he walked in
procession quite quietly. As soon, however, as we had passed
the bridge of Jena, the President, who proverbially in France
is " parfaitement bon cavalier,"* started off in a gallop ; and
accordingly, between the troops that on each side were drawn
up in line, and whose bands successively struck up as we
reached them, we had a scurry across the Champ de Mars
which was really quite delightful ; indeed, my horse seemed
so pleased with it, that, had it not been for my curb rein, I be
lieve, very much against my will, he would have, what is com
monly called, " come in first"
* A perfect horseman.

REVIEW- 439
After receiving the salute of the general commanding the
ground, and going through a few other formalities, the Presi
dent commenced his inspection of the troops assembled, by
slowly riding down the line of infantry, who, with brown
faces, scarlet trousers and with presented arms, stood mo
tionless as he passed.
After proceeding about two hundred yards, reining in his
horse, he spoke in the kindest possible manner to a fine-look
ing private, who, without altering a feature of his counte
nance, or moving a hair of his mustachios, allowed every now
and then a monosyllable I could not hear to come out of bis
mouth which appeared to address itself to the musket that
remained immovably before it.
The colonel of the regiment, lately frora Algeria, bowing,
said something, and on a slight signal frora the President a
sergeant on foot opened a despatch-box he was carrying ; the
President took from it a bright red riband of the Legion of
Honour : bending over his horse's neck, he spokc to the sol
dier with an unmilitary mildness of manner that was really
quite affecting ; he then presented the riband to tbe man,
who, holding his firelock with his left hand only, received
with the other not only it, but before all the assembled staff
and troops, a hearty, good old English shake of thc hand,
which, though it and its accompaniment no doubt went to
the man's heart, did not shake the firm gravity of his counte
nance. The President told me, with evident satisfaction,
that when, of his own accord, he stopped to speak to that
man, he was not aware his name was on the list of those
whose conduct and services had entitled them to be recom
mended for decoration.
As we were proceeding along the ranks I was altogether
astonished to find, standing immediately on the right of every
regiment, in line with the troops, and as immovably erect as
themselves, one or two very nice-looking young women, dress
ed in scarlet regimental trousers, little short white aprons,
and neatly ornamented blue loose frocks. Under each of
their left arms they held, supported by a strap tbat passed
diagonally across their breasts, a small barrel, beautifully
painted blue, white, and red, from which there protruded a
bright silver cock ; on their heads sat a tricolor sort of Scotch
bonnet. The dress altogether was wildly picturesque ; and

440 -t FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
the contrast between the soft smooth chins, slender hands, and
small feet of the wearers, compared with the formal uniforms,
dark hairy faces, and rough limbs of the troops, was most
striking. They were tbe " cautinieres" of the different regi
ments ; and being, as in my description of the '• Casernes" I
have explained, the only women in the regiment, they are
naturally enough petted and adorned in the way I have de
scribed. At about the centre of the line the President again reined
in bis horse, opposite to an officer whose sword, stretched out
in salute, was pointing diagonally to tbe ground. The ser
geant with the blue despatch-box came quickly up ; and while
the President, with a riband and cross dangling from his
right hand, was in his peculiar unassuming manner parentally
addressing the officer, an ungovernable joy, a slight flush in
his cheeks, and an increased animation in his eyes, sufficiently
expressed his sense of the honour that was about to be confer
red upon bim. On receiving it, with the same hearty shake
of the hand whicb I have described, tbe President rode on,
and, looking bebind me, I saw several officers of tbe staff, as
they rode by thc recipient, heartily congratulating him by
gestures and expressions, which, with his sword still pointing
to tbe ground, he invariably acknowledged by a happy smile.
At nearly the end of the line of infantry one more riband
was given to a private, and, on tbe inspection on that side
being concluded, we bad another glorious hustling gallop up
the Champ de Mars to the right of tbe cavalry, which in like
manner were slowly inspected. As tbe President approached
each regiment its brass band struck up. That of the Oth
Hussars played " Partant pour la Syrie" so magnificently, that
I could not help expressing to an officer who was near to me
a remark on the subject. He replied " it was considered to
be the finest band in the French army."
Wben the inspection of the cavalry was concluded, the
President, again riding up the Champ de Mars, took up
his position near the grand stone platform on the outside of
the Ecole Militaire, beneath the magnificent pediment on
wbich his uncle Napoleon had so often stood, now crowded
with a mass of well-dressed spectators in bonnets, shawls,
bats, and uniforms.
In the course of about a quarter of an hour, during which

REVIEW. 44 1

tho troops had been moving into their proper positions, tho in-
featry, formed into companies three deep— every regiraent was
preceded by a detachment of pioneers with long beards and
white leather aprons, each carrying his axe horizontally on his
right shoulder— inarching past in the ordinary "pas accelfiro"*
of 120 paces per minute. (By regulation it is 100, that of
British troops IOS), They were exceedingly small men, and
their tread, although quicker, was not so heavy as that of
British troops. When the regiments of the line had all
passed there ensued a short pause, after which I saw ap
proaching us the cavalry, headed by an infanty regiment of
"chasseurs a pied," who, I was astonished to observe, were
advancing very rapidly.
As it approached, there first of all trotted very proudly
by the President, with bodies half shaved and tails entirely
shaved, two white poodle-dogs of the regiment. Then came
trotting by on foot, waving an ornamented pole, a magnifi
cently-dressed tall tambour-major,! followed by his brass
band, all of whom, playing as they advanced, trotted by, and
then, suddenly wheeling to their left, formed in front of the
President, where they continued, tambour-major and all,
dancing up and down, keeping time to the air they played.
As each company rapidly advanced their appearance was not
only astonishing but truly beautiful. Although, according
to Frenoh regulations, they had come to the review, not only
in heavy marching order (knapsacks and great-coats), but
laden with camp kettles and pans for soup, &c, (they are not
allowed when reviewed to leave anything behind), they ad
vanced and passed with an ease and lightness of step it is
quite impossible to describe, and whioh I am sensible can
scarcely be believed, unless it has been witnessed. In this
way they preceded the cavalry, who were at a trot ; and as
soon as the last company had passed the President, the band
and tambour-major, who had never ceased dancing for an in
stant, accompanied by the two white half-shaved poodle dogs,
darted after tbem, until the whole disappeared from view.
On expressing my astonishment at the pace at which thej
had passed, I was assured by two or three general officers, as
well as by the President himself, that the " chasseurs a pied"
* Quick march. ! Drum-major.
19*

442 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
in the French service can, in heavy marching, keep up with
the cavalry at a trot for two leagues ; indeed, they added, if
necessary, for a couple of hours ; — the effect no doubt of the
gymnastic exercises I had witnessed, and whioh I had been
truly told by the Frenoh officers superintending them were
instituted for the purpose of giving activity and celerity of
movement to the troops. The chasseurs a pied are armed
with the new internally grooved French carbine, the extraor
dinary range of which I have described ; and as their fire is
deadly at a distance more than three tiraes greater than that
of the Englisb ordinary musket, their power of speedily
advancing, and, if necessary, as speedily running away, all
added together, form advantages which, it is submitted, are
worthy of the very serious consideration of the British na
tion. After a variety of manoeuvres of infantry and cavalry,
separately and combined, the latter charged up the Champ
de Mars in line. The sound of their approaching was like
that of distant thunder ; but as their pace freshened, their
disorder increased, until, on the word " Halt !" being sound
ed, they were far from forming a compact line. During the
charge a horse fell, and the President, riding up to the man,
vcry kindly inquired of him whether he was much hurt. His
trousers were rubbed into holes ; he had taken his stock off;
and was altogether considerably jurabled botb in body and
mind ; however, with a comrade on each side, and a surgeon
on foot behind him, he managed, sometimes walking and
sometimes reeling a little, to get off the field.
The review was now over, and accordingly the President
(after the expression in a very pleasing tone and manner of
a few words of approbation to the General commanding and
to the principal officers of his staff) returned along the ave
nue of the Champ de Elysees to his palace, in the yard of
which be took leave of the same crowd of officers assembled
there in the morning, and who during the day had accom
panied him.

PRISON MODELE. 443

PRISON MODilLE.
From the Elysee, as I was hastening to my lodging, I ordered
the Commissionaire standing at the corner of my street to get
me a fiacre ; during the few moments he was employed in doing
so I changed my clothing, and in the course of little more than
half an hour found myself, by myself, standing gazing at the
lofty loopholed dead walls, 30 feet high, and exterior massive
gate of the great Prison commonly called " La Nouvelle Force"
or " Prison Modele," on the outside of which, in grey coats, red
epaulettes, and scarlet trousers, were reposing on stone benches
a guard, composed of a lieutenant, two sergeants, four corpo
rals, and 51 soldiers, who watch over the building night and
day. All looked indolent or half asleep, save a few., who,
as if to keep themselves awake, were smoking — smoking —
smoking — " And thus on till wisdom is push'd out of life."
On ringing the bell the gate slowly opened, and, passing
across a short space, I was, on the production of my special or
der of admission, conducted through another gate into the inte
rior of the prison, which during the horrors of the revolution of
1792 was twice in tbe hands of the infuriated populace, who, in
September of that dreadful year, in cold blood massacred within
it 160 persons, among wbom was tbe unfortunate Princesse de
Lamballe. On arriving at the "Bureau Central du Brigadier,"* I en
tered a small detached office, containing six windows, from each
of which, like a large, fat,» black spider looking at once over
half qf his web, I saw radiating before me six passages, each
264 feet long, separating six sets of buildings, three stories
high. Every one of these buildings, or rather narrow slices of
a building, was a prison, containing on each of its three floors
70 separate cells, or altogether 210 cells. From the central
office my eye consequently glanced along passages below and
* Central Office of the Brigadier.

444 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
galleries above, communicating altogether with 1260 separate
cells. On asking the superintendent to be so good as to explain
to me the nature of the curious-looking establishment over
which he presided, he told me its objects were two-fold —
1st Tbe prevention of crime ;
2nd. The retention of those who were supposed to have
committed crime.
He added that it contained only males, the first class beggars
and " vagabonds" forwarded by the police to be retained foi
three or four weeks; the second (who composed by far the
greater proportion) robbers and assassins, usually confined
three or four months previous to their trial ; and having given
nie this information, he obligingly desired one of bis subordi
nates to take me over the buildings.
At the entrance of each of the six passages, I found on a level
with my face three hooks and a little round mouth-piece. The
former were bells, communicating with the galleries of the three
stories ; the latter a speaking-trumpet, or " porte-voix," comrau
nicating with each and cominon to all. By tbis simple arrange
ment tbe superintendent, if he wishes to communicate with the
surveillant or keeper of any one of the three galleries of any
one of the six prisons whicb converge upon his office, has only
first to call his attention by ringing bis bell, and then, througb
the mouth-piece, to whisperlnto his ear througb tbe speaking-
trumpet whatever he may wish to say ; moreover, by putting
his own ear to the " porte-voix," he can hear whatever answer
the surveillant raay have to give to him.
On the ground-fioor are constructed, for each of the six
prisons, seven cells " de Parloir," On opening one, I saw
almost touching the door, which had receded from it, a wooden
bench, immediately opposite to which was an open grating or
window, secured by three iron bars ; beyond, at a distance of
tbree feet, was another grating, similarly barred and secured.
The object of this triple arrangement is to enable the prison
ers — robbers, assassins, and all — to receive the visits of their
friends from eleven to three on Mondays and Fridays : the
interview is curiously arranged as follows ; —
The prisoner, carefully conducted from his cell, is allowed
to enter and sit upon the bench of one of the seven " Parloirs,"
or speaking cells, the door of which, at bis back, is then closed

PRISON MODELE. 446
and locked ; between the two gratings in front of him is sta
tioned a keeper, beyond whom the culprit sees, as in a kit-kat
picture, the hair, face, throat, body, arms, and hands, of the
wife, father, mother, sister, brother, or fl-iend, male or female,
who has come to see him, Tbe duty of the keeper, caged
between both, is not only to listen to all that is said, but to
prevent the transmission between the parties of any substance
whatever. On each of the three galleries of each of the six prisons are
constantly patrolhng two surveillants, six for each prison.
Every cell is ten feet long, six feet broad, and, including its
vaulted roof, nine feet high. At the top of the wall, opposite
to the door, over which reposes a shelf 15 inches broad, is a
small window of four panes of plate glass fluted, so as to admit
hght and yet completely to disturb the line of vision. On the
oak floor lies a paUiasse and blanket ; also a small table, and in
the corner a well-arranged water-closet. The cell, as well as
the whole interior of the prison, is maintained at a proper
temperature by pipes of hot water.
On a prisoner being led into his ceU, he is given by his
conductor a black "plaquet," or round ticket, on which is
inscribed on one side, in white letters, the nurabers of the
division, story, and cell, in which he is confined ; hung on the
outside of his door, it indicates the cell is full. Ou the other
side of the plaquet is inscribed " Au Palais,"* and when by
reversing the ticket this notice is made to appear, the inspector,
keeper, or any one passing along the gallery, wbo reads it, is
reminded that the tenant of that cell is absent on his trial.
Any prisoner, by pulling a sort of beU-handle in his cell, can
cause to dart out into the passage an iron blade, " indioateur,"
indicative to the keeper that he wishes to speak to him.
In eaoh cell is a bee's-wing of gas, which, lighted at dark,
is allowed to remain burning till 9 p, m,, when, by the turning
of a handle, the captives throughout the prison are simultane
ously thrown into utter darkness. In the door is a small bole
covered, through which tbe keepers alone — for strangers are
not allowed to do so — can peep at the prisoner without his
knowledge; below is a small wicket-shutter, a foot long by
seven incbes broad, for the admission of his food. Every
prisoner is allowed a clean shirt once a week, and sheets once
a fortnight. * At the Court of Justice.

446 -i FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
We next proceeded to sixteen cells on the ground-floor,
each containing a zinc bath, supplied witb hot and cold water,
in which every prisoner is soaked and scrubbed on his arrival,
and afterwards whenever prescribed by " le Medecin." In
each of the six prisons are 25 double cells, to enable a nurse
or keeper, when necessary, to sleep in the cell of a sick pris
oner. My conductor now led me into the " Pharmacie," in
wbich, as the principal medicine, I found boiling four large
caldrons full of " tisane," wbich, in the public charities of
Paris, appears to be a specific for all disorders.
To communicate with tbe upper cells, there appears, out
side the doors of all, a narrow gallery, only 2 ft 10 in. broad,
on the exterior rail of whicb is a contrivance to admit a small
train of trays, full of food, for each raeal, to run on wheels as
on a railway, by wbich means, and by the additional assistance
on the uppermost story of a wheel and axle, provisions can be
distributed throughout the whole prison, to ail the cells, in
twenty minutes. The prisoners have for breakfast, bread and
soup ; for dinner, vegetables, potatoes, haricos, and three days
a week, one-third of a pound of meat ; for supper, bread.
Those who have money — strange to say — are allowed to pur
chase from a woman (cantiniere), within the prison, whatever
diet they like ; the only limit being, that these suffering sin
ners must not — poor fellows — drink more than a bottle of
wine per day.
Each of the six divisions, or prisons, has a circular court,
called a Promenoir, subdivided by 20 walls, 10 feet high, run
ning in the form of radii from the centre, where, in a small
tower, containing a spiral staircase, is posted a surveillant,
wbo, by merely turning on his heel, can look into each of the
20 subdivisions, wbich are 42 feet in length, three in breadth
at the end near the watch-tower, 15 at the far end, and which,
encircled by a wall, are bounded by iron railings, also 10 feet
high. In each of these 20 wedge shaped courts, at the broad
end of which is a sraall shed for rainy weather, a prisoner is
allowed to enjoy air and exercise for one hour every day, com
mencing at 8 o'clock.
Concentric with the railings that form the exterior of the
circular promenade is a paved space, round which a keeper
may walk, looking successively into each court. In following
along this narrow space, I observed that the surveillant who was

PRISON MODELE. 447
conducting me apparently purposely avoided even to glance
into any of the courts. I, however, looked very directly into
one, in which I beheld a human being whose appearance I
shall not easily forget. He was a tall thin man, of about 35
years of age, dressed in the prison garb, coarse grey clothes
and wooden sabots. His hair, cut quite close, wildly contrasted
with his long dishevelled beard and mustachios. Confinement
appeared to' have inflamed all his wicked passions to a state
bordering ou madness ; and the look he first darted at me,
and the ferocity wbich seeraed to be rapidly increasing with
in him every instant he glared at me, were such that I really
almost expected to see him spring like a wild beast against
the bars of his cage. After I had passed him, the conductor
told me he was an assassin of the worst description.
Returning to the " Bureau Central du Brigadier," from
which I had commenced, we ascended a small staircase to
an upper story, where I found a little chapel, looking down
all the six alleys at once, containing a marble altar Sft. Oin,
long by four feet deep, surraounted by a sraall white plaster
statue of the Virgin, and above that a large gilt one of our
Saviour on the Cross: before this altar the priest of the estab
lishment performs mass to the whole of the 1260 prisoners,
whose doors, by means of a chain, which allows them to be
ajar, are slightly opened in order to allow each to catch a
squinting glimpse of the various movements of the holy man,
whose prayers I should think could not possibly be wafted
to all. We next entered several magazines, full of materials for
such of the prisoners as choose to work, in which case they
are paid for what they do. It appears that the inraates, be
sides enjoying food according to their money, may, according
to their inclination, be industrious or idle as they think
proper. My conductor, opening a door, now led me into a library,
containing about 1600 volumes, historical and religious, lent
to those who desire to read. As soon as I entered, from tbe
opposite end there slowly approached me, just like one of
the three cats shut up in tbe warehouse of lost goods at the
railway terminus of the Chemin de Fer du Nord, the poor li
brarian, who seemed thankful, not only for every word I ut
tered to him, but even for tbe sight of the face of a stranger.

448 -i FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
In proceeding towards thc cooking department I came in
a yard to several sets of rails, on wbich were, some little car
riages 4 J feet long by tbree feet broad, containing 12 mova
ble iron shelves or trays, each containing the rations of 18
men. I followed the train for about 100 yards to its termi
nus, where the carriages all descended from view to a series of
subterranean rails, along which they proceeded until they came
beneath machinery, by which each was hoisted by pulleys up
a square chimney to the gallery to which it was consigned.
On entering the kitchen, I found the cookery of the whole de
partment, 1260 prisoners, officers, servants, and all, scientifi
cally performed in six caldrons, over which hung a canopy
for carrying away the steam and smoke.
]My guide now informed me, in reply to my queries on the
subject, that the "personnel" or strength of the establishment
is composed as follows : —
1 Director,
4 Clerks,
2 Priests,
1 Medecin ou Pharmacien,
1 Laundry -wo man, in charge of the linen washed by con
tract, 1 Brigadier-eu-chef des Surveillants,
4 Sous-Brigadiers,
62 Surveillants (keepers),
4 Cooks, assisted by three of the prisoners.
Total— 51.
Besides tbe ^lodel Prison in wbich I stood, there are in
Paris, under the jurisdiction of the Prefect of Police, eight
others, as also a military prison, under the Minister of War.
In the whole of France there exist 391 prisons of different
descriptions (namely, maisons d'arret, maisons centrales, and
bagnes). containing 66,091 persons.
As I was about to leave this establishment I was inform
ed I had overlooked 30 cells, 15 on eacb side of tbe entrance
gate, in which prisoners are received and detained, until cer
tain formalities have been performed, and until tbe baths are
ready for their reception. However, as I bad now arrived at
the last set of bolts that were to be undrawn to allow me to
depart, I bad not fortitude enough to return to the interior,
and, accordingly, proceeding onwards, I have seldom enjoyed

PERE LA CHAISE. 4^\ii^
a more agreeable contrast than when, on coming into the
space in front of the great prison from which I had just been
released, I beheld close before me the Embarcadere or ter
minus of the Lyons Railway, tbe emblem of liberty and loco
motion.

P^RE LA CHAISE.

As on the morning previous to the review I had received
from my oculist his last prescription, I was exceedingly anx
ious to take it and my eyes to Old England. On reflection,
however, I felt there remained half a day's work for each of
them to perform. On the Plaoe de la Bastille I therefore
stopped a fiacre that was hobbling by, and having taken ray
seat, and by means of a handle inside having very carefully
fastened the door, I told the coachman's large face, which on
looking upwards I found close to my own, where it was to
go ; and, accordingly, out of the innumerable streets which in
all directions radiate from the place from which we were
about to start, he selected that which, without turning to the
right or left, ran straight to the scene I was desirous to visit,
— the cemetery of Pere la Chaise.
I had taken so rauch interest in the various objects I had
hitherto visited, that alraost habitually as I approached them
I had experienced, by anticipation, a portion of the pleasure
the realization of my curiosity subsequently afforded me. In
the present instance, however, every time the poor horse nod
ded his jaded head, every tirae the driver whipped his neck_
and every time the carriage jolted over the commonest des
cription of loose stones, I felt that somehow or otber I Was a
loser by the operation ; that something pleasurable bad been
shaken out of me ; in fact,thatas I approached the mansions
of the dead I was infinitesimally becoming less and less
cheerful ; and what in my sinking condition appeared to
me to be anything but consoling was tbat the Rue de la Ro
quette at every step of the horse was evidently also becoming
morc and more gloomy.

450 ^ FAGGOT OF l-'RENGH STICKS.
Ths gaiety of Paris appeared not only to be fading away,
but to be rapidly dying. At first tbe houses merely grew
poor-looking and a little smaller; then came a dead wall,
then an open shop full of tombstones, tben a few houses, then
a rather long dead wall, then a good many bouses, then a shop
full of bright round wreaths of yellow immortelles, then a
couple of houses, then a shop full of nothing but jet black
wreaths aud white ones, then one teeming with yellow ones :
at last, after passing another dead wall, we came to a climax
of woe, made up of shops full, one after another, of monu
ments, images, statues, and crosses, of all shapes, sizes, and
prices. After gradually ascending for nearly half a mile along the
paved gloomy valley of the shadow of death above described,
the caleche, after having passed the Barriere d'Aunay, stopped
at the lofty iron entrance gates of the cemetery of Pere la
Chaise, and as soon as I had dismissed my driver, I found
myself in the centre of a scene which really quite amazed me.
Between the railings of the iron gate, and towering above
the dead wall that surrounds the cemetery, I caught a glimpse
of a confused variety of the monuments, obelisks, crosses, &c ,
I had expressly come to visit. But what arrested, and indeed
for some minutes entirely engrossed my attention, was a crowd
of women seated for a considerable length on eacb side of the
wall, close to different-coloured umbrellas protecting from the
sun large piles of bright yellow, snow-white, and rusty black
round " forget-me-not" immortelles of various sizes, and yet,
not satisfied with such a stock, these women were busily oc
cupied in making sepulchral wreaths faster than one would
conceive it could be possible to sell them. Besides which
there were tastily arranged and suspended upon the dead wall
garlands and crosses of everlasting flowers of all colours — blue,
yellow, green, orange, with spotted blue and white. In what
ever direction I walked, sometimes before me, sometimes be
hind me, sometimes on each side^ and sometimes from all sides
at once, cheerfuMooking women in different voices were ear
nestly advising me to buy either a sepulchral wreath, cross, or
garland. The only sister of the lot that did not address me
W.IS a very ugly one with an olive-coloured face, black hair,
brown comb, and no cap, employed in eating with a stick, out
of a dark-coloured earthen pot, grasa-green spinach.

PERE LA CHAISE. 451
On passing through the iron gates, between two lodges, on
one of whioh I observed inscribed in large letters —
"Republique FKANg.tiSE,''
and on the other "Liberte, FiiATERNrrE, EoALrrE," —
my eyes and mind were corapletely bewildered by the sudden
appearance of a forest of monuments, which looked as if the
tenants of the innumerable graves before nae had. one and all,
in the various attitudes of their respective tombs, arisen to
declare that even in the republic below ground there exists the
same desire for distinction which the soi-disant republicans of
Paris, in mockery of their own theory, are everywhere dis
playing. Not knowing how to grapple with such a variety of forms,
I stopped almost in despair at tbe very first monument on my
left ; a little house or chapel about six feet square, and about
ten feet high, surmounted by a cross, beneath which was
inscribed —
"S^pidture Chevalier-Guyot et de la FamUle Gaidon."*
On peeping through the open latticed work which formed the
upper half of the door, I saw within, a marble altar, upon
which appeared a long plated-silver cross, two lofty plated-
silver candlesticks, two opaque glass vases full of flowers, a
plated-silver mug for holding holy water, and a silver-handled
hair-brush for sprinkling it. In front of the altar and touch
ing it were a pair of china flowerpots, containing artificial
flowers, with two ebony-backed Prie-Dieu chairs. On the
walls hung a couple of yellow wreaths of immortelles, and ten
white ones ; on one of the latter was inscribed in black letters.
"a mon Emit."!
The next monument I looked into had been similarly fur
nished, except that at the back of the altar was a window of
stained glass, and on one of four yellow immortelles the words
"Pon fm.":|;
* Tomb of the Chevalier Guyot and of the family Gaidon.
! To my friend. ^ My father.

452 -A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS
For a few moraents I stopped before several flat tombstones,
surrounded by iron rails supporting an iron trough reversed,
under which, protected frora rain, hung a quantity of yellow
wreaths. As I was loitering among these stones, I observed a re
spectable-looking man of about 50 years of age, watching me
like a wolf; and as I was quite as much in want-of bim as he
of me, I beckoned to him, and with great pleasure enlisted
him in my service. As soon, however, as I began to interro
gate my ally (one of the official guides of the cemetery) he
began to dispute, and his remonstrances became so loud, he
shrugged up his shoulders so violently, and with the palms
of his hands upwards, he extended bis arms to such an extra
ordinary length, that, as I did not wish to be seen engaged in
a colloquial duel araong the tombs, I was obliged very quietly
to decline to proceed with him, unless hc would consent to be
guided by my notions — in short, follow my wishes instead of
his own.The subject of our altercation was briefly as follows : — In
the ceraeteries of Paris there are three descriptions of graves —
] St. Those occupied in perpetuity ;
2nd, Those leased for six years ;
3rd. Those in which the dead poor are gratuitously al
lowed a caravansary or resting-place for five years.
Now what my friend wanted to do was to hurry me straight
off to that part of the cemetery oocupied by the permanent
graves, in order that then and there he might zigzaggedly con
duct me to the monuments either of the most celebrated men,
or of the finest sculpture. He assured me, and afterwards in
sisted, that that was the usual, regular, best, and only way of
procedure ; and, with a scoffing movement of his right hand, he
added tbat, if he was to stop where I wanted him to stop, and
to continue to give me the trifiing information I appeared to
desire, I should see nothing, learn nothing, and, lastly, should
occupy the whole of his day.
Now, as the sting of all his objections evidently lay not in
the head but in the tail or conclusion of his remarks, I con
sidered it unnecessary to wound bis feelings by confessing to
him rav total disregard for tbe bones, masonry, iron, and sil
ver, which he appeared to venerate. In answer, therefore, to
his nuraerous shrugs and objections, I merely expounded to

PERE LA CHAISE. 453
him very clearly that, inasmuch as it was my intention to pay
him very liberally by the Iwur, the more of his time I wasted
the better it would be for him; and as an idea, like lightning,
travels infinitely faster than the heavy thundering words by
which it is conveyed, so, long before my explanation was con
cluded, every line of argument had not only relaxed from his
countenance, but had vanished from his figure, both of which
seemed to say, "It must be so — Plato, thou reasonest well!"
As soon as we had, in perfect good fellowship, sufficiently
smiled at each other, I asked him to be so good as to take rae
to the common pit, " fosse commune." " Bien, Monsieur !" he
replied ; and suiting his action to the words, off he merrily led
me across an open uninteresting space of about sixteen aores,
which looked very like a ploughed field, but as we were cross
ing it I ascertained that its history is muoh more remarkable
than its appearance. Only a few years ago this area, which
had been completely filled with " temporary graves," was cov
ered with a beautiful shrubbery of cypresses. At the expira
tion, however, of the lease the living had granted io the dead,
it was deemed advisable to convert the ground from a level
to the acclivity which forms the characteristic feature of the
cemetery. Instead, therefore, of ejecting the tenants, thcy
were completely covered by an avalanche of new-made earth,
that was rolled over all, and thus, at a depth in sorae places
of 30 feet, these sixteen acres of pauper corpses will lie undis
turbed beneath the stratum of new graves which in due time
will be imposed upon them.
My guide had scarcely given me this information when I
saw immediately on my left a hearse driven by a man in a
cocked hat, and followed by three persons, of whom two were
in mourning ; and as the party were evidently proceeding to
tbe " fosse commune," I hurried on, and reached the spot a few
seconds before it arrived.
Just at the moment it stopped, my attention was attracted
by a deep broad d'ltch beneath me, in which was a man rather
oddly dressed standing beside a long series of coffins, placed
together in threes side by side, aud I had scarcely glanced on
them when, on looking round for the hearse, I saw it trotting
away, probably for anotber poor person's coffin. That whicb

454 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
it had brought was in the hands of four men in rusty black
clothes, who, walking rather quickly to the edge of the ditch,
lowered it by means of ropes to the labourer beneath, who in a
few seconds placed it in its destination. As it lay there I ob
served that it, the coffin, was made of common white wood, had
a serai-hexagonal top, on whioh there appeared nothing but a
few black letters designating the name ofthe man who had made
it, and a little bit of lead, about an inch and a half square, upon
which was irapressed the number, or " numero," of the dead.
In front of the hearse I had observed, only for a moment
(for he was quite unpleasant to look at), strutting as if he con
sidered himself to be of vast importance, a tall stout person,
or personage, dr&ssed in a cocked hat, black coat of superfine
cloth fitting uncomfortably tight, and a fine belt, who, as soon
as tbe four men in dingy black had handed down the coffin, put
hiraself at their head and marched off. In a whisper I asked
my guide who hc was, " Monsieur," he replied, with a coun
tenance overflowing with respect and astonishment at my igno
rance, " c'est I'ordonnateur aux pompes funebres I"*
Two of the three persons who had followed the hearse also
iramediately departed ; the last remaining friend, walking to
the edge of the pit, and then stooping downwards, banded to
the man beneath, who had received the coffin, two round bright
yellow imraortelles, with a paper upon* which was written the
name of the deceased, and he also tben walked quickly away.
When the last spark of affection bad been thus extinguished,
the gravedigger, whose face and arms were sunburnt and brown,
and was dressed in a white shirt, with blue trousers, confined
round the waist by an old scarlet and white belt, finally adjusted
the coffin, then threw over it with his spade a covering of earth
about half an inch thick then affixed in the perpendicular bank
the paper and two yellow immortelles that belonged to it, and
then, there being nothing else in the whole world for him to
do, leaning on his spade he rested against the bank, evidently
waiting for another coffin.
The arrangement appeared so simple and so sensible, that
I could not help expressing to my guide, that, however he
might admire the infinite variety which characterised the " per
petual graves," it must at least be said of those before us that
their inraates found in thera a republic in which all are equal
" Non, Monsieur," said my attendant, gradually closing his
* Sir, he is director of the Pompes-Funftbrea.

PERE LA CHAISE. 455
right nostril with the forefinger of his dexter hand ; and he
then proceeded to explain to me, that, with respect to the de
scription of funeral I had just witnessed, the city of Paris grants
only to those who can give proofs of their poverty —
1st The " convoi," i, e. hearse with the ordonnateur des
Pompes Funebres and his attendants ;
2nd. The coffin ;
Srd. The grave, or resting-place for the dead.
That a corpse failing to give this proof of its poverty has
to pay to the city a tax of 20 francs (" de droit"), also seven
francs for its coffin ; the grave only being given, to it gratis.
He added, that although in the "fosse commune" the stratum
of dead are so closely packed that their coffins, like paving-
stones, touch each other all round, yet, in raemory of each, even
the very poorest, there is invariably ereoted, either over the
coffin or as near it as possible, a little rectangular oak railing,
18 inches high, enclosing a tiny garden, subsequently orna
mented according to the circumstances of the deceased, or to
those of his friends — generally with cypresses and a sraall
wooden chapel ; sometimes only with a cross ; indeed, in cases
of extreme poverty, some friend of the dead has been known,
within the little railing I have described, to erect and leave be
hind him his walking-stick, as the sole bearer of the inscription
whioh, under all circumstances, records, within the railing that
commemorates the grave, the name, age, and date of death of
the departed. The cost of the little distinctions which in dif
ferent grades ornament the garden graves of the very poorest
inhabitants of that portion of the city (5th, 6th, 7th, Sth, and
9th arrondissements) that are buried in the cemetery of Pere la
Chaise, of course increases or diminishes according to their
value. To give, however, to the reader a general idea of the
cheapness with which such work is executed in Paris, I may
state that the usual charge for the " entourage" (railing of oak).
two cypresses, and flowers for a grave in the " fosse commune,"
is only 15 francs. At the expiration of about seven years, or
of five if deemed necessary, all these slight remembrances are
levelled, and a new set of tenants, and a new set of ornamenta
and distinctions, reign in their stead —
" Nations and empires rise aud fall, flourish and decay."
Leaving the gravedigger in his trench still leaning against
the bank, and without consulting my guide, I walked to a

456 ^ FAGGOT OF FliENCE STICKS.
beautiful grove or shrubbery of young cypresses, which ap
peared to cover the acclivity of the hiU, on the summit of wbich
bad been conslructed the finest portion of the permanent
monuraents. On entering this interesting wilderness I found it composed
of the " fosses temporaires," " temporary graves," six feet long
and three broad,- each of which, surrounded by its little oak
railing, was alraost concealed by the cypresses and roses that
flourished and blooraed above it. Along these graves, which
appeared very regularly arranged side by side, were a series of
paths, running east and west, with others at right angles : by
which arrangement, the cypress labyrinth, that contained them
all, could be penetrated in any direction, and tbus every grave
could easily be visited by whomsoever it might be held dear.
These graves were somewhat larger than those of the " fosse
commune ;" but with that exception, there was no difference,
save that within and beneath the small padlocked space the
body it commemorated actually reposed ; whereas in the garden
graves of the " fosse commune" it unavoidably lay some feet off
in a direction unknown.
The expenses of burial in these temporary abodes, taken
on a lease for not less than five, and not exceeding ten years,
are various. For instance, for a poor man, whose family desire
the cheapest possible form, the charges are,

To the church
For the ground
For the coffin room-from .
Hearse, ordonnateur, (fee.

. 10 francs.
¦ 60 „
7 to 10 „
• 27 „

Total from

94 to 97 „

(For the above the rich pay from 200 to 1000 francs, and for
first-class ceremonies there have been charged 7000 ) These
funeral expenses do not include the decorations of the garden,
which oan be executed for about 40 francs, as follows : —
An "entourage" (railing) in oak, 2J feet high 15 francs
Cross in oak and inscription . . . 10 „
Couvre-couronne in zino ... 6 „
Four cypress-trees and and a sanded path in
form of a cross, and edged with box . 10 „
Total . 41

PERE LA CHAISE. 457
Fora tombstone the extra cost is from 10 to 12 francs.
Engraving say 100 lettera at the rate of one
franc for every ten letters . . . 10 „
Total 22 „
Although my guide refrained from expressiug his opinions,
it was evident he took no interest whatever in any portion of
the cemetery but that which he conceived to be immortalized
by stone, brick, and stout iron railings ; and as it was distressing
to me to observe how his mind kept yearning and his eyes turning
towards the hill before me, I told him I was now at his service,
and would follow him wherever he liked. With a bright
countenance, a light heart, and a quick step, he of course in
stantly posted up the hill ; at the summit of which I observed
that a portion of the beautiful range of " temporary graves" I
had been admiring had been lately levelled, in order, I sup
pose, to replace the subterranean tenantry by permanent land
lords of the soil
The oak railings had completely disappeared ; in some
places the cypresses I had so much admired were lying brown
and dead on the ground ; in other parts strong, rich grass was
waving in the sunshine, and as I passed through the mass I
now and then trod on a round flowerless immortelle showing
the straw of which it had been made.
The first monument to which my guide conducted me,
perched on the very summit of the hill, consisted of a lofty
pyramid with a gilt conical top, the whole large enough, solid
enough, and high enough for a lighthouse, which indeed it much
resembled. It had been erected by a person of no celebrity,
beyond wealth, appropriately called " Monsieur de Beau-jour."*
As I did not much enjoy the taste of this sample, I talked
to my guide about himself; and after ascertaining where he
lived, and what family he had, I asked him whether the late
revolutions in Paris had in any way affected hira.
He told me that previous to 1848 he had been very well off,
— "j'ai bien gague ma vie,"! — but since that period he had
scarcely earned half of what he used to earn. " For a consider
able time," said he, " after the revolution we had no travellers,
no English ; et enfin," he added with a shrug, " les gens qui
* Mr. Fine-day. | I ^^,^^^ ^ ^^ livelihood.
20

4-58 -1 FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
nous cherchent a present nous donnent peu de chose."* With
a CQuntenance full of conterapt he added, " Ils ne sont que des
Italiens, et des nations bouleversees."!
On reaching the highest part of the cemetery, from which
of course there is tbe finest view, I was much surprised to find
the uppermost portion principally occupied by monuments,
marked witb tbe usual words, " Concession a perpetuit6,"J
bearing English inscriptions.
On the first that attracted my attention was inscribed —
" Fanny,Wife of
Henry T. Anderson,
of New Tork.
January 1, 1844.
A few yards farther I came to a very handsome one in
white marble, unmutilated and unsullied even by an observa
tion in pencil, bearing the following inscription, which I copied
wbile two birds close to me were singing, as delightfully as if
tbey had been hatched in England : —
" Sir William Sidney Smith,
Admiral of the Red,
Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath, and Grand Cross
of several Foreign Orders, <fec.
Born 2l8t of June, 1764,
Died 26th of May, 1840.
Peace to the hero who undaunted stood,
¦When Acre's streets were red with Turkish blood 1
In warlike France, where great Napoleon rose,
The man who check'd his conquests finds repose :
England, who claims his triumphs as Kier own,
Has raised for him. this monumental stone ;
This tomb which marks his grave, is now supplied
By fi'iends with whora be lived, midst whom he died —
A tribute to his memory. Here beneath
Lies the bold heart of England's Sidney Smith."

* And after all, the people who now seek for us give us very little.
! They are nothing but Italians, and the inhabitants of overturned
naiioi'S. t Leased for ever.

PERE LA CHAISE. 459
Nearly opposite I observed a chaste and simple white mar
ble monument to "The Right Hon.
Sir William Keppel,
Knight Grand Cross of the MiUtary Order
of the BaUi."
For a considerable time I wandered through an immense
confusion of sarcophagi, pyramids, 'obelisks, mausoleums, tem
ples, chapels, columns, urns, cenotaphs, and sepulchral monu
ments of all beights, sbapes, and sizes, most of them surrounded
by iron railings, within which sometimes I found beautiful
flowers, sometimes weeds, and sometinies nothing but stinging-
nettles ; in short, one might as well attempt to describe a
great battle by writing a history of every soldier that was pre
sent at it, as to endeavour to describe the cemetery of Pere la
Chaise by merely enumerating the herd of constructions that
at a cost of upwards of five millions sterling have been erected
within it.
In peeping into the sepulchral chapels I perceived on the
altar of one a quantity of flowers quite fresh, in water; on
another were a large cross, four tall candlesticks, three little
images, and a silver-handled brush (aspersoir) tor sprinkling
holy water, " Ah que c'est gentil 1"* exclairaed ray guide,
whose face occupied the square glassless compartment in the
window next to that through which I was looking.
The simplest monument within the cemetery is a stone
pyramid about six feet high, surrounded by a little neat box
border, dedicated to "E. Volney,
Pair de France."!
As I was wending my way through cenotaphs, obelisks, and
temples, many of wbich must have been exceedingly costly, I
perceived about 30 yards distant on my right a very odd-look
ing chapel, made entirely of zinc, and painted bright blue. I im
mediately stopped, and, after looking at it for some time, I
asked my guide, "Why is the door open?"
" C'est sa femme dedans :" and be then added, " Quand il
* 0, how beautiful 1 ^ Peer of France.

460 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
fait beau, she"* (the widow of tbe deceased man to whom this
monument bad been ereoted) " visits it sometimes for half a
day" I was so struck witb this unusual mark of fidelity and affec
tion, that I not only felt but expressed an irresistible desire to
witness it. My guide proposed to accompany me, but, as I
thought be might possibly be rather too inquisitive, I begged
him to remain where be stood, and to allow me hastily to walk
past the open door. I accdrdingly proceeded to do so, and I
was wondering by what description of feelings I should be as
sailed, and in what attitude I should find the widow, when, to
my utter astonishment, I was taken all aback by suddenly
seeing close to me, not in the chapel, but seated on a chair
just before it, a lady dressed in bright blue of exactly the tint
of the zinc chapel.
" Elle aime beaucoup le bleu! "! said my guide to me with a
smile as soon as I returned to him.
" She does, indeed !" was all I could manage to say in re
ply : however, as my friend perceived I was altogether flabber
gasted by what I had seen, he explained to me of his own ac
cord that the lady's mind is slightly disordered, and that, when
ever she has " un reve," or dream of her husband, she writes
a letter to him, brings it, and files it within the blue tomb, in
which he said there existed a great heap of ber correspondence
with her departed husband.
After passing an endless variety of tombs I came to a spot
where a body of workmen in blouses were employed in con
structing a permanent vault for twelve persons, to be deposited
in two tiers or strata of six each, separated from each other
by iron bars imbedded in the masonry.
The cost of a single permanent grave " emplaceraent" of
one metre (3 feet 3 1-3 inches English) broad, and two metres
long, is 500 francs, The sum of 1000 are, however, demanded
for the very same space so often as it may be required in ad
dition to the first allotment ; and as the vault before me Was 3
metres broad by two in length, the charges were to be as fob
'lows : — * His wife is inside. When it is fine weather, &e.
! Very fond of bl'ue .'

PERE LA CHAISE. 461
Francs.
The cost of thc ground alone had amounted to 2500
The cost of digging, and of the masonry for
the 12 graves  720
For fixing a curb stone around the whole . 150
For a handsome u-ou railing .... 400
Total  8770
about 150Z. sterling.
To sand the little paths of a grave, and keep
weeds out costs (per annum) . . . 12
In addition to the above to maintain a succes
sion of flowers (per annum) ... 20
The city of Paris, foreseeing that the perpetual graves,
whioh already amount in nuraber to 102,000, would ere long
take exclusive possession of the cemetery of Pere la Chaise,
have lately declined to give perpetual titles, in lieu of which
they now grant leases for a given period, subject to renewal.
The result it is expected will be, that a considerable number
of families will decline — or, as it will be fashionably termed,
vj''^ forget — to purchase the renewal, and these monuments,
many of which are evidently already totally neglected, will
then be quietly removed. And even as regards those that
bear the inscription " Concession a Perpetuite," if the certi
ficate, or "Lettre de Propriete,"* should be lost, it is under
stood the city will resume possession of the ground for what is
very properly termed " utilite publique"!
After conversing for some little time with the workmen in
blouses, who, beneath the surface of the ground, were con
structing the twelve graves before me, I asked one of the
most intelligent whether the late political events in France
had in any way affected their profits. "We gained," replied
the man, leaning his trowel upon the grave he was construct
ing, and looking upwards full in my face, " a good deal in 1849
by the cholera, but, excepting that, we have not obtained in
the last three years as much as in the time of Louis Philippe
we got in one !"
I observed that I oould not comprehend bow tbat could be,
for " Surely," 1 added, " it is Leal-h, and not Louis Philippe
or Louis Napoleon, wbo fills for you tbe cemetery of Pere la

* Title-deed. ^f The pubUo benefit

462 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
Chaise ?" " C'est, Monsieur," he replied, " parce que les
grandes families sont expatriees, c'est a dire en leurs cam
pagnes ;"* in consequence of which, and of the general un
settled state of the public mind, he explained at some length
that everybody now had a cheap grave. My guide, who by
various little fidgeting movements of his face and feet evidently
disapproved of the time I had been losing at this grave, at
last prevailed upon me once again to accompany him. Instead,
however, of prosecuting any path, he wormed his way among
monuments closely huddled together, and yet his course on the
whole was so straight, and his step so quick, that I felt confi
dent he was on a trail of importance, and, as if I had been fol
lowing a red Indian, I was wondering what description of
game we were about to overtake, when my friend, suddenly
stopping before a small garden about sixteen feet long and ten
broad, surrounded by wired iron railings about five feet high,
and which, as a solitary exception to all the tombs I had beheld,
contained neither monument nor inscription of any sort, said
to me witb great solemnity, as, standing bolt upright, he point
ed his finger to the little enclosure before us, " Monsieur,
viola le corps du Marechal Ney .' "!
My guide informed me that during the reign of Louis
Philippe, the relations and friends of the General were given
to understand that the erection of what tbey would consider
to be an appropriate monument to his memory would not be
allowed ; that since the establishment of the Republic his
corpse had remained unbonoured, under the idea tbat the na
tion would erect a magnificent monument In the mean while,
within the narrow precincts of tbe rails, there slightly waved
above his grave eight cypresses, whose height rudely marked
the era of his interment. In the middle is a small circular
border of China roses, and ranged against the rails are rows
of laurels, excepting at the entrance gate, each side of whicb
I observed a lilac-tree in blossom. Close to the border there
lay on the ground one circular wreath of white immortelles,
bearing in blue letters the word
" msxtts."
* It is, Sir, because our great families are expatriated, that is to say,
are living at their country seats.
f Sir, there is the body of Marshal Ney.

PERE LA CHAISE. 463
I had, for more than an hour, been so bothered by the Ba
bel confusion of tongues of the various monuments which, in
every sort of attitude, jostling, crowding, and pushing against
each other, were all at once each extolling nothing in creation
but the corpse beneath, that, as I stood looking into the little
garden before me, I must own I felt it was the most striking
monuraent — the most successful effort — of the lot : — iu short,
that tbere was more real eloquence in its silence than in allthe
laboured panegyrics to which my guide had directed my at
tention, and which had occasionally made ms feel almost sea
sick to read. "Aliens!" I said; upon which my attendant
stretched out his hands between the rails, picked a laureMeaf,
and presented it to me. On shaking my head, and saying
rather resolutely, " Non ! non !" he chucked it somewhat indig
nantly upon the grave. As I was following him in silence, I
passed close to a group of four Frenchmen who had witnessed
the trifling occurrence, and who looked rather hard at me as I
walked by them. What they saw in me I could not know, nor
did I care, but, to avoid misconstruction, I took an early op
portunity of explaining to my guide, that in England every
body is instructed under all circumstances " to keep his hands
from picking and stealing," and that there is no species of
theft more disreputable than for a traveller, in return for the
civilities he has received in France, to pilfer from the grave of
an old soldier the smallest portion, however trifling, of the
honours, whatever they may be, that consecrate his tomb.
My guide now led me to, and for some little distance down,
the great paved arterial road that, from the lofty iron en
trance gates, meanders in its ascent to, and then along, the
whole length of the cemetery, and, although no visitor is al
lowed, on any pretence whatever, to drive here, the stones
were literally, in some places, worn into ruts by the hearses
and mourning carriages that had walked over them.
As we proceeded along this broad avenue, I met several
ladies and merry children, fashionably dressed, carrying in
their hands, gently swinging by their sides, circular wreaths
of imraortelles of different diameters and colours, whicb they
were about to deposit, as touching marks of tbeir affection, at
the graves of their fathers, mothers, or other relations or
friends ; after which they usually rest themselves, for more or
less time, on one of the many seats which, for purposes of this
nature, are scattered over tbe cemetery.

464 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
In a few minutes we came to the " Rond Point," where
tbe paved road forms a sort of circle of obeisance round a
beautiful statue, resting on a very lofty pedestal, erected in
1832, by public subscription, in honour of Casimir Perier, late
Prime Minister of France, and, after visiting several other
monuments of less importance, my guide led me downwards to
a most beautiful four-fronted chapel, supported by fourteen
columns, not only erected to the memory of Heloisa and Abe
lard — statues of whora, admirably sculptured, are within — but
constructed from the ruins of the celebrated abbey of the Pa
raclete, founded by the latter, and of which the former was
the first abbess, and as we were now within a short distance of
the great entrance gate, and as it was about tbe hour at which
strangers usually arrive, I took out my watch, fulfilled my
agreement witb my guide, and, moreover, heaping up the
measure to his heart's content, he left me among the dead, to
endeavour to hook, if possible, another " Anglais," which, in
tbe ocean of tbis world, are everywhere looked upon by guides
of all sorts as the best fish that swim.
Close beside me stood a very tall wall — without metaphor,
stone dead — which I felt exceedingly anxious to surmount ;
its height, however, was so forbidding that, after walking close
along it for some distance, I was about to leave it in despair,
when I observed some poles whicb had been brought into the
cemetery for the repair of a monument, by means of which I
managed, without difficulty, to reach and sit upon the thin
mural barrier that divides tbe cemetery of Pere la Chaise
from a very tiny rectangular piece of ground, entitled thc
buriabplace of the Jews, which, at a single glance, I perceived
to be very creditably kept, and to contain several very neat
and handsome monuments. In point of dimensions, however,*
it did not bear the proportion to the great Christian cemetery
that the palm of my hand did to my whole body, and as I sat
looking from the great cemetery to the little one, and vwe
versd, I could not help feeling what a striking corroboration
was before me of that mysterious dispensation of the Alraighty
which in all ages and in all countries, has not only stamped
the intellectual countenance of the Jew by distinguishing
lines often of great beauty, whicb every man can read as be
runs' but which has maintained tbe race as distinct and sepa
rate from the rest of the human speoies as the dark-coloured

PERE LA CHAISE. 465
little stream from Chippewa, whioh, without the slightest ad
mixture with the mass of clear green water from Lakes Supe
rior, Huron, and Erie, is eternally rolling with it, side by side,
over the Falls of Niagara, And yet, from the, very showing
of the case, it has been argued that the distinction which
Christians call by the fine-souuding name of a •• dispensation
of the Almighty " is in fact nothing but tbat unclean human
spirit which, in almost every portion of the globe, has induced
the larger body to persecute and oppress the little one. But
the cemeteries on each side of me uuanswerably confuted this
human doctrine, for, instead of the large seet having rejected
an alliance with the little one, it is the little sect that has re
fused, and still refuses, to join in any description of partner
ship with the large one. In the great Christian cemetery a
corpse of any politics, of any couutry, of any religion, or of no
religion at all, is freely allowed to be buried in the " fosse
coraraune," in the " fosse temporaire," or in a " concession &,
perpetuite," with any ceremony, or with no ceremony, just as
his executors or his relations may desire. Priests of any
church may preach over him, choristers of any creed may
chant over him, relations may howl over him, or, without a
single follower, he may, if he has so wished it, be buried with
no more pomp, ceremony, exclamation, or feeling, than if ho
were the roughest description of cur.
But although the iron gates of the big Christian cemetery
are, most good-humouredly, always wide open for the admis
sion of the Jews, the narrow door of the little Jewish cerae
tery scorns to admit a Christian corpse. Its opposition is an
honest one ; it denies the divinity of Jesus Christ And yet,
said the Prime Minister of Queen Victoria in his able speech
on the third reading of the Oath of Abjuration (Jew) Bill —
" So long as Jews are prevented from sitting in the House of Com
mons, whenever there comes a popular election a premium i,-i actually
given to the Jew as against the Christian in that election (hear), because,
while the Christian stands on his own merits, the Jew would say  ' In
me you behold a per.secM<ed man! and if you value the principle of Rb.
UGioiis Liberty, you will send me to the House of Commons !' ^'
On the subject of the admission of Jews into the British
House of Commons I have hitherto abstained from expressing
even in private any opinion whatever; as, bowever I sat
2;0*

466 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENGE STICKS.
astride on the wall separating the two cemeteries, the skele
ton facts of the case flitted before my mind in the following
order. For nearly a thousand years the British people, uuder
Christian sovereigns, have been governed by a succession of
Parliaments exclusively Christian, and accordingly, —
1st. The proceedings of the House of Commons have been,
and still are. daily opened by Christian prayers offered up by
the Speaker's Chaplain.
2nd. In tbe House of Lords tbe practice has been, and is,
similar, except tbat the junior of the bench of Christian Bishops
is ex-officio the Chaplain who reads the prayers,
3rd, The Christian character of tbe Sovereign may be de
lineated as follows : —
On Thursday the 28th of June, 1838, in the Abbey Church
of St Peter, Westminster, tbe Sovereign of Great Britain and
Ireland, by the Grace of God Defender of the Faith (vide the
printed Form and Order of the Service and Ceremonies ob
served in the Coronation of Her Majesty Queen Victoria),
supported by the two Bishops of Durham and Bath and Wells;
attended by the Dean of Westminster, the Lord Chancellor,
Lord Great Chamberlain, Lord High Constable and Earl
Marshal, the Lords who carry the Regalia, &c, &c., and in
presence of the people assembled within the church, replied to
the Archbishop of Canterbury as follows : —
Archbishop. — ^Madam, is Your Majesty willing to take the Oathf"
Queen. — I am wiUing.
Archbishop. — WiU You to the utmost of Your Power maintain the Lawa
of God, the true Profession of the Gospel and the Reformed Protestant Re
ligion established by law ? And will you raaintain and preserve inviolably
the Settlement of the United Church of England and Ireland, and the Doc
trine, Worship, DiscipUne, and Government thereof, as by law established,
within England and Ireland and the Territories thereunto belonging ! And
wiU You preserve unto the Bishops and Clergy of England and Ireland,
and to the Churches there committed to their Charge, aU such Rights and
Privileges as by Law do or shaU appertain to Them, or any of Them ?
Queen. — All this I promise to do.
Then the Queen arising out of Her Chair, attended by Her Supporters,
and assisted by the Lord Great Chamberlain, the Sword of State being car
ried before ffer, went to the Altar, and there made Her Solemn Oath in the
sight of allthe People io observe the Premises: Laying Her right hand
upon the Holy Gospel in the Oreat Bible which had been carried in the

PERE LA CHAISE. 467
Procession, and was now brought from the Altar by the Archbishop, and
tendered to Her as She knelt upon the Steps, .ihe said these words —
The things which I have here befor e promised, I wUl perform and
keep. So help rae God.
Theti the Queen kissed the Book and signed the Oath.
It need hardly be said that the Statute of the 12 and 13
William III., confirming the limitation of tbe Succession of
the Crown " from time to time to such person or persons be
ing Protestants," the oath taken by every meraber of the
House of Commons, " On the true faith of a Christian," tbe
daily prayer of both Houses of Parliament, and the Corona
tion Oath required from the Sovereign, are not only in accord
ance with, but in obedience to, the will of the British people,
whose aggregate attachment to the Christian Religion, and
whose attention — in such degree only as each thinks proper —
to Cbristian worship, need not be described.
Now, the whole of this system of Christian deference to
Almighty God, by which the British Empire has hithertc
been cemented, from the oath required from the Sovereign
down to that taken by every Member of the House of Cora
mons, is very properly abhorred by the Jews, siraply because
they believe the Redeemer of the Christians to L-ive been an
impostor ; and firmly impressed with this opinion, which,
whenever necessary, they have, as in duty bound, been ready
to seal with their blood, they decline to be buried in the same
ground with Christians, — to unite theraselves in marriage with
a Christian ; indeed their great charities, — such, for instance,
as " Thfe Jews' Free School in Bell Lane, Spitalfield.s, Lon
don," containing 650 boys and 350 girls, total 1000, —
have been .so exclusive, that to the simple blessings of educa
tion no Christian child is admitted. Firm in attachment to
their own religion, and in contempt of that which they espe
cially abhor, in many countries they consider the mere touch
of a Christian to be pollution ; and accordingly, I myself
have seen a Jew, with a withering look, as if* I had poured a
cup of poison into it, throw away a large tub of water from
which, out of my hand, I had without the slightest intention cf
offence, drunk a few drops.
Now, how haye the British people resented this conscien
tious, firm, unflinching, uncompromising bigotry? Why,

4fiS -i FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
witb that high-minded generosity that charaterizes tbem, they
not only allow Jews to eat from the same sources, drink from
the same fountains, and, unmolested, live in whatever . locali
ties they like, but, I am proud to add, they have extended to
their persons and to their property the same legal protection
wbicb tbe Christian Parliament have enacted for tbe benefit
of the Christian people. Nay, every Jew throughout the
British dominions has been made capable of acting as a ma
gistrate, of filling any municipal office, of sitting in judgment
upon Cbristians on matters of life and death. And yet, al-
tbough on the liberty, and on property of every kind, belong
ing to Christians, they have tbe power to adjudicate, from
blind zeal and immovable prejudices, as a body, they obdu
rately refuse, even as corpses, to associate with the Christian
community. As however, the noblest object in exposing error is to
avoid it, it is evident tbat, tbe more intolerant Jews are to
Cbristians, tbe more should the latter be" disposed to forgive
and forget antagonist opinions, wbich, after all, proceed from
consciencious disbelief, and it has therefore liberally, and I
think very properly, been decreed that, utterly irrespective
of tbe conduct of Jews towards Christians, every possible in
dulgence sbould be granted to them, and every possible re
striction upon them removed.
To remove, however, the only restriction tbat remains, by
raising them to be legislators for Christians, is surely, almost
from the mere showing of tbe case, not only impolitic, but it
is asking Jews to do what morally and religiously it is out of
their power to perform.
In fact, it is placing them on the horns of a dilemma ; for
if in tbe enactment of Laws for the government of a Chris
tian people they were to endeavour to promote that mild re
ligion which in domestic life regulates, more or less, the great
mass of the community, they would be faithless to their own
creed ; and on the other hand, if, faithful to their creed, by
every means in their power they should endeavour, directly
as well as indirectly, to eradicate a religion they conscien
tiously believe to be erroneous, tbey would be faithless to the
people for whom they are required to legislate. In short, it
is evident, even grammatically speaking, that a Jew in a
Christian Parliament is a confusion of terms, which can only

PERE LA CHAISE. 469
be reconciled by the expulsion of the Jew, or by the oblitera
tion of the term " Christian ;" for what is Jewish cannot be
Christian, nor can wbat is Christian be Jewish,
But it has been plausibly enougb argued, that of two evils
a mere breach of grammar is of less importance than the
" illiberality " of excluding a Jew from the House of Com
mons ; whicb, it is added, if conceded, would " settle the ques
tion" and tbus create throughout the empire harmony, hap
piness, and content.
Now, on refiection, it will, I believe, be evident to every
one that tbat tbis argument with irresistible force recoils
upon the proposal ; for on tbe very doctrine, that of two evils
a sensible man sbould choose the least, a Jew ought to be
excluded from our Christian Parliament, because his admis
sion would create several embarrassments, each greater than
tbe solitary one it is liberally intended to allay.
For instance, in the House of Coraraons, where all men
are ': Peers " — that is to say, sit together on terms of perfect
equality, — it would evidently be unjust to maintain for the
majority a form of devotion in whioh the minority could not,
owing to the religion they profess, join. It would therefore
be necessary, either to persist in the injustice, or for the
House to alter its form of prayer to a joint superstitious sup
plication — d-yi'wtrno ®e<3 — " To THE U.VKKOWN GoD," which St.
Paul so truly declared at Athens to be "ignorant worship,"
Again, would it be just for the Christian party to possess
the power of forcing their "Peer" to abandon either his
conscience or a bill in which he was deeply interested, by
bringing it up for discussion on a Saturday ; and would it be
just on that day to force him to attend on a Committee ?
On the other hand,,would it be just to force him to rest from
his political labours on Sunday, on Good Friday, and on
Christmas-day ? Says the Christian, Man's Sabbath is on
Sunday, Says the Jew, it is no such tbing, it is on Satur
day. Tbe House, therefore, must either openly violate the
religious freedom it has vainly attempted to establish, by
forcing the Sabbath of the majority on the minority, and, for
the convenience of the majority, by depriving the minority
of tbeir day of holy rest, or compromise the dispute by ami
cably (liberally) agreeing together that there shall be no
Sabbath at all.
Again, would it be just to allow tbe Bishops of one faith

470 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
to form part of a Legislature from whicb the Rabbis of the
other faith are excluded ? Certainly not. It would, there
fore, be necessary, either that tbe Christian Bishops should
be deprived of their seats in the House of Lords, or that the
Jewish Rabbis should, ex officio, for the avowed purpose of
neutralisation, be invested with the privilege of sitting beside
them. Again, the instant the British Parliaraent is made Jewish,
as well as Cbristian, the style and title of the Sovereign must
be altered ; for if, in mockery of tbe Jews, it continue to be
" B3' the Grace of God Defender of the Faith," it will justly
be asked, of what faith ? And unless the answer be, " Of the
Jewish-Christian faith !" it is evident that the Sovereign will
be the Defender of the wrong faith or, in other words, will
be of only one Religion, while the House of Comraons will be
of TWO. Lastly, it bas hitherto been the happy characteristic of the
British Kingdom tbat its Parliament and its People have been,
as it were, the reflection of eacb other, and accordingly the
religious sentiraents of the one have not only been protected
but fostered by the other. If, therefore, for the sake of a few
Jews who faithfully avow themselves to belong to a kingdom
limited lothe seed of Ab}-aham,'Parl\ament abjures its religion,
that of the pebple will sympathetically wither ; In fact, a Par
liament without a religioii legislating for a Christian people is
an anomaly tbat can only be got rid of, either by tbe Legisla
ture, like the prodigal son, returning to its creed, or by the
people, for whom they are legislating, for the sake of political
unanimity, abandoning theirs.
Without enuraerating many other embarrassments that
might be detailed, the above are, it is submitted, sufficient to
demonstrate, that, even on the dangerous theory, that of a choice
of evils the least is to be selected, the proposed alteration
ahould be rejected.
But having shown what the great Christian community
would lose, let us for a moraent endeavour to calculate what the
tiny Jewish sect residing " pro tem," among us might be sup
posed to gain by a measure which themost devout of the He
brew nation honestly declare to be inconsistent with their
religious expectations. _
In tbe speeches in favour of the Abrogation Bill, it has
been truly stated that a Jew is as deeply interested in every

PERE LA CHAISE. 471
law enacted by Parliament for the protection of life and pro
perty as any Christiau member of thc community ; but, anom
alous as it raay sound, for that very reason he ought to desire
to reraain excluded frora the British Parliament ; for does there
exist in the United Kingdom a liberal man of souud judgraent
who is not inwardly convinced that religious principles are the
strongest incentives to induce a populous nation not only to do
what is right, but to abstain from doing what is wrong? The
lives of British people (Jews included) are protected by laws,
the just execution of which depends upon evidence on oath,
jurors on oath, judges stvorn to administer impartial justice,
British property is similarly protected. In fact, the credit of
the country is based upon those unalterable principles and
coraraandraents whioh the Christian religion fosters and enfor
ces ; and yet, so sensitive are moneyed men of any difficulty
which in the slightest degree threatens to irapair this credit
of the country, that very trifling events cause their barometer,
the funds, to rise or fall ; and if it be true that, for in.stance,
the sudden death of Prince Louis Napoleon would cause the
whole of the funded property of England to sink in value,
what might be its depreciation in the market of the world
when it was announced that the British Parliament, whose
word had hitherto been its bond, had — by abjuring its reli
gion — deliberately cut away the mainstay of British credit ?
Let the Rothschilds, Goldsmids, and other members of the
Jewish persuasion, who live in England deservedly respected
by us, reflect, and then answer whether the trifling honour of
sitting in the House of Commons (where, as an arguraent
in favour of their admission, it is always stated they would
form so miserable a minority that in matters of religion,
handcuffed and harmless, they could have no influence)
would atone, even to them, for the depreciation of their
property and for tbe insecurity of their lives under laws and
law-m-akers that by the proposed new-fangled system are to
recognise no religion at all.
¦When a young colony, like a bird flying from its nest,
separates itself from its mother country, it has been usual for
it to proclaim to the world the list of " grievances" which have
induced it to do so. Now, as regards tbat allegiance to
Almighty God whioh it is proposed Parliament sball publicly
repudiate, let us for a moment consider what are the prominent
facts of tbe case.

472 ¦* FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
1 st. It is an historical fact that, in prosperity, as well i . m
adversity, tbe Parliaraent, fleets, arraies, and people of the
United Kingdom, bave, for many centuries, been in the babit
of periodically joining together, as a Cbristian family, in offer
ing up to the Omnipotent Author of the religion they have
been taught to venerate, thanksgiving for every signal act of
protection, and prayers for the aversion of every great cala
mity, 2nd. It is a political fact that, co-existent with this habit,
the British people have gradually prospered to a degree utterly
irapracticable to detail Upon their empire tbe sun never sets.
Upon their wealth it unceasingly shines. Upon tbeir integrity
tbe civilized world relies. In short, while the nations of Eu
rope have all more or less suffered from the storm that has
lately assailed them, British liberty and happiness excite not
only the admiration bnt the envy of mankind.
It might reasonably be expected that a people of such cool
judgment as the English would, from the above two facts which
for ages have been in juxtaposition, perceive that the Divine
protection the nation has religiously invoked has been reward
ed by the ble.--sings it enjoys ; and accordingly, from the man
ner in whieh throughout England, Ireland, and Scotland the
Sabbath is observed. — from the general habit of private devo
tion. — from the short prayers which in every well-regulated
man-of-war are read previous to going into action, — and from
the marked public devotion of our most illustrious military
ani naval Commanders tu the ordinances of the Christian reli
gion, it is evident the devout principles of the community
remain unaltered. And yet. although no one among us has
ever offered a contrary opinion, although the power and good
ness of the Almighty are patent to us all, yet for the attain
ment of an object, comparatively speaking, of no value what
ever, it has been virtually proposed in tbe " Oath of Abjura
tion (Jew) Bill," that on a certain day the Sovereign of Great
Britain and Ireland, surrounded by her brilliant court, shall,
afterthe roar of cannon, the acclamation of the multitude, the
flourish of trumpets, and the obeisance of Peers and Peeresses
have subsided, formally issue from her throne to mankind
in general, and to the Parliament and people of the British
Empire in particular, a declaration of independenoe, severing
for evermore that Christian connection wbich has hitherto ex
isted between the people she governs and the Almighty Power

PERE LA CHAISE. 473
under whom they live ! in fact, the Bill virtually proposes that,
in violation of Her Coronation Oath, Her Majesty, Defender
ofthe Faith, shah, by assenting to the same, erase forever from
the venerable brow of the Imperial Parliament the word
" Christian ;" and thus, while every subject of the Crown will
be allowed unmolested to continue to follow the revered reli
gion ofhis ancestors, " Religious Liberty " will in future be tho
new and only Deity acknowledged by the Parliament of Great
Britain. In short, while allegiance to an earthly Sovereign is
very properly considered by the Imperial Parliament to be in
no way incompatible with dvil Liberty — indeed that the Mon
archy under which we live is the Basis of our Freedora — it is
proposed that the very same Parliament, in the very same
breath, shall, by a joint and public abjuration of its faith,
declare that its time-honoui'ed allegiance to the Almighty Ruler
of the universe has become incompatible with the enjoyment of
Religious Liberty ! To live under a network of myriads of laws
which the Iraperial Parliaraent has spun and is ever spinning,
is not considered incompatible with C'z'ci/ Liberty ; and yet the
endurance ofthe single religious link which connects us with
futurity, is before God and man to be declared an ignominious
embarrassment incompatible with the enjoyment of Religious
Liberty !
What punishraents raay be inflicted upon us in every
quarter of the globe for this awful act — nothing more nor
less than Cobbett's " application of the sponge " to the Chris
tian character of the British Empire — it is altogether beyond
the power of the human mind to imagine. Before, however,
it be committed, let every member of the community who
believes in a future state of existence ; who acknowledges tbe
protection, and distinctions it has pleased Almighty God to
bestow upon the British People and upon the British Name ,
who reflects upon the climates, the hurricanes, the plagues,
wars, pestilences, and famine to whieh in distant regions of
the Globe we are more or less exposed ; and lastly, who con
siders owr utterly defenceless condition, ask himself this plain
question. Leaving ingratitude out of the question, is it wise
or safe to jeopardize tbe lives and property, tbe happiness and
future state of tbe present generation, as well as of countless
inhabitants of unborn ages, by exchanging a system that has
practically answered, for one which will not only bring upon

474 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
US, as renegades, the scorn of every honest nation under the
sun, but which, after all, will fail even to benefit that small
sect who honestly tell us that, far from desiring Gentile pri
vileges, they are only remaining with us until the arrival of
their own Messiah ; their faithful attachment to whom forms
a striking contrast, a bitter sarcasm on the proposed public
abandonment by a great Christian nation of their Redeemer ?
Lastly, let the High Court of Parliament, which for so
many centuries has been invested with Majesty, Rank, Pri
vileges, and Power, for the advancement of the Glory of God,
the Good of His Church, the safety, honour, and welfare of
our Sovereign and Her dominions, before it suicidally destroys
its own authority, — before it betrays what it has solemnly
sworn to defend, — ^before it brings darkness upon a happy
land by disreputably selling, for the attainment of an object,
comparatively speaking, of no importance whatever, the in
estimable blessings which a just, a moral, and a religious peo
ple are enjoying, — recall to mind, ere it be too late, the fol
lowing words, which prophetically bear upon its case : —
" Then Judas, whieh had betrayed him [Jesus], when he saw that he
was condemned, repented himself; and brought again the thirty pieces
of silver to the chief priests and elders, saying, I have sinned, in that I
have betrayed the innocent blood. And they said, 'What is that to us?
Bee thou to that And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple,
and departed, aud went and hanged himself."

On descending from the wall on which for some minutes
I had been resting, I regained the large paved avenue, and
had arrived nearly at the gate, when I saw at a short distance
on my right, a poor person's funeral procession, proceeding
towards the " fosse commune," imd, although the sun was very
powerful, and my eyes half roasted, I eould not help follow
ing it.
In front of the hearse, which, as before, was driven by a
coachman in a cocked hat, there stalked, also in a cocked hat,
a man dressed in the superfine black cloth coat already des
cribed, holding in his hand, like a drum-major, a long black
cane, headed with a white ivory knob. Behind the hearse
followed two men in black, one of whom, looking on the
ground as he walked, held in his right hand a circular wreath of

PERE LA CERISE. 475
yellow immortelles. On arriving at the common fosse the
procession halted, and, on the poor person's coffin being taken
out, it was received by an officer,, dressed in light blue uni
form, a cocked hat with silver cockade, a silver breast-plate, a
sword-belt bound with silver, and a brass-handled sword. In
the way I have already described, the semi-hexagonal topped
coffin was lowered into tbe deep chasm beneath, wbere it was
received, and slowly arranged and adjusted by the grave-dig
ger, in the mode previously stated. A siraple cereraony of
this nature, however often it may be witnessed, naturally
creates serious reflections, and I was, to a certain degree,
under their influence, when all of a sudden I heard a voice
elose to, in a loud and impassioned tone, exclaim " Adieu ma
mere .'"* I instantly glanced round, and saw the chief mourner
standing on the brink of the long ditch beneath him, with his
face directed towards the ground, with his eyes fixed on the
coffin, with his hat in his left hand, and in his extended right
arm the yellow wreath I had just before observed him carry
ing. For about six seconds he stood m the attitude desorib
ed, and, as if choked by his feelings, did not utter a word ; at
last, in the same loud, fervent tone of voice, proceeding with
his address, he enumerated to the corpse beneath him the
many marks of affection she had shown him. and concluding
with the words " Acceptez mon dernier devoir .'"! he gently
tossed before him the yellow wreath, which, feathering
through the air, had no sooner fallen, with a slight noise on
the lid of the coffin beneath, than he suddenly turned on his
heel, and walked slowly off. On joining the young man in
black who had accompanied him in rear of the hearse, they
talked together for a few seconds, and then, arm in arm,
quietly walked home.
The hearse had long ago been gone, — the officers in light
blue were gone, — the ordonnateur and his men were gone, —
and I therefore found myself on the edge of the " fosse com
mune," with, excepting my guide, no other living being but
the man withthe sunburnt arms, white shirt, blue trousers, and
red sash beneath me.
In the earth of the perpendicular bank behind him was
affixed a long iron skewer, upon which were hanging a hand-
» Adieu my motherl ^ Accept my last duty!

476 . A FAGGOT OF FRENOH STICKS.
ful of pieces of common packthread, each about two feet long.
Turning round and selecting one of them, be witb it tied the
name of tbe corpse he had just adjusted, and the yellow
wreath that belonged to it, to the black cross wbich had been
lowered down witb the coffin, and be then stuck the black
cross into the ground at its head.
For some moments I stood looking at the extraordinary
scene in all directions around me. On my right the ground
appropriated for tbe common graves was seen working its
way upwards, towards the green limits of those, wbo, in tem
porary graves, were lying on lease for six years. In front
there existed, over a surface of 10 or 12 acres of common
graves, a scene of confusion it appeared almost impossible for
the eye to analyse — indeed it was not until I had steadily
looked at it for some minutes, that I perceived it to be a dis
solving view, in which nothing but black crosses gradually
turned into crosses and rails ; rails, crosses, and little chapels ;
cypresses, chapels, crosses, and rails.
On walking into this mass, wbich, by means of little nar
row rectangular paths, I was enabled to penetrate in all direc
tions, I ascertained tbe manner in which the system is ar
ranged. As soon as a certain quantity of the " fosse coraraune " is
filled witb coffins, placed three abreast, and sanded over with
about half an inch of soil, in the way described, workmen are
employed to bury them under 4^ feet of ground, which is then
faintly marked out into paths, and tiny graves, 4 feet in length,
by 2 in breadth, at the head of each of which is stuck the
black cross, the name, and, if any, the wreaths of immortelles
that belong to it. Tbe City of Paris having thus very liber
ally done all tbat it deems necessary, the friends of eacb
corpse, taking care not to intrude upon the space retained for
the common path, surround the little cell allotted as the grave
with an oak railing, about 18 inches high, the interior of which
they ornament in any way they think proper. In many of
tbose only lately enclosed I perceived nothing but four thin
cypress-plants, scarcely a foot bigh ; in others, these four seed
ling plants and some flowers. As I proceeded I found, at the
head of the grave, in addition to tbe cypresses which every
where existed, a little wooded black box, about a foot and a
half square, enclosed in front with a single common-sized panp

PERE LA CHAISE. 477
of window-glass. Within this tiny chapel was usually a little
doll, and an altar, ornamented with candles about the thick
ness and length of a common lucifer-match. On the black
cross of every grave appeared, in white paint, an inscription,
sometimes very long indeed, and sometimes very short ; for
instance, on the cross of oiie poor man there was merely
written — "Lapongk."
At tbe foot of this latter cross was a white plaster of Paris
angel, about six inches bigb, flrmly tied to the black wood by
a piece of tarred whipcord round its neck. As I advanced I
found in the graves, besides the ornaments I have enumerated
China roses and flowers.
One of the little chapels contained, on its altar, a white
" forget-me-not " wreath, a child's bonnet, and a child's whis
tle. In anotber, the humble tribute of affection, which the
poor mother of the deceased had often, no doubt, come to visit,
was a white garland, inscribed —
"JHoit filKiStri;"*
beneath was the child's toy, a horse drawing a red water-cart
on wheels, which must have cost about two sous.
As I was wandering araong these little raemorials, which 1
felt to be infinitely more afi'ecting than huge ugly specimens of
bad sculpture which usually so inadequately explain what they
are intended to represent, fancying I was entirely by myself, I
almost trod upon a man dressed in a blouse, on his hands and
knees arranging one of the gardens I have described. The
creel, or basket, he had carried on his back, and which was
resting against the oak railing, had contained all the require
ments for a poor man's grave, namely, about half a bushel of
garden earth, four little cypresses, box enougb to border a
path made in the form of a cross, and a stick to drill it in.
He had just completed very neatly his job, and seemed much
pleased at my admiring it.
As I approached tbe extremity of the space allotted for
common graves, the roses and cypresses became gradually so
high that they completely overshadowed their respective terri
tories. * My beloved child 1

478 -i FAGGOT OF FRENGE STICKS.
On leaving this compartment of tbe cemetery I walked to
the temporary graves, whicb. at a short distance, appeared to
be a beautiful forest of cypresses, elegantly waving in tbe
wind, and wbich, when closely inspected, were equally inter
esting. The grass, which, generally speaking, had resumed
possession, was very nearly of the height (30 incbes) of the
little oak fences, within which, although here and there were
to be disoovered roses in bloom, the " immortelles " were faded
and decayed. In short, vegetable life had apparently nearly
extinguished human affections — the one had vigorously in
creased, the other had almost expired. Unhampered by a
guide, I wandered about these narrow paths, up bill and down
dale, with the greatest pleasure, turning suddenly to the right,
tben to the left, througb paths so narrow that the boughs of
the cypresses on eacb side bent as I pasised througb them. In
several graves I perceived lurking, with sundry little holes in
their faces, breasts, wings, and legs, the remains of dilapidated
sraall plaster statues In one grave was a honey-suckle in
bloom, shedding fragrance around it to a considerable distance.
On reaching the upper portion of the hiH, there lay beneath
me, at a distance, in the pays bas of the cemetery, the " fosses
communes," surrounded on three sides by the green wilderness
of the tenant portion. Araong the permanent graves, which
looked so grotesque, stiff, and formal that for some seconds I
paused on the threshold of their dorainion, unwilling to enter,
I observed, in front of an obelisk, and leaning against its iron
rails in an attitude of pensive reflection rather than of prayer,
a tall lady of an elegant figure, exceedingly well-dressed.
After walking for a considerable distance diagonally
througb the space allotted to perraanent graves, I came, very
nearly in the middle of the cemetery, to its cbapel, a small,
weU-constructed, substantial, plain, appropriate building, con
taining a number of homely chairs, among which were two wo
men very devoutly kneeling, and, as I was unwilling to disturb
them, I continued my course until I reached the paved avenue
leading to the lofty iron entrance gates, towards which, under
a verv burning sun and in a glaring light, I was descending,
when' I observed approaching me a stout and very short well-
dressed gentleman, of about forty, who, with blue spectacles
resting on rather a small upturned nose, and with his face run
ning down with perspiration, was affectionately puffing up the

PERE LA CHAISE. 479
hill, with the head of a small snow-white plaster angel in each of
his hot hands, leaving the wings, body, and legs not only pendent,
but vibrating in the air through which he walked. He had
probably just bought them frora one of the numberless shops
in the Rue de la Roquette leading to the cemetery, and was
on Ins road to deposit them on some grave as a tribute of his
affection. Although in the various little scenes I witnessed, and which I
have faithfully described, exactly in the order, or rather disorder,
in which they chanced to occur, there were occasionally some
which may appear to the reader, as tbey appeared to me, to be
less impressive than they were intended to be, yet in approach
ing the gate of the cemetery of Pere la Chaise I could not
but admit that the arrangements I had witnessed are on the
whole not only highly creditable to the people of Paris, but
that they form a striking contrast to those foul fashions — that
horrid and unnatural mixture of the living and the dead —
that have hitherto disgraced the metropolis of England.
In Paris, within twenty-four hours of the death of every
inhabitant, the corpse, with any pomp or at any cost which its
relatives raay feel desirous to expend — or, if it be that of a
poor person, at no cost at all — is by law delivered to the Or
donnateur des Pompes Funebres to be carried beyond the bar
riers of the city, where, under official supervision, it is depos
ited in a sufficiently deep grave, subsequently ornamented
in any way the pride, taste, or affection of survivors may dic
tate. In London, under the tyranny of barbarous habits, which
it has been deemed a fine thing to support, at exorbitant charges
discreditable to the rich and ruinous to the poor, corpses,
ornamented with frills, caps, and garments more or less fine,
have, by the laws of fashion, been required, usually for a week,
and often longer, not only to pollute the atmosphere of the
living, but, as if to perpetuate the evil, they have afterwards
been interred around almost every place of worship in the me
tropolis. — nay, even deposited beneath the very pavement on
which the living have been congregating for prayer.
The corruption of hundreds of thousands of human bodies
has, below ground, polluted tbe springs of water, while, above,
it is a well-known fact tbat the miasma from the corpses of
the inhabitants of London first attaches itself to, and then cor-

480 -i FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
rupts, meat suspended in tbe larders of the neighbourhood ;
and thus people of fashion and high rank, and in beautiful
clothes, every day ghoul-like drink up and eat up a portion of
the carcases of their dead I
It is not so in Paris. In addition to the cemetery of Pere
la Chaise for the eastern district, there are that of iVlontmar-
tre for the northern, that of Mont Parnasse for the southern,
besides a cemetery appropriated for tbe use of hospitals and
for tbe interment of criminals

CONCLUSION.
In our parting scene ray kind landlady had sucb a revolving
series of last words to say to me, that on reaching the Embar
cadere of the Great Northern Railway I had only tirae to
take my ticket for Boulogne, and my seat, when the train
started ; and as a vessel sails out of harbour into open sea, so,
on looking out of the windows on either side, I soon found
myself flying through that boundless space of little unenclosed
fields which of various shapes and colours compose the gay
chequered surface of France.
The carriage was full, or, as it is called in French, was
"complet" Most of my fellow travellers had, either at their
side or beneath their feet, a basket full of eatables, a bottle
and a glass Immediately opposite to me sat a large grave
Frenchman of about forty. His omnium-gatherum of provi
sions lived in a red handkerchief; and after he had undone it,
looked them all over, and tied tbem all up agaiu, he took from
his waistcoat-pocket a small short saw of black horn, with
which he slowly flattened and reflattened every hair on his
head, and then, looking me full in the face all the time he was
doing it, he as carefully combed out his mustachios.
I have no doubt whatever that during the journey a variety
of other little equally important circumstances occurred • I
bave. however, no recollection of them, for my truant mind as
if it had escaped out of the open window at my side, flew back
to Paris to ruminate on the various subjects that had there oo-

OONCLUSION. 481
eupied its attention ; in short, I felt it impossible to leave the
neighbourhood of the metropolis of France without enumerat
ing to myself a series of civilities and kindnesses which, so
long as my memory lasts, will form a subject of agreeable re
flection : indeed, to be able to add to those for whom one has a
lasting regard a whole nation, ought to be considered an acqui
sition of inestimable Value, a blessing to intellectual vision,
which, as it cheers in darkness as well as in daylight, is greater
even than that in the power of the oculist to bestow.
Tbe political state of France naturally next engrossed my
attention, and although my very short residence at Paris did
not enable me, and indeed would not entitle me, to presume to
enter deeply on the subject, tbc following vague sketch has the
solitary advantage of being drawn at least by a friendly hand.
Whatever may abstractedly be said against a Republic, it
is undeniable tbat that established in France in 1.848 was the
result of a far-sighted, long-considered, deliberate desire on tbe
part of the French people to exchange Monarchy for Demo
cracy ; and accordingly, in spite of every precaution tbat di
plomacy and military science united could devise, in spite of
rank, wealth, patronage, fortifications, and an army of enor
mous force, the power of the Monarchy, at a given moment,
was precipitated, as suddenly as an element in chemistry falls
in impalpable powder through a liquid, which, from a preferen
tial affinity for something else, refuses any longer to hold it in
solution. Why the French people disliked Monarchy, or why they
preferred a Republic, no foreigner bas any right to inquire ;
and accordingly feeling it to be my bounden duty not to enter
upon this vexed question, on arriving at Paris all I desired
was mutely and inoffensively to observe, as carefully as I was
able, the movements of a piece of political machinery, which I
conceived at all events possessed the inestimable qualification
of pleasing the proprietors to whom it belonged. In this de
sire, people in England, I believe, generally concur, for. although
nobody believes tbat tbe present state of France will last, many
consider it as an iuteresting political experiment they are de
sirous of watching carefully but impartially. They are look
ing at it step by step : but the end they truly say is not yet
come, and therefore they do not want to hear a hasty sentence
pronounced before the trial has been completed.
21

482 -^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
With these impressions on my mind I conceived it would
be exceedingly difficult to arrive at any correct conclusion on
the subject, I expected to fiiid the new system unpalatable to
all who had been nourished by the old one ; and as those whoso
rank had elevated them above tbe condition of their fellow
creatures, and who directly or indirectly had profited by ex
pensive government, were very nuraerous, I fully anticipated
they would, one and all, exactly as loudly as they dared, disap
prove of the changes that had been effected.
I own, however, I was not prepared, nay, that I was alto
gether what is comraonly called " taken aback" at ascertaining,
alraost at a glance, that witb scarcely an exception, everybody
at Paris not only confesses, but openly declares to any foreigner
and utter stranger who will do theni the favour to listen to
them, that the revolution they themselves have effected has
been productive to them of most injurious results, every day
beooming more and more intolerable I
The depression of rank, fashion, and folly, has not only, as
might be expected, been unpalatable to their respective votaries,
but has out off the supplies from hundreds of thousands of de
serving people of no rank, no fashion, and no folly, who directly
or indirectly had been subsisting on an artificial system cf ex
penditure profitable to them all. Although, therefore, there
was not the slightest fear of any immediate outbreak, and al
though generally speaking nothing could exceed the friendly
bearing of all classes towards eacb other, yet a period of mo
netary terror existed, the effects of whicb depressed all classes
of tbe community ; indeed, I can faithfully declare that every
shopkeeper I enquired of told rae, without reservation, that the
Revolution of 1848 was ruining him; and as I found that con
versing with thera on tbe subject gave thera no offence — on tbe
contrary, tbat, like people suifering frora bodily pain, they liked
to explain their ailments — I invariably put to them this plain
question :
Can you tell me of any one set of people who have gained
by your revolution ? All replied in the negative, excepting one
man, who, with a good-humoured smile, said, " Our representa
tives in the Assembly have gained their wages (25 francs a-day)
by it." So clearly do the most respectable of the labouring classes
seo the error that has been committed, tbat in at least twenty

CONCL USION. 483
of the great "fabriques" (manufactories) of Paris there hangs,
placarded by the workmen themselves, the following " affiche ;"
" Il est defendu de PAELEK politique ou o'lNTRODUmE DES JOUENAUX PO
LITIQUES DANS l' ATELIER. La PREMIERE FOIS, UNE AMENDE DE 25 CENTIMES.
2"" 60. 3'""^ A LA PORTE." *
" It is," however, " an ill wind that blows no one any good ;''
and, accordingly, on ascertaining that the whole of tbe upper
and respectable classes agreed together in deprecating the new
system, I own I expected that the very lowest orders raust ne
cessarily be the gainers of what the others were the losers : to
my astonishment, however, I found thera, if possible, more
clearly convinced of the error that had been comraitted, and
better able to explain it, than the welleducated classes ; and
thus, as in preceding chapters I have detailed, coramission-
naires, guides, gravediggers, the drivers of fiacres, down to the
very scavengers who subsisted on the offal of the streets, all
declared, in different attitudes and in different accents, that
they had grown leaner under the systera which they had ex
pected would have fattened them ; in short, the very men who,
with extraordinary bravery and with the greatest fury, had
fought to obtain — and who triumphantly did obtain — a Repub
lic, hungry, sorrowful, and eraaciated, now unite together to
substantiate a moral interesting to tbe whole. family of man
kind, namely, how little good revolution has done them ; on the
contrary, how much mischief !
But although I affirm what any person in a few hours can
ascertain for himself, that all ranks and conditions of men at
Paris are dissatisfied with their present political condition, it
must not be inferred that therefore all are opposed to a Re
public That democracy is utterly inconsistent with a Frenchman's
ideas of rank, order, grandeur, and glory, is undeniable. Many,
however, adhere to the Republic, fearing that a change might
produce something worse. A much larger number adhere to it
as the partizans of chiefs whom for evident reasons they are
desirous to invest with patronage and power. The Red party,
who term tbe present state of order " a Monarchy disguised,"
* It is forbidden to talk politics, or to introduce poUtical newspapers
into this workshop. For the 1st offence, a fine of 25 centimes. The 2ni
60. The thu:d, out -with him.

484 -i FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
support a Republic, because they believe it favourable for revo
lutions. They are men who, if they put up an authority to
day, would pull it down to-morrow merely to erect some other
power in its stead; in fact, like the American backwoodsmen,
as soon as they have effected one clearance they yearn to re
turn to the wilderness for tbo pure love of encountering fresh
difficulties. In the present Assembly the number of Socialists is about
150, After the next election there will probably not be 50,
Lastly, tbere are in Paris, in favour of the Republic, 30,000
formats, or convicted men wbo only appear at night — who,
when they get up in the morning, not knowing where to break
fast, live partly by robbery, partly by tbe support of women,
and partly by that of " les cloobs" (political clubs), who fancy
they may require them. It was principally by these people
that the horrors of the late revolutions were perpetrated.
" Je suis bien veng^!" exclaimed one of tbem as he was about
to be shot, and who, suiting his action to his words, drew from
his pockets, and with savage triumph threw down upon the
ground, 15 or 16 human tongues ! Another wretch of this
descriptipn, caught mutilating the bodies of the dead, was
torn into quarters by four dragoons, who, attaching a cord to
eacb of his arms and legs and then to their saddles, trotted off
in opposite directions.
Of the real Republicans wbo effected the Revolution, many
are dead (it is well known that thirty tbousand people were
killed in that of July) ; many are tired of it ; many worn out
by it. With respect to Old Napoleon, people of all parties delight
to dream of the glory of the past, of the battles of Rivoli, the
Pyramids, Marengo, and Austerlitz; his popularity howevei
throughout France rests on his restoration, religious, moral,
administrative, and political, of society that had been demol
ished by the Revolutionists, — on his having improved oi
reorganised tbe finances of the country, — on his having re-es
tablished the administration of justice, and of having created a
code of laws which, as tbey have never been formally abolished,
form to this day a sort of arsenal to which tbe Governraent,
whatever it may be, resorts when necessary.
A majority of the Assembly, of the inhabitants of France,
and tbe army of Algeria, are supposed to be in favour of the
restoration of Monarchy,

CONCLUSION. 435
It is evident, from the mere showing of the case, that these
various elements, were tbey to remain uncontrolled, would
very quickly reproduce fermentation.
The overwhelming army of France, however, at an enor
mous expense, effectually maintains the publie peace ; and
without entering into political discussions, and without inter
fering with any alterations that may constitutionally be propos
ed, it laconically, like the schoolboy's dialogue, replies to any
one wbo, impatient of deliberation, would overturn the Repub
lic by force, as follows : —
" Who put it there ?
A better man than you, —
Touch it if you dare !"
Under these extraordinary circumstances tbe French people
are now deliberating in what manner they shall constitutional
ly, and without bloodshed, effect another revolution.
Excepting the Socialists, the interest of all parties is iden
tical — that is to say, all desire tranquillity and comraercial
prosperity, and yet with so laudable an object in view, it is
distressing to witness the almost insuperable difficulties which
a brave, intellectual, amiable, and highly civilized people are
suffering from having, by their own act and deed, placed them
selves in a predicament in which their judgment is assailed by
feelings it is out of tbe feeble power of human nature to over
come. It must be clear to them, as it is clear to every calm obser
ver of their position, that they have to settle two plain ques
tions of very unequal importance, namely — •
1st. Under what description of Government they would
wish to live ? And, when that great point is determined,
2ndly. Who is the puppet or personage they would wish to
place at its head 1
Now if it were possible abstractedly to bring before ,the
consideration of the French people the first only of these two
questions, a most extraordinary unanimity would prevail in fa
vour of discarding with ignominy — in fact of drumming out of
the country — a Republic wbicb basbeen found to be practical
ly unsuited to the polite, orderly, high-bred notions of tbe
nation ; but such is human nature, so cunning is the human
•mind — so crafty and so cautious where self-interest is concern-

486 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
ed — that, do what they will, the consideration of the second
question takes precedence of the first; and thus, instead of
forming one great dignified assembly,' the nation ha £ split it
self into sections — may I, without offence, say factions — each
of which, overlooking the main prescription, is now solely oc
cupied in advancing by every possible means tbeir chieftain
Prince A, the Duke of B, the Count of C, or General D, to be
the head of ... . they know not what ! !
" The plan of the Regentist faction," says the latest ac
count from Paris, "is, that in the event ofthe Prince de Join
ville bcing elected a representative of the people, the Assem
bly would name him, its President, and that Ae, in turn, would
appoint General Changarnier Comraander of the Forces, con
sidered by bim (General C.) necessary for the protection of
that body."
With these antagonist objects in view, the different par-
tics, violently canvassing, become not only jealous but so rais
trastful of eacb other, that the difficulty of their deliberating
together on the main point to be settled daily increases. In
the mean wbile, just as an ancient knight used often to faint
from the weight of his armour, their own army of occupation
is almost, without metaphor, eating them up ; and accordingly
the annual deficiency in their exchequer, caused not only by
enormous military expenses, but by public works continued by
eacb minister to buy tranquillity for the country and popular
ity for himself, has to be supplied by successiwe issues of Bons
Royaux, or Exchequer Bills, wbich the Bank of France take
in employment of their large deposits, a febrifuge which will
last until the day of payment comes, or until a political crisis
shall cause a discredit of Government securities.

BUDGET FOR 1852.
(Mejuced from the Projet de Loi of February 8, 1851, at the exchange of
25 francs per pound sterling.)
Rkoeipts. £,
Taxes, direct and indirect . . 52,120,000
Reserve of Sinking Eund . . 8,185,000
55,806,000

CONCLUSION.

ExPENDrrUBE.

Public Debt, Annuities, aud Interest on

Treasury IBonds

16,780,000

National Assembly

312,000

Executive ....

50,000—

Administration of Justice (including
220,000Z. to the Juges de Paix)

1 ,065,000
Publie Instruction
911,800
PubUo Woi-ship
1,680,000
Ai-my ....
12,191,000
Navy .....
4,122,000
Public Works, Agriculture, <Scc.
9,603,000
Government EstabUshraents, CoUeetioii
of Revenue, Drawbacks, &c.
9,206,000
Extraordinary Works
2,964,200
^67,885,000
487
A careful analysis of tbe above published accounts of the
receipts and expenditure of France, will show that the coun
try is living beyond its income ; in short, that irrespective of
political revolutions, it is on the high road to ruin : for the
late apparent excess of income has been produced by the jug
gle of excluding about three millions sterling, on tbe ground
of its being extraordinary expenditure (thougb raised and
spent within tbe year), and then taking a sum of more than
three millions from tbe Reserve of the Sinking Fund. But
who can say what is the financial state of a Republic that has
no check upon its issues of Bons de Tr6sor (the annual inter
est on the floating debt is more than a million sterling), and
that, on the other hand, meddles with everything ; interfering,
like the Pacha of Egypt, with every object of national indus
try ? For instance, the Government, at an absurd cost, haa
its manufactory of porcelain at Sevres ; of carpets at the
Gobelins ; of tobacco called the Regie : its establishment for
tbe breed of horses ; for mineral waters ; for baths and wash-
houses. It gives large sums to encourage the fisheries, to
prop up by drawbacks and premiums unproductive branches
of industry; and lastly, it expends 180,000/. on the theatres
and fine arts, and 80,000/ in ostentatious gifts on the occasion
of fires and storms, the latter of which are sure to rage in the
departments whose loyalty it is desirable to secure. The dis
tribution, too, of a sum of 220,000/ annually among the Jugef
488 -^ FAGGOT OF FRENGE STICKS.
de Paix is a source of patronage on a grand scale. Again, let
those who rave about the economy of a Republic look at the
National Assembly voting itself a sum six times as large as it
doles out to the " Executive I" Let them think of an army,
in time of perfect peace, costing more tban twelve millions
sterling ! of tbe corruption and peculation tbat may be cov
ered under an expenditure of nearly ten millions on railroads,
public works, improvement of Paris, &c. Finally, let them
consider the grand total of fifty-eight millions sterling ex
tracted from the French people under this system of Repub
lican economy.
Now, it may justly be asked. What is to be tbe end of all
this ?
In reply, it is submitted, that, inasmuch as people of all
parties in France agree that the present system cannot last,
there are three ways in wbich the inevitable changes tbey de
sire may be effected.
1st. By a struggle in the present Assembly, under the pre
sent Constitution, between the two great parties — the people
remaining quiet.
2nd. By a struggle in tbe Assembly for a change in the
existing Constitution, in which capitalists and men of all par
ties would join.
3rd. By a general revolution, caused by stagnation of
trade ; loss of public faith and confidence ; scarcity of money ;
want of employment ; — in fact, a revolution caused by an
armed population, suffering from misery and want ; in fact,
starving. Either of the two first of these revolutions could be effect
ed simply by a war of words aud ink. If, bowever, neither
succeed in bringing tbe question to a peaceful issue, it is fear
ful to reflect that France must inevitably be involved in a
civil war — in a war to the knife, wbich will not only deluge
the land with blood ; will not only sever property of every
description from its lawful proprietors — but, after carnage
and plunder have ceased, will leave the real question, to say
the least, as unsettled as ever ! Now, strange to say, while
tbe whole French nation, grouped into factions, with a hurri
cane brewing up to windward, are at this moment occupied in
searching, as intently as a man looks for a lost needle in a
haystack, for the very thing in creation whioh, on the 21st

CONCLUSION. 439
January, 1793 (fifty-nine years ago), they cut off and chucked
iway, namely, the head of their Constitution, it has pleased
Almighty God to place at the helra of their affairs a pilot
possessing very nearly all the qualifications necessary for re
storing to France that tranquillity and commercial prosperity
she so ardently desires to attain.
From every person whose opinion was worthy of respect I
heard, during my short residence in Paris, Prince Louis Na
poleon described as " honest, wise, silent and independent,"
During tbe severe trial to which be has been subjected, ho
has firmly defended religion against atheisra, the rights of
property against plunderers, order against revolutionists.
His life, it has quaintly been said, is altogether internal ; his
Tords do not indicate his inspiration ; bis gesture does not
ihow, bis audacity; his glance does not intimate his ardour ;
•lis demeanour does not reveal his resolution. All his moral
lature is in a certain manner kept under by his physical na
ture. He thinks, and does not discuss ; he decides, and does
not deliberate ; he acts, and does not make much movement ;
hc pronounces, and does not assign bis reasons. On the
whole I am firmly of opinion that, under a mild exterior, with
gentle manners and a benevolent heart, Louis Napoleon is an
honest, bold, high-minded statesman — whose object is to main
tain tbe peace of Europe and the real glory and honour of
France. I believe tbat no clamour could force him, without
necessity, to declare war against any nation ou earth ; and,
on the other hand, that no combination of forces that could
be devised, would induce bim to submit to any insult offered
to his country.
Considering his unassuming demeanour, the high charac
ter he has gained throughout Franee, tbe name he bears, and,
above all, the vital necessity that exists for Frenchmen of all
politics to unite together hand-in-hand to save their country
before that black cloud, already above the horizon, shall bring
terror and desolation to all, it is indeed lamentable to observe
them deserting a man practically competent to attain for
them all tbey desire, for the petty object of superseding him
by a Prince, a Count, or a General, wbo, whatever may be
their professions, promises, or abilities, have never been tested
by that heavy weight of responsibility which no sensible man,
speaking even of himself, would say he could bear, until he

490 A FAGGOT OF FRENCH STICKS.
had been subjected to it ; and tbe vast misfortune of these
miserable contentions is, that, if a new candidate were to be
elected to-morrow, every effort he made to serve France wou.d,
in like manner, be baffled by the discomfited factions, who
would individually and collectively embarass every act of his
Government until, by another dismemberment of society, an
opening should be made for the election of tbeir own chieftain.
The French are not deficient in patriotism, but the sad truth
is, that the prize wbich by the overthrow of their Monarchy
has been cast adrift, is too great for tbe ambition of human
beings to resist. In the mean while, —
" Eveiywhere," says the President, in his late message to the National
Assembly, " labour grows slack, poverty augments, interests are alarmed,
and anti-social expectations swell high in proportion as the enfeebled
powers of tbe State approach tbeir terra."
It would, no doubt, be the desire of M. Louis Napoleon,
utterly irrespective of party, to summon to his council men of
sound judgnient, to listen to their opinions, and to co-operate
witb them in a plain, simple, straightforward, honest course
of policy, which would inevitably restore to France tranquillity,
confidence, credit, and comraerce. With such assistance his
career would be alike glorious to hiraself, to bis colleagues, and
to bis country. Impeded, however, and opposed by states
men and men of property who ought to assist him, he has, it
appears, with the decision that characterises him, boldly deter
mined to seek from the illiterate end of the comraunity that
patriotic support which the upper end, shivered into frag
ments, is incapable of giving ; in short, as a pilot in a gale of
wind seeks security from his native sbore in the wide rude
sea, so has the President of the Republic fled from the intel
lectual classes to universal suffrage for the purpose of saving
the vessel he is commanding from absolutely foundering on
its own rocks.
The unfair difficulties to wbich be is subjected would, under
any circumstances, entitle him to the sympathy of every gener
ous mind ; but when it is considered that in tbe prosperity
and peace of France are involved the destinies of Europe, the
good offices of mankind ought, it is submitted, to be exerted in
his support.
Without invidiously mentioning names, it is matter of his

CONCLUSION. 491
tory that, among the various candidates for the office he now
holds, three have not only openly expressed their opinion as to
the practicability, but , their readiness to invade foreign coun
tries, especially England, to assist their inhabitants in consti
tuting a republic : a procedure which, besides creating mischief
and misery tbat could be of service to no one, would inevitably
add to the war expenses, impair the comraerce, and increase the
embarrassments of that great nation, whose speedy extrication
from ber present difficulties every liberal Englishman must
ardently desire.

With these reflections in my mind, I could not help recol
lecting how often, during my residence in Paris, people to
whom I was an utter stranger, after explaining to me the
miserable political condition in whioh they were placed, ended
their lamentations by a generous and unqualified expression of
their admiration of the British Constitution. In off'ering, how
ever, what, no doubt, they considered to be a compliment, they
little knew the pain they inflicted upon me.
Although I have throughout my life rigidly abstained from
taking any part in English politics, have never once attended
a political meeting, and have never voted at an election, I have
not been insensible of the inestiraable blessings we enjoy under
institutions which have effectually protected liberty, life, and
property. It is, however, lameutable to observe the inex
plicable course whioh the upper classes in England are pursuing.
One would conceive that a loss to our country of ten mil
lions of raoney by the bad faith of the North American Re
public, added to the lamentable results which have arisen from
the establishment of a Republic in France, would, when con
trasted with our national credit, order, and prosperity, have
convinced us of the miserable consequences of transferring the
governinent of the affairs of a great nation from men of educa
tion and intelligence — in fact, from men of business — to the
illiterate. If, however, tbe latter class, notwithstanding their
utter incapacity to protect property they do not possess, had the
will and the power to undertake such difficult duties, it would,
of course, be useless to endeavour to withhold it from them.
But the truth is, the illiterate classes of the United Kingdom
are afflicted with no sucb desire ; they evince no wish to trace

492 A FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
railways, make drawings of lighthouses, plans of harbours, sec-
tipns and elevations of public buildings, but, leaving conception
to those who better understand such troublesome things, all
they want is to be employed on these works ; in short, to get
fair wages for fair work, with a clear understanding that, if the
country sball fail to give them fair work, it shall be bound by
law to be at the expense of supporting them, in failure of wbich
they will, very naturally, help themselves.
In like manner the illiterate classes have no desire what
ever to take into their own hands the management of our rela
tions witb foreign countries, tbe maintenance of our public
faith — in short, the trouble and botheration of regulating the
foreign and domestic policy of the most intricate empire on the
globe. Provided, therefore, they are enabled to obtain an
honest livelihood, they are willing enougb, under tbe vigilant
supervision of a free press — the safest government under the
sun — to leave the management of public affairs to the millions
of educated men who, it is well known, settle every question
that is debated, not by physical strength, but by dint of facts,
figures, and sound reasoning. In short, nothing can be more
praiseworthy than the confidence which the English labourer
and manufacturer evince to intrust tbe management of all
great state questions to the educated classes of society ; and yet
these educated people on whom they rely, by endless agitation
appear determined not only by an unwise extension of the suf
frage to force the illiterate to take part in what tbey do not
understand, but to do so by means which, strange to say, are
revolting to the feelings of the British people. For instance,
it is known to every man of education that the commercial
credit of England rests on the maintenance of her public faith;
that as long as she maintains her faith she is the greatest
nation on the globe ; on the other hand, as soon as she loses
it, that not only the whole fabric of her prosperity will fall to
pieces, but anarchy, ruin, and bloodshed must ensue.
Protected by tbese facts, it is evident that our national faith
is secure, for the simple reason that it is utterly impossible for a
majority of the country to incur the shame of openly advocat
ing the repudiation of the public debt ; and yet, if, instead of
voting in daylight, the question were to be settled in the dark
by tbe moveraent of clean and dirty fingers belonging nobody
knows to whom, there exists no doubt whatever, first, that the

CONCLUSION. 493
assassination of our credit would be effected to-morrow ; and
secondly,, that nobody would own to the blame !
Now, if underhand dealing was the characteristic of the
Englisb peasant, if, like the owl and the bat, he had a propen
sity for darkness, it would, of course, be easy to prevail upon
bim to avoid the daylight ; but instead of this being his char
acter, even in fighting with his antagonist he disdains to strike
a foul blow. Look at our railways : they have thrown out of
employment hundreds of thousands of hard-working men, who
honestly gained their subsistence by a system of travelling that
has been suddenly superseded. Why have these poor raen ab
stained from revenging themselves by placing at midnight
some obstruction on tbe iron path that has ruined them ?
Why, simply because as Englishmen it is out of their nature
to assassinate even property. Far, therefore, from entertain
ing any cowardly desire to vote in secret, their notion of free
dom is to drink strong beer till they can hardly see ; then
arm-in-arm, with colours streaming from their hats, to walk to
the hustings, roaring, with barn-door mouths, all the way they
go, " Squire  and Independence for ever ! a large
LOAF, and no Popery !"
Now, instead of encouraging open dealing — the birthright
of an Englishman — our uppermost classes, sad to say, are
making every endeavour to inculcate in the minds of the illit
erate a depraved desire for power to assassinate in the dark
not only our Public Faith and the continuance of a Civil List
for the support of the Crown, but irresponsibly and with the
utmost facility to sweep away every enactment that now pre
vents them from socially dividing among themselves that im
mense property of the country wbicb industry and intelligence
have gradually amassed, and whicb our institutions have hith
erto protected.
For instance, in our leading newspaper there has lately
been made, by a member of the House of Commons, the fol
lowing extraordinary announcement : —
" To THE Editor of the ' Times.'
"Sm, "Observing in the 'Tiraes' of to-day that you describe the success
of the question of the ballot during the late session of Parliament as one
of the decisive defeats of the present Ministry, I subrait to you that suoh
a statement is erroneous. Lord John RusseU has always considered the

494 ^ FAGGOT OF FRENCE STICKS.
measure as an open question, and its principal support is derived from
members of his Lordship's Government. Thus, in the last division, -with
its concomitant Ust of pairs, you will find that the IMaster of the Rolls,
the Attorney and Solicitor Generals, a majority of the Lords of the Ad
miralty, an equal division of the ofiicers of the Ordnance, and a majority
of the Queen's Household, supported the ballot.
" I am. Sir,
" Tours obediently, " F. Henry F. Berkeley.
•' Victoria Square, Aug. 9tK"
In what a false position does tbis announcement place the
British nation ! How justly may the ruling statesmen and
capitalists of Europe say to us, " In the name of common hon
esty, what does all this mean ? Are you Englishmen faithful
to your noble institutions, or are you not ? If you are, why
are you hurrying your people towards deraocracy, which will
ruin first you and then them as it is ruining us ? Your illit
erate classes are not asking for ballot, — have no hankering to
be placed under Jewish legislators ; why therefore force these
ohanges upon tbem ? And above all, in attempting to do so,
how in the face of Christendom can you presume to exert the
influence of tbe British Crown for measures inconsistent witb
your religiou, your monarchy, and, as you well knoio, incom
patible witb the maintenance of your public faith ?
" While we, in our respective countries, are pointing to
your Institutions as the legislative model of sound practical
Liberty, your people, in tbe name of their Sovereign, are not?
only encouraged, but by tbe Ministers of Her Crown, in both
Houses of Parliament, are invited, to demand extensions of
the suffrage, whicb tbe instant it be made universal consti
tutes a republic ; and then — alas ! when it is too late — your
virtuous Queen, in poverty and retirement, for tbe remainder
of her days, will mourn with us over the irreligion, woe, deso
lation and destruction of property, tbat unnecessarily and un
naturally have been effected in Her Name !"
* * * * w
Although on arriving at Boulogne we found a smoking
steamer awaiting the train, I could hardly shake off the mel
ancholy reflections wbicb, on leaving the Republic of France,
had most unwelcomely been occupying my mind. I bad, how
ever, scarcely descended about fourteen feet from tbe pier to
the deck of the packet, when the ladder was hauled up, and in

OONCLUSION. 495
the same instant there was loudly exclaimed in a boy's voice,
close to me, "Heave ostarn 1"
For upwards of tbree weeks I had scarcely spoken my own
language ; and as Johnson's Dictionary does not contain two
words that at the moment could have been more acceptable to
me, my heart thrilled as 1 heard them.
* # *
A slight little long grey stain in the sky, about as broad
as my thumb-nail, just above the western horizon, gradually
became more and more perceptible, until, in the course of
rather more than two hours, being converted into white cliffs,
I not only gazed upon what did ray eyes more good than all
the hot and cold lotions to which they had been subjected, but
I eventually landed on — never, I hope, to leave it again — my
own country. "England, wtth all thy faults, I love thee stolI"

THE KND.

YALE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY

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