The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1870-09-03 00:00:00

"RONDE DE NUIT."

A Paris correepondent et the Pall-Mall Cazetee has
been "deit.g" P.irin at Night, and thne gives his ex.
perienees:—

Nine o'clock pm —t am thinking of going on a night
round through Paris. A friend Las told me I shall do menh
better to remain at home ; but Blends always give one this
kind of Melee. In the alt.-nom I went to secure a stall at
the Peleis Royel, unit wes nelvely told I might have toy
Choice, there bring eighty.. ight out of • Motored to let. My
object in coming to the theetre has been rather to see the
spectators than the teeters, and in the first entr'acte
I amuse myself by counting how tinny we Cr. id the house
I find we are sixty-on e iticlu deg myself, and most of us are
of the ugly sex, the ladles rorMilla a contitigent of only six-
teen. I fancy the act rs are gaggles' their parts pretty !reels%
for the witimme Millie. G•logette Olivier and that inimnitsinle
trio—Nl hi. Hyacinthe. Gil Peree, and L osouche—ere mak-
It jokee about the Prmaime, which were assuredly never
contemplated by per Lamnert- iiithoust who wrote the
piece. Surely Providence dealt kindly by Frenchmeu
when she gave them the faculty of laughing with
the enemy at only five day's march from their gates !
After the fail of the curtain, at the doze of the lint not of
' Le Supplice d'ute lioninm" (parody of M. de Girardin's
fatuous " Sopplice dune Femme"), a critic of 0110 of the ,
morning defiles strolls in. He is on the free list, and comes
inn at half-past nine with the intention of going away at ten
and seeing something else. "Have you ever been luto the
green-room ? " lie asks, after tie Weed ibis exchange of '
queries as to the position of Baz nine mot the picspects of
Mac Mahon. "N,,; here," I answer: "I hive at the
Felipe tie" " Well, will you cmie and lie?" he rejoins;
"it will be more amusing than sitting here." And, beteg at
home In the place, he leads me through the crush room to a
private door, ma theme up a terribly breakpeak staircase
Into • room some aye.= feet by ten, occitpled by elm net the
entire troupe of MU Plunkett and !Lament I connot
vouch that it was "more lemming "ii seemed to me rather
like letredieg lute • privikte roea, where a rcore of ladies
and gehtlemee were el ischaalug family matter., bat my critic ii
acqunalnnistice explained that going behind the settles Wm.:.
of the privtleges of his chilling, and that he wan always
welcome, which I found to ho trus enough. Not much jest-
ing &worm the COMI,a, but great dismay on the part of IL
iiiscinrhe, 'she, as tarts I could gather, lives at Asnieres,
end was In a sad Ivey about hem g to trump el his Route-
hold gods to the capital mil &bait.' on his villa to tie mercies
of the foe. The ch.el preoccupation if another rect,r ap-
peared to be the fall oft franc 55 centimes can the Three per
Cents. that el ternoon, and the ladles earn talking ahout the
spy Barth who had been shot ins the morning at the E tile
Militates I confess In m such pretty Ilya I expecte el to
Lear some word 41 sympathy for a poor devil who had been
hurried out of existence non the ales der testimony of having
only four anus iii his pun se and haviug written to his lath, r
to say that the French peasants seemed to have had ere ugh
of war. But the ladies were not in a merciful mood and it
was only on my remarking that this NI Heath had diet Ike
• stoic that one of them so far yielded to her WORlall'a na- tire
as to exclaim (—"C'est pent e we taste tout dent no,
or; mite, Vona save, I to enure cemme a la guerre.
Os no fueillerait jamain prraolllle oh se laisiedt atteuiltir."
This is only too tiue nimemoiselle.
11.30 p.m.—On leaving the greee room of the Palais Royal
my companion the critic suggested going to the Palate Alham-
bra at the Clel:elet to see two gehtlemen without backbones
throw a small boy at one an ither from the sop of a trapeze. I
have never hem particularly lot ei of scare humanity couverted
into a tennis ball, but heeling made up nip mind not to return
home titi daybreak it was 41 Ile great momeut where I spent
my time; eo until 11.30 I joined my French friend in wou-
dering how much sufferii g the unfortunate little Hanlon
mutt have gme through beiore bringing Luttrell to resemble
a shuttle-cock, and, lir another field of ideas, how leng it
would take before the talented Mr. Vokes dislocated his right
leg. By the way, at a tinie when such a general tendency
exists on the otter side of the Chentiel to ery down
Britlah actors at tic expense of French, It is maims
to note the entitu,nam of Parhiau plat goers at the
crt scientions, paitiatali g charmer of leugiish actleg.
"Tnis remark was already made four yeareago by el. Tee ph ile
Gautier, when an Enelish troupe came over to play "Our
American Cousin," and it has just been repeated 11l terme of
warmest prelim, by M. Edouard Cadet, critic of the Soil% and
auther it " to. 'nettles " ills experience is teat kinglish
corne,lians do not try to cat each other out, as appear, to h.
the brotherly practice 41 the irreuch :dem they arc content
to ploy their parts each of them to the hest o' his or her
abilities; and throughout all thar performance, be it meting,
Chirping, jig-dadming, or tumbling, there is au honest with to
please the public, such at one too seldom witnesses tu been oh
actors, 'shun main elij,ct is gemralty to pie tee themselves
M. Cadol adds vety truly thtt, a French c median proder
wou'd think himself derogating if he were to I urn somersaults
or others He play the gy13111•It alld that if he once deigne I
to stoop a,, lie there would be such an am of condescerelmi
in Lis teammates as to be absolutely Cpprallellhil to his
audience. All &Mirth writer would have templed to make
i hose observation., Sr fear of being tax ri with discourtesy;
but one umy accept the compliment with gratitude
from a Fret chmao. At hell-past e'even I iliel roy•ell
htl the Buulesard Montmartre. I ant stains alone, Lut
there is • considerable crowd or the pavemett and honing as
though a tumid of weeps had Fest ltorw'ed is beehive. A
policeman tells what lithe matter: there h a just men a sort
of sec at coup d'Ust, or, to use his osin pic.nresque
term, a"cup de filet," by which some three or lour score
ladies of the d.mi,nonde and quart de monde have been
netted for exportation into the provinces. Ihe proprietor of
the Cald ilea - completes these details, aid very ruefully
he does so, for his earelilL hmeut and the Cu' next door
were the habitual rendezvem of there ladies, and be (the
proprietor) feels very much as if his cash-Ng had been
lightened of ball its c,,ntents. It seems &mend Trochu, with
a view to clearing Parts of enemiess ne tithe, has hem making
raids upon the foreign colony and the colony n the ()tattler
Lied*. Th's Is the second raid till week. 'line fist inetted
2 el.o edd ash of both sexes, the terond will prmably net
another thousand more. While lam welting for a glass of
curry 'an of police-sergeants appear, hid in tut to the
unlucky proprietor, "Von mutt put up Your mutters at
once; ihry ought to have been op half an hour ago." So di
alter a rowel p dicemen edt an,. at Tacit mirth g
right across the boulevards. There is a cry sit " Circuleg,
mesaleurs. circulez ;" and we circulate accord:ngly.

-
Midnight—l begin to think that the &did, of the friend
who counselled me to stay at home was perhaps wise. I have
'lst Stet. a score of wimp,, in milts, gold chains. feathered
hate, high-heeled hoots, silt , marched down the Rue chi
Irenhoutg Montmartre towards the policeest 4WD of the Rue
D mot ju.t exectly likes flock of black sheep. Some of tne
women were focompletr ly dressed, their thee lo -king as
if they had teen, ho titled on with • pitchfork: fr It seems
the reedits cp tenth lsrxreirofy summary, the women being
turned out of their to nit at y low. and made to deers in the
court-yard of their houses or in the etreet itself; walls the
police seize upon every regal property they poisas. Atm me
distance from this first prncesmen c mes a second, much
larger, composed of msn, most of them respecteb'y Attica d. I
Inspect there are not. few chevalier s Wind nettle among them,
het the crime of the majority florin:tidy that they are foreigners.
Teo Italians are gratleitlatists indigesittly aid shrieking
that they have done nothing to be molested in this way. I
deem it prudent not to follow the captives to their destina-
tion, lest. having arrive] there. I should be Invited to rep
in with them. On I turn, hut have not wanted twenty paces
before I am stopped by three gentienien. who, I presume.
form the rear guard of the two corps d'arn.er I nave just
passed. ' Monsieur. gut ates Tons r I have I eg foresesn
this coutinzency, end no Maguey whip out toy passport. No
doled it la thi k tea •Inese which saves me, f‘v I Sin mire yr
tee tired to give tny mime sad addreee, to prove that the
utehrela 1 ant carying Is trot a es ero-rtick, and then I mu
t go with tolerable entity • one of the gentlemen rev .rte
nv, hoer ear, to go 'home as soOn as possible. My
gest impulre Is that I will profit by his snigger ton.
Oue o'cl,retk —I have thought better of it, and have to
come to • tie sepeper r Mem within a leone's throw of the Rut
Drouot The couleur Is drinkieg black code', and trying to
meke head against a mass of letter., manuscript articles,
and proof 'ups that eucomber two square yards of table in
front of him. In the same room titres jouritallsts are writing
lii utter imperviouseetia alt., all that to taking place art und
them. One them le extracting the pith of the London
Journals favourable to his own nay,! Silthki,ig, sod having
fee queut recourae to Sptera' Anglo-French dictionary lying
convenient ly by his side. An Mats Ideal suddenly lotto Itire.
himself looking the picture of shabby wildness Toe editor,
who has abandoned his letters for a moment to offer me •
a chair, Inks up, and the following dialogae ensues:—" 1
tont you n it to come here again " Pteasr, roolisieue I've
hre tight you a fait thee." "I told coo I woulde't take
any more newt of any sort from you Al tire sal print sty
infilmation of yours it tuna out to be a calmed." • Please,
monsieur, I taw this with my nun eyes, and you'll be the
first paper to print it Ivs pot I Ifeted to to anybody else."
Here a &apt .y of • ragged piece of pap r, 'laugh g Imp
front • dusky p.dv. The editor lentos to relcit slight y ;
T• II us what It is abou•." •• Plea-e, monsieur, the hotel of
a 11. F ocher, tear the frrriere 31 utreuge, hat jus• been
gut,,!, It was the same kied of scene as at the lintel hlcynr.
neer, at tl-e Champ Fly,ies last tight. M. Fast:tor is a
Pi Usti., and he insulted • Mobile, telling him that the
Pruselae, nit nil thrash any min& rot us. Teen the people
who were standing tom d broke ell the witolnws mid
In kieg-glasses, and M Fecher s been arrested' The
editor molds out hie hands for toe pi ce of raper and
p .ases it to one or the journalists, who is engaged In
convertive a num..? more inch Into decent French. The
shabbily will die makes his Exit, apt areutly relieved, but
du'y cau'ioned as to his future prospects should the stoiy
sts.lll M. Fischer prove untrue. Nenher the edit 4' nor Ma
staff, I regret to ssy. express much amazement at the coop'
do. filet w hick has just ben performed on the Brodevatds
and In the adjoining Armes. There are apt, everywhere
seems to be their fixed camel/Alm. They are slily that
there is not a good Seal Imre shooting done, sud one of
Cam is ezpressieg hirneelf to this effect in the article he Is
penniug At eras ary tim-s the:e are very Intelligent,
Hirers! minded men, sill after all some allowance meat be
made for them under existing eireumsterces.

Three o'clock.—l am at the Rue de Jerusali m, not lathe
rapacity of suspected spy, but in that or interested olverrer.
One of the j inroaUsts Ma come to see if there is any thing
iew there, and I have volunteered to accompany him.
Dismal .treat, grimy corridor., hang-dog lanes impoaajtag to
describe; the whole place makes one feel soil une had fallen
into a nest of unc!ean thieves. However, the ini creation Is
evidently wrong, for the t antpriog Len lemon are as honest as
pus,ible, being the worst po,silile elleMlf ot thieved.... A
couple of months ago • journalist who respected
himself would no more have set foot in the Rue de
Jerusalem than he would into • gutter ; hut the
war has chsnged all that. There is not much fear
row of being taken for a " vendu" on being semi in that
unholy locality. The Du. de Jonas'. as has la conse pro tem.
the fountain.head of home mews; and my companion appears
tot nk upon all this inmates IA that tontitgtiun as uchiss
specially ordained by Providence to purge the land of
Prussian spies. The news trim the front is has; : but Intel-
Igeoce increasing spies caught in Vdia &mends. one hoe
only to ph k and choose. sty companion playfully flak.
wheth,n It be trite that General Tr chu meditates a
coup. Wed& and is answered by a grin of great good humour.
I question, thou‘h, whether NI. G imbetia would feel much
reassert dlf he Bun that grin. My ednpanlon offers to bet
a napoleon that before six months G. Gatunetta la Minister.
Our interlocutor declines to accept this bet..

Pre o'c'ock —I hsve spent an Moir new the Gsre de l'Est
watching the troops on their w.y to the seat of war by a train
thst afar. at a few minutes after five Where these tnons
come from ileaysn only knows, for tin y have been passing
through Parts in a ceaseless fl ,w every day these
imt three weeks. Out there Is one thi'g that is
noticeable as a strlking contrast to the state of
things a month ago, and thot In the arresters of
enthurissm in tooth el:Adieu sod °Mores. They go, and will of
c. u se fight to the death, like brave men as they are ; but it
Is inignai ion now. A private subtler tulle me he had alresdy
served ten years and linen Uncharged ; he in one of those
who have been pressed Into service again by the mow law.
Ile arida, quite coolly,"Norm odious noon (sire tu.r II Ina
Abs losers, my poor fellow!
530 ate—Day is breaking anti go home The last tel.-
gram posted up outside the Metric of my &stria says, " The
PI talliallle are advancing."