The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1879-07-12 00:00:00

A FRENCH FETE IN LONDON.

In London, on Monday morning, the Prince of Wales,
accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh, opened the new
wing of the French Hospital in Leicester-place. During his
progress through the wards the Prince of Wales made par-
ticular inquiries into several of the cases, and addressed
kind words of encouragement to the sufferers. In the
afternoon their Royal Highnesses, with the Princess of
Wales, the Duchess of Edinbtugh, the Duke and Duchess of
Connaught, and Prince Leopold visited the French F6te at
the Albert Hall, which was attended by the whole of the
Corps Dlplomatique. The stalls were presided over by many
English ladies of rank and by the ladies of the Comddie
Franctise.—The Times of Tuesday gives the following in-
teresting description of the opening ceremony, as also the
fête of Monday :
A festival quite unexampled in London was cele-
brated yesterday in the Albert-hall, and is to be con-
tinued this morning. Before the very successful fife
began, one of the principal fnetitatione for the benefit
of which it was given was inspected by the Prince of
Wales and the Duke of Edinburgh. This is the French
Hospital, in which one room, a light, cheerful apart-
ment, used as the saloon for convalescents, is hence-
forth to be known by the name of the "Prince de
Galles." Lisle-street was gaily decorated with flags,
and the band of the Garde R6publicaine, who have
come to London for the fife by the permission of M.
Grtivy, took up their position outside.
Just before one the Prince of Wales drove up with
Sir Dighton Probyn, followed by the Duke of Edin-
burgh, who was attended by Colonel Clerk. M. Sel-
lenick, the bandmaster, whose breast is covered with
decorations, ordered the band to play, "God bless
the Prince of Wales." Their Royal Highnesses
entered the hospital between rows of green palms and
exotic flowers, and were received by the French
Minister (the Comte de Montebello), Comte de
Florian, the Marquis des Netumieres, Dr. Vintras,
senior physician, Mr. Cormac, consulting sur-
geon, Mr. Colomiati Meredyth, Mr. A. M'Kellar,
Air. de Meric, Mr. Baume, Mr. Blumenthal, M.
Vandenbrande, M. Elzingre, hon. treasurer, Mr.
Eugene Rimmel, hon. secretary, and other gentlemen,
and conducted round the wards. The serving sisters
of the Sacred Heart, under Sister Francesca, who are
the nurses of the hospital, were presented to the
Princes, and in the Board-room their Royal High-
nesses drank, at the request of the committee, a glass
of champagne to the health or healthiness of the
hospital. The homely and comfortable arrangements
of the two houses which form the establishment gave
much satisfaction. Their Royal Highnesses drove
away after signing in the visitors' book " Albert
Edward P." and "Alfred." The page immediately
preceding these signatures bore the sign-manual of
Mdlle. Bernhardt, the market value of which, as the
Me in the afternoon showed, ranges from Ns. to £lO.
She had written :

"Jo n'ai jamais tant (16sirtS Is riohesso qu' aujourd'hul.
81 r Oats rattle Jo vous donnerats im beau local n'etant
qu' artiste, je vous (Afro mon talent.—SAltall BERNHARDT."
The crowd which lined the streets cheered loudly for
the Princes as they left, and next clamoured for La
Marseillaise. The band of the Garde RoS mblicaine
had been playing a lively air from Fatinitza, but did
not refuse to gratify the demand for the stirring hymn
of the Republic.

The tricolor of France waved during the morning
over the great front por leo of the Albert-hall, and
here, long before the hour of two, which had been
fixed for the opening, there waited a large number of
carriages and those they had brought. From the
time the doors were thrown open till the band had
ceased playing, at about six, there was a constant
stream of well-dressed visitors into the arena of
the Albert-hall. It is impossible to say how
many were present. Five thousand tickets had
been issued. They may not all have been sold.
In addition to this, just £l,OOO in entrance-money
was taken at the Albert-hall itself, and as the
admission money was 10s., this represents 2,000
people more. To these are to be added the free
holders of seats in the amphitheatre and boxes. The
visitors were not merely from London. M. Leon Say,
the Minister of Finance of the French Republic,
arrived in the morning on a visit to his niece the
Comtesse do Montebello, came to the fête and left
again last night the richer by the Album of the
Comedic) Francaise, and the poorer by some few
hundreds of francs. M. Patinot, Prefect of the
Department of the Seine-et-Marne, came over with
1,11200.4.1 t, tacavic Mails ,vua-
panions, 4,000 roses, which were offered to assist
the bazaar by the Department of the Seine-et-
Marne. The Princes and Princesses of our Royal
House, who had promised their gracious aid
to the work, were more than equal to their word.
The two boxes next to each other which bear the arms
of the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Edinburgh
were occupied for the greater part of the afternoon.
Here were the Prince and Princess of Wales with their
three little girls—Princess Louisa Victoria, Princess
Victoria Alexandra, and Princess Maud—the Duke
and Duchess of Edinburgh, the Duke and Duchess of
Connaught, Prince Leopold, Prince Louis of Batten.
berg, the Crown Prince of Sweden, and the Hereditary
Grand Duke of Baden. In attendance on their Royal
Highnesses were the Comtesse d'Otrante, Colonel
Clark, and Mr. F. Knolles ; Miss Corry and Colonel
Clerk; Captain Fitzgerald, the Hon. A. Yorke, and
Baron von Roggenbach. The Royal party did not
remain here, but leaving the little Princess made the
descent into the crush below.
The arena had become in ten minutes from the
the opening a confused symphony in pink, white, and
blue,
withiiitted richly apparelled forms
scattering flowers some
wt harvoiun ggh hands, which
soffering sweetmeats. Two tall policemen aided the
Count de Montebello to divide the throng before
the Royal party. The Prince of Wales was thus
enabled to purchase a box of bonbons from Mrs.
Langtry, who stood in a flat yellow bonnet and
wearing a brocaded dress at the stall of the Corn.
tease de Billow. The Princess of Wales bought two
little white kittens with blue eyes from Madame
Sarah Bernhardt, The Prince of Wales bought a
portrait of Sarah Bernhardt in oil, and a sea
painting, and the party lingered for a long time
at the stall at which, aided by Mdlles. Martin,
Blanche Barretta, and Thenard, Madame Bernhardt
laboured indefatigably all the afternoon, haranguing,
writing, raising the price upon her admirers, till she
had taken at the end the largest earnings of any stall
—2256. Her smaller photographs were soon ex-
hausted. The fans painted by her own hand went
early in the afternoon, and an American enthusiast
bought a fan at a neighbouring stall and paid her a
£lO-note for signing it. The Princess of Wales's kit-
tens cost her Royal Highness £lO, and the Prince of
Wales threw down a handful of notes to settle his
accounts as he left. "11 aEt tree gendreux" was the
verdict. The Duke of Connaught and Prince Leopold
bought photographs of Madame Sarah Bernhardt and
tickets for the tombola, and the Duke of Connaught
obtained one of the fans by the artists own
hand. The stall was a marvel of horticultural decora-
tion, with exotics in all the costly vases. At the Corn-
tease Steenbock's stall, the Prince of Wales bought of
Miss Baddeley two Japanese parasols. Lady Skel-
mersdale had the honour of presenting the Princess of
Wales with a bouquet; the Duke of Edinburgh and
the Duke of Connaught paid 10s. 6d, for their button-
holes to Countess Karolyi and Lady Skelmersdale.
Prince Leopold purchased two statues of Sevres—
Paul L and Catherine Madame de Billow's
stall; and Lady Garvagh, who in a splendid yiolet
costume was the most conspicuous figure at
the Baroness de Penedo's stall, where also,
however, Miss Schlesinger, Mrs. Arthur Ken-
nard, Mrs. Batt, and Hrs. Moles worth stood, sold an
Indian flower-stand to Prince Leopold. Mrs. Wheeler
in black bonnet and light-flowered dress, with lace
cuffs was selling roses for Mrs. Guinness. It was
here the Prince of Wales enriched his collection
by two paper lamp-shades, a photograph•case, and
some desert-knives in a cise. The Princess of Wales
bought a paper-weight, a shot bird reposing on
a marble slab. Mrs. Cornwallis West was
selling cigars and giving but little change. Even
more inexorable on this point was Sarah Bernhardt,
who for a purchase of Is. gave no change from a
£5 note. Mrs. Saasoon stood at a stall in the centre,
Miss Jessel sold for the Duntess Steenbock, Lady
Hood, in yellow satin, was at Madame de Bylandt's
stall, where the Prince of Wsle 3 bought for £25 a figure
in white porcelain of the Empress Eugenie in her
early days of Empire, At the Comtesse de Monte-
bello's boutique, the Prince of Wales bought a picture
of a Zouave by Neuville, the Duchess of Connaught
ordered some Sevres, and the Duchess of Edinburgh
bought chocolate. Countess Marie Munster and Mrs.
Percy Mitford assisted the wife of the French
Minister at this stall, which realized £2OO for the
charity. The Prince of Wales bought of the Marquise
de la Ferronays the peasant kneeling, in whits Sevres.
to his lady-love, which we yesterday described. The
Hon. Mrs. Stonor's scimitar paper-knife was sold at
its marked price of £lO.
Paper-knives varied in price from 16s. to £10; and
roses were sold, a handful as a makeweight to a shilling
cigar, or for a guinea each. This was the price which
Mdlle. Reichemberg received fur each of two which
the Duchess of Edinburgh bought of Suzel, and this
was the price paid to Miss Stonor for a rose by a
Spanish grandee. The lady stood at the entrance
selling roses, and obtained £23 for the charity for these
flowers alone. Miss leigh, in white laced dress, and
with white ostrich bathers in her hat, and Miss
Carew, in red and blalk, helped the Hon. Mrs. Stoner
in gaining her £l4O fa the fund.

- The Prince stopped 1;o give champagne cup and tea
to his friends at Mrs. Ronalds's stall, at which noble
and gallant gentlemei assisted, attired in bib and
tucker, and Lady Charles Reresford and Mrs.
Oppenheim helped to sell the strawberries sent by Mr.
Alfred de Rothschild. The Princess of Wales bought
from Madam be Bilow an elaborate basket from
Conseil of Paris, and the Duchess of Edinburgh an-
quirarl at the same stall a large vase by Baccarat.
Madam Favart's reurn was the second of all In
amount, no lees than ,3240.
Mdlle. Samary Misted to dazzle visitors by her
vivacity, and sold to he Prince of Wales and others her
own photographs, woiderful examples of Jeanne quint.
It was amusing to hr M. Coquelin bargaining with
Madame Favart. Delaunay was among the earliest
purchasers here. Mille. Croizette realized £2OO from
the purchases of therrince and Princess of Wales and
of the other bripr who thronged her stall. Here
were Mdlle, Brom and Mdlle, Marie Loyd, while