The Express.
London, England, 1864-01-19 00:00:00

SKATINO AT PARIS.

The Paris correspondent of the Pod says :
" Skating is becoming a eausily antmement beyond the
icebound regions of the North. Whilst royal high:seem
are skating in England. imperial higimemen are skating in
Franoe. It will henceforward be nemesery that pawns
from chamberlains down to powdered footmen should know
bow to dance attendance not merely in withdrawing mid
reception halls, hut on the slippery froze. doors of
hikes and ponds. Yesterday (Sunday) a new set of
courtiers and household servants surrounded their
imperial Majesties. who again hoooured the smell lake
of the Bois de Boulogne. The weather wee plesesatly
Is addition to the usual perk company assembled os inch
ocaisimis the waters were rurrotsded by a number of the
fashionable world who evidently expected the imperial
Tarty, the court circle arriving about 3 o'clock. Already
the skaters had mustered pretty strongly. There were Ger-
man, English, Americas, and one or two Frau:Maim gliding
about with men companions, and there were sledges driven
swiftly onwards by cavaliers of the ice, cocteining those of
the fair sex who were born in days when the ladies of
France did nothing gymnastic but dance. How shall
I deseribe the skating modes of Paris! Mod of the fair
creatures WOW • pretty round hat, with a red or white wing,
or feather,, and a veil which invites the curiosity of youthful
imagination. Any gay.eolcured jacket, of any cut, deco-
rated with any description of tur, is allowed; and very
pretty it is to observe the animated patches of red, violet.
hlue, white, and black darting about amid the gloomy
great coata and ugly hats and caps of the moo. But to
continue my description of the ladies' costume. Now
oomee the difficulty ; to describe the toilette, costume.
dress. robe, moles—how ought it to be called!—of
what comes below the jackets, esemnes, polo-
mime, paletots—bow ought such Odom also to be
called! Well, that portion of female covering which
begins after the wain, and in our day assumes awful pro-
pel tions before it bides the feet, is in the toe modes of
Paris drawn up in festoons by amain mysterious mecha-
nical aid, leaving (and here again I feel a difficulty) very
visible Dearly a whole pair of stockings, which may be red
or black, or—if I dare use the word in such a place—
" fancy." Then come the Polish boots, and then the silver
skates. My limited descriptive powers are happily no longer
required ;_ but if such enchantingMaeda, do not lead to
holy matrimony, nieo's heartier, frozen as well as the waters
of the Bois de Boulogne. Skating, it should be observed,
, in the Parisian polite world is only beginning to he fuldos-
able. The Emperor, no doubt, learned to skate in Swit-
I zerland and England ; but where did the Emprees learn to
glide over the ice so gracefully ! Dressed in a pretty black
costume, and appearing delighted with the sport, her

Majesty !several umes, seconijuitned by two gentlemen
not in waiting. but in going, skated amongst the moving
multitude. whilst the little Imperial Plume rnd heir

to the throoe was showing the crowd of spectators on
shore that be had already become familiar with this
slippery world and its accidents. There may be those who,
Bunning on the shores of the Mediterranean, think with
commiseration just now of us living in more northern
climes ; but with such a scene as I have attempted to de•
ecribe—

We envy not the warmer clime that lies
In ten degrees of more indulgent skies."
When the Emperor and Empress avail themselves of the
picturesque sledge, they are generally driven about by a
famous German skater. To-day a sodden thaw tells us, it
may be, our icy joys are over for this year."

Resicx.irioN or Me. Junnce BALL.—We have
heard from reliable authority that Mr. Justice Ball has
announced his intention of resigning his seat as one of the
poises judges of the Court of Common Pleas. —Dub! in
Evening Mad.
Tne BISHOP or ELY'S WlLL—Those who bad
OM* to pay the last tribute of respect to the venerable
bishop were requested to return to the house and hear the
will read ; sod the last act of his life is quite characteristic
of this pious ate. After providing fur his servaata and
leaving one or two legacies he has bequeathed the whole of
his remaining property to public charities and societies.
Amongst those enumerated are the ehristisa Knowledge
Society, the Gospel Propagation Society, the National So-
ciety, the Curates' Aid Sxiety, and others of a like nature ;
the Charing-cross Hospital, Addenbrooke's Hospital, Bury
St. Edmunds Infirmary, and the Bedford lafirmary.—Brd.
ford T 11461.

The Reverend Mr. Ingle, a leading Tractarian
clergyman in Exeter, has withdrawn from the natundist's
club in that city, because Mr. Peogelly, the Devooshire
geologist, and one of the members of the club, bat ex-
pressed his belief in Lyslrs opinion u to the antiquity of
man. The reverend geotleman has vindicated his conduct
is the newspapers.
DEATH or THE DCKE OF CLEVELAND.—The
Duke of Cleveland died at Rabe Castle yesterday after-
noon between 3 and 4 o'clock. His grace was found dead
in his chair. He had been seriously ill since Friday. The
late duke was born in Loudon is 1788, and was married in
1809 to the daughter of the fourth Earl Pordett. She
died is 1859. The duke succeeded to the title oat the death
of his father io 1r42. As Earl of Darlington he sat for
the county of Durham from 1812 to 1818. From 1818 to
1826 he was member for Tregony ; from 1836 to 18.10 he
ut for Tatou. In 1830 be was elected for &Huh, and
the same year changed to South Salop, which be repro.
rented until he became Duke of Cleveland. His br Aber,
Lord William John Frederick I'oulett, succeeds to the
title.

ISLE or WIGHT CLlMATE.—NotHithataDding the
frost—the " nippioig frost"—which visited us last week,
there is in the grounds of Dr. Lessee a tine &eines rose.
tree. 40 fut b;gh sod 60 feet wide, one lout of bloom,
many of the clusters in full Bower. There are also meat/
rare pleats, which have not only survive.! the frost but do
not seem to have eutirred in the lout by it.-1; 'awe
Tones, Jan. 16.