The Sun.
London, England, 1864-01-01 00:00:00

THE NEW YEAR'S DAY,

(From the January Number of "_London Society.")
Of all days in the year, Fartisians think most of New
/ear's Day—possibly because it is new. L'an est wort.
Viva l'anl

This first day is essentially a day of costume—a day for
brilliant bonnets, glossy hats, varnished boots, perfume and
cosmetique. Dressed, brushed, oiled, waxed, and gloved,
Monsieur first pays his service to the Emperor. The ap-
proach to the Tuileries is a great sight, and philosophical
must be that civilian who does not feel himself utterly
crushed and humiliated by the neighbourhood of the gorge-
ous uniforms around him. The white stone buildings of the
Rue de Rivoli form the background form a military tailor's
paradise. And how happy are the militaires inside the uni-
forms. How they feel that they are the show, that the world
is looking at them, and that the occasion is their own. How
complacently they sport their medals, and what a quantity
they carry of those certificates of valour. The corpulent old
gentleman in a cocked hat, now waddling across the road,
carries an enormous weight of metal. First there is his
gorget—that queer bit of brass that reminds one of the labels
round the neck of bottles, mill found in some old country
houses, on which the word port or sherry is engraved,
Then there is his sword, which is pendant from a wonder-
ful complication of straps and buckles ; and as for medals,
the man must have fought victoriously in every battle since
Pharsalia. Yet he is modest, though he wears large scarlet
trousers, and sucks a bad cigar with the bonhownie of a
bourgeois.

A French soldier is happier in scarlet trousers than in
those of any other colour. In blaek, blue, green, or gray,
he may exist ; in scarlet he lives.
More costumes tramp and glittter by; soldiers, soldiers
and soldiers ; then, for variety, some cfficers of Marine ;
soldiers again. Russians, haughty, elegant, and furred ;
magnificent Circassians, men whose bearing indicates their
habit of looking down upon the world from mountain tops ;
and more cocked hats, swords, and scarlet trousers. Look
on, Parisians, and admire, for your army deserves it at
your eyes. It is for this they stormed Alma, fought In-
kerman, flooded Solferino, and pocketed Pekin. Vive la
France I Vive le Tricolor, and Vive la Gloire
On ordinary days only so mady beggars are allowed to
solicit alms, and they hold a permission from the police,
On New Years' •day there is a fine trade in mendicancy,
and at every tenth step you hear a beggar—but they are
never obstinately importunate as English beggars are.
Many of them bring out an old organ, that can sound only
six notes, and turn the handle as they chant a dismal song,
and the sight is touching to the stranger—the resident,
who knows that these useful properties are safely stored,
to be brought out once a year, is not moved by the sight.
They are a singular race, the beggars of Paris, and
would make an interesting study. One girl, of about 12
years, asked alms of me in French, English, German,
and Italian. I diccovercd that in the last three languages
she could only ask alms, that she had a quick eye for a
foreign face, and seldom begged of her compatriots.
Among the huts that dot the Boulevards, there is the
usual crowd hustling each other with undisturbable good
humour. There are toys to more than realize the maddest
fancies of imaginative childhood. Cigarres a la musique,
serpents a la musique, and some wonderful little figures,
three inches high, that " dance themselves," if placed on
a piano, play the instrument, or thrum upon a table ; and
they derive a motive power from the mere vibration. There
are rabbits affected by every feeling and motion of which
humanity is capable. Rabbits making love, rabbits jea-
lous, rabbits billing and cooing in honeymoon bliss, rabbits
getting very tipsy, rabbits quarrelling, rabbits fighting
duels, and rabbits borne away killed and wounded after a
mortal encounter. Rabbits are depicted suffering all the
inconveniences of an artificial civilisation, and frogs are
also shown loving, fighting, drinking, dying, and the rest.
Human nature is mimieked everywhere with a strangely
weird and terrible fidelity. The dolls are wonderful.
Dolls dressed a la Pompadour, with blue satin hoods
and spectacles, and an expression of face that says plainly,
" I am a doll-grandmother." Dolls seated en thrones, a
"gorgeous canopy" above their heads, and a mein of per-
fect majesty upon their waxen brows. Then there are dolls
in uneasy circumstances—dolls that, to use the term by
which the French politely imply poverty, " art not happy.''
There is a brilliantly-complexioned young fellow in a blouse
—a be-dell of the people—asking a young woman of the
people, in a head-dress like an exaggerated extinguisher or
ornamented fool's-cap, to dance with him. From the limpid
look of her eyes we know that she will answer " Oui," and
smile and curtsy graciously. Close by is a Breton doll, a
sturdy fellow, with a rough outside but a warm heart with.
in, his musette in his hand. The group was so perfect that
I turned away, or I should have doubtless heard the Breton
strike up the zing• zing of the musette, and seen the young
couple foot it to the music, as only French folks, intoxicated
with sugared water and gooseberry syrup, can foot it.
How happy must these dolls make their fortunate pos-
sessors, and how happy must be the little darling whose
grandpapa, that worthy old bourgeois, has just presented
her with a New-Year's gift.

The tastes of children are alike all over the world. Girls
love something to pet, love, and fondle, comb, wash, above
all, dress and—crowning glory and power of motherhood
—put to bed. Boys prefer an article with which they can
do mischief—a sword, a gun, or a cannon—they like de -
struction—anything that smokes or smells like gunpowder.
As a young friend of mine okerved on a sth of November,
"If fireworks are so nice, what must a battle be ?"

Naval and Military Intelligence.

THE NAVY.

Yesterday Mr. J. Stansfeld, M.P., the junior Lord of the
Admiralty, accompanied by Mr. H. W. R. Walker, the
auditor of dockyard accounts, commenced the official in-
quiry into the system of management and other
,matters
connected with the dockyard and naval establishments at
Chatham, preparatory, it is understood, to some important
changes being shortly introduced into the management of
the Royal dockyards. Mr. Stansfeld, who arrived at the
dockyard on Wednesday, was occupied during the day in
visiting, in company with Capt. Stewart, C. 8,, superinten-
dent
of the dockyard, the various establishments into the
management and working of which he instituted numerous
inquiries. All of them had more or less reference to the
important question of labour, the economisation of which
throughout the whole of the dockyards appears to be one
of the leading objects sought to be attained by this com-
mission of inquiry. It is exactly in this direction that the
greatest reform is needed, There is no one in the least,
degree acquainted with the system at present followed
in the public dockyards as compared with private esta-
blishments, who can fail to be struck with the para-
mount necessity existing for some sweeping alterations,
in order to produce results more commensurate with the
vast outlay required for their support. During Wednesday
Mr. Stansfeld visited the iron frigate Achilles, fitting for
sea, on board which there are upwards of 1,000 mechanics
and other hands employed, and personally inspected the
arrangements made for the due supervision of that large
body of workmen. Yesterday he devoted his attention to
the system of management at each of the principal depart-
ments of the dockyards, with the heads of which he held
lengthened conferences. It is understood that the investi-
gation at Chatham will extend over several days.
Instructions have been received at Chatham Dockyard for
a new description of target to be constructed at that estab
lishment, under the direction of Mr. Baskcomb, one of the
foremen, who superintended the erection of the Warrior and
Bellerophon target, recently experimented upon at Shoe-
buryness. The target is to represent a section of the side
of Mr. Reed's new wooden iron-clad frigate the Lord War-
den, the keel for whicji has just been laid down at Chatham
Dockyard, and in the construction of which several impor-
tant improvements over the wooden armour-clads already
built arele be introduced. One of these is the erection of
an iron skin of 11-inch iron throughout a certain length of
the vessel's btoadside. ' The result of the experiments to be
made on the target will, however, determine the form of
construction, which will ultimately be carried out in the
Lord Warden, but the Lords of the Admiralty have already
decided that she shall be plated for a certain length and
height with plates of a greater thickness than those bolted to
the sides of the Royal Oak, Caledonia, and the other iron-
clads. The contract for upwards of 1,000 tons of armour
plating for the Lord Warden has been taken by Messrs. J.
Brown atd Co., of Sheffield, and the first delivery of plates
will shortly arrive at the dockyard. In .the construction of
the Lord Warden an important improvement will be made
by Mr. Reed in the placing of a powerful battery of heavy
guns at the bow of the ship—an improvement which has
been altogether overlooked in every vessel of war hitherto
built in this country: _ _

Upwards of 600 cases of small arms, containing in the
aggregate 12,000 stand of arms for the naval and land ser-
vice, have been landed at the Ordnance-wharf, Chatham,
from the War department transports Bomarsund, Thdmes,
and Henry, and deposited in the arsenal.
The repairs to the paddlewheels of the new Royal yacht
Alberta have been taken in hand at Portsmouth dockyard,
in order that she may renew and complete her official trials
of speed under the supervision of the Admiralty authorities.
On her partial trial of the 26th inst. her wheels gave way
under the enormous power developed by her engines, the
indicator card diagrams exhibiting an exerted power of
nearly 1,200 horse, the nominal power of the engines being
only 100 horse. The tonnage of tho Alberta is, according
to the official Navy List, 391.
Her Majesty's steam sloop Muline, Capt. Graham, in
basin at Woolwich, is ordered to be paid out of commission
on Tuesday next.

Tho Hector, iron faigate, at Portsmouth, it is expected,
will be commissioned in about a week. It is stated that
some of the weights are to be removed out of this ship to
enable her to float lighter in the water.

Commodore Hugh Dunlop, C. 8., the newly-appointed
Commodore-Superintendent of Woolwich dockyard, will
enter upon the duties ol his new appointment, in succession
to Rear-Admiral Sir F. Nicolson, C.B. (on the retired list),
this morning. Commodore Dunlop, together with his pri-
vate secretary (Paymaster Ponsouby) and staff, has engaged
a suite of appartments as their temporary residence, during
the six weeks allowed to his predecessor for removal, at Mr,
Sloman's Royal Ship HotA opposite the Coamociore's
official residence, at the entrance of the dockyard at Wool-
wich,