The Sun.
London, England, 1863-08-17 00:00:00

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THE IMPERIAL FETES,

- -

A letter from Paris, dated Sunday morning, says
—Yesterday was a great day for Paris. The Fete
Napoleon is now quite re-established as an institu-
tion. Ninety-four years ago was born the greatest
Frenchman, or accepted Frenchman, of modern
days; he broke up Europe, and refashioned it after
his own designs; he turned a respectable Corsican
family into a house of kings and queens—more or
less shortlived to be sure, but very brilliant while
they lasted—and raised his adopted country from a
republic to an empire. Since that time France has
gone through some strange vicissitudes of govern-
ment—imperial, monarchical, limited at least as to
endurance—imperial again, monarchical, republi-
can, and now she is once more under the imperial
sceptre—that sceptre, too, wielded in the name of
liberty •and constitutional rule, rather, perhaps, a
la Francaise, by a scion of the house which first
raised France to the Imperial dignity. Under such
circumstances he would indeed be ungrateful who
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great crowd yesterday assembled in Notre
where the first act of the great festival was performed.
To be sure the cathedral was cool, and that might
not have been without its effect on the hottest day I
ever remember in Europe. A heavy lurid sky,
occasionally varied by gleams of intense sun-
shine, made a walk to Notre Dame no slight un-
dertaking, even when one walked under the
shade of tricoloured banners, and was enlivened on
the road by military bands. The gardens of the
Tuileries, though only exhibiting the shadow of
events to come in the shape of the skeletons of illu-
minations, looked very pretty, the beautiful and
beautifully-preserved flower-beds harmonising ad-
mirablywith the living parterre of gaily-dressed
people who were lounging about them. As we ap-
proached the bridge which leads to the old cathe-
dral, we fell into the line of officials, military and
civil, who were en route to assist at the religious
rite, most of them having previously been received
by the Emperor. There we saw the War Minister
in fine array; a civic official in a glass coach; two
soldiers and two civilians, who bad shared the ex-
pense of a " remise ;" and, finally, M. Haussman,
whose motto is " Delenda est Carthage"—" Paris
must be pulled down or rebuilt"—the latter a cere-
mony not proposed in the original case—looking
discreet, dignified, and decorated. " Circulation"
was then prohibited in the great streets, as we ma-
noeuvred into Notre Dame by a side entrance. The
cathedral was densely packed with a motley
crowd of priests, soldiers, and civic authorities;
while outside were troops of cavalry and companies
of infantry drawn up before each of the doors—
chiefly, as it seemed to me, to get in the way of
those who wished to go in or out of the building.
The music was very fine, and the varying sunshine
and shade coming through the painted rose windows
were worth going to see, and even repaid you for a
crowd on a hot day. It is difficult to speak higher
of anything !

The ceremony was very soon over—indeed, we
could not even repeat poor Theodore Hook's joke
about the " tedeum"—and then everybody hurried
back to see the preparations for the night, or else
rushed off to the "gratis" performances at the
theatres, which began at 1 p.m. I shudder when
I recall the heat of those establishments ; but had
it been 10 times as great,they would have been quite
as crowded. Nothing so delights the Parisian as to
go " gratis" to the play,and the" Dinette de Portici,"
"Le Postillion de Longumeau," " Celimare," and
" Les Pilules du Diable," have never attracted a
better, more attentive, or more justly-critical audi-
ence than that which yesterday crowded the open
theatres. Talma used to say that the best critics
were the Peopleof Paris, and the most appreciating
audience that which listened to him when played
at these national gratuitous representations. Every
performance closed with an appropriate hymn,

and then the crowd issued forth for further diver•

sion. The gardens of the Tuileries and the
Champs Elysees were like a fair from midday till
midnight. A dense crowd circulated—to use their
own expression—all day beneath the trees, which
were to bear such brilliant fruit at night. As we
wandered about among these thousands, it was im-
possible not to be struck with the idea that a great
rejoicing in Paris does not signify the general joy
of a nation, as such an event does in London.
There, on a great event everybody seems to take
part ; the swell from his club, even if he professes
to ignore a national rejoicing—which is a mere
matter of fashion, depending on the then feelings
of youthful England—yet goes to seehow the event
comes off; but here, in all the dense crowd which
yesterday thronged the streets of Paris, you saw
nobody at all above the level of the shopkeeper.
Foreigners, of course, assisted at the fete. What
would any European fete be without their aid P
But the native nobility kept itself safely at the
seaside.

Curious acquaintances turned up in the Champs
Elysees as we strolled down them. First, let us
say, a London lawyer passing himself off for a
lord; then a lord, who lives so quietly that the
Parisians hardly take him for a gentleman, and
are inclined to think that his valet is after all the
" vrai Lord Anglais." Teen we met a colonel,
who, when I saw him last, was only a cornet ;
and then a general, whom I recollect with no
other commission than that which tie gained at
Newmarket. Thousands of strangers, but chiefly
from the provinces, had flocked into Paris, and
there was last night an absolute dearth of food in
the cheap restaurants. The consumption of beer
and light liquids—pink, flimsy-looking refresh-
ments, stirred with a spoon in a dusky glass, with
au opaque morsel of soi-disant ice—must have been
something perfectly awful. Just as the crowd in
the Champs Elysees was at flood, there was a whis-
per that the Emperor and Emperor were driving
down the Rue de Rivoli. It was the Deus ex
machina—the one thing required—and the crowd
went off to receive them. In an open carriage, '
without an escort, save the Chef de police, who rode
on the right of the Emperor, came the representa-
tive of the great name which Paris
was then cele-
brating ; by his side sat the wife of his choice, who
has the one recommendation—irresistible in Paris
—of being fascinating.
There was a rush to see
them pass, and
that was all—not a " Vive l'Em-
percur!"—not
a "Long live our Empress" broke
from the lips of a people who are so over-policed
that they
dare not say " Good luck" to their Sove-
reiga without fear of being arrested for making a
"demonstration." Well, thank heaven, our coun-
try men and women are not so particular or so op-
pressed. .‘ That's the
Emperor, is it ? Well, I don't
think much of him!" was the opinion of a Briton
who kindly h" d communicate opini • •
ons to me in a
loud tone, and Was evidently astonished that an
Emperor did not appear in purple and fine linen,
and with a circlet of gold on his Imperial brow.
After all it is very natural. Do not we all know
that Picture of Napoleon I. in robes and palm
leaves—your classical readers will be pleased to
remark that in this case " he who deserved them,
bore them "—and do not we all believe that George
the Magnificent always sat nursing one knee and
looking over a collar of ermine, like they say some
horses may do over a gate ? And then the guns
fired a royal salute from the Invalides, and then
wise people,who were nearly as weary as wise, went
to dinner. The curtain fell on the first act. When
it rose again it displayed a fairy scene. In the
course of au active life your correspondent has seen
many fetes—has seen many cities illuminated, and
the general joy of many nations explode in that
final bouquet of fireworks. Experience records to
him nothing more beautiful than the walk last night
from the Palace of the Tuileries to the Rond Point,
which was the "omega " of the illuminations ;
though the Arc de l'Etoile was lighted up, but only

NEWSPAPER'
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in a way that caused an English lady
Aek7
they had " ruled a line in the sky."
I never took a promenade in the Garde
Hesperides, but I imagine that they must have lkin s
very like the s-;ene which presented itself on both
sides of the Champs Drees last night. The trees,
we are told, I cannot say with what truth, having
lost my library lately—it consists of a " Gradus
ad
Parnassum "—a classical Murray—a " Lempriere,''
and one old volume of " Terence "—bore gold and
silver apples. Well, for some hundreds of yards you
might have sez;ll the s:',me dazzling crop on every
branch, from the end of the Rue de Riveli down to
the graceful fountains which mark the break in
the Champs Elyket-s. You walked beneath a grove
of forbidden fruit, which might have tempted an
anchorite—especially if he was an anchorie of the
school of our youth, and was addicted to the pluck-
ing of lamps. Every tree was illuminated, and
that made a picture, brilliantly life-like and Parisian,
and not easily forgotten. Age reclining (and smok-
ing) hi easy chairs; youth swinging and rocking
in those peculiar machines which I am informed
are called, with a hideous mockery of intense sick-
ness, "merry-go-rounds;" mothers of families danc-
ing their irritable offspring, and irate husbands
proposing to go home; these made the features of
the picture. As we gaze on it there comes a crash;
then follows a rush, and we find ourselves making
off to get a good place to see the fireworks—those
" feux illusionaires" which we have so often run to
see and never seen. I need not describe the com-
ments of a French audience on a display of fire-
works. When two adventurous youths tempted
fate in a straw-inflated ballon to-day, what sym.
pathy we had, and what odd remarks. " You in-
flate it, you see, and then—ca monte." " Tien! ca
monte I It is then the gas !" Mutato nomine, and
the story is told of a rocket. "That mounts jollily,
my friend ; let us go home when it extinguishes
itself," says tare de famille, and her advice is taken,
not only by her, but by all the other female house-
,
keepers of the neighbourhood ; and so we all go
home to our houses—and the fete is at an end,
physically though not morally, for we cannot look
back to the great holiday, by far the most general
that Paris has in the year, without some com-
ments. The point of the epigram was ex-
tracted, when the review of the National Guard
was counter-ordered. Well, it was very hot cer-
tainly, yet a " demonstration" would have given a
character to the fete of yesterday, which it certainly
wanted. We had great preparations, a religious
rite, a popular holiday, an illumination, and finally
that fool's paradise, a display of fireworks—and
then the tale is told. But, to speak the truth, the
whole affair fell dead. No energy, no enjoyment,
no feeling expressed—a mere fete-La failure. Such
was, I think, the verdict of Paris. As I write, the
last few lamps which were supposed to be the pri-
vate illumination of Paris are dying out; the last
weary concierge who has enjoyed himself with his
wife and family in a dense crowd, has returned to his
post ; and all that remains of the fete is a sort of
idea that we have all had a very hot holiday; but as
for any conception that they have celebrated the
memory of the very great Napoleon who made an
empire, or of the very clever Napoleon who is now
perpetuating, it, you must not look for that among
the natives of Paris. They have had a holiday. I
some chain of events could unravel itself which
could give the Imperial ruler of yesterday's holi-
day-makers such a respite from thought and trouble
perhaps he would not look so fatigued as he did
then. As I turned from his weary features, and
from the sunny and perhaps too smiling countenance
of his Imperial Consort, I could not help reflecting
on the uneasiness of him " who wears a crown."
Even recent retirement has not been able to do
away with the pressure of present political events.
The Emperor looks weary. The Emperor is a hard
worked man, and a man who deserves so well of
Europe, in spite of great abberations from his ori-
ginal policy, that the wish of every one must be to
see him look himself again.

The Warwickshire Magistracy and the
Queen's late Letter.

A meeting of the magistrates of the county of
Warwick, convened by the Lord Lieutenant, Lord
Leigh, of Stoneieigh Abbey, was held at the Shire
Hall, Warwick, on Saturday last, " to consider the
reply of the Mayor of Birmingham to a letter ad-
dressed to him by command of her Majesty, in re-
feience to a fatal accident which lately occurred
during festivities in Aston-park." The meeting
was presided over by Lord Leigh, and amongst
those present were the Right Hon. C. B. Adderley,
M.P., Sir R. N. C. Hamilton, Bart., Sir Trevor
Wheler, Bart., Mr. R. Spooner, M.P., Mr. C. N.
Newdegate, M.P., Mr. Dickens, chairman of quar-
ter sessions, &c,. Letters of apology were also read
from the Earl of Warwick, the Hon. C. L. Butler,
Mr. E. P. Shirley, M.P., Mr. Philip W. Martin,
M.P., &c.
On the motion of Mr. W. DICKENS, seconded
by Mr. R. SPOONER, the following resolution was
unanimously adopted :—" That the statement of the
Mayor of Birmingham, that Aston-park is not
within the jurisdiction of the authorities of Bir-
mingham, has rendered it necessary that the Lord
Lieutenant and magistrates of the county should
express publicly their serious regret that a park,
with the opening of which they must ever connect
the most grateful recollections of gracious conde-
scension of her Majesty and the deeply-lamented
Prince Consort, should have been the scene of an
occurrence so greatly painful to her Majesty as to
have called forth expressions from her Majesty
which they have read with cordial respect; and to
whatever extent their jurisdiction may give them
any control, or their influence may have weight,
they would gladly promote such steps being taken
as might secure the restriction of the future use of
the park to its original and true in te n
so te s—t
in
t ohe
Wasra -
tional recreation of the people." A r
passed authorising the Lord Lieutenant to forward
a copy of the above to Sir C. P. Phipps for submis-
sion to her Majesty; and the thanks of the meeting
were presented to
the noble chairman for presiding
over and convening it, when the proceedings ter-
minated.

- _
LAUNCH OF THE STEAM SHIP SYRIA.—A find
new paddlewheel steamer named the Syria, built
for the Peninsular and Oriental Company by Messrs. Day
and Co., of the Northern. Ironworks, Southampton, was
launched on Saturday morning in the presence of a large
concourse of spectators. She is built of iron, and is perhaps
one of the strongest vessels ever sent to sea, as upwards of
1,300 tons of iron have been used in her construction. The
following are her principal dimensions—Length between
perpendiculars, 312 ft; length over all, 340 ft Gin ; breadth,
36ft 2in ; depth from base line, 29ft ; tonnage, builders'
measurement, 2,000. The Syria was designed by Mr.
M'Cormack, the naval architect for Messrs. Day and
Co., and is a very beautiful vessel, possessing more
cabin accommodation than any other of the Peninsular
and Oriental Company's fleet, Viz.—First-class passenger
berths, 161 ; second-class ditto, 34 ; servants, 20 ; officers
and crew, 130 ; total, 345. She is brig-rigged, with figure
head, neat elliptical stern, and quarter-galleries, has iron
lower masts, and will be fitted up with every comfort and
convenience, including ample ventilation for the cabins,
large icehouses, gas apparatus for lighting the cabins, &c.
The Syria will be propelled by a pair of oscillating paddle-
engines of 450 horse power nominal, which will be fitted
with surface condensers, steam jackets, and Lamb and
Sumners' patent boilers and superheating apparatus. Be-
sides large stowage accommodation for mails, passengers'
baggage and stores, she will have room to stow away 470
tons of coal and 500 tons of cargo. The Syria will be com-
manded by Capt. E. Cooper, the eenior officer of the Penin-
sular and Oriental Company's fleet, and will be placed on
the Marseilles, Malta, and Alexandria station. After the
launch a large party of ladies and gentlemen sat down to a
sumptuous dejeuner, under the presidency of Captain Day,
R.N., brother of Mr. C. Day, the head of the firm, who
was absent through illness. The usual loyal and other
toasts were drunk, and in proposing that of " Success to the
Syria and continued prosperity to the Peninsular and Orien-
tal Company," the Chairman, in the name of his brother,
expressed his thanks for this additional opportunity which
had been afforded them of showing that Southampton can
build and equip as large and fine steamships as any port in
the kingdom. The toast was responded to by Mr. Plowden,
one of the Peninsular and Oriental Company's directors,
who proposed " the health of the Messrs. Day," which
having been warmly received and acknowledged, a few
other complimentary toasts followed, the proceedings being
varied by the performances of a good brass bapd. On the
adjoining slip to that from which the Syria was launched,
a large and handsome screw steam yacht for Mr. G. H.
Ackers, named the Brilliant, is approaching completion,
and will be launched in about a month's time. The engines
for both the abovenamed vessels are nearly ready for fitting,
and other large works are in progress at Messrs. Day and.
Co.'s premises.