The Sun.
London, England, 1814-09-10 00:00:00

JOURNAL OF A TRIP TO PARIS.

, •
(No. .) •
, (11*, IrOnday.

Yesterday, the day of rest to other parts of the
world, was the day of•business here ; of the com 7
111011 business of traiftc, and the more active pur-
suit of the business of pleasure, which, as I have
before observed,' is the staple commodity at
Paris. I went in the morning to ►he King's
Chapel in the 'Fuji!cries ; it occupies the right
wing of the front of
,the Palace *, i. e. the wing
furthest from the Seine. This- is a handsome
private place of worship, somewbat resembling
Whitehall, hut ninch smaller, and is still bril-
liadtly painted on the roof and walls, with eagles
and other imperial ornaments. The Choir is ad-
mirable, and divine service was performed- in a

very impressive manner. •
From Chapel I followed my customary ram;
blink course through the streets, noticidg and not-
ing all that struck me as curious, though perhaps
little worthy of observation. Among other of
these little affairs, I may mention the large dogs
which abound. in this Capital. They appear as
remarkable to a stranger, as the monstrous horses
in London, like which, they are gerierally employ-
ed in drawing loads, fully proportioned to their
strength.. They look of the 'Mastiff and New found-
land breed, are excessively numerous, and of im-
mense size :—so' much so, that a prevalence of
hydrophobia would be worse than a plague of
Egypt upon the Parisians. •
The wh:m of this people struck me in the name
of a Hotel, in one of, the inferior streets, the
if Hotel des Milords ci-dev.ant,"-7-the Tavern for
would-he great-folks,—l do not recollect so sar-
castic an Inn in all England. It.seerned however
to he well frequented, from which, I presume, that
the Would-be's here, as elsewere, are by no means
the most limited Class in society.
• In the afternoon, I again walked in the Gar-
dens of the Tuilleries, a crowded scene of endless
ob,erration and amusement, lvhere the holiday
habits, dresses, and manners of the people,. are
offered to the observant eye of the traveller. I,
however, dwelt enough on this subject before.
In the evening I looked into the Olympic Circus,
which resembles ASTLEY'S Amphitheatre in horse-
ritanship, leaping through fire-balloons, &c. The
most novel part of the entertainments consisted
in the performances of two beautiful stags, which
galloped luweu ill a carriage,
and after being liberated from the harness, one
of them plunged through a large balloon on -fire--
a singular act for so timid an animal.
This morning the first object of my inspection
was the 13ibliothcgiie du Roi—the two latter words
having just been substituted, over the entrance, for
the single wort r" Imperiale." This noble library is
situated in the Rite de Richelieu, nearly opposite
to the Opera-house; and is in every respect worthy
of a great nation. indeed, it is impossible for
an Englishman to visit or speak of the Institutions
for the promotion of Literature in France, with-

•
out experiencing a secret pang of mortification
and of regrets, that, with all its wealth, magni-.
ficence, and power, there is nothing like them in his
own country. The facility, of access afforded to
strangers, the magnitude and valne of the collec-
tions,' the excellence of their arrangement' and
keeping, the . unreservedness with which their
choicest stores are unlocked to the researches of
students of all nations, as well as to natives, are,
in truth, worthy ,of our imitation. In France,
these opportunities are valuable : in England,
where the light of science is so generally diffused
over the mass of the, people, they would be be-
yond all value! This .Royal Library has been en-
riched by gifts from all the Kings of France, from
the time 'of its founder, CHARLES V. who alone
. presented it with 900 manuscripts, of dates an-
-
terior to the invention of printing. From Louts
it'obt`ained the library of. the celebrated
PFTRARCH ; FRANCIS I. gave it a number of cu•
rims Greek manuscripts; HENRY H. enacted, that.
it should receive a copy of every book printed in
France ; and the Minister COLBERT augmented it
by no fewer than 60,000 volumes and 8000 ma-
nuscripts. Through these donations, and-a zealous
attention to its interests-for many years, this stu-
pendous Library now• contains above 350,000
printed works, and 70,000 manuscripts, many of
them the most rare .and precious in the world. It
• is also rich in engravings, arid in a splendid ca-. •
hiifet of medals and antiquities. And what use-
does it make of these glorious acquisitions ? Are
they boarded• in secret, and shut in from the world
like_ the worthless wealth of the Miser ? No !
They are open to every one and every day, under
proper and liberal regulations, these stores of
human intellect are offered to fulfil the Purpose for