The Sun.
London, England, 1866-10-16 00:00:00

THE EMPEROR AT BIARRITZ.

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Oct. 12.
The Emperor reviewed the troops in garrison in
this town yesterday at four o'clock. The review had
been announced fav the day before, but, had
to be countermanded at. the lait hour, as it
rained the yhole of the forenoon, not heavily, but
continuously, a thing by no means pleasant to those
who have to take part in an out-door spectacle.
Until about one o'clock yesterday the weather

seemed favourable. it was just such a morning as
one would choose for an eight or ten mile walk, a
ride, or a drive. The heat was far from oppressive,
and the sun, which for some days before shone as it
_ _ _

does in July or August, was veiled, though not quite
hid by clouds, with hardly a breath to stir them.
Before two o'clock, however, the scene changed.

There was first a thick mist, then a smart shower,

a peal of thunder and a flash or two of lightning,
and then heavy rain, which lasted more than an
hour. It seemed certain that the weather had con-

spired against the military spectacle which so many
thronged to witness, and the spot on which it was
to be held was soon deserted. The rain grew lighter
as the hour approached ; there was even a gleam or
two of sunshine; and as no counter-ordeihad come
up from Biarritz, and as the troops proceeded to oc-
cupy the ground, those who had gone away returned.
Exactlyas the clock of. the old cathedral struck four,
a salute from the guns of the citadel announced that
the Emperor was approaching, and before the smoke
had quite floated away from the river, on the right
bank of which the fortress rises, two or three open
carriages were descried through the trees, rapidly
descending the beautiful alleys that line the glacis
in the staburban commune of Laebepaillet. The
drums beat to arms, the men, cousisting of a regi-

meat of the Line, the Sapeurs Pompiers, and the
crew of the war steamer Chamois, stationed in the
Adour, took their ground, and the band struck up
" Partant pour la Syrie." Considering the state of
the weather the number of spectators was great,
and they were considerate enough not to annoy the
Emperor, Empress, and Prince Imperial, who accom-
panied him, by noisy demonstrations of any kind.
The review was held in the large open space called
the Place d'Armes. The Place d'Armes is a com-
paratively modern creation. Some four or five and
twenty years ago it was little better than a marsh,
lying outside the wall which connected the bastions
with the river. The fortifications on that side have
been pushed back a considerable distance, and be-
tween the casements and the town the unsightly
marsh has been converted into
a spacious square,
one side of which is lined with handsome houses and
shops ; on the opposite side rolls the Adour ; on the
right hand is a large square building erected about
22 years ago, containing under the same roof the
theatre, the Custom-house, the Mairie, and formerly
the Sub-Prefecture, removed within the last year or
two ; and on the left lie the easemates, through
which access is had to the Allees Marines, one of the
finest promenades to be found anywhere, and which
extend along the left bank of the river. In other
respects the Bayonne has its fair share in the mate-
rial improvements of the age. New streets and stately
mansions have been built. The old wooden bridge
—one over the Nive, connecting
"petit Bayonne'
with the larger and more important quarter of the
town, and the other across the Adour, connecting
the Jewish quarter of St. Esprit with both—are now
replaced by handsome stone bridges. As people ad-
vance in years, however, they sometimes feel a sort
of regret at the disappearance of things to which they
had been long accustomed, but to which they at-
tached no interest while they had them before their
eyes. The stone bridge which spans the Adour, and
makes a suburb of Bayonne of what two or three
years back was a town belonging to the department
of the Landes, is doubtless a handsome structure in
its way. Those who profess to know much about
these things admire its proportions ; and there is no
doubt that the old guardhouses, with their loop-
holed walls, which command the entrances to it,
appear to a military eye to complete the defences of
the place. But I have heard persons speak with
affection and regret for that dear old pontoon which
some ten, or it may be a dozen, years ago creaked
and groaned under its heavy burden, rose and sank
as the tide ebbed and flowed, or as the Adour rushed
furiously down to the sea. It was certainly far from
handsome, but it was picturesque, and so was all
about it. It had two passages for pedestrians, and,
separated by huge beams, two in the centre for dili-
description—one on
Bayonne, and one on
the
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the left for those crossing to St. Esprit, with a
notice in big white letters on a black ground, at
both extremities, warning all who passed on horse-
back or in carriages against trotting, under heavy
penalties. Then the incessant movement to and
fro on the crazy old structure offered a striking
contrast to the silence which prevailed over the
neighbouring Landes. Hither the Bayonnais used
to come after business hours on a summer's evening
to have a gossip with a neighbour, smoke his ciga-
rette, and watch the vessels moored below bridge,
or making their way down stream to clear the bar.
Here, too, might be seen the water-carriers throng-
ing to the well-known fountain of St. Esprit—the
Spanish refugee stalking along, wrapped to the chin
in his brown cloak, with just two forefingers of the
right hand peeping out—the Basque with his spare
and active figure, his hair down to his shoulders, his
waist encircled with a red sash, silk or woollen, and
his feet protected by hempen sandals, a stout oak
staff in his hand, himself moving erect, and yielding
not an inch of the pathway to any one as he Massed,
ready to turn on the first that chanced to elbow
him, and thinking it hardly worth his while
to get out of the way of the heavy, rumbling dili-
gence. Then there were the swarms of young
girls, grisettes, servants, seamstresses, laughing,
quizzing the passers-by, their teeth like pearls, eyes

black and glowing, and hair like the raven's wing.
On that old pontoon passed between midday and
sunset all the types of the various populations of
the Spanish frontier, the Basque mountains, the
Landes, mingled with the more distant Biscayan
and the Arragonese. Something like this was the
aspect of the old pontoon bridge of the Adour in
times that now seem far remote. Now all is changed.
Everything is more methodical, more respectable,
more civilised, I suppose, but certainly less pictu-
resque. But this is a digression.
On the Place d'Armes, then, the Emperor alighted
from his carriage with the Prince, while the citadel
was still firing its salutes, and the band playing
what is now the National Anthem. Accompanied
by General Fleury, and, I believe, Marshal Niel,
and his orderly officers, he walked in front of each
side of the square, stopping now and then some few
minutes to address a few words to the officer. The
inspection did not last long, as the rain was still
coming down. The men and officers who were to
be decorated were called to the front, and the
Emperor, with the Prince by his side, distributed
the crosses. This part of the ceremony over, the
troops-there were in all, perhaps, about 20,000 on
the ground—marched past in the usual manner,
each section crying " Vive l'Empereur," as it passed
before Ills Majesty. When the ground was about
to be cleared the Emperor and Prince entered one
of the open carriages in which the Empress had
witnessed- the proceedings, and drove back to
Biarritz, without any military escort, as they came.
The Emperor looked remarkably well, and it is
evident that the air has been of great benefit to
him. As he usually takes his departure a few days
after holding a review, it is thought that his stay
will not be much longer at Biarritz. He would
much desire, they say, to spend the winter here, but
of course this is not to be thought of. He is,
however, making the most of his holiday. A few
days ago he drove to St. Jean de Luz to inspect
the plans before making a port there, and with which
he expressed himself much pleased. On •Sunday
last he drove to Mousseroles, on. the Adour ; and
he and the Empress left their carriages and walked
from a short distance out of Bayonne to Biarritz,
about three miles, and hardly a day passes that he
does not make similar excursions on foot.