New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1858-01-20
FRANCE.
From OR Own Correspondent.

from On OWn tofItsptnoeut.
PARIS, Dec. 81, 1857.
As this is the very last chance this year to say
ANYTHING about it, decent respect seems to re-
quire a paragraph on this time.worn, morlbund
1857, IL has, on the whole served us well here IN
France, and in Europe generally; given us good
crops of corn and wine and oil; reduced the standing
armies of Russia, Austria and France; revived pO-
hticsl liberalism in Switzerland, Piedmont and
Belgium; prepared for partial emancipation of
serfs in Russia, and considerably advanced material
civilization in the matter of arts, manufactures and
railroads in Russia ard the Western countries.
Nor has higher civilization gone backward in any
of the nations. Symptoms of progress, If not i'm
mediate advances, are discernible in Austria, In
Prussia, in intolerant Protestant Sweden in impe-
rial France. Considering that this world of ours
has been Elk thousand years in moving thus far, we
cannot deny to 81 the merit of having given it at
least an average yearly shove. We cannot ask OF
all years to do such service as that of the year
A. NJ, or l A. D., or 76 or 49,. We cannot ask
that all ST. Saturn his children should be alike any
more than all jenkins his.
Here, in France, this has been singularly fatal
wear 10 hutnOTt, EukCuC quo, hhhSN Wv "ASNN'f
Beranger, Auguste Comte, Gustave blanche, and
several others Of lesser fame but of eminent rank
in the French world of letters, have left vacant
placee not likely soon to be filled. Among the
Young writers there is great deal of cultivated tai
emit but an inventive genius of the second order has
not made himself known in the last twenty years.
OF the present generation, Hugo and Lsmartlne be.
long to the past The poet who shows the most right
to the title is Theodore Banyille. Theophle Gall-
tier il his superior as poet, whether he writes IN
prose or verse. But, besides that Gautier can no
longer count strictly among the young writers, he
has, il is to be feared, given up authOrship his
graceful fancy mantle, falling on the shout
ders of his son, has shrunk 10 short CLOAK.
But not to gruinble, let us be gay, with the
rest; turn our back on the old year and look hope
fully forward 10 the new. Everybody, truly every.
body this time, is expecting something from II, dnd
il not like TO be disappointed From the Madeleln
church to the Place dc la Bastile up the Boule
wards, and from the Place de la Baste 10 the Made
ieine down the Boulevards are two rows of booths
each about three miles long, filled with all cOnceva
BILE things apt to Juvenile tastes, or to parental
ayuncular purposes of gratifying them Simulacr
of all the animals that came out Of the ark let alone
modern additions TO animated nature; dolls in
every state, from that of Eve before the apple to
the fullest circumambience Of crinoine; jumping.
Jacks of astonishing agility; watches that mimic
gold really WIND up ana Keep ther tine all 10 thell-
selves; babies that cry and roll their eyes, when
you pinch them, past anything in life; complete
microcosms admirably initiated from the full-grown
worlds of the kitchen, and psrlor, and workshop,
and the camp and the barracks; and manifold other
wonders too numerous to mention, too compicatc
to describe. And from space 10 space as they walk
along these six miles of enchantmcnts,
ENHANCED with this place and time
SO worthy Of the golden pgine
OF good HarOun Alraschid,"
the mouths of younkers are vellicated and SCI
a watering with sight of bonbons of all sorts, OF
nuts and foreign fruits and Gates more or less succu
lent and indgestble. As general thing however,
the small folks who are at least a century behind
thsr little fellows id our " free and easy republic
are not the direct customers of the bootnkeepers'
,seek preceding New-Years, crowd the broad trot-
tors Of the Boulevsrds to make the required Pur,
ehases. And required they are in the stronges,
known sense Of the word. Cases are not recorded