The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1873-04-30
The National Assembly at Versailles.

: = not prepared somehow 70 see q pdI-
Hamentary assembly arranged 20 COM
pIeteIy after the fashion Of q theatri-
cal audience. The theatre has under
T. gone hardly any alteration in IT. az
: rangement- The tiers Of boxes are
, just a. they might have been when a
Due de Riehelieu Or de ChOiseul sat
= there The dress circle. a. We should
call 1t in London, Is principally occu-
pied by the officials. the dipl0matis-s,
, and their friends On the second
range are the journalists and the
more favored class Of the general pub
. lie The higher you 60 the less your
favor, until you reach thr tJyes gTi{-
lees. or little barred pigeOn-holes Of
round shape, just where the ceiling
begins 70 slope outward, and which
were originally intended for persons
who wished 70 see the performance
in the royal theater without being
( seen, or whom perhaps some Of the
audience did not desire 10 see. The
pit and the stalls are occupied by the
members Of the Assembly the Presi-
dent sits on the stage, with a huge
bell on the table close to his hand
The ministers IT IL front Of him, but
beneath facing tie audience. Be
tween him and the audience. and a
little to his right, i tbe tribqae-a
sort of pulpit-from which the ora
tors address the Assembly. At first
the idea conveyed 10 the mind Cf the
uuaccustOmed visitor is entirely that
Of an ordinary theater during q morn
ing performance. He can hardly
for a time bring himself 70 believe
that this Is the great National Assem-
bly, charged with the regeneration Of
4 crushed and conquered country.
+ He seems rather 70 be assisting at
+ the representation Of some comedy
. Il : not easy 20 obtain admission
. 10 one Of these galleries. To Fegin
( with, there are some seven hundred
and fifty members 70 be Gcc0mm0da-
ted with seats. Then there are the
+ diplomatists q various nations and
7 the officials Of all sorts. who are eni-
tied 10 be provided with places.
Then there are the wives IF the men,
bers and the wives Of the dipi0matists
and officials Then the public may
be taken into consideration Every
member has in his turn TWO tickets
+ 10 give away TO strangers bat his
turn does not come very often, and
be can hafdlv accommodate during
4 session one fourth Of his friends
Each day the questCT. g solemn and
dread official, NJ De Baze, much de-
tested by the journalists has q few .
tickets 10 give provided there .
be vacant places, or that those TO .
whom be gives the ticket viii wait .
until some wearied spectator shall .
leave their seats to return no more, f.
and 50 make wav for others. Then .
there are the I0ges grjilees, Of which .
| spoke, and which are dreadful little .
dens Just under the roof, from which .
people with keen sight NAV possibly .
BY straining their ewes distinguish VI. .
Theirs from VI. Gambetta. Under .
such circumstances l was glad indeed .
20 have a kind friend in the assembly.
a man of influence and celebrity.
whom | had known in his exile. and
whom NAV At any turn Of the wheel
be one Of the leading ministers Of re-
publican France. Nv friend c0nrriv-
ed that | should hear the debates
more often than Is usually the good \
fortune Of strangers during the same
period Of time. | heard some pas
sionate and stormy discussions and .
saw some brilliant passages Of arms.
but Il was some time before the L0-
ton O. 4 theatrical performance wore
awav. The galleries were full Of Ia
dies, Of officers In uniform. Of elegant .
" dressed lawyers. and-but these
last certainly rather disturbed the
theatric idea-ot priests IN their Pc 4
culiar garb. 1t was not easy TO bring
the mind seriously 10 regard the per-
sons in the pit and stalls a. the assem-
bled legislators Of France
Yet the debates are hot and angry .
and earnest enough sometimes to (
Danish from the mind Of the spectator /
any thought Of comedy. 1t was in .
the House Of Commons on the famous
night Of the debate on Sir Charles 4
Dilke's motion. and | have seen many /
another stormy scene in the same .
House, not TO speak Of some rather
noisy discussions in the Capitol at
Washington, and scenes in the Palais
Bourbon. Paris. when the Imperial
Corps Legislatif sat there, and the
historical FIVE were doing the whole
work OF opposition But /, az least,
never heard such vehement, persistent
and passionate clamor as in the the
ater Of Versailles during the sitting Of
this present Assembly. The whole
seven hundred and Fifty odd members
seem at times 10 be yelling with one
throat. Half are trying to scream
down the speaker; half the other mo-
ietv are shouting in his defence ; the
rest are bawling cut appeals for s.
lenee. The orator in the tribune
shrieks defiance TO his enemies, and
bangs the front Of his ro>trum some
times with both hands together
Now and then some interruption, /
shriller or nearer than the rest, catch .
e his ear. and be goes OF into an epiSO-
dical alteration with that particular
enemy. each "skirling. a. the Scot
tish fshwives would say at the very
top Of his voice. The President en-
deavors TO restore order BY ringing
bis bell in a manner which would
suggest to English ears the notice Of a
departing train or an approaching
muffin man. The bell only adds
another dierful sound TO the din
until the Assembly has fairly spent
itself with rage and roaring there is
no chance to quiet; and even long
after the actual tumult Is over. there
is a visible and audible commotion !
still overspreading the branches, such :
as NAV be observed on the sea in the
morning after storm. 1etthe Pres .
ident Of the Assembly, Mr.. Grevy, !
is a man of some dignity and author 7:
itv with a rather imposing presence
and a decisive manner When some
one of the viee-presidents-ssy VI. ,
ST. Mare Girardin-takes the chair .