The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1874-01-25

charges it's rivers of filth into the Seine below
the wal Is, at a village called Asnieres, W bore
the foul fluid diffuses with the water of the
rapid stream and passes off to the sea without
being noxious to the country. Paris receives
its supply of water from several sources, and
consumes for all purposes q general average of
of the water is brought from q branch of the
Seine called the Ourcq; one-third is taken
from the Seine ITSELF about 30 miles above the
city; and the remainder il procured from the
Several artesian wells, those of Parry.
Archeill, and Grenelle, supply the lakes of the
Park of Bonlogne. The city government
receives for the water furnished, about 81, l00,-
600 from the citizens. But tho water is of a
very inferior quality, as it is very hard, con-
tanning much chlorate of lime and chlorate of
bubbles arising as in champagne. 1t is
really not fit to drink. Aud nobody does
drink it if they can help it, 1t may be proper
to add here that comparatively little of the
drinking-water found in France will begin to
compare with the water furnished to the peo-
pie of Chicago in point of purity aud health
fuiness. 1t may safely be asserted that most
of the water is bad-hardly safe to drink and
is this not, after all, the actual cause that i'm
pels the whole population to seek substitutes
in coffee and winef Long experience has
try is not conducive to health, and has made
them seek for substitutes. The cheapest, most
pleasant and beneficial, long custom has de-
cided to be coffee and light wine.
II theewater of France was of equal purity
with that of Lake Michigan it is questionable
whether there would be pint of wine con-
snmed where there is now 3 gallon, for the
French are an excellent, economical, saving
people; and were it not for the deleterious
character of the water, they would not occupy
much of their land with grapes but would
raise more grain and cattle.
The chief building material of Paris is soft,
cream. colored sandstone, which becomes mo-
derately hard on exposure to the atmosphere.
1t is very easy to cut-indeed, too tender-and
hoa "a hnG oonI = 81 & H,,lt Sv,f ha
wall. While new, it is very pleasant stone
to the eye; but, in few years, it begins to
discolor, and eventually turns dirty, sombre
Dnt S5 to
Paris as this straw colored sandstone is all the
material they have. 1t gives the city a same
ness of color which is exceedingly monotonous
The grandest public edifces are constructed Of
this stone, as we'll rs the commonest buildings;
even the monuments of the cemeteries are
chiefly composed of this yellow sandstone.
The continual fogs and vast
of bitumnous coal have be-
smeared all London with SCOT, and inf1iet on it
o black and unclean look. But, aside from
inferior to those of Paris in point of architec-
tnre. The prevailing styles differ, however.
The London taste rather inclines to Gothic,
while that of Paris is Grecian. Indeed. the
French are exceedingly Grecian in all their
tastes and ways; and they boast of it. They
call Paris the modern Athens, and London the
modern Reme, as regards tho fine arts and
public buildings in London are modelled after
the style of Partisan buildings, and the mate
rial is the same, being imported from the
basin of the Seine In fact, the English are i'm.
porting this straw-colored sandstone in large
quantities, not only into London, but many
other cities of Great Britain.
There is an almost total absenc of confagra-
rarely or never spread beyond the walls
of the building where they originate.
There never has been destructive fire
in Paris, nor is there ever likely to be:
and encouraged by Communists and other
madmen. l have been studying the
cause of this perfect immunity from fire, and
find it simple enough. 1t consists of strict
rules for the construction of houses, and per-
sonal liability for damage done by the spread
of fires. Paris is substantially fire-proof wi it'll
out the use of iron Orders and beams, iron
lathing or brick or tile floors, by the adoption
of simple principle of construction, which is
that there shall DO air-spaces left between
the floors, or between the plaster of walls and
must be covered with tile, slate metal.
There is not such an incendiary thing as n
wooden or tar-and gravel roof in Paris, and for
aught know, in all France. The spaces be-
tween the floors must be filed with cement or
which is here cheap and
abundant and the wooden floors must rest
close down on this cement, so that in case OF
fire, there is no air-space under the floors. The
spaces between the studding in PARTITION
walls are also carefully filled up with cement,
and against it the plaster is placed, 80 that
there is no chance for fire to get between them,
to rush up from one story to another, or to fly
along between floors. When a fire breaks out,
it spreads so slowly in houses thus constructed,
that it is always quelohed before doing much
or extending to other buildings
The other precaution is intended to prevent
and incendiarsm, so common 10
American cities. If O fire, no matter how it
may happen, does any damage to any other
person, he has full recourse at law, for all his
damages and costs, against the person in whose
premises the fire broke out. This simple rule
Of equity and right makes everybody watchful
aud careful of fire. The gross carelessness
witnessed in American cities is
never seen in Paris or France. 1t don't pay
here for man to set fire to his stock of goods
in order to get a high insurance, nor for
landlord who has an idle tenant on his hands,
Or bad tenants, to fire his premises for the sake
Of realizing on his policy of insurance; nor
has any one an object in effecting large insur-
ance. Indeed, the chief Insurance taken out in
Paris is in the nature of an indemn nifty against
the damage one may have to pay his neighbors
in case of fire spreading from his premises to
theirs. But the whole amount of insurance
paid to the companies in Paris is less than IS
paid by the people of Chicago, although Paris
is more than four times as large as Chicago,
AIrE