The new dominion. [volume] (Morgantown, W. Va.) 1876-1904, 1878-06-08
The Great Money Temple of Paris =
The Way They do Business in
France-A Lively Scene.

after the model OF the Temple OF Jupl-
ter Tonans at Rome, surrounded by
spacious portico, with colonnade of
sixty-four Corinthian pillars. Its great
interior space has a handsome vaulted
ceiling, painted so skillfully as to resem-
bic bas retieG. This interior, on the
ground floor (to which the public are
not admitted), has a circular, rallied off
space, surrounding a round white stone
slab, which is also rallied in, and into
this penetralia " the sworn brokers or
"agents de change" and their uni
formed messengers, who take their com
munications to the outer crowd and to
the telegraph, alone are privileged to
enter. Outside this railing is a series of
coops or pens in which the common
brokers herd. A spacious gallery runs
around the hall, from which the public
may enjoy theexciting scenes below and
on medallions overhead are the names of
all the chief commercial citiesof the world
with whom this Bourse communicates,
while the clock in the hall sets the time
for all Paris. About half an hour be-
fore the opening time a company of
good-looking and handsomely uniformed
municipal guards marched into the open
space, where they were drawn up and
remained looking quietly on the mad
seem that followed. Next | heard
sound like loud chanting with stentor-
ian chorus from corner of the hall, and
fancied they were opening the services
with hymn, but it was only the auc-
tioning off of railway shares and the
bids of the purchasers. AS twelve
o'clock approached a helterskelter. race
took place to secure favorable places at
the railing, and in the coops and pens,
and to hang on to them. A bell rang
the precise stroke of noon, and the French
Drews, Goulds and Vanderbilts, all
dressed in the height of fashion, took
their places in the inner circle and
straightway went at each other, while
without and around them commenced q
furious riot, which you would have
thought first-class row were it not that
each one of the mob had red notebook
in his hand in which he was writing
away as hard as he was able, while he
yelled meanwhile with all the power of
his lungs. The vaulted ceiling above
swelled and reyerberated the wild clamor.
Men used each others backs and shout
ders for writing desks, and emphasized,
sometimes with stamping feet, as if it
were so many Dancing Fauns, some
times with slaps on the nearest conven-
lent bald heads, and | noticed the heads
of e-fourths of the brokers resembled
heaven, at least in one respect, that
there was no dyeing or parting there.
Some of the Howling Dervishes yelped
out their bids like ours, some doomed
them out like old bull-frogs, and there
was one red-polled chap in the central
space whose hair bristied with ex-
citeIhent like a porcupine's. A crazy
little man, with big hat and shrill,
resonant voice, who danced, gesticulated
and screamed like Bedlamite, when he
seemed to think more force necessary to
accomplish his purpose, waved his hat
and then flung it into the air. The coups
and pens surrounding the central in
closure were filled at once by we'll
dressed and carefully-barbered crowd of
shrleking, gesticulating madmen,
penned in so tight that they seem like
bees in hive. | expected to see them
fly at each others threats and tear each
others hair and garments every instant.
An Eighth Ward caucus was Sunday
school or a prayer-meeting in compari-
son. Pll wager that the Tower of Babel
was built with half the clamor. Had |
not witnessed the Board of Brokers in
New York, l should have taken this for
serious emeute," and expected to
see the Guards draw their sabers and
charge and disperse the raving lunatics.
1t was amusing to watch a pale, ex-
hausted, careworn official, who seemed
to be charged with taking notes and
keeping record of the bowls and yells, as
he worked sadly away with unmoved
mien, looking as if the grasshopper was a
burden. He might as well have tried to
record the howlings of pack of wolves.
A fat fellow who seemed his deputy,
oiled his notes profusely with perspira-
ton, earning his bread by the sweat of
his brow. Some exciting, war threat
ening news arrived, and then the yells
doubled, and each broker danced like
st. Vitus, and moved his arms aloft
like semophore. In the galleries where
| stood, welldressed women around me
got into culver of excitement over their
ventures and chances below. They hut-
tered their pretty skirts about, and
tossed their ribbons as madly and wildly
as the men in the ring below, and
vented their emotions in shrill femin-
nine yelps.
But women are always more furious
and reckless gamblers than men, when
once they learn how. And there were
even two or three black-robed priests up
here, who waxed quite as eager and dem
onstrative as the rest But | believe
that Indifference to filthy lucre is not
clerical characteristic, except among the
barefoot San Franciscans. Oh money,
money! Thou hast more power over
human passions than love, ambition and
hatred. Presidents of Y. NJ. G. AS,
deacons of churches, United States Vice
Presidents, Senators, men of the highest
posts and trusts, will rob savings banks
and life insurance companies, and pill
lage trust funds of widows and orphans,
and do everything that is black, base
and vile, only to get enough of it. Show
me the man who can resist its power and
1 IL show you man among thousand
The row increased until the brokers got
speeches. and hearing became impossi-
Bile, and then they got down to dumb
show and made bargains with their
fingers. The floor was strewn with
torn paper like Vallombrosian leaves.
If they had proclaimed the Commune
and had all burst into singing Goa Ira,"
and proceeded to dance the "Carmag-
nole," and to guillotine the weary clerk
and the fat one, it would have seemed
exactly zen regle.o None of these fell
lows could have been convicted of MUIR
der before Michigan Jury. A plea of