Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1878-09-27
The Paris CatarOmbs
AS THEY APPEAR To AN OBSERVING AMERICAN
Paris correspondence to the Ne. York Graphic.

| AS THEY APPEAR TO AN OBSERVING AMERICAN.
Paris correspondence to the Ne~ York Graphic.
Visited the catacombs. Down among 3,
OO0.00 Of dead Gauls. Visiting days
Thursdays and Fridays of each week. Free.
REQUIRED to be provided with candle.
Went down with 800 visitors. Wal ted an
hour in the courtyard in the Boulevard
d'Enf,r. In English it means Boulevard OF
the Internal Regions" Nice name for road
leading TO a graveyard. Frencby. Each OF
the 300 had a candle. Waited for the vault
doors to open. Lat candles. Waited. Blew
EN- out Waited again. Lit candles. Wait
ed. Blew en- ont Occupation Of the 800
for an hour. Gate opened at last. Opened
at end of courtyard, where least expected.
Lit candles again. Terrific rush TO get
through first. Never thought people could
be so anxious to get into the dark and silent
tomb. Men. WOMEN. girls candles, boys,
Americans, Germans French, unlit candles,
Italians, Russians, candies Scandinavians.
lighted candles, English and Irish, all
squeezed pell-mell together. This is broad
daylight. within 200 feet of the door to the
dark and silent tomb. Candles burned
whiskers, cloths, lace and blacked faces.
Mans ann straight up in the air Couldn't
get 1t doyn again for pressure of crowd.
Lighted candle in his hand. Stearine run
ming down on $500 dress below. Lace polo
neise, silk velvet skirt. Her candle lit, too
and burning hole through rim of mans hat.
Silk hat. Policeman blowing candles out
Also working hard to get us IN n file. Then
1t ralned. Candies put out umbrellas put up.
Slowly approach 10 catRcomb door. Mar
row. Down ninety-two steps. Twenty
minutes walk through under ground passage.
Material, stone, and no variety of scenery
Wondered where the bones came in. Ar
sal last gEslafnpE Malls nf
Thigh and arm bone walls as high as ones
shoulders. Ornamented bottom, middle and
top with three rows OF skulls Middle frieze
Of tkulls and cross bones. Color OF bones
black walnut. Some growing fungi No
smell. ClAyIclts, sternmus. lbulas, iibulas,
ribs. yerlebTr. phalangtal. digiial and meta
carpal bones piled up at random behind the
walls. Tons ON tons of splenLId fertilizing
material lying here yielding no profit
Thought sadly OF the apples, pears and pea
nuts 1t might raise ii ground up and proper
ly utilized. Man ahead of me, probably
dentist. He kept pulling out skulls's teeth
Eye to business. Hands ditto. Couldn't
sink shop. Ruling passion strong in death
Bone heaps dated thus 1865 1850. and SO
on five years more or less down to the period
OF the first French revolution. In more an
cient portions quotations from scripture
mingled with remarks by John Jacques Ros-
seau to remind one what solemn thing
death Is As If anyone needed prompting or
information to such effect. Especially down
here among dead men. Came nt last To well
of clear water. Tons and stacks of bones all
about 1t. Nobody was thirsty. But lager
Just then would have sold at quarter glass.
and "whlskey sour at II dollar Came at
last to two bones OF 1896 aud 1850 First
French revolution. Citizen jacques and gull
lotIned maTuuis thrown INTO "A ditch sIl ,nix
ed up together. Lots of upper jaws in skulls |
which rOared ;hr first Mars.lllnise. Very |
quiet now. Eyeless sockets ont of which |
eyes looked at the head of Louis XVI when |
it rolled into the basket. Very quiet Sull. |
night and day they kept on grinning at the |
bare recollection. That is ms Well as tho |
lack of under Jaws would allow skulls to grin.
Curious cOmmIngling here of under laws
Duchess and fish. women marques and shoe |
makers cheek by Jowl. GIRLS RIBS and black-
smiths shunks across each other. Toe bone
Of count and finger bones Of old wash-wom.
men side by side. Skull of idiot and philoso-
pher touching each other. Crossbones of
niidel and priest wired together. But when
lhese dry bones arse. according 10 program
me, wont there be row before they're all
right again.
Came out TO air and sunshine about a mile
rom starting place. Men more OF less streak
d with stearine and white mud Women
Tito. Gave our half burned candles to old
woman at exit door. Ditto the 300 Some
body makes a haul Of candles each visiting
lay. Catacombs good investment for PARIS
Keep strangers in toyn one day more to visit
hem. Hence bones Of grandfather are turned
% some account. Probably pay as well Tor
show as if ground up in fertilizing dust.