Lexington weekly intelligencer. (Lexington, Mo.) 1871-1887, 1884-12-06
OUR NEW YORK LETTER.

EDITOR INTELLIGENCER:-I the ear
ly part of the present century there
was all exhibition in the city of London
which the cockney Of that day called
Simmons Wax Works. It was a col
lection Of horrors and monstros1tics, III
which Guy Fawkes, Daniel Lambert,
Dick Turpin, Tuttle the murderer, and
many other famous and disreputable
people took part. 1t fulfilled its mis-
sion, and finally passed that bourne
from winch even Wax Works do not
return, and was superseded over forty
years ago by the famous exhibition of
Madam Tussaud. This exhibition
starting at first with very few fig
ures, in the course of years it became
one of the sights of London, and the
man who visited Lonuon without call
ing on Madam Tussaud was thought to
be very Indifferent specimen of a
tourist.
In my own country we have had sew
eral collections of wax works. Old
Pears Museum had a number of dia-
bollcal monstrosities, and "Our
Savior's Last Supper" at Barnum's
Museum is still remembered by those
who are now grandmothers and grand
fathers. Our Centennial Exhibition in
1876 awakened us to a sense of the pos
sibilities of plastic art. To many that
exhibit was revelation, and it was a
genuine pleasure to all lovers of plastic
| art in New York that we saw the in
auguration of the Eden Musee. Many
thousands of dollars have been invest
ed in this admirable exhibit which in
| all of its elegant surroundings far sur
passes the famous London exhibition.
| There is nothing in Paris to equal it,
and when it is more generally known,
it is bound to become one of the mos,
popular exhibitions in the city. 1t is
| impossible in the brief space necessarily
allotted to amusements to give even a
remote idea of the excellence of this
| admirable exhibition. The Eden Musee
is all elegant structure situated OH 23d
! street in the most fashionable part OF
| the city. AS you enter the door you
see couple of English tourists who
are evidently preparing to go i'll to see
/ the show. They have paused to ex-
anime bill and you are Mortified to
( observe man in the act of picking Ills
pocket, and Just as you are about to
give the alarm You observe with salts
| faction that he is watched by police
! man who is looking around the corner
of the box Office. You watch the
group for some time AID as they fail to
| move you realize tor the first time that
! they are part of the exhibition. Enter
ing the vestibule you are confronted by
several grand groups-one represent
ing the principal rulers of the world,
and the other representing many of tie
most notable people in the world OF
literature and art. In from: sits Victor
Hugo, one of the mob est heads in t. c
collection; near at hand and looking
sweet as pink is Patti whose golden
notes have charmed the ears of that Sc
lect set who can afford to pay hel
$4,000 night for the privilege. A
striking figure is that of the great artist
Meissonier-very French; no need to
tell you his nationality. The face is
strongly marked by superciliousncss
and vanity, but it is not to be wonder
ed at, for great as he is i'll art, his
intolerabIe egotism makes him any
thing but pleasant companion. The
great Gerome, whose works are known
and admired wherever art has a lover,
sit, near Hans Markart, whose mag
nlticent works have been the wonder
and delight of both hemispheres fol
the past fifteen years. Saddest of al
when looking on that group to think
that the immortal genius which crea.
tied SO much that was beautiful anC