Morning journal and courier., 1884-11-08

I realistic that it seemed all too short. I can only say that it was superb; or, if that is a | slightly fippant way of putting it, that it | was one of the most consummately skillful pieces of acting that ever saw. As you I know, Sarah keeps to literal historic aeeura- cy, and appears on the stage with her feet | just as heaven fashioned them, unencumbered
 with hose, shoes, slippers, sandals, mocca- sins or anything else earthly. This is an ex- ploit which is not even attempted in Little Barefoot" by that lady of excellent taste, Maggie Mitchell I shall not try my hand at describing Sarah Bernhardt's feet. I pre- I sume they are very ordinary, respectable, serviceable feet If they were not it is inn probable that Sarah would exhibit them so
 unsparingly They twinkled about the stage ! bewi1deringly, but the incomparable acting was paramount to all other thoughts and speculations at the time. When ct last she | seized the lamp, and rushed shrieking from the stage, her hair and her long white robe l trailing behind her, while sparks actually leaped from the taper which she bore aloft, the play was over for me.
 Although felt that had seen an actress out of her element, I knew had seen an ac- tress of-shall say matchless?-gifts in her special field.
 ] The waits between the acts were exceeding ! ly long and tedious. I cannot get used to 1 this cheerless European system of performan- I ces without an orchestra to enliVen the entr 1 actes Here again I met the obnoxious tip ping system which has grown to monstrous proportions in France Even the usher (the | large pink bows in their hair) calmly waited \ for a gratuity after she had pointed out my | seat; and when did not understand, auda- ciously demanded it. Republicans here at | tribute this tipping system to the empire; ! but the mass of people regard it as the out I growth of 8 universal insufhciency of wages. At any rate no corporation, hotel or busi- | t71aG itG wOUlO | deemed fair compensation; for 1t is presumed | that large amount will be picked up in the I way of pour boires If man delivers tel | egram or parcel to you, for which service | he is paid by the house to which he belongs, ! he will finger for a fee. The man who cuts ] your hair expects twenty-five centimes extra
 | to put in his own pocket; hackmen, walters,
 porters, concierges, in fact all classes of la
 \ borers expect and will calmly solicit gratu-
 ity.
 | But however exasperating this evil there
 \ is one still worse; and that is paying from
 one to two francs for the little cake of soap
 | that you use. The largest hotels also insist
 ! upon renewing the candles every day at a
 high charge, even if you haven't burned an
 eighth of an inch of the previous one.
 should judge from the translations pub
 | lished in these English daily papers of Paris ' that the French press must be densely igno-
 rant about good many thing of importance | outside of France. A late number of that | representative journal, the Figaro, con-
 ! tained an article on American politics that
 I was of monumental stupidity. It went on
 | to congratulate the citizens of France that \ at an election held in Chicago O the Uni l ted States had repudiated James G. Blaine, and chosen Grover Cleveland as the pres1- \ dential nominee That this threw the reins | of government into the hands of the Dem | ocratic party, and freed the country from | grinding Republican misrule. That as Mir: ! Blaine had always been an arrant hater ot | France the people of the latter republic | should rejoice at this radical revolution in \ American politics. The article then went on to review the ''mischievops history" of | the Republican party, calmly treating it as quite analogous to the Radicals here. It was something of compliment to ! magnify our capacity to do harm to France I in this way, perhaps. but unless the writer | was hopelessly drunk when he penned this extraordinary review, he has manifested an | ignorance for which the guillotine would | seem to be a mild punishment when one | considers the responsibility and importance of the position he holds. With such teach CTS as this man, how can the French peo- pie hope to know anything about their F'sister republic2" I wonder if our leading ! journals make such colossal blunders in | discussing French politics2
 The "Paris' has not attempted to en- ! tighten it's readers on the details of onr ! party history so much but deVotes its strength to melting French hatred of the great republic. It has cu1fed out the un-- favorable comments of the American pa pers touching the French maneuvres at Foochow, and on the strength of them IS almost ready to declare war with the Unl- ! ted States To be sure, it did not have to ! go far for criticisms on the French opera lions in China since several of the New York | papers have been unreserved in expressing their unfayorable opinions; but the Paris ! need not so completely have lost its temper It characterizes the general tone of the Amer f ican press as surly, arrogant and aggressive | in reference to the Franco Chinese question. ! Never have the "gallophobes ot London l surpassed their transatlantic cousins, hoWls ! the Paris, in the odious violence of theIr ! abuse "Gallophobes' is good, but doubt | if it will have the run that Mir. Dana's adjec-
 \ tive ''hebetudinous' had as applied to a | Cleveland editor The latter I ran Across for
 ] time everywhere in Europe, not only In 1 English journals, but in French and German I sheets, especially at Constantinople. The < Paris continues it's wild screed by declaring
 I that everything which the hatred of venom ! ous malice could suggest to "ravlng quill l drivers" had been uttered against France in | America.
 | Then the said Paris acquits itself of one of I those characteristic examples of sublime 1g- 1 norance to which I have been referring, by ! adding that this is all the less excusable be- I cause Uncle Sam has no interest in China l commercially I believe our commerce with
 | China is only second to that of England, and | greater than that of all the European coun- tries combined.
 After all how absurd it is for paper 70 pretend to speak for it's whole country; and ! what puerile drivel this is which constantly l fills the columns of these wrangling, boast iOo FuroDean journals EMILE.