Morning journal and courier., 1885-11-21

|
 than ffty-two country doctors returned,
 fact almost impossible to account for, unless | the electors hit upon the plan of sending 1 them to Paris to avoid taking their prescrip | tions.
 Some French wou1d-be Republicans seen
 to me remarkably inconsistent. On the oc
 easion of the bi-centenary of the ever re | grettable revocation of the edict of Nantes
 by Louis XIV. in 1885, the free thinking pa
 pers talk large and loud of the tyrannica l act of the great monarch. But what did not force open the gates of all conVents and I religious establishments and exile their in, mates, who were received with open arms by l England and other Protestant countries, just
 as in 1885 the Huguenots were welcomed ir ! England and Germany2 Have they lost all ! memory or all sense of justice? The theory ' of "that which is sauce for the goose is sauce \ for the gander" may be admissible enough ! generally, but in this particular instance ii | savers of "cutting ones nose to spite one's I face" The same papers speak of the injury done to French wealth by the forced emigra- | tion of the rich and industrious Huguenots of the seventeenth century. But what about | the enormous resources that the religious es- tablishments took to Spain, Holland, Aus | tria, England and Americas What about the injury done to commerce by hundreds of wealthy families being obliged to send their children to foreign lands to be educated ac- cording to their viewsa And all this done in the name of liberty and at the end of the en- frightened nineteenth century.
 By the death of Mr. Ridgway Paris has just lost the oldest and most esteemed mem Der of it's American colony, it's founder in fact. Fifty years residence among the Pari- sians has made him one of themselves, and no one who did not know who he really was would have taken him for other than a true born Parisian. He took up his abode in Par is quite young. His wealth opened the doors of society to him, and personal suitability and refined manners secured him the high consideration of it's members. Mir. Ridg- way, like western Columbus, having as it were discovered Paris and it's charms, acted as a bridge for his compatriots, who during the second empire flowed into the fair city and took prominent place in fashionable circles. A prominent place they have held there ever since, and many "frank and free young Yankee maiden" has changed her fath- CTS name for French one with 8 title pre- fixed and settled down as leader of society and charming home goddess combined. For Rs hssld .faXeEad nlaes in-t the due, many people say, to the fascinating charm of their womankind. It was quite 8 new sensation for the young Frenchman, himself strange to the life of the salon, to be met with frank affability by pretty girl, for the daughters of the States are almost al pretty and seem to inherit from their Anglo Saxon forefathers none of the stiffness nor stiff starchedness of the race. To have his shy gaze met by 8 fearless one out of the lovely pair of eyes of sweet, fresh young girl, who could also say smart things and take her share in conversation generally, was novel and decidedly pleasant. So from the first the Americans had pleasant footing secured to them in French drawing rooms, and it is not much wonder that they enjoy life in Paris as they do, or that the following members of the French aristocracy are Amer ican by birth: Princess Murat, mother of the Duchess of Mouchy; the Marchioness of Chasseloup-L -Laubat; the Countess of Saint Roman, the Countess of Charette, the Coun- tess of Chevigne. The daughter of the late MT. Ridgway is herself Countess de Ganay. These ladies and many others have become French at heart as much as the daughters ot l the Crusaders, and everyone knows in Paris that they are the pride and joy of these an cient homes of Gaul as well as the orna- ments of them.
 Personally have the most delightful rec ! ollections of American gatherings in Paris | When young man had the good fortune l to many times enjoy the hospitality of Amer l ican houses I well remember how pleasant ! it was to find oneself introduced to Ameri | can girls who could not only dance, but talk I \ chatting with them I felt as comfortable as ! should have in the company of young mer I of my own age. What merry parties they 1 were and what a lively popping of cham pagne corks went on in the supper-rooms l for not to be overlooked were the suppers a 1 these partiesl The inner man was too ofte1 neglected by the French hostess in my day ! who for all refreshnent would calmly offel her guests cup of chocolate at one in the ] morning. But at American balls there wa ! sure to be an inviting looking supper-room laid out very often with little tables for tw' l and long buffet loaded with good things At the small tables fun and fiiltation wen
 on merrily, and every carried home witt
 him the recollection of charming evening The English press is forever lamentins
 that so many adaptations from the Frencl
 should be offered to London play goers. 1
 the authors of the originals were to see thel
 plays after they have been subjected to tn mysterious process of adaptation to sui
 English tastes'' they would lament, too,
 have no doubt, and exclaim with the Ital ians, Traduttore, traditore. No worse illus
 tration of this has ever been seen than May
 fair, the new adaptation of Victorien Sa1
 dou's celebrated play Maison Neuve As tn
 papers very rightly say, the pieces thus ob
 tained are generally very poor. And n
 wonder A play that has portions of it
 harmonious whole cut out is bad enough, bu
 one that has the gaps thus created filled u
 with scenes that would never have been con
 ceived by it's author is execIable; and ho, the play-going public can swallow, even afte
 dinner, such hashes as are constantly oHere them it is difficult to understand. Why d
 not managers present French plays If the
 must present them at alD as representin
 scenes of French lifea If they will not d so must exclaim, with the Daily News, tha
 it is thousand pities that the English hay
 not more dramatic authors who make thai I plays as the little boy said he built his boa I-tsall out of his own head"
 MT. Oscar Wilde, the apostle of the beau tiful, has made 8 discovery. The nigh
 dresses worn by the fair sex are neithe graceful in cut nor becoming in texture o
 color. So he says, and I wonder whether h intends adding new chapter this subjee to his interesting lecture Con Dress" H
 suggests that their place should be taken b.
 an elegantly shaped garment of soft silk l which should be of tint to suit the com
 plexion of the wearer. This kind of night l gown well trimmed with lace is, am told,
 thing of beauty in it's way, but is not pre-
 cisely new since silk underclothing has lon
 been worn by ladies with expensive taste and well-flled purses. The trousseau O l Princess Marie of Orleans contained severa
 night dresses of 8 dazzling splendor. On
 was of soft pale blue silk trimmed witt
 masses of Valenciennes edging; another wa ! of pale pink silk as beautiful as 8 maiden | blush, trimmed in the same fashion. Oscar
 thou shouldst have taken a sly peep at tn lovely little French princess trousseau
 l News has come from Russian Poland tha l a lady has fought duel with man wh
 had calumniated her. It appears that h had made to her q proposal of marriage
 which she declined. Sung by her refusa
 he began to spread ealumnious reports abou
 her Several gentlemen offered the lady t make her cause their own and to meet th
 traducer Ion the ground" This she refuse and declared that she alone would vindicai
 her. honor. Accordingly the plucky lad \ sent a challenge to the man, who could br