Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1885-02-18
A TALE OF THE COMMUNE.
Curious History OF a Famous
Partisan Landmark.
Destruction and Restoration Of the Place
Vendome Napoleon Column

Destruction and Restoration Of the Place
Vendome Napoleon Column
The famous Napoleon column In
the Place Vendome, Paris, was con-
structed by order Of the great soldier
from cannon captured in his wars, and
was designed to illustrate in bronze
the wonderful career Of the Corsican
boy. 1t was modelled after the Trajan
column, and is to-day one of the con-
spicious and notable landmarks Of the
French capital. But it has had Gu.
rious history. In 1871, when Paris
was held by the commune, it was re-
solved to pull down the pillar, and
steps were Immediately taken to I'm
dermine its base, the idea being to
cause it to fall with one great crash,
symbolical Of that national fall which
the communists hoped to see take
place as Il result Of their misguided
efforts.
A led of sand, fagots and manure
was prepared for the huge mass to
fall upon, that the conclusion to the
surrounding buildings might be lesen-
ed. The Office Journal, on the morn
ing of May IL, announced that the
column would positively fall that day
at o'clock. At the hour named a
large crowd of spectators assembled.
The members of the commune and
their staff, amounting to two hundred,
attended on horseback. Bands played
and everything was done to give the
occasion a festive character. Colonel
Mayer, commanding in the Place Ven
dome, assembled to the top of the col
umn and waved small tri color flag.
lie then tore the flag, cried Long
live the communer' tied the naghead
to the rails of the summit of the pillar
and descended. When the ropes were
frightened the band struck up the
"Marseillaise." and all eyes were fixed
on the doomed monument. ut falls!"
exclaimed the onlookers, and the great
mass bowed slowly toward the Rue da
la Paix. AS it fell it broke into pieces
in the air and struck the ground in
four distinct pieces. A loud yet dull
report followed and clouds of dust
rose into the sky, but the conclusion
was nothing like so bad as the people
had expected. The column forced it
self some way into the ground, but no
windows were broken, nor was the
square in any way injured.
AS soon as the huge fragments had
settled themselves, Col. Mayer mount
ed them and waved red flag, the
populace cheering and shouting Long
live the commune. At nearly the
same moment there was posted at
Versailles, the headquarters of the
government troops, brief yet signif-
cant despatch, dated Mont Valerian:
"The top of the Vendome column has
disappeared from view"
The excited communists Immediate
ly set about making the indignity to
the memory of Napoleon even greater
than it had already been, by breaking
the bronze pieces of the column and
throwing them into the Seine and car
rying them into hiding in different
parts of the city, so that by nightfall
of the following day not a piece weigh
ing so much as twenty pounds of the
once magnificent monument which
lowered into the air l05 feet remained
in the Place Vendome, or was any
where to be found.
But the fortunes of war changed.
The communists were driven from the
city, and order once more reigned.
Immediately an effort was made to re-
store the many ruined public and pri
vate portions of Paris, the Napoleon
column among them. Rewards were
offered for the finding of the missing
pieces, under the stimulus of which
the Seine was dragged and thousands
of out-of-the-places explored. Strange
to say, every piece of the great monu
ment was found. 1t was once again
raised, and to-day the heroic figure of
he great emperor stands as proudly
on the summit of the magnificent
pile in the Place Vendome as though
it had never been plunged piecemeal
into the Seine by an angry populace.-
CaSSeUs Magasine.