The Washington critic., 1888-04-07
THE CRITIC" ABROAD.
Mid-Lent Festivities at the Gay
French Capital.
GLlMPSES OF THE PANTHEON.
The High Honor IN Which the
Memory of Victor Hugo is Kept.

MfnDfy VI Ni'Abf HuEO ~ htPt
PARIS, March 27.-Whenever the
weather is fair, the Champs Elysees is
literally crowded, and the shops along
the boulevards and other resorts are
beginning TO array themselves in
preparation for Easter, with all the
pretty things for which Paris is justly
famed. The shopkeepers lay aside
their ordinary merchandise, and deck
their windows with articles specially
adapted for presents, frequently of
the most costly description. The
shops of confectioners in particular
are rcsplendent with fancy boxes Of
the most extravagant devices, filed
with expensive luXuries. Among the
curiosities to be seen in these win
dows are chariots containing large
pink eggs in nest Of grasses; the
shafts are branches of apple blossoms,
and the reins ribbons in various
colors, with butterflies made of che
nile and feathers, in the act of flying
away with their pretty burdens.
Humming birds are attached to some
of the reins, and the effect Of the
whole is truly Partisan. There are
baskets made of lace straw, contain
ing immense eggs, and surrounded
with buttercups and great clusters of
asters. The eggs are made of chocolate
measuring half yard in circumfer-
encc and tied with gay ribands.
"ArRIL FISH DAY."
IN America "April Fool" is the
feature of the day; in France it is
april Fish" The French have an
odd way of celebrating the lst of
April. Fish are sent as presents, and
they are but pretty boxes, containing
some costly gifts. Sometimes VIM
dows are filled with large straw
baskets, festooned with gayest flow
ers and ribands, while u chocolate
fish rests in the centre, having bands
OF gay silk wound around its dark
body One would not mind being
April Fooled" by such II pretty Wis
itor. The providers of bonbons and
other light and tasty edibles are doing
| their best to adorn their bags and
boxes, in which the goodies" are
contained, with all that Partisan taste
! can suggest to make them attractive.
II seems strange how any novelty can
be added, but every week, indeed
every day, there is always something
new, and one cannot but admire the
| decorations.
THE FLORISTS
are marvel in Paris; flowers never
could be arranged more artistically,
and ut this season of the year the
| flower markets are wonderfully beau
tiful. In crossing the Seine the other
day we came TO a large open space,
with neat stands ana carved wood
| coverings. As far as the eye could
reach a mass of blooming plants and
| flowers were seen. Each potted
plant was wrapped in spotless white
paper. which opened at the top, to
| show the beauty of the foliage and
blossoms, much resembling the snowy
cap which encircles the pretty sweet
face of a nun. Upon the stands were
lilacs, azaleas, roses of all colors,
lilies of the valley, hyacinths, violets
and, indeed, almost every flower
which adorns the earth in the spring
after the storms and dark days Of
winter. The women wore white
aprons and jaunty caps, and along the
river bank, against the stone wall
were tropical plants, trees, Towering
bushes, forming mass of vegetation
How refreshing is such sight
One wishes to linger and inhale the
fragrance of the sweet spring bios
Y III 10 10
as they are taken from the earth, but
you walk. a little farther and stand
spellbound before window adorned
with these same blossoms, but ar
ranged in gilded baskets, bound roun(
with yards of broad ribbons, gorgeous
chariots, brilliantly -plumaged birds
and enormous bouquets on stands
richly decorated. The exquisitely
knotted bows of ribbons in all shades
give a wonderful effect to these mas
terpieces, which will fade and spoi
so quickly, but which give so mucl
pleasure during their short lives.
THE PANTHEON,
or National Mausoleum, is the mos
conspicuous object, next to the gildet
dome of the Invalides, south Of tn,
Seine. II is built in the form of ;
Greek cross, with large dome. Tn,
interior has four naves surmounted by
the dome and separated by 1870 flutet
columns. The ceilings are richly dec
Grated, the dome splendidly painted
by Gros, for which he was paid ,
large sum and knighted by Charles Y
on his visit to the church. TIL,
. Pantheon was intended for place o
worship, but in 1901 the Convention
decided that the building should b,
converted into memorial temple
and that the following inscription
AUX grands hommes la patrie recon
naissante," should be engraved on tn,
front of the building Napoleon af
terward ordered it to be used again
as church, according to the inten
ton of the founder, at the same tim
passinga decree that it should be use,
as sepulchre of great dignitaries, of
fcers Of the empire and senators.
The inscription was afterwarC
erased by Louis XVIII., and tn
building handed over to the Arch
bishop of Paris for divine worship
Louis PHILIPPE had the inscription re
placed, carrying out the intention o
the Convention, that il should b
used as mausOleum. During tn
Revolution Of lS4S the building wa
used as the headquarters of the in
surgents, and, in 1871, il was OCcu