Wichita eagle., 1889-07-06
Especial Correspondence

ciaIly Brilliant and Full of Interest at
Night.
Especial Correspondence
PARIS, June sz.-The exposition as seen by
night is replete with interest and attraction
The evening fun at the exhibition may be
said to commence long before the illumina-
lions are under way, and to be set going by
the double crack of the cannon on the second
landing stage of the EifTel tower, which an
pounces at 6 p. N. an increment or charge at
the gates and the fact that the dinner hour
is drawing nigh The exhibition has now
taken the place of the Bots de Boulogne as an
evening resort. Families, instead of going
out for their customary dinner on the grass,
take their stock OF provisions to the Champ
de Mars and spend the whole day there, even
ing included. They thus avoid paying double
fare or more when o'clock comes round, and
get more amusement at less cost
While awaiting, therefore, the hour when
the tower and the fountains are illuminated
the public give themselves up to the pleasures
of al fresco dining all over the Champ de
Mars, the chairs and benches being converted
into extempore dinner tables. Some seek re-
mote hooks out by the Avenue de Suffren,
where they may enjoy themselves IN more
quiet way; others climb the rock work be-
meath or round about the tower, or take pos
session Of the stone steps Of pavilion, while
the less bashful deliberately straddle the first
stray plank they come across and eat their
victuals in full view of those who walk about
the grounds There is little false pride about
these sturdy sops of toll, who earn their daily
bread, behead kings and queens and over
throw Bastiles.
Those, however, who, like myself, had come
unprovided with edibles, had to look out for
a restaurant. There is no lack Of eating
places where good meal may be had at
fair charge; the difficulty lies rather in MAX
ing a choice out of the heterogeneous con-
clave and in getting q seat when a choice has
been made. There is, for instance, an Arab
restaurants where pupgent cooscoosoo may be
had. as well as excellent coffee-the genuine
stuf-as thick as mucilage and as black as
the devil is painted. There is also Turkish
restaurant where kebabe and midya plakl
may be relished smoking hot, and where
creamy makalebi is brought in at dessert.
There is, again, am told, an Annamite
restaurant, where you may feast on birds
nest soup, boiled bats fried camel hump,
steved bo7vwow and such delicacies. But l
felt like baftening on something less exotic.
I eschewed as equally unsuggestive the Hun
gar-ian czarda, where genuine beer from the
brewery belonging to the freemen of the
borough of Pilsen and peppery goulash, the
national dish, are TO be obtained; also the
Russian eating house, with its Inevitable
pilav and caviar; and even the Dutch beer
house, where alluring damsels in pretty lace
colts and gold hligree ornaments smile upon
the visitor.
Suddenly the name of Spiers & Pond
suggested itself 20 my bewildered brain.
But the question at once rose: ITO
which of the five different places owned
by that enterprising firm shall l di-
rect my footstepsr' One is a largs
grill room in which two large grills
with downward fiues, exactly like those lately
set I'D in Windsor castle, have been fitted
up. This was tempting. Then they have
also temperance room for afternoon teas,
q place modelled on the Criterion, an Anglo
American bar; and finally, restaurant on
the first platform of the Efrei tower. With
out s-ther thought decided upon patroniz-
ing the latter So up ! went with batch
OF excursionists inside the lift that scales the
iron framework of the monster pile.
Although Spiers & Pond have spent
500 600 on their different concessions there
can be no doubt that the Eitfel restaurant
they own will more than pay the whole ex-
pense | found the rooms crowded with the
elite of French and foreign gentlefolk L had
nv rneaLa cut from the joint and a bottle
of old Bordeaux wine, etc.-at a height just
ten yards higher than the summit OF Notre
Dame, plainly visible in the distance. Nor
is the outer gallery, round which took a
stroll, too high to render indsttnct the
various features of the magnificent panorama
of buildings, parks and hills which, with the
winding river below. surround one ON ali
sides. The sun, as l gazed out on the lovely
prospect, was slowly sinking behind the inn
pregnable fortress that crowns Mount Vale
rien, and flooded the whole western prospect
with crimson and gold.
By the time l got down from my lofty
belveder,e and had a cup of colonial ten
at the Ceylon cafe the Examinations had
begun. ! may here state that the first at
tempt to draw the public to international
exhibition in the evening was made at Paris
In 1867. when some of the buildings on the
Champ dc Mars were kept open from until
Hmm. But this effort ended in signal fall
ure. on account of the imperfect lighting
obtained by the aid of gas and oil lamps. 1t
was the failure that attended this expert
meut which decided the authorities not to
renew il in 1873
The lighting of the exhibition by electricity
alone is quite formidable affair. There are
no fewer than 170, 900 burners of various sys-
TENS, some of them sun lights, Others Jabloch-
loif candles and a very large number of in
candescent lamps for the galleries and pavil-
ions OF the Champ de Mars and the Esplanade
des Invalides. In the central garden, terraces
and facades of the palaces there are 100 large
electric lamps The lawns, strawberries and
gates of the palaces are lit by $3.50 arc lamps
like those in the Paris restaurants. The ma
chinery hall is lighted by 296 large and l, $50
small burners, and for the whole exhibition
there are over !, 100 large and 10000 small
burners
The result is unique. Palaces, pavihons
and parterres, fountains and statues, cum
ningly devised architectural effects in green
and gold, silver and azure, are brought out
in the clear air with an intensity of relief
that suggests dream of Wonderland Elec-
tric lights irradiate the leaves OF the laurels;
fantastic luminaries glmmer among the
trees. while the flower beds and grass plots
of the central garden are fringed with long
rows of soft white lamps that give to the
grounds fairy like aspect such as has rarely
before been seen. The amount OF light dis
tributed is equivalent to about one candle for
each square foot of space The grand cen
tral dome sparkleS like a tiara cinctured with
jewels of golden flame, anu tue twin palaces
consecrated TO the liberal and the fine arts
are uniformly respondent with rows OF IN
broken light The machinery hall literally