The daily citizen. [volume] (Asheville, N.C.) 1889-1890, 1889-09-17
EUROPEAN LETTERS.
THE SPLENDID PALACE OF
FONTAINEBI-EA
ITS Gorgeous Rooms Filled with
Magnificent Relics and Living
Memories of lie Petit Corporal
ROXaIty'S Ruins. Etc.

miles bv railway was required. Arriving
there at II o'clock we were obliged,
thanks to the abominable fashion of
France, to sacrifice an hour to secure a
much needed breakfast. But fortunately
this was done in nice hotel facing the
;lmDhithcatrc. with its famous old horse
shoe stairs, so that time was not entirely
wasted.
Breakfast being dispatched as quickly
ms possible, we FASTENED to this beautiful
palace, Il palace indeed, SO rich i'll history
from the time of Louis VII to that OF the
last unfortunate emperor, Louis Nap"-
leon Ill.
1t may seem a trcSpass upon yourSpac
and the patience of your readers to give
even the slight description, which we can
not refrain from attempting, OF some OF
the principal apartments. If you so
consider il YOU need not publish it. We
will have the pleasure ot writing 1t, all
the same.
We were first conducted by the guide
into the chaprloi the Holy Trinity, rather
small in size, and chiefly worthy of note
for its beautifully lrcscocd ceiling, and
tCssclltcd marble floor, and as the place
in which the infant Napoleon Ill was
baptized.
We next aSccndCd Il stair to enter the
apartments of the great Napoleon, and
passing through three of moderate Sizc-
one, the Sale de iiainS, now Ornamcntcd
with glass painted most Curiously by
some unknown artist, which used to be
in the bath room of Marie AntOlncttC,
aud ilita ncch Tor soIllS stI'ulSv 'c''Hp' IL
moved hithcr-wc enter the most deeply
iutcrrstiu, of these, tO-Wit III Sale It.
Abdication,' III winch B"llapartc sat
and the Table Whicll supported the do'u
ment that mus nave cost nm so hlucil
pain TO sign.
Adjoining tins room IS the cahi'iet dc
travclllcr, where lie Etl"rl"uS man per,
formed such marvclS "l Iabor' ana sun
containing his desk, secretary ctc.' ana
from 1t we enter MS n"dSIialh 'cT' III WiiC'l
his bed stands, ana near II the TTio o' ms
only son, the King "j Koinc: licre aiso
are the Jewel box "i Maria ISrese an"
q strange clock given her py rope ilu"
VII.
we next enter thc 9alie 'c Nonsell
maEulnIcht room containing " ci'tu
taDic llilIc ieet Ill ula''elcr' ol WooG III
color resembling hitn"E''lS' tnc WnpN
top beng OF one soma l'lGcG; NO uoupt
some OF thc DIG trees oi N"'''''II'lI may
Scorn this, but we 90 not r'iheihocr I"
have seen SO large ana so perfect sl'eel-
men. Next is the o;tllc ue lrolle' colil'tlii-
ing the throne OF Napoleoh' anu VII"
ceiling 1nlald WITH mohoSrtlils vi l'o!lN
Al\, but attracting our atteht'"h 10 ~:
elegant chandelier which, we are lo'u'
cost 3o,oOo francs
We now reach the suite OF rooms cSpc
cially belonging to Marie A,ltoi''eltc,
FIRST, her boudOir' VIII, Hei 'l'''''S 'n"
SOFAS III oiu S"LH u'''ols'o! n'S' 'I "'iu I, IT,
floor lald Ill the iorln "i star WITH ti'
Queen monogram Ill 'nc center Se'V'l",
her hedchalhber! containing !cr ptu' o'
which the hanSiuSS SurlHsN III TlV'l'ie'S
anything we nave ycl Sech' i'eSe, W.
are toid, were lliaue III Lyons 'sl'C'''"3
Tor hcr, hul heI uoWliia'i oCc"'' 'c'! "e,"!'
they were hnlsneu, So tHeS lCl'i"','Su III
the factory until tue l,'le Oh N"l'o'eo" l.
who had them placed WiiClc t"el Ho"
are; third, the slloh Oh tLc uilloI tuIlate
Queen, IN the center OF WING" Is Hel
lovely inIald taDle, OF Whlth L.ie 'llos'IiCS
illustrate the tour seasons, WING on t,l'
manteI are TWO vases iii'ue io' lie' ~ tiil
Scvrcs factory, and the most perfectly
exquisite shadc OF DlncWe eNcl iil'"S'i'eu'
much less beheId'
Among the most interesting loo'ns II
the library, filled with books ana docu
mcnts OF French history, orhaihclteo
with paintings, but It's chlel interest |"
MS is the original draft, Ill ms own hald-
writing OF the Article OF AhdleaIlohol Ly
Petit Corporal. Its blurred ana Scratchcu
condition and many lnlGriinratioh>
seemed to indicate the terrible mental
struggle it cost the writer. Nccould not
resist the temptation to copy II. Here 1t
is verbatim:
LES puissances allies ayant proclaimc
que rEmpereur Napoleon c.aIt ic Srul oh-
Stacle au reimbursement dc la laIN Ell
Europe, PEmpereur ildcie at son sermons
declare qu il rcnonce pour luI, ct ScS sue
ccsseurs au rrone de France ct llaIlc'
ct qu il fidele son sermons II est ancu'i
sacrifice personnel meme cclul dc IA VIC,
qu il ne soft pres laire au la ben inter,
csts de la Nation France. 6ANrll, lHlt:
To this is no signature and 1t diltcrs III
some respects from that winch he Signed
next day, and we think its repetition and
inaccuracies indicate the depth OF the
mental struggle.
Not to be too lengthy, the other most
remarkable rooms are the salon OF Fran
els |. the salon of Louis XIII i'll which
that monarch was born; the salon OF
Louis TX; the saint, with an equcs-
trian statue of Henry IN over the man
tie life size both man and horse Which
will give an idea of the rooms dimen'
sious; boudoir and bedroom OF Nine
Maintenon, in which are chairs curlously
upholstered with tapcstried landscapes
1t was in these rooms that tins remark
able woman ruled France through the
weak King Louis XIV. And yet we must