Morning journal and courier., 1890-12-09

The following is home letter written
from Paris, France, by Madison young
graduate of Yale, now travelling in Europe:
During the past two weeks we have been
having combination of rainy days, work
and sight seeing. Paris weather has not
impressed me very favorably SO far. It
seems to form a drizzle which is neither
rain nor clear weather, and is just disagee-
able enough to keep you within doors. We
have just been to Versailles. The palace
buildings are very large, being about a
quarter of mile long, and as there are
three stories all crowded with pictures and
statues, there is much to see. Icannot be-
gin to enumerate what it contains. Built
by Louis XIV at such an enormous ex-
pense, it looks every inch the palace of
king. As you approach, the statue of
Louis XIV in bronze strikes your eye in
the midst of an immense court, on either
side of which are placed rows of statues
of famous Frenchmen. The palace
building is quite easily imagined. The
center is built around three sides of q
large court, and long wings on either side
complete the building. In one of these
wings is chapel and a theater. A great
number of the rooms are devoted to the
pictures that illustrate the history of
France, pictures representing battles and
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down. Then again you will come into
galleries of tombs, which are copies of
the tombs of French sovereigns and
notables and of statues. The crusades
have their apartment and here amidst the
most gorgeous decorations, the rooms
have frieze of the coat of arms of the
notables who were engaged in
the crusades. In the second story you
come little nearer to royalty, and enter
the apartments of Louis XIV. Here is
the bed on which Louis died, and the bal
cony, where the grand chamberlain an
nounced his death to the multitude, break
ing the wand and saying, 1.-THE king is
dead" and then taking another wand,
''Long live the king" Near by is his
study, dining room, library, etc. On the
of the bulPs-eye, SO called from the shape
of the windows at either end of the room,
whore the courtiers awaited the rising of
the king, and which witnessed more in
trigues perhaps than any other room in
France. These rooms all adjoin the grand
hall, where the emperor of Germany was
first proclaimed. Emperor William I occu-
pied this palace with his followers while
besieging Paris. 1t is now only few
steps to the apartments of Marie Antoin-
cite. Sombre enough they are to make
you thankful that you are not king. One
Of these is very interesting from the way
in which the glass is arranged. Standing
in certain positions in the room your head
body. It is an inexplicable arrangement,
but does not depend upon the height of the
mirrors at all. l wondered if the fact ever
suggested to Marie Antoinette the fate that
was awaiting her. Here also are her ia
vorite apartments, her bathroom and
dressing room. Here are the stairs down
which she escaped when the mob invaded
the Tuileries and the room in which the
Swiss guards were slain who defended her.
Near by is a statue in marble of Napo-
leon l as he was just before he died.
Wonderfully handsome he was. We go
now to the gallery of battles, several hun
dred feet long, its walls covered with the
battles of France. Noticed the siege of
Yorktown, where General Rochambeau
played part. The general is given
place in the picture. Again long suites of
rooms containing pictures of kings and
generals and rows of statuary. We notice
two especially-a bronze statue of Ma
poleon I of the same size, height and
dress in which he really appeared. A
statue of Finelon is quite interesting. He
had wonderful face. Back of the palace
lie the gardens laid out with the most
perfect symmetry. Right angles and ex-
act curves are here appropriated. Here
are the celebrated fountains which it
cost so much to play. We walk
through the gardens and the park to the
residence of Madame de Vointenon. Here,
too, Napoleon lived, and here is the fur
niture used by Queen Victoria on her visit
to Paris. Here beside the house are the
royal carriages and harnesses, some of
them very elaborate. Then we go to the
place fitted up for Mary Antoinette by
Louis XIV. Here are the hamlets in
which she played shepherdess, and the
grounds in which she used to frolic.
Lonely and deserted they seem now, and
the only signs of life are ourselves and a
photographer. This is the life of one day,
and we have spent many such days. One
day we went to st. Denis and saw the
tombs of all the kings Another day I
walked to st. Cloud and saw the castle
there which is now q huge ruin. But
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