Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-01-04
I Correspondence of The EVENING sr,n.

stan Correspondence of TIE EVENING STAR
NICE, December Is, 1889.
Beautiful blue sea, blue skies, balmy air and
gaieties Of various kinds are what the visitor
| expects to find at Nice, and he il seldom disap-
pointed if he stays long enough. The popular
winter resort is not at its height now, although
there are many people here. They are not the
kind, however, that sets the pace. Some are
| invalids who seek q southern climate to pro-
long life. Some are here because they are
much less liable to be sick than at their north
ern homes, and some are simply sojourners
who come for a few days just to see the place
and then of for some other interesting point.
The winter population OF Nice is largely COM
posed Of English who find the climate much
preferable to that Of their own fo2gy little isle.
As general thing. however, they manage to
remain at home until after Christmas. The
real Nice season ID not expected to begin until
Januarv. Then there will be all the fetes re-
eeptions, concerts, &C., that one could wish.
just now, however, Is as good time as any to
SEE NICE FOR ITSELF.
To be sure it is little chilly toward evening,
but it is delightful until about o'clock in the
afternoon, when wraps become very desirable.
/ have heard number say that the weather is
much colder this year than usual Nonsense"
said an old English dowager the other evening
when she heard the same statement, Il have
been coming here for fourteen years and it's
always just about the same"
stroll on the pride OF Nice, the Promenade
des Anglais. which extends along the beach,
will serve al a very satisfactory introduction to
the place. 1t might more properly be called
the promenade of all nations for one is sure to
meet French. Italians, Russians. Germans,
English and Americans. all enjoying the pleas
ant sunshine and balmy breezes.
MANY PooDLEs.
It is great place for pets. About every
other woman is accompanied by dog with
string to it and the pampered canine is invari-
ably treated with all the care and attent on
that would be required by a delicate child
Mrs. Cleveland's famous poodle Hector has
many relatives here and they are shaved in all
styles. One black poodle in particular accom-
panes bis master In his strolls daily aud IN
variably carries in his mouth a briar wood
pipe held jauntily at an angle. Some of the
women wear handsome clothes, but by far the
majority have very dowdy appearance, and
for style Nice will not compare with many Of our
popular watering places The famous promenade
is no, for the exclusive use OF the visitors who
contribute SO largely to the revenues of Nice.
1t is favorte resort for peasants and iaboring
classes, and the smooth wide walk furnishes a
capital place for the young Nicois to play
marbles. Their principal game Is very similar
to the American ''roly boly." The players
shoot like American boys, too, but they
haven't as strong "knucks." Indeed their
hands look too cold and stiff to do anything
quiring fexibility of the fingers. In both
England and France the hands and legs of the
children are so little protected that they al
ways look half frozen when the weather is at
all cold
A PRIMITIVE LAUNDRY.
The laundry business of Nice is quite extern
sive, but even John Chinaman would be
astonished at the manner in which it is
carried on. In the first place the washerwomen
have no conveniences at home for washing
clothes or anything else, SO they betake them
selves with their clothes to the river Paillon,
which runs through the city to the sea. The bed
of this stream is over hundred feet wide, but
the river at this time of year is nothing but a
narrow, shallow brook, which winds its irregu-
lar way among the smooth stones which form
the river bed Upon arriving at the edge Of
the stream the clothes are emptied out in pile
and the washerwoman occupies the basket,
kneeling in it and tucking her skirts we'll in
Her wash tub is the stream and her washboard
a fiat stone or piece Of plank. There she kneels
and scrubs all day long. in good weather and
bad. Half-grown children. or perhaps the head
of the house. hang the clothes out to
dry on the rocks or on lines In the river
bed. In this way every available
place along the stream is occupied,
and the number of women so engaged is re-
markable. As one glances up the river the
sides of the stream are almost entirely hidden
by women and clothes. The bed of the river is
thirty feet or more below the level of the town
and is reached by flights of steps leading at in
teryals from the quais above. On either side
solid masoIary reaches from the bed to the
street, capped with an iron railing. The Paillon,
It would seem, Can never burst through its
stone banks no matter how the torrents may
pour down from the mountains. Washing
clothes is not the only thing that strikes the
stranger here as behind the times.
THREE MEN TO DO ONE MANS WORK.
work painting the walls OF the panorama build
ing. A long extension ladder was placed
against the wall and reached well toward the
roof. One man climbed nearly to the top and
waited. second climbed half way up and
hung bucket Of paint there and q third
handed him two bamboo poles about twelve
feet long with an ordinary paint brush fastened
at one end at an angle of about forty-ti de-
grecs. He dipped one brush in the paint and
handed the pole to the man at the top who be-
gan painting with it, and by the time the brush
was dry he passed 1t to the middle one and re-
ceived the other full Of paint. So much paint
was dropped in the transfer from paint
pot to top of the ladder that took
care to take my stand on the
other side Of the street. The third man bus
tied around the foot of the ladder to see that
everything was all right and that the men on
the ladder had all they wanted. So that there
were three men at work, but really only one
paint brush was piled. A painters scaffold
lowered from the roof would have enabled all
three to work steadily. But then people in
this country seem unwilling to do things diff
ferently from their grandfathers. While walk
ing down back street the other night heard
sounds of song and laughter emanating from a
well-hghted window on a level with the side
walk. l stopped a moment to glance in.
About twenty maidens were ranged in a row
hard at work, each with a big pan in her lap
and what looked like a mammoth nutmeg
grater reaching from the pan to her chin. On
The latter. with a movement like that of q Sec
ond violin player, she scraped green oranges.
The grated rind fell into the PAN to be suisse
quently candied, and the fruit was thrown aside
TO be fed to the pigs and cows.
HOW FRENCH BOYS FIaHr.
1t would be strange sight for Washington
school boy to SEQ a couple of French boys
lighting. They do not seem to know how to
use their hands. but kick like mules. saw two
little fellows along the quar-, the other morning
quarreling. They were egged on by their COM
panions, as is the custom with boys all over the
world, and each dared tine other. Their voices
rose higher and higher. until finally each
| dashed his hat on the ground, and both stimuli
;aneously threw an arm over the quai railing
ana began kicking and occasionally slapping
| they did not use their fists at all and their
| slaps even were more like pushes, to give a
better opportunity to kick. They kicked too
| by raising the foot and lunging forward. not
with good swing from the hip The bows kept
up their warfare until a passing visitor ella pued