Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1897-03-30
FROM PARIS, MAINE, TO PARIS,
FRANCE.
No. 10.

No. 10.
| THE STREETS OF PARIS.
(rrom our Special Foreign Correspondent
PARIS, FRANCE, March 8, 1897.
To say that the streets Of Paris are a
panorama, a kaleidoscope, q circus and
a menagerie, Is putting It but mildly. ii
they don't have performing elephants,
they have performing men and women
and dogs and horses gotten up In more
fantastic shapes than you ever saw In
any circus.
We wonder what you sensible people
In the country would think, were you to
look out and see your neighbor's shaggy
dog shaved hslf-way up his body from
the caudsl appendage. except little
tuft left on the extreme end, and another
tuft lett about b, lf-way up the tail, and
several other little tufts left on the hips,
or back, or sides, In the shape OF star,
or crescent. or ring, and sometimes the
coat-of-arms Of the House to which II
belongs. Around the legs, just above
the feet, are left little rings Of fur, and
actually, In some cases, we have seen
bracelets clssped around the fore-paws
The head OF the poor creature is shaved
and combed, In some cases TO resemble a
man. with moustachio or pointed beard,
or mutton-chop whiskers; sometimes TO
look like a monkey or other hideOus-
looking brute animal, or human animal,
whichever may suit the fancy OF the
owners OF these piteous looking Great
ures. The poor things themselves look
shame-faced, and az IL they wanted to
hide their heads. To see the noble head
OF dog caricatured in such a hideous
fashion IL enough to make one who loves
and admires that most sagacious, intelli-
gent and faithful animal, weep with
shame, sympathy and disgust. They
must suffer extremely with the cold, and
there Is no more pathetic sight to be
seen than their trembling, shiyering
bodies and appealing eyes.
| No doubt Il would be hard for you TO
believe, were you told that they have
dog BARRIERS here. whose entire business
Il Is 10 shave these dogs at stated inter-
walls, or whenever their coat gets started
out where it has been cut of, and other
wise wash and comb them, and adjust
and trim, and apply the perfume and
bay rum, the same as they would to any
man who came TO be bsrbered. The
dogs sit around in row, waiting their
turn, aud you expect any moment to see
them pick up the newspaper and adjust
their eyeglasses and light cigar, IA Is
the habit Of their masters In similar
condition.
OF course IL Is only the rich and snob-
bish that affect all this, but one might
think the entire population OF that
stamp, for the streets are full Of such
animals, two-legged and four-legged-
the two-legged on one end Of string.
| md the four-legged on the other. IL
Mould be hard 10 tell by the looks which
| IL the most civilized. but we incline 10
| the notion that II Is the object on the
OF end of the string. IL is not always
the women that affect this fool custom,
for the men are just as silly. One day
we saw a dog coming with strange
looking countenance, presently We
saw a woman coming with the same
kind OF a couatensuce, and We remarked
70 our companion that we were sure that
dog belonged 10 that woman; which sure
enough II did, or the woman to the dog.
whereupon our friend told us that 1t was
a particular fashion or custom, for the
people here 10 have dog that looks
| like themselves, or 10 make themselves
look like their dog.
Another curious fashion that is fol-
lowed TO great extent In the families
OF the swells, Is that when the baby and
the dog OF the house are taken out for an
airing, the costume Of the nurse who
perambulates the perambulator, must
agree with the complexion OF the dog.
For instance, we saw one Sunday the
dog OF one particular section OF the
parade on the Bois de Boulogne that
happened 10 be white, so the costume Of
the nurse and the baby must also be
white, and the baby carriage painted
white. Likewise, II the dog is grey
hound, the other preliminaries must be
gray TO match, and even in the case OF
the much tabooed and plebeisn "yaller
dog" il Is the same.
There is certain contingent OF nurse
girls who are compelled to parade their
vocation By regalia, consisting Of long,
wide ribbons OF gaudy colors, depending
from their caps to the ground, and long
cape OF equally vivid eoloring, so that
when the place is owned by the nurses,
the babies and the dogs. which Is usually
the case the entire year, ii Is quite gor-
geous sight, for we see all the colors Of
the rainbow, and good many that the
rainbow never dreamed OF.
The horses also come in for their share
OF mutilstion OF their covering, for many
Of them are also shaved In about the
same manner as the dogs, for sometimes
the coat will be left on the legs, and
sometimes on part Of the body; and the
tail is always docked short of. But the
poor horses Of the working class are the
ones that have to suffer. Blocks away We
can hear the cruel whips lashing the
trembling sides Of the poor beast, and 1t
Is absolute torture TO ride In one of the
cabs of these Jehus who lashes his horse
all the way. II you ask him to desist.
he only swears at you.
One day friend came rushing to our
room in the most hysterical manner.
When she had sufficiently recovered to
tell us what had happened, she said she
saw a horse die on the street, and the
| owner lashed and pounded and kicked
the poor beast ip its death agony. For
days she did not get over the horrible
sight, and could see nothing but the
noble head Of that cruelty abused ami
NAL swaying from side to side. appealing
and beseeching its heartless master to
be left alone, and seeming to say, as she