The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1897-08-18

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and the same disinclination to rush in
to labor saving methods which would
throw men out of employment. The
city is still lit by the old fashioned gas
lamp mainly. and most lavishly lit at
that. Standing one evening on a public
square, or '.place, / counted within a
radius of one block 200 lamps, with an
uncountable number within sight in the
distance. On ordinary squares they are
placed very closely together, making
Paris a brilliant sight at night. These
lamps must be lit every evening and
put out every morning by hand. and 1
am told that some nights the round is
made again and the gas turned lower.
Again, the public buildings and pic
ture galleries, of which there are many
in Paris, are foored as a rule with hard
wood laid in marqueterie patterns.
The care Of these floors is very great, as
they are kept in order by the periodical
application of beeswax and afterward
.sfrotted'' over every inch OF their sur
face with stiff bristle brush. The rub
bing is done every morning, and on
Mondays the galleries are closed to the
public for thorough going over. The
amount of space to be gone over IN the
Louvre alone can be estimated, since it
takes three hours just to walk, without
stopping, through the various apart
ments. There can be 10 mere interest
ing sight than row of workingmen
cleaning these floors, eight or ten in
line, each with 8sfrotte" brush strap
ped to one foot, sweeping out over the
immense halls right and left in long
strides and keeping as perfect time as
in dancing or skating step.
The care of the streets here must also
keep large force at work The horses
being kept smooth shod "a piece of cru
city quite III contrast to the care for the
people), it is necessary to throw sand at
intervals over the streets to lessen the
slipping. For this purpose piles of sand
are kept always in readiness along the
edges of the wide payements. The mud
from the streets themselves is swept
daily into the cutters, which are in turn
flooded every day, even in the poorest
streets. and the refuse swept into the
sewers with birch brooms.
The amount Of precision and care
which goes into many kinds of work in
this city is most interesting. These
same piles of sand when not being used
are kept mathematically smocthed into
symmetrical shape.
Huge piles of coal dust stand waiting
in places to be pressed into bricks for
burning, but while waiting they are
shaped carefully. as if by rule and COM
pass into big, truncated pyramids, and
after they are pressed into briquettes or
egg shapes, these Will be arranged in
the most regular order into piles, with
even an attempt at ornamentation.
This attention to detail is sometimes
carried to an extent that might be call
ed trivial if not regarded in the light
of work-that is paid for-for needy
fingers. For instance, in the "charcu-
teries," or porkshops, all kinds of
cooked meats are exposed for sale. The
windows of these shops are study in
the ingenuity and patience displayed
in making these wares attractive, but
it is always in the direction of extreme
care in the details Of preparing them.
The butcher shops are also study.
Most of them have a row Of young
dressed pigs hung up in symmetrical
order, the smallest in the middle and
the tails decorated with bunch of rib
bon or flower. The legs Of mutton
will be hung in the same order and in
cased in white paper bags with lace
work edges.
The bakery windows are also mar
yels, with their countless varieties Of
little cakes and honbons, many Of them
seemingly too small to be handled by
working fingers, yet each bearing its
special evidence of care and precision
in the making and ornamentation. The
lump sugar comes in bags with the
brick shaped pieces arranged one upon
the other with the precision of a well
laid wall The first thing which caught
my eye on entering Paris was basket
four feet high filed with water cress,
which had just come in to market from
the country. The cress was tied in
punches and so arranged that it gave
the effect of the basket being lined
throughout with the cool, green leaves,
making Of it thing of beauty which
had kept nimble fingers busy and
brought its compensation in sous. A
waste of time is the first instructive
criticism, but it begins to look as if the
American Interpretation of waste might
need overhauling. Especially is this
true if the question be asked what does
our nation do with the minutes saved
at such an expense Of vitality and such
destruction Of the courage and virtues
Of the less independent laboring people:
MRS. c.. Fl. STONE.
Paris.
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