The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1899-11-10
W|CH|TANS IN PARIS
Some of the Funny Difficult
ties of Learning French.
WORK ON THEsEXP0SITION
Mrs. Zoe Anderson Norris
Writes of Queer Sights.

Inc following IelIer CONCERNING the PC
culiar and disappointing scenes in Paris,
the fun of three Americans learning
French, and the work on the Exposition
is written by Mrs. Zoe Anderson Norris:
To the Editor of the Eagle.
Wichita people are nothing If not cos
mopolitan. Every now and then we meet
some Wichitan or other on the street.
In London, Clarence walking out one
evening with a friend encountered
whole family. You may imagine how de-
lighted we were 1 expect to see shoals
of them at the Exposition in the spring.
That Exposition! 1t will be dream II
they get it finished. At present, how
ever, it is in statu quo, as it were, all
dust and workmen and scaffolding. We
secured passes last week and went
through. All along the Seine there are
to be beautiful white buildings like those
at the Worlds Fair, If not more so; there
are to be exquisite new bridges built
across the Seine, as if there were not
enough already; in fact, every effort is
being made to insure its success. Now
that the Dreyfus affair has blown over
it will in all probability be the success Of
the decade
I always dreamed Of Paris as the per-
lection of cleanliness, but in that respect
1 was doomed to disappointment. Parts
of it are as uncleanly as London, and
that is saying much. OF all the streets
H..
worst. Then, again, parts Of Paris are
very clean and splendid with statues. 1
am taking pictures of some of these
statues My album will be filed with
views of Paris. 1 have developed into
kodak fiend of the rankest description.
Last week 1 took some lessons in the
Place de Vendome, and the result is mar
velous, I can assure you.
I understand that Wichita is booming
again. Is this the effect of the dollar
wheat, or the corn, the aftermath of the
war, or what? I am told that 1t Is, so
wonderfully improved in the way of
parks and street railways that 1 should
never know it.
1t makes ne glad to hear such news.
Cts and 1 are in the quaintest of
French pensions where no English is
spoken, except by ourselves and a boy
from Milwaukee, VIII Dodsworth by
name. We are therefore in fair way
to learn French. We read 1t already;
but there is a vast difference between
reading it and speaking it, as we discover
when we try to ask Florence, the bonnie
| to make US a fire in our room and she
| brings US clean towels, or a bottle OF
ink or a match.
That boy from Milwaukee is typica
American. He keeps us laughing most OF
the time with sheer foolishness. The
other night when they were all talking
French at the top of their voices-we
weren't in 1t at all, you see, we sat sadly
by, dumb as oysters-he looked across al
us and said: Think of that, and in the
dead of winter time too" 1t doesn
sound so funny written, but to see his
solemn face, to know that he didn't un
derstand a word they were saying, anC
to hear him comment on it Ike that you
would have laughed, too.
Sometimes in the height of their French
confabs he will catch Mademoiselle's ey'
and ask in the most serious way: "An'
did the teacher send a note to his ia
ther?" OF course we laugh and thel
Madamoiselle looks a triie disguised AM
wonders what those Americans are driv
ing at, anyway.
The other day he came home with hi
head clean shaven. He succeeded In max
ing the barber understand that he want
ed his hair cut, he said; but then he di
not know enough French to get him I
stop.
think we would be just a little home
sick here where we are out of hearing Q
our mother tongue if il wasn't for hin
It isn't very sunny today. I must qui
, and go out to see some fine white statue
set among the green trees. where yo
can stand all day long and look at Their
/ TO your hearts content II you want Il
= That is the beauty about Paris. Their
are so many charming things to see. An
= Il is city of liberty, equality and fra
= ternity." You see that written in larg
G letters everywhere. The doors are opel
J., TO the Louvre. the Luxembourg, the N
: ire Dame. the Madelaine. Everything
I free. That is, you go in free. AT tn
e churches the dearest little modest-face
t nun kneels with uplifted hands, and
those hands is a velvet pOcketbook int
which you are expected to deposit a 50
or two: indeed, the more sous the tette
; Still. a sou is very little to pay for Il
I privilege of looking at the finest stfine
Y glass windows in the world and4 Il
d paintings-the paintings! But really,
Y must stop.
Il With love to all enquiring friends,
the darkies say. I am sincerely yours,
N-nDrT.