The Washington times., 1901-08-04


"A Woman's Paris" by an anonymous
writer, is little book intended to assist
ladies who wish to spend some time in
Paris to arrange their menage. 1t is
meant for people who are not rabid
tourists or ultra Bohemians, but wish to
enjoy to the full the charm of one of
the most charming cities in the world.
and that without spending too much
money. And it quite fulflls its mission.
The book will be of considerable assist
ance to the American woman who wishes
to live as the French do while she is in
France, for IL tells her frankly what she
may and may not do without unpleasant
comment by her French friends. After
reading II most American women will
probably decide not to seek French So
ciety. for the writer is extremely explicit
about the prevailing uncleanliness of i'm
agination in Partisan society. 1t is pos
sible that this uncleanliness seems worse
than it really is on account of the diff
ference between our standards and those
of Paris. but 1t is not probable that an
American can learn to like it unless
certain Generalization takes place first.
A city where an innocent, weli-behaved
woman cannot walk out by herself in
broad daylight, On a necessary errand,
without being insulted by apparently re-
spectacle men, and having evil spoken of
her by perfectly reputable acquaintances.
is not one where an American girl is
likely to be happy. unless she entirely
disreyards the opinions of tine natives.
The author has summed up the situation
as she sees it in this paragraph:
Much Partisan society will not be
found feasible for the active Ameri-
can woman who cannot give up her
freedom and remain, like a parcel, to
be taken or called for She will be
obliged to conform to the ways of the
French. and that is impossible for most
American women. The topics of
thought and conversation are different,
and those which we have taught our
women not TO discuss. in mixed cir
cIes at least; In Paris there Is no
place too public for curious innuendoes
and imputing of horrible motives to
seemingly innocent actions.
The code is so different that it
is a good plan never to dis
euss manners and morals with
French people, even with women.
They do not, cannot believe that men
protect instead of insulting innocent
girls who are out by themselves If
you give them instances, they think
you are fool and don't know. II is
time and temper wasted to talk these
things over with ignorant French wo-
derstand. The best way is to let them
see that American women are not Ii
bre only felf-reliant, at home: and in
order TO do that some people think
American women ought not TO be
spending their evenings entirely spy
ing and peerins into the worst plays
and places of entertainment in their
own town. But IL is hard work to con-
vince Americans of this, and If they
are convinced, perhaps they don't
care"
But the book is not entirely taken up
with morals and manners. There are di-
rections for housekeeping. for eating at
restaurants, for living en- pension, for
shopping, and for all the other things
which woman is likely to do in Paris.
(Boston: Small, Maynard & Coz
Familiar Flowers of Field and Car
den," by f. Schuyler Mathews is a book
for the amateur botanist, or
rather for the botanist who is only be-
to be an amateur. For such a
person it may be useful supplement to
the ordinary botanical key, for the latter
guide 10 the tyro often seems exasperat-
ingly vague. The statement, for example
that "A plant has Few stamens' is otter
r, plete with trouble; for who is to deter
minc the number which few may in
clude? The veteran somo times replies by
citing Biblical authority and reminding
the beginner that IT was said that few.
that is eight, souls were saved in the
But a book like this. containing numer-