Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-01-01
AN ATTRACTIVE CITY
Nice is the Most Popular in
the Riviera.
HISTORICAL VILLAS
THE TOWN PROPER Is QUITE A
BUSINESS PLACE.
Most Tourists Visiting Monte Carlo
Prefer to Stop There, in Easy
Reach of the Gaming Tables.
Staff Correspondence of The Evening Star.

STAFF Correspondence of The Evening Star.
NICE. France. December 8. 1903.
Nice is perhaps the most popular of all
the cities in the Riviera. Its location in a
valley of the maritime Alps; its mild climate
and its close proximity to Monte Carlo
makes 1t an ideal residence for the winter.
People who come here one year are sure to
come the next If they can get here. Some
II they have nothing of business to interfere
with their movements, come again and
again. l dned with Mr.. Henry Dickson of
Georgetown, who has spent about twenty
years In Europe. with, Of course, occasional
visits to the United States, and who has
passed eighteen winters in one hotel in this
city. He was telling me how he came to
spend his first winter in Nice. He had gone
to San Reno and had become dissatisfied
He said he had concluded that the far
famed section known as the Reviera was a
fraud, and had gone to Marseille to sail
for the West Indies but found that he had
not enough ready money to purchase his
ticket, and when he went to the banker S
office where his funds were deposited he
found it closed. He then decided as the
boat would not sail for some days, to post
pone buying his tickets, and in the mean
time he was persuaded to go to Nice. The
surroundings so pleased him that he aban-
been coming here every winter since.
A Business Town.
The city proper is quite business place,
for many who come to play at Monte Carlo
prefer to live at Nice and &c to that ia
nous gaming resort by carriage or tram
way, as it can be reached in an hour and
half over most picturesque route. The
business, however is largely that devoted
interests ct al oh
Is a fairly good local population. The
place boasts an opera mouse of good pro-
portions, where a well-balanced company
is giving excellent performances of stand
ard works. Besides this there are mu-
nicipal theater, a casino and a casino on
the Jett pier. There several newspa-
pers published, one daily, the others
weeklies.
Two of these are printed in English. so
you can imagine how large fn English
speaking contingent there is. One of these
latter is edited by an Englishman who has
Travelled extensively in the United States
and has done considerable newspaper work
there. These weekly newspapers come out
one on Sunday morning and the other Mon
day afternoon, but they are not always to
be relied on as to the day of publication.
For instance, last week there was a visit
here by large section of the English par
lament the members of which have been
government entertained the visitors eX-
tensively, and as the program ran into
Saturday the publication was postponed
until the story of the affair could be writ
ten up There's enterprise for you.
Have Interesting Histories.
The most of the old palaces, or villas as
they are called have formerly been owned
by old Italian or French families and near
ly all of them have interesting histories.
The Villa Arson, where L am stopping, is
part of the estate of the Count Arson an
Italian nobleman who had inherited prop
erty which included a large part of the
country surrounding the city. 1t is situated
of the town, and is old building of
stone that has been standing over 800 years.
It's gardens are among the most expensive
hereabouts, and are glorious in palms of
every variety and tropical flowers and
fruits. The view in the morning
from the upper windows-for 1t is