The Birmingham age-herald., 1905-07-17

appear and wander among the marvels of the show. Henry IT. came on several occasions, while Henry " and his Queen never missed a single day. They occupied lodge in which was placed gambling taole, where brelan was played continu-
 ously. In 1611, following the assassina-
 .io .ion Of Henry w., the fair was for
 I,ihe e suppressed. That merchants from
 .1ermany and Flanders should not suffer
 loss from its temporary closing, 1t was
 reopened in the garden of the Tuileries.
 There In the light of thousands of torches. which transformed the show into an en- ehanted palace, courtiers in brilliant cos-
 tunes, and masked women women moved
 10 and fro, followed by pick-pockets. who
 relieved the one of his purse and the
 other of her jewels
 While the fair of St. Germain was open,
 in l60o, as sequence to the debauehery
 there prevailing, Paris was disturbed by
 the great increase in assaults and mur-
 ders. Lackeys, students and soldiers of
 the guard were involved in these crimes.
 The fought regular pitched battles inside
 and outside the enclosure. A lackey cut
 off the ears of a student and put them
 in his pocket, whereupon the students at
 tackled the lackeys. killing and wounding a great many of them So numerous and incessant were these deviations that
 court of justice was established and a
 gibbet erected inside the fair grounds. Sometimes two or three male factors were tried and executed in a single day
 In the following century affairs were not much better. In 17I there was fierce fight between the pages of the King and Princes of the blood and those Of the foreign ambassadors and seigneurs, as to which should have precedence iti entering the show. The combat continued for three. days, many being Killed anu wounded on either side before the guards succeeded in separating the combatants. Accidents. owing to the unmanageanie crowd were incessant The carnage eh- trance to the fair was by steep lane so narrow that the hubs or the mnee,s touched inc wall on either hand. People on foot who risked this passage II ,nes happened to encounter vehicle, were il- variable crushed Yet there were many who took this chance. ,.,.
 Louis XIV never visited the iaii' Louis KY did not dare go there' As a supplement- court fairs were organiNeo' In September. 17o0. collet undertook one in the Garden dEtoiles. Ia falre uu Paranasse. The garden was arranged ,o simulate an actual fair, with waihs, ,.aa s.a..' for tIehtrope dancers. shows. 'curiosi1ies' shops and drinking places. In ITO. 10 en- tertain the young Archduke Maximliian, v, !. a fair was built on the empiacemeh' VI the Menage at Versailles. fnere wei' savan covered streets. lined with shops. cafes stalls for mountebanks. tneatre' at which was performed comic opera. composed by Gluck especially TOT tne oo- casion. ., os e.
 Everything was sold at the fair oi sa, cermaln. wholesale merchants oroush. their wares from all parts Of france- paris contributed shops devoted to lux uries clothing games and refreshmeh's' 's' Each kind of goods had its distinctly IS signed locality so that In that par.icuia' trere wes completel order and precision. In one single shop was found only ropes de chambre of Marseilles; Tn ano.nei Rouen or de Gournay or Darnetai cio'ns i. linen sheets from Holand or Genoa po,n' lace: Alencon diamonds, Flemish pie trres Portuguese was selling Ch,nese uaras ambergris or finer porceiains. pro,,encaI oranges and lemons; a Fer eian oriental fabrics; an Armenian 'ea' chocolate and coffee. Linen s' ha berda shers. jewellers, goldsmiths, nat ters, bootmakers and score or o,hei special tradesmen had each ms own shop devoted specially to the particuiar object he had for sale. So IL was "i.n !. barbers surgeons and tooth pullers. Al evarv turn were to be met confecuoners, na strv shops and lemonade stands. Gamp- iina houses where dice were thrown were numerous also what were calieu ies blanoues. lotteries In which the Whi,e ticket lost. This was one of the favorite ways of gambling in the seventeenth cen, tury, One of these lottery dealers couiu afford to pay 1400 francs Tor the two weeks lease of house in the tair. ihe evil became so great that parliament passed A law forbidding games of chance within the limits of St. Germain Ine borreeoisie were particularly enticeabie. Many of them lost their entire fortunes m these gambling booths Even Henry lV.' as conservative and parsimonious III III money matters as he was. was 'pincneu to the extent of 2800 francs. In the uriih- ing shops decorated with mirrors, pie lures and chandeliers flowed incesshh. streams of rataha hypocras, cider wines and spirits. In the early years of the seventeenth century when tobacco first came into use 1t was welcomed with en- th,isiasm at the fair of St. Germain. It was served there to amateurs by keepers of driking houses in the form of snufr or for smoking.
 The fair was considered the above Of everything marvellous and delicious that the world could offer. It was the para disc of mountebanks. falSirs, fortune tellers. and the entire confraternity or Bohemia.
 A visitor had every form of amusement at his disposal provided he could pay the price. If he preferred the marvellous there was the famous Gonin, with ms sleight of hand performances. or an Egyp- tian fortuneteller to assure him he would live to be hundred In the quarter de- voted to magic he walked between lines of booths decorated with toads. black cats. skeletons and immense stuffed liz- ards. If he liked monstrosites there were calves with two heads, dwarfs and giants. If he had a taste for history and the arts, there were mummies. automa- tons and wax figures of noted people. There were a hundred or more booths where were performed feats of strength and of agility. It was at the St. Ger main far in 1749 that the first rhinoceroes seen in France was exhibited. It brought a fortune to its owner Not the least in- teresting part of these various side shows was the parade that preceded each per formance or exhibition Before the better class Giles. Scaramouche and Columbine indulged In comic dialogues accompanied by blows and kicks. All this was fol- lowed by such clamor taht the neighbors complained. The cure of St. Sulpice, in conseuuence, during the last half of the seventeenth century procured an edict forbidding performances on Sunday and saints day, when religious services were being held.
 In 1661 9 certain Raisin. organist or Troyes. exhibited at the fair q spinet with three sets of keys, of which one repeated the air played on the other two The young King. Louis XIV, charmed and frightened at the mystery. insisted tnon having it explained to him. It con- sisted in having little son of the or ganist concealed in the body of the instru- ment The King was so delighted at be-