Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-09-19
PARIS MOURNS BUS
Madeleine. BaStiIIe Vehicle VIC
tim of Progress.
ROUTE LAID OUT BY KING
Inaugurated in 1662-Roof Seats
Used in 1858, But They Were
for Man Passengers Only.

From the London Standard.
The memorable march of progress has
made another victim in Paris. and all the
press is full of obituary notices of the
famous old Madeleine astille omnibus.
Many public character has had less
notice. and few perhaps have been
mourned with 80 many such eloquent ex-
pressions Of regret. II not exactly lost
in antiquity. the origin Of the omnibus
dates back long past the memory Of the
grandfathers Of the oldest Inhabitants.
The invention Of this honest old public
servant was due to Pascal, who lived in
the second half Of the seventeenth GEN.
fury. The "carrcsses a cinq soils" intro
duced by him were inaugurated with no
little pomp March IL, 1862. The routes
were fixed by the king, and along them
rolled in majesty seven splendid coaches
between the Porte St. Antoine and the
Luxembourg. the Place Royale to the
Rue st. HonOre, and the Luxembourg to
the Pointe St. Eustache. These ances-
tors of our motor omnibuses carried only
six passengers at first. and were not at
all adequate to the demand. They en-
joyed brief popularity for. some ff-
teen years and then disappeared without
their loss being much mourned.
General Omnibus Company.
1t was not till fifty years later that 2
certain M. Baudry, who had made ex-
periments at Nantes and Bordeaux, OBJ
tanned permission from the prefecture to
start a general omnibus company" in
Paris. chronicler of the day, Maxine
du Camp. wrote: The name alone Is
chef doeuvre. 1t is easy to remember,
is striking by it's exotic origin and cos
tains a complete definition The new
enterprise began with 100 vehicles, with
fourteen seats. 1t took ten years to Sc
cure the concession, and it was not an
immediate success.
Gradually. however. the real conve-
Silence of the service. when other means
of locomotion were not at the disposal
Of the public, took hold Of the Parisians.
and Of course this led to demands for the
establishment of other lines and fresh
companies. Every one had a different
the Swallows" with yellow bodies and
black bodies; the "Gazelles." the Con
stantines,' the Danes Blanches," the
green "Parisiennes," the up-to-date Elk
celIentes." the striped 'Ecossaises." with
many others. The Grands Boulevards
were served by the Danes Blanches."
the predecessors Of the dear old brown
Madedeine-Bast now moribund. and
they worked the line in two sections.
Beginning Of the "Imperiale.
All these omnibuses were made to carry
fifteen or sixteen, until the ''imperialeJ
or roof seat, made its appearance much
later-in 1853. This elevated position had
many advantages, and soon became pop
ular, although it required considerable
agility to reach 1t by the perpendicular
and rudimentary steprals. 1t was ex-
posed to the sky, and in rainy weather
.s,fn ND
nearly thirty years the company turned
deaf ear to the demand for roof to
the "imperiale' and a ladder that the
fair sex could negotiate-with the gra-
cious permission of the police. who up
till then had forbidden its delights to
womanhood.
From that time onward the type
changed very little and the sheltered and
accessible 'imperiale" became sort OF
comfortable rolling armchair for the phi
losopher and student. who could at his
ease view the panorama of Paris slowly
unfurled as he sat at his ease above 1t
all. The Madeleine Bastille' was always
the favorite line for true Parisians and
coaches drawn easily along the most
crowded and busy thoroughfares were
scarcely ever out of sight for more than
a few minutes.
New Motor Vehicles.
The new motor omnibuses are much
cleaner better lighted and more hygienic
without doubt but nobody can help a
slight feeling of sentimental regret at
the disappearance of the old vehicles.
They were such peaceable. homely. tame
creatures. reminding one of the elephants
on whose backs we delighted to ride as
children. 1t was always a pleasure on
fine day to climb on the back of one OF
them-we loved the pacific old beasts.