The chronicle=news., 1914-09-26
GAY NO
LONGER. WAR
CLAMPS LID

Paris. Sept. 26.-.By mail to New
York. THE lid is on gay Parce
Like a lot of other features of the
warrpf 1914, it is incpnceivablc, un-
| tlIinkabe. Yet it is true
The lid does not fit. But there
it is--pinncd on by the swords OF
seevral thousand Partisan police.
Today, with every official COM
muniuue bearing increasingly thrill
ing reports of the success of the
French and English arms in turning
back the German tidal wave which
only week ago threatened TO enSuif
the French capital, the half of the
population which did not fly south
ward is so oddly quiet and undemon-
strative as to startIe an old acquaint-
ance.
That Paris that was, simply isn't
The incongruity that remains is a
song without music, perfume /
without an odor, a champagne with
out a taste or sparkle. Faris the
municipality remains, but, without
firing shot or getting within sight
OF it, the Germans have razed gay |
Paree. .... .-
In Berlin women have been for
hidden to wear crepe because of the
possible depressing effects. Crepe
could add nothing to the fog-like SOL
emnity here. 1t is as though Paris
ywas doing pennance-under orders,
mot from choice. Imagine the Rue
de la Paix sealed. two-thirds of the
hotels closed entirely and four out
of every five shops and streets board
ed up and sealed with tag bearing
the most overworked word in the
French Ferme'' closed).
Imagine French newsboys forbid
den to cry their papers and forced
to carry signs in their caps telling
which paper they handle. Imagine
Paris papers limited to single
edition a day and forbidden either
to issue extras and forbidden either
to issue extras or to indulge in "A
headline of greater width than two
columns. Imagine the opera and
Latin Quarter and the Montmarte
closed. Imagine MaXim's cutting
out the lights at . o'clock prepara-
tory to shooing everyone out into
the street half an hour later. I'm
agine everything that once was
bright and gay. as dead as Main
street in Swayzee. Ind, after 8
O'Clock at night. ..9r
Imagine every dress suit and din
ner jacket in Paris put away in
moth balls. And Clo-Elo, Do Do
and Flo Flo and the other girls
from the Cafe de Paris gone--no
one knows where. Imagine the Cafe
de la Paix at teatime looking like
the town tavern in Painted Post. |
and then you may be able to sense
in some vague. half-comprehending |
way, what Paris is like. not under |
the monarchy, not under the empire
or the commons. but-under the lid
The Oldest inhabTtant never saw
anything like this.
Paris received the shock of plung-
ing into warm bath and finding
that ice water had been submitted
1t was some shock. She is out of il
now, but her teeth are still chatter
ing. France had planned an often
sive campaign. AT least the public
thought so. Then came the word
that the Germanic horde was COM
ing; that it could not be checked.
UhIans were seen within six miles
of the outer ring of Notifications.
The exodus began for those who
could go. For those left behind
came the lid.
A week followed with horror and
nervousness, but no fear. The
story at the front shows tliat the
French are wonderfully brave. Tt
was real test, and the elements
which cause the fizziness and the
effervescence in the French charac-
ter were precipitated. The situation
called for, and the police ordered,
calmness. To the surprise of even
those who gave the order 1t was
obeyed. AS this is written the lat
est dispatches from the front giving
news of continued French successes
are being printed. The news was
issued at L o'clock last night. At
that hour all Paris was sound asleep.
1t had been certain this news would !
come, and yet the curfew law was
rot broken to find out what had hap
pened.