PARIS.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 19, Issue 1335, 29 May 1872, Page 2

PARIS.

[FaOM OUJI OWN correspondent] (ConcludedJ. March 33. The Communists are very quiet, considering that 21,000 of them have been liberated from prison and are now in Paris; having no cannon or Cbasaepots they are not considered a* belonging to the*« dangerous classes." The anni\ ersary of the Commune passed off here without any tyouble. 'ft afforded the opportunity of knowing that the city is as full of soldier*, &c. as an egg of meat, and that tin' authorities will not btv

caught napping. There were patriots; who drank deeply on that day—others who flocked to the-singing and dancing: saloons.; the newspapers supplied a history off the w red date*," which was responded to by Communistic annotations, on lonely doors and shady walls. Many persons visited the resting places, of martyrs to duty;, at the- Buttes of Chaumont a painplilel was largely sold, "The History of New Caledonia* forthose who- v ould. like to* go. there." It, appears to be a land flawing with milk and honey—and gold; all that is required to make it a paradise is a few diamond fields \. perhaps. Roeheforr,. Assi & Co* when they arrive may discover the>e. The ilay after the anniversary a Communist was executed at. Satory- -one Preuu de Wedel. He was. a baron by birih and a civil engineer by profession. The Commune found him undergoing his eighteen months imprisonment for swindling; as- he had literary tastes, he was made librarian of the prison, then promoted to be a> colonel. In this capacity he commanded the execution of JVL Chaudey, editor of" the Siecle, a hostage, who leaves a. widow and three children, Wedel tired the coup de grace into* the deceased's ear, and received himself the same a few days ago. He* was conceded the samefavor as was acceded to. Chaudey—to* die with the eyes unbandaged. Hedisplayed no cowardice at the"stake"; he ordered the soldiers to. fire; fortunately: they had toolwjy their, officer, or the poor priest who knelt by the side of the condemned: would havecertainly been shot. The executingparty consists of twelve soldiers.—privates, corporals,,, and fourare charged twaira.at the head, four at, the hearty and four at the-.breast of. theprisoner. The distance is. six. yards;; eight balls pierced, the man's, bodythrough and through.—three- traversed, the heart. When a culprit brinks, heis tied l>y cords to the post; his eyes; bandaged, and -vhen killed, offers, a. terrifying spectacle as the troops pass by. A reporter who was "doing" Wedel's. execution,, fainted when the disehargeof rifles took place the only vehicle-at hand was the van that conveyed* fchecondemned from. Versailles to. Satoiy.;, on recovering, the reporter inquiied. where he was, and on being informed in the "• bns," in. charge of; two .gendarmes, he swooned away, before being assured they, were condueting; him, to the doctor. After every execution there is an. ugly rush on the part of soldiers oft*" duty and gamins to. pick up the spent, balls, and any portions of the deceased's; clothing shot away. These souvenirs; sell well. The cigar that Ferre bit in two at the moment tlie balls struck; him, wan sold for forty francs. Barnwu. is expected in Paris in a few days;, hecould find materials for a new * Museum " in the relics of the Commune, To. illustrate how indifferent the public has become respecting the Courts-martial,, the papers ceased to publish the pror oeedings of the trial ot the twenty-three, men accused of assassinating fifty-seven, hostages in the flue Haxo, and merely give the punishments awarded, and; of which seven of the accused have been, condemned to death. Opinion is divided into two classes respecting theunfortunate Communist prisoners—one> would have them all shot, the other all pardoned. The University of Medicine has a line row on its hands. Dv Dolbean is one of the professors, and on taking his chair was immediately hissed* hooted, and assaulted with sous, potatoes, a dog's tail, and those hard-boiled, logwood colored eggs—veritable bullets, which 1 • T it is the fashion here to eat during Itent, In vain the doctor tried to explain, and the Hector to obtain a hearing. The unpopular piofessor stands a good chance of being cut up in little pieces. The history of the war is this. A poor soldier who had fought and bled during the first siege, obtained the situation of gardener, on the conclusion of peace, in the principal Convent of Paris. The Coinmune compelled him to bear arms, plaped him in a prominent out-post, wrjere he was wounded, and carried to trie hospital JBonjeau. When the troops. entered the city, Ur Boll'can ordered this Coinmuuist. patient out. of the hospital ; the Sisters of Charity implored that the unfortunate man might re* main; the inteili-pujuls. refused toexfr

cute the doctor's orders; so he went himself amS called the guard, who quickly made the patient march to be shoe On his way, the prisoner met General Vinoy, whose faithful orderly he had been; the general believed his tjervant's story and ordered his release. This being the case, wherever Bob Sawyer's head may be, there can be no doubt his heart is in the right place. There is not much business doing in Paris at the present moment; commerce views the morrow as too uncertain, and trade distrusts to-day. Bankruptcies are more numerous —principally among tailors and outfitters; there is a general reluctance to give much credit, and to have all bills paid as promptly as possible, keeping the proceeds in the cash box, hence, there is not any great demand for money, and gold and silver are as plentiful as banknotes. This contraction of industry .cannot continue. At this season— contemporary with the arrival of swallows, an exodus takes place from the Provinces to Paris, of masons and tradesmen connected with the building trade; there is not much building going on now in Paris, but the corporation has .called upon tho»e wealthy capitalists who have leased building sites, and hesitate to use them as bound by contract, to commence operations: forthwith or such shall be done at their expense. This decision will give much employment. in the district of Champagre the cul tivators ha«ve made good some of their losses by the war in the raising of snails for the Paris market, whero they bring from 2 to 3 francs per hundred—and which are known by the name of " Champagne oysters," as famous in their way as the Strasbourg pdtes de foie gras. During summer, after a heavy dew or rain, the peasants catch the snails, as they crawl out with house on back, tor a promenade; contractors buy upthernollu-ks^enclose them ins kind .of pork, fatten them on salads, thyme, mint, paisley, &c. When large enough mot to pass tli rough a ring of a certain oize they are fit for the table. The Zoological Gardens a#e now nearly re-tenanted. At the commencement of the war the most valuable inmates were sent to board and lodge in friendly countries, those that remained -experienced some of the horrors of the siege; food running short, the commonest of the animals were sacrificed ; then came the turn for the choicest; two (elephants were sold to the butchers for 27,000 francs; three antelopes realised 4,000 francs; and two camels 5,000 jrancs. The excessive cold killed off the monkeys and many birds. The Gommune brought fresh misfortunes; the shells fell so plentifully that no assistant dare venture from his hiding place to tend the inmates; one man was killed, and two others died from their wounds, received while endeavoring to do something for the collection; the projectiles killed two valuable horses, a Jerusalem ass, llama, some monkey was found dead, with a deer, monkeys, and pheasants. One few splinters of a shell gathered in a corner of his cage ; a panther was set fiee by a cannon smashing open ius crib, and the animal did great damage. The Communits furthermore tared sumptuously on the birds— many of which had been purchased at a fabulous price. The doctors, during the reign of Louis XIV , were eminently " polished gentlemen." On receiving their diploma they guaranteed to cultivate friendship and good will; but oftentimes they fought ab the bedside of a patient, as cabmen do occasionally for a client. The young doctors were bound to remain standing in the presence of the elder memWs of the profession, and were bound to regard the secrets of their patients as inviolable. Candidates for diplomas were given some terribly difficult questions, such as, "Is it necessary to take into account the phases of the moon before cutting an invalid's hair f " Has man the right to sneeze T u ls not woman an imperfect work of nature?" and "Is it good to get drunk once a month ?" So sombre and repulsive were tlo-e professionals, with their long black robes, immense hats, and their Latin, that for a long time they were prohibited froui marrying, as it was felt impossible they could please the ladies.

At Pere La Chaise Is to be seen the following epitaph—" Here lies Madame X, who was gentleness and virtue itself, and so merits an exclusive tomb."

A sort of thermometer was some time ago invented to indicate health. By placing the little instrument under the arm pit, thirty degrees marked robust health ; forty-five degrees, certain death. A gent'eman discovered his valet, pale and frightened, the instrument in his hand marking fifty degrees. "Monsieur," said he, "I have five degrees of death."