ANECDOTES OF THE SIEGE.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume VI, Issue 52, 2 March 1871, Page 2

ANECDOTES OF THE SIEGE.

The London Atkeiueum has a jolly correspondent inside of Paris, who furnishes that paper with the following, among other items and anecdotes : — The Brittany men are dreadfully shocked at some things in Paris ; several of them the other day stood, almost with tears in their eyes, opposite a hideous caricature of the Pope ; a gentleman saw at a glance what was the matter, bought all the copies of the print, and immediately tore them into fragments. The following ia original of its kind :■— A patient of Dr. Blanche, the famous physician of the insane, having recovered, asked permission to write to his family. "Make haste, then," said the doctor, "for the balloon starts to-morrow." " The railway, you mean, surely, doctor?" ," Ah ! I forgot to tell you that since you were ill, Paris is besieged and cut off from all communication ." The poor man turned fearfully pale. " I thought I was cured, and you tell n>6 such stories as this I " Dr. Blanche was compelled to take his patient to the fortifications to prevent a relapse. Here is a rampart story : — A Zouave determined to visit his fiancee , and got

out without accident, but on his return was seen and fired at, but not hit. The gunners in Fort Isay, hearing the firing, began throwing shells ; and Fort Vauvres followed the example. The enemy is said to have suffered severely; all because a Zouave went to see his sweetheart at MeudoD. The number of hospital beds is, fortunately, far larger than the number of wounded, and this gives rise to many jokes. One ambulance is actually kept open, it is declared, by spoiling the only patient in it with good things, and so retarding his convalescence. A lady meets a friend in the street and says : "Ah! you are an officer ; I hope if you are wounded, you will come to my ambulance." Very sorry, madame, I cannot oblige you, but I am booked six deep already." Ambulance work is not so much to the taste of some ladies as that of the vivandiere. A well-known actress offered her services as cantinierc to a volunteer corps. "Are you married?" wsis the first question. "Mod Dieu 3 nou ! " and now she dines at Brebant's daily, with an infirmary apron on. Hospital anecdotes are plentiful. A young Mobile had his leg broken, and it was set by a terribly slow practitioner. When the job was done and the surgeon's back turned, the Mobile said to his next bed-neighbor : "I have got a ball in my back, too, but I was not goiug to tell him ; il ma irop embele.