THE PRINCE OF WALES IN PARIS.

West Coast Times, Issue 572, 25 July 1867, Page 2 (Supplement)

THE PRINCE OF WALES IN PARIS.

The news that the Prince of Wales had arrived at the British embassy caused a crowd to assemble before the gates in the Faubourg St. Honore as early as seven o'clock-on the 11th May, when company invited to meet his Royal Highness was seen going into dinner. In the evening Lady Cowley had her third soiree of the season, and the expectation (not disappointed) that the prince would honor it with his presence attracted a numerous yet brilliant assemblage of those on her ladyship's visiting list. On this occasion the band of the Garde de Paris played under an awning in the garden. The prince, who appeared in excellent health and spirits, mixed with the general company without any formality, walking about all the rooms, and chatting for some minutes with almost everybody he recognized, or who was presented to him by Lord Cowley. With Chevalier Nigra, the Italian ambassador, he conversed for a long while in French, which his royal highness speaks without the slightest foreign accent. Late in the evening, while the prince was talking to Lord Houghton in the saloon next to the antechamber, the folding doors were opened wide, and an usher announced "the Taicoon of Japan." Lord Cowley rushed forward to receive this most distinguished visitor. The British ambassador took by the hand a little pug-nosed dusky-skinned child who, followed by a long file of yellowfaced Asiatics, marched up to our future king and made a low obeisance. The Prince, who was evidently much amused with the diminitive highness presented to him, shook hands cordially, and talked with the Taicoon for some minutes through a Japanese interpreter, who spoke English very well. "After taking leave of the Prince, the Japanese party sat down in the conservatory, where they allowed, themselves most importurbably to be stared at and closely scrutinised by British beauties. They have all dark 3ilky hair, more like that of a woman than a man, and they wear it combed up to the top of the head, where it is twisted tight like a pigtail. Several of his Eastern highneas's attendants carried red Japanese sticks and other insignia of rank looking wonderfully like teatrays. They all wear petticoats studded about with curious mystic characters like those of a professor of the black art.

On Sunday, May 12, the Emperor

called to visit the Prince, and on Monday at noon his Royal Highness, who was attended by Major Teesdale, went to the Exhibition, where he was received by Messrs Cole and Owen, of the British Commission. The Prince atonceprooeeded to inspect the British section, loitered before several of the stalls and chatted with the exhibitors, and then went to lunch at the American restaurant — the English cottage not being ready for his accommodation. He next visited the Egyptian section of the park and went over the Egyptian temple, where the most remarkable objects contained in the museum in the course of formation within this edifice were pointed out by Mr Charles Edmond, the viceroy's chief commissioner for the Paris Exhibition. The prince afterwards looked in at the Chinese restaurant and' tea gardens, saw the Chinese beauties engaged there, and then proceeded to visit other portions of the park, chased every step of the way by a crowd of people, who must have made his stroll sufficiently unpleasant. To get rid of the annoyance, he quickened his pace, and at times almost left his less agile conductors behind him. To make matters worse, the prince, was^followed not merely by a curious crowd, for whom there was some excuse, but by nearly the entire staff attached to the British Commission, who had been got together to do what was intended to be honor to its illustrious president. In the evening the Prince went to see the Grande Ducohesse de Gerolstein, at the Varietes ; and on the 13th paid another visit to the Exhibition, when he again gave his attention exclusively to the British section. On the 14th, a grand ball was given at the English Embassy, at which the Prince and his brother, the Duke of Edinburgh, who arrived at Paris early on the 13th, were present. On the subsequent days up to the 18th, the two princes were feted to their hearts' content, and they returned to London on the morning of the 20th, having travelled all night, in full time to be present at the ceremony of laying the foundation stone of the Hall of Arts and Sciences by her Majesty.