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Show OUR EUROPEAN LETTER. (From Our Regular Correspondent.) The most serious question in France at the present time is the elections to come off next month, a little in advance of their time. The tense state of feeling may already be measured by the close division on Clemenceau's motion blaming the government for hastening the date of the elections, and denouncing it as an electoral dodge. The motion was only defeated by a vote of 214 to 101. What the electoral cry of the parties is likely to be as yet hard to determine. Clemenceau, so long considered a coming rival, will probably sink differences for the present and fight shoulder to shoulder with Gainbetta for a reform of the Senate. Gainbetta still lurks in the shade, and is still heard of. The present senate is his immediate object of attack, and to this he will most likely add the old anti-clerical cry, for the senate under the advice of Jules Simon has practically nullified the secular provisions of Jules Perry's educational bill. "Reform in the senate and church," meaning practical abolition of both, would take the fancy of the extreme Left. Legitimacy seems dead, and hardly affords a rallying cry for either side, though if anything could tend to magnify it; it would be such harsh action as that taken recently by General Burre with respect to the twenty-five students of St. (Saint) Cyr. To degrade these cadets, members of the best families in France, five years, for having openly and honestly gone to mass on the Count of Chambord's birthday is a rather severe punishment. Had they attended the funeral of an infidel no notice whatever would have been taken of their action. Not for many years has Paris been so inadequately watered and swept as at present. There is now a general air of uncleanliness about the town which surprises strangers and incommodes Parisians themselves not a little. The leaves, which already are falling in numbers from the trees, languishing under the present dry heat, accumulate in many spots upon the pavement. Paris has indeed lost her pride of place as the cleanest capital of the world; and what with complaints of bad sewerage, of foul smells in summer, of irregularity in the water supply, and of insufficient sweeping, its inhabitants have at present little more for which to thank these edales than the dwellers in other large cities. The fashionable tradesmen here, at a loss for a novelty, have introduced colored umbrellas for men as well as women. Until quite lately the fashionable color was yellow or white; now it is pea-green. But the innovation has not been very successful. Indeed, one only sees them in the hands of mannequins or professional beauties, as they may be called. In all the fashionable dress and millinery makers there are a number of young girls remarkable in their good looks and excellent figures. It is their duty to put on the clothes which customers wish to see and to wear them in the most beguiling manner. With this end in view, these girls practice "deportment," walk in the most graceful manner and assume the most charming attitudes. A good mannequin is a treasure to a milliner, as she can enhance the price of the goods which she tries on two fold by her charming grace. So it comes that in the leading establishments one sees girls with the bearing of a queen and the elegance of a duchess. Formerly the mannequin was only attached to the shops which supplied the softer sex, but at present they are also employed in some of the establishments where men seek their entertainments. Parlors have not as yet sought to pull their wares in this way; but the betters have for some time influenced the fashion by letting loose a herd of mannequins. Gilbus, of opera hat fame, has more than a hundred in his employ. They frequent the theatre, public halls and the places of amusements and in ??? next two lines unreadable???. This year a large number of mannequins are to be seen wearing white hats made of rabbit skins with black bands as broad as a narrow crape around them. But the sphere of the male mannequins is much more restricted than that of the females. Worth has been more than usually ingenious this year, and he has added to his stock of mannequins a number of charming young matrons who try on garments which ??? interesting condition wish to purchase. The news of this innovation has attracted crowds of ladies to the shop of the great man-milliner in the Rue de la Paris. It appears that most of the leaders of society in Paris are young married women, and Worth's new departure and the reintroduction dirndls find their reason d' arte in that act. Augusta, Paris, France, Aug. (August) 8, 1881. |