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Show 1 OUR PARIS LETTER. TUB i'RHKNNJAL HOLIDAYS INFANT-JUS INFANT-JUS VlltTUE REWARDED THIS TOY SHOPS CHPHEY LIFE PARIS 13 A WlNTL'lt RESORT TRUFFLES AND HALTED HORSE A SNOW THIEU3 A DKMOCKATIC MARQUIS VARIETIES. (Special C'LirrospotKlunco of tlio Hkkald.) r Paris, Jan. 1, 1875. k We are now pat-sing through the - acitto stage of etrennes, when every - body expects to discount you, from tho diifitman to your bosom friend, if ho have children. You give the 1 dustman, scavenger, or lamplighter a fow franca, though no more personally person-ally acquainted with them than with 1 King Cacobautwhiletheolivebranches ; uf your friend expect magnificent presenis, not toys. ai agitation is 1 springing up, and properlyso, against ' this increasing "white terror" on the : part of babydom; under the pretence ol pleasing which parents levy a black-raui' black-raui' on your purse to furnish knick-knacks. knick-knacks. A more repulsive pretender to your"civil list" is the house-porter, who haa a pocket liko a common grave, always demanding a "gire, giro," with a passion as ins.itiable as Wcolsoy's. Those who do tho least for you expect most, and never will view you as a "cheerful giver." Postmen, Post-men, tho news boy above all, and this class of daily utilities geuorally, deserve to be treated with five franc pieces. As if to add insult to injury the wives oi the coucieries commence to put in quiet hints about their existence, exist-ence, and the laundry maids alio. One could bo reconciled to envy the independence of Charles Lamb's beggar beg-gar after all this fleecing. It would lo wisdom and justifiable to organize a homo rule movement against this indifference of theBtranger to vested rights. The continuance of snowy weather is reflected in tho toy Bhops, where tho contents display a truly Lapland character. The Russian embassy turns out in sledges; poor Prince OrloU" cannot be 'denied this consolation after the manner man-ner Bismarck treated him in tho Arnim letters; and France, to show that she bears no ill will against Russia, Rus-sia, has a large display of Muscovy bears in tho sugar artists' baker is not the word windows. Mementoes of tho invaders have all but disappeared dis-appeared ; the familiar florid faco and sandy hair of the Prussian in blue uniform and brass helmet, with a clock under one arm, and the utensil that Xantippe preferred to throw at tho head of her cood man Socrates, under the other, are as rare as last year's snow. On the other band there is an increase in Alsatian subjects for presents, and yule logs do duty as jacks in the box. Cows, by lifting a trap-door in their back, permit milk to be poured into their udders, and this "milky way" affords much pleasuro to infant dairy maids, especially as the animal can return thanks, if the head be drawn a little to one Bide. The wooden shanties arc being run up on the boulevards; we like ever to see this eruption of gipaey life, with its strange people, although the cvont reminds us that we are a year oiuw. a nfl Tn. -cms to be so happy; and the children imagine im-agine themselves to be in Paradise; all is a series of surprises and enchantments; en-chantments; not a bambm but would eat its little fingers off rather than not be good at this season, when the air is full of recompenses for their Ba-gacity. Ba-gacity. These cherubim and. .seraphim .sera-phim are to be envied, and not a few parents but would almost like to Bee their children ever children, the better bet-ter to secure their innocent love and revel in the pleasure of ministering to their independence. The city continues to ba crowded more and more, and delicate people seem inclined to stay the winter season here, which may be done without with-out danger if the apartment be well ventilated and heated, and care be taken to bo warmly clad on going ! out of doors. Nothing can be morel '. treacherous than the "sunny" days of winter in Paris; it is not the cold that does tho injury, but the clammy humidity that no variation effects, till spring arrives. Trufiles were never known to be so large or so well Uavored as this season and they are cheap into the bargain, bo that I humble gastronomists can calculate upon having a little of the real material when they invest in half a pig's foot dusted with crumbs of bread and chips of trufUss, for three sous, or a slice of pork pie. Another delicacy that has appeared is salt horseflesh, which can be purchased at nearly one-half the price of fresh meat. It is cenerallv nrecared bv boiling with the fat of bacon and some minced cabbage into a soup. Those' who are subject to fits in the presence of butcher's bills, would do well to note this addition to our food supplies. An historian'hosdiscovered that in former times horso flesh was very commonly eaten in Europe, till Gregory HI. and Zachariah I. fulminated ful-minated their interdictions against the consumption. Bismarck and Gladstone ought to note these historical his-torical oppressionsof thejearly papacy, which according to Macaulay is the same yesterday, to-day, and will bo forever, or till the New Zealander, etc., arrives. An unexpected honor has been paid to M. Thiers: opposite his newly erected house, Borne inmins made a statute of tho ex-prcsident in snow, and put a white paper hat on the head with the figures for five milliards; mil-liards; the amount of the ransom. A southwest wind and rain saved the street sweepers from interfering; he faded as quickly as his grout work has been forgotten by his political opponents. oppon-ents. The Duke of Galliero's son is a professor pro-fessor in one of the Parisian colleges, and declines all aid from his father, who is extremely wealthy; he begs that no one either will Btylo him Marquis; Mar-quis; his object is to earn his bread by the sweat of his brow; at the col-, lege of Caen, tho Prince Leszinski I supports himself by teaching, and he is one of tlie many heirs-apparent to . tho Polish throne. There has been an attempt to murder mur-der two money lenders; a man hard up "invited tenders" for a loan of 30,000 francs for a few minutes, the lender had merely to oblige by exhibiting ex-hibiting it in a house advertiser de-Bired de-Bired to purchase; the latter, after showing the two men over the house, decoyed them lo a cellar, and his hand was seized, just us he was in the act of drawing a revolver to Bhoot them; he Bolected the cellar as the best place to rob them and to drown the noise of the pistol. An orphan, with fourteen millione of francs, advertises for a husband, who must bo a French prince and they arc not rare paying his postage, and to send a franked envelope for reply. Arqeste. |