The approach to Paris is certainly very striking, but considering the
vast extent of the city, its environs do not present an appearance of
any thing like that bustle and activity which marks the vicinity of the
British metropolis: nor do the villas which are to the north of Paris
display that aspect of opulence which distinguishes those streets of
villas by which London is encompassed. The gate of St. Denis, under
which we passed, is a fine piece of architecture; it stands at the end
of a long and narrow street, which is but ill calculated to impress a
stranger with those ideas of the magnificence of Paris of which the
French are perpetually boasting, although it conducts him nearly to the
centre of the city. I afterwards found that this is the most crowded
quarter of the city; the houses are from six to eight stories in height,
and are almost universally built of stone.--But although it must be
admitted that this entrance to Paris is one of the least distinguished,
yet at the same time it must be observed, that there are but very few
streets in that city which have much to boast of in point of appearance;
they are mostly narrow, and the height of the houses necessarily makes
them gloomy. They are (except in one or two new streets at the extremity
of the town) extremely incommodious for pedestrians, there being here no
place set apart for them as in London; hence they traverse the streets
in perpetual dread of being run over by some of those numerous carriages
which are continually passing along with an _impetus_ which raises just
apprehensions in the mind of the foot passenger, that he may share the
fate of Doctor Slop, if nothing more serious should befall him; as in
avoiding the carriages it is no easy task to keep clear of the _kennel_,
which is in the centre of the street; the descent to it is rapid, and it
is rarely dry even in the warmest weather.
It is when seen from one of the bridges, that Paris appears to most
advantage, as many of the quays are unquestionably very handsome, and
decorated with many elegant edifices. The Seine is in no part so much as
half the width of the Thames, in some places not a fourth part, as it
forms two islands, on one of which stands the original city of Paris.
Its waters are united at the _Pont Neuf_, on which stands the statue of
Henry IV. looking towards the Louvre, which he founded. The view from
this bridge is without comparison the most striking in Paris, and is
perhaps unequalled in any city, for the great number of royal and public
edifices which are seen from it; and inconsiderable as is the Seine
compared with many other rivers, yet nothing has been neglected to
render its banks striking to the passenger.--Many of the bridges (of
which I think there are altogether 16) are handsome, particularly those
of Austerlitz and of Jena, constructed by order of Buonaparte. There is
one bridge, the arches of which are of iron, opposite the gallery of the
Louvre, which is open only to foot passengers, each person paying two
sous for the privilege of being admitted on this promenade, which is
often much crowded with company. Very soon after my arrival at Paris I
came to this conclusion, that although Paris far exceeds London, Dublin,
or Edinburgh, in the splendour of its public buildings, and often in the
handsome appearance of many of its houses, yet those cities are far
preferable in point of all essential comforts. And after spending a
considerable time in Paris, I saw no reason to change the opinion which
I had first formed; that opinion however cannot, I should apprehend, be
questioned by a Frenchman, as it admits fully the magnificence of many
parts of his favourite city, and this is sufficient for his vanity. With
us cleanliness and comfort are preferred to shew, we find them in most
of our own cities, but those who know most of Paris will not deny that
they are rarely to be met with there.
I had been recommended to the Hotel de Pondicherry, by a gentleman who
had for some time lodged there; but I found there were no vacant
apartments. After making application in vain at many of the hotels in
the Rue de Richelieu, I at last succeeded in meeting with good
accommodation in the Hotel des Prouvaires, which was in a convenient
situation, and had the advantage of having been lately painted. I found
the people of the house very civil and attentive, and produced my
passport from the Secretary of States' Office, signed by Lord
Castlereagh, to satisfy them that I was no _avanturier_, a very numerous
class here. The expence I found differed but little from, that of most
of the hotels in London; but the French hotels are in fact more what we
should call lodging-houses, as they do not supply dinners, &c. which
must be procured from a restaurateur's, of which there are a vast
number; and I have heard it stated, that there are no less than 2500
coffee-houses in Paris.
The population of Paris is stated by Marchant, in the last edition of
his Guide to Paris at 580,000; the number of houses is estimated to be
29,400; this would give an average of nearly twenty persons to each
house. This I do not consider as too great a proportion to allow, if we
consider the vast number of hotels that can contain at least double that
number of persons; and that in many parts of the town each story is
occupied (as in Edinburgh) by a separate family.
The population of Paris has undoubtedly decreased since the revolution;
Dutens, who published his Itinerary about thirty years ago, tells us, at
that period the inhabitants of Paris amounted to 650,000: but even
supposing him to have over-rated them, still there remains a great
disparity in the two calculations, and it is reasonable to conclude,
that the present statement by Marchant is accurate, from the facilities
which the system of police affords in forming a just calculation on the
subject.
Paris, including all its suburbs, is said to be about eight leagues in
circumference, and, except London and Constantinople, exceeds all the
other cities of Europe in extent.
The markets of Paris are remarkably well supplied with provisions of
every description, and at a price which appears moderate to an
Englishman. I have been told, that fuel is sometimes at a very high
price in the winter; but not being there at that season, I cannot speak
from my own experience. What I had most reason to complain of during my
stay, was scarcity of that great essential to health and cleanliness,
_good water_. The city is for the most part supplied with this first of
necessaries from the river Seine. Adjoining to one of the bridges is a
vast machine, which raises its waters, which are conducted to all parts
of the town, and also supply several public fountains. They have,
however, an extremely bad taste from the numerous establishments for
washing for all Paris, which are established in boats on all parts of
the river, which is thus strongly impregnated with soap-suds, and its
cathartic qualities have been experienced by many strangers on their
first arrival in Paris.
The French never drink this water without mixing in it a proportion of
sugar, and then call it _eau sucré_, which is often called for at the
coffee-houses. Most houses have reservoirs of sand for filtering the
water before it is used for drinking; but those who have been accustomed
to the luxury of good water, cannot be soon reconciled to that of the
Seine. The water of the _Ville d'Arblay_ is sold in jars in the streets
for making tea, and some of the fountains are supplied by springs. I
believe the late government had a scheme in contemplation for the
construction of an aqueduct, to supply purer water for the Parisians
than what they now use.
Many fountains have been established within the last few years, and the
site of that once formidable building the _Bastile_ is now occupied by
one. None of these modern fountains (although many of them display much
taste) are, however, by any means to be compared, in point of elegance,
to that which stands in the market of Innocents, and which was erected
in the year 1550. Its situation is too confined for so handsome a
structure, and I had some difficulty in finding my way to it. It has the
following inscription from the pen of M. Santeuil, (who has furnished
many others, particularly that on the fountain near the Luxemburg
Palace:)