HOMEWARD BOUND.
That evening after Nellie had told her mamma some of her pleasant
experiences, Mr. Winter said, "Now we have just five days to spend in
Paris, and you must decide what you would most like to do. Mr. Ford and
I are entirely at your disposal."
Guidebooks were brought out and studied, and after many discussions
their plans were settled for each day.
On Thursday morning they went to the Louvre, feeling there would be so
many pictures to see they had better visit it first.
How tired they did get sliding around on those slippery floors,
trying to see the nine miles of pictures, many of which were quite
uninteresting to them all.
In the afternoon Mr. Winter took his wife and the girls in a carriage,
and started for the Bois de Boulogne. When the Place de la Concorde
was reached, with its monolithic obelisk of Luxor, and fountains and
statues, with the gardens of the Tuileries one side, and the Champs
Élysées on the other, the girls both exclaimed, "How beautiful!" but
Nellie added, "When I think of all the horrors that have taken place
here it loses some of its loveliness to me."
[Illustration: PLACE DE LA CONCORDE.]
The drive through the Champs Élysées they thought very beautiful, and
when they reached the Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile, the most beautiful in
the world, their admiration knew no bounds.
Mr. Winter said, "Alice, what do you know about this?"
Alice answered that "It was commenced by Napoleon I. in 1806 and
finished by Louis Philippe, and cost over two millions of dollars. It is
about one hundred and fifty feet high, and the same in breadth, and the
central arch is ninety feet high."
"Very good, my dear; you know that lesson very well," said her papa.
From there to the Bois everything was full of interest to them, and the
drive around the Cascade Alice thought particularly lovely.
Nellie said, "It is not kept up as nicely as I like to see a park. They
had better make Central Park a visit, and see its nicely cut lawns and
trimmed bushes."
On their way home they were driven through the Place Vendôme, with its
magnificent column in the centre.
Nellie said, "I can tell you a little about that, Mr. Winter, if you
would like me to."
"Of course I should," said Mr. Winter.
"It is one hundred and forty feet high, and was also built by
Napoleon I. It was pulled down by the Communists in 1871, but has since
been restored."
The girls felt quite at home historically in Paris, as all these
interesting things were very fresh in their minds.
In the evening, being very near the Palais Royale, which was built for
Cardinal Richelieu, they thought it would be a pleasant way to pass
their evening to go and walk around and gaze into the shop windows. The
ladies were too tired, so the gentlemen took the girls, and they had a
delightful time. Alice told her mamma on her return that she enjoyed it,
but did not care to go again; she had seen so much jewelry, all alike,
that it was actually tiresome.
Friday morning they drove to the Palais du Luxembourg, which has been
prison, palace, senate-house, and is now noted for its sculptures and
paintings.
Our party enjoyed it much more than the Louvre, as the paintings were so
many of them modern and very familiar to them.
At the back of the garden they saw the statue of Marshal Ney, on the
very spot where he was shot.
Being on that side of the river, they visited the Church of the Hôtel
des Invalides to see the tomb of Napoleon I. It was directly under the
dome, and the softened lights all around made it very beautiful.
After being driven home and having lunch, they walked to the Madeleine,
the most magnificent of modern churches.
Mrs. Winter said, "This is very beautiful, but I do like the solemnity
of some of the older churches I have seen very much better."
Leaving there, they walked through some of those wide and interesting
boulevards, watching the people and carriages and gazing into the
fascinating shop-windows.
Mr. Ford said, "I thought I had seen in New York some florists' windows
that could not be improved, but I find I was mistaken. Never have I seen
such windows as these."
When too tired to walk any farther, carriages were called, and they were
driven to the Cathedral of Notre Dame, built on an island in the Seine;
from there to the Panthéon, which Alice said "looked like a barn, and
was cold and inhospitable."
The most interesting thing about it was, that such celebrated men as
Victor Hugo, Marat, Voltaire, Mirabeau, and Rousseau had been buried
there. The Hôtel de Ville, recently restored, they passed on their way
home.
The evening was given to the Hippodrome, which is quite the thing to do
in Paris, and is wonderfully fine.
The drive there was like a picture of fairyland, with the bright lights
and trees and glimpses of the river.
Saturday was devoted to shopping, a great deal of it being done at the
Magasin de Louvre and the Bon Marché. The buildings are immense, and
there is everything to be found in them that one could possibly desire.
That evening it was decided to go to the opera at the Grand Opera House,
the most beautiful one in the world. The girls were so excited they
could not eat any dinner, for it was their first appearance.
Faust was the opera given, and a wonderful ballet followed it. Between
the opera and ballet they all went outside and looked down at the men on
horseback, stationed like sentinels outside the building.
Before them was the whole length of the Rue de l'Opera a blaze of light.
Alice said, "Nothing yet has been as delightful as this evening."
Sunday was bright and clear, much to the delight of our sight-seers, as
they were going to Versailles. They decided on Sunday, as the fountains
were advertised to play, and all were very anxious to see them.
They drove there and enjoyed every moment, especially when passing St.
Cloud. They saw all it was possible to see in one day, but felt as if it
was very little, after all.
They went through the palace as fast as they could, but any one knows
who has been there that with those glossy floors it took time.
The room devoted to war pictures they did not care for, but were much
interested in Marie Antoinette's private rooms, which were so very
small, and also in the place where the Swiss Guards were killed in
defending her.
The state apartments were very elegant, especially the Galerie de Glace,
where the German emperor was proclaimed emperor in the late war.
Of course the girls were eager to get to the Great and Little Trianon.
They were disappointed in the size and simplicity of their furnishings.
The rooms, however, were so full of historical interest that their
disappointment was forgotten, and they thought they could have spent all
their time in the two houses.
In the coach-house were seen some very curious old state coaches used by
Charles X. and Napoleon I. and many other sovereigns.
The man in charge was almost as much of a curiosity as the coaches, he
told his stories in such an interesting manner, laughing heartily at his
own jokes.
[Illustration: PETIT TRIANON.--_Page 108._]
The drive home was delightful, but they were all too tired to say very
much. After a good dinner, the two girls talked as fast as magpies over
the delights of the day. Being like most girls, Marie Antoinette was one
of the most interesting characters in French history, and they talked of
her and her sad life, feeling almost as if they had lived a portion of
it with her, in the quiet retreat and lovely gardens of Versailles.
Mr. Winter said to his wife, "I have really finished my business this
side of the water, and unless you would like to remain in London three
or four more days for the 'Etruria,' we can catch the 'Teutonic' next
Wednesday."
Mrs. Winter said she would like to go home on the "Teutonic" very much,
but did not like to leave Mr. and Mrs. Ford, as they had made all their
arrangements to go home together.
Mr. Ford said, "We are delighted to shorten the trip, as I ought to be
at home now; but we did not like to break up the party."
"Very well," said Mr. Winter. "We will go out and telegraph to Liverpool
for state-rooms."
Alice said to her mamma, "I wonder if we can like the 'Teutonic' as well
as we did the 'Etruria' that brought us over the seas so safely."
Monday was devoted to visiting the Salon, where they saw so many
pictures that they came away with a very vague idea of what they had
seen, but all agreed they preferred the English pictures of the present
day to those of the French.
Tuesday night saw our party again in London, but at the Savoy Hotel,
where they had delightful rooms overlooking the river.
Wednesday at eleven o'clock our happy party took the special train
which connects with the fast steamers, and at four o'clock were on the
"Teutonic" and starting for home.
A lovely night down to Queenstown, where the steamer stops for the
mails. While waiting the next morning, Mr. Winter and Mr. Ford took
Alice and Nellie on shore in the tug, and gave them a nice drive in a
jaunting car.
The girls did not enjoy the drive very much, but were glad of the
experience.
The ladies were very much interested in the boats which came out to
the "Teutonic" with women who had laces and small articles to sell. The
things were sent up to the deck in baskets, on ropes, which were tossed
up for the passengers to catch. Some of the Irish girls were very
bright, and made very good sales.
[Illustration: THAMES EMBANKMENT.--_Page 111._]
At last the tug with the mails arrived, and was attached to the steamer
at once. Both went down the harbor until the passengers, among them our
party, and the mails had been transferred. The girls were uneasy until
they were with their mothers.
At two o'clock the tug left them, and then, indeed, it seemed as if they
had started for home.
One bad stormy day, some foggy and some delightful ones, fell to their
share. No one of their party was sick, and they thought the steamer
delightful. Much as they had liked the "Etruria," it was decided by all
that the "Teutonic" would be their steamer in the future.
New York was reached on Wednesday afternoon, and at night the entire
party was at the Fifth Avenue Hotel, feeling very glad to get safely
across the ocean again. They had become such good friends it was very
hard to separate.
However, a promise was made by the Fords to visit Mr. and Mrs. Winter
before the summer was over.
Thursday night the Winters could have been found in their own home,
all very happy, and feeling that the following years would be fuller
of interest in every way for the experiences, most of them pleasant, of
their charming trip to Nuremberg and back.
[Illustration]
[Transcriber's Notes
All words printed in small capitals have been converted to uppercase
characters.
The following modifications have been made,
Page 18:
"fairy-land" changed to "fairyland"
(it was like a glimpse of fairyland)
Page 74:
"bergomasters" changed to "burgomasters"
(the old burgomasters meeting there for their nightly mugs)
Page 76:
"Runigunde" changed to "Kunigunde"
(planted by Empress Kunigunde eight hundred years ago)
Page 78:
"Firth" changed to "Fürth"
(the first railroad was opened to Fürth)
Page 113:
"Mr. and Mr." changed to "Mr. and Mrs."
(to visit Mr. and Mrs. Winter)]