This is a masquerade frequently given in the winter, at the theatre
of the grand French opera, where the pit is covered over, as that is
of our opera-house in the Haymarket. From the powerful draught of
air, which, coming from behind the scenes, may well be termed _vent
de coulisse_, the room is as cold as the season.
Since the revolution, masquerades were strictly forbidden, and this
prohibition continued under the directorial government. It is only
since BONAPARTE'S accession to the post of Chief Magistrate, that the
Parisians have been indulged with the liberty of wearing disguises
during the carnival.
Of all the amusements in Paris, I have ever thought this the most
tiresome and insipid. But it is the same at the _Bal de l'Opéra_ as
at _Frascati_, _Longchamp_, and other points of attraction here;
every one is soon tired of them, and yet every one flocks thither. In
fact, what can well be more tiresome than a place where you find
persons masked, without wit or humour? Though, according to the old
French saying, "_I faut avoir bien peu d'esprit pour ne pas en avoir
sous le masque?_"
The men, who at a masquerade here generally go unmasked, think it not
worth while to be even complaisant to the women, who are elbowed,
squeezed, and carried by the tide from one end of the room to the
other, before they are well aware of it. Dominos are the general
dress. The music is excellent; but it is not the fashion to dance;
and _les femmes de bonne compagnie_, that is, well-bred women, are
condemned to content themselves with the dust they inhale; for they
dare not quit their mask to take any refreshment. But,
notwithstanding these inconveniences, it is here reckoned a fine
thing to have been at a _bal masqué_ when the crowd was great, and
the pressure violent; as the more the ladies have shared in it, the
more they congratulate themselves on the occasion.
Before the revolution, the _grand ton_ was for gentlemen to go to the
_Bal de l'Opéra_ in a full-dress suit of black, and unmasked. Swords
were here prohibited, as at Bath. This etiquette of dress, however,
rendered not the company more select.
I remember well that at a masked ball at the Parisian opera, in the
year 1785, the very first beau I recognized in the room, parading in
a _habit de cour_, was my own _perruquier_. As at present, the
amusement of the women then consisted in teazing the men; and those
who had a disposition for intrigue, gave full scope to the impulse of
their nature. The _fille entretenue_, the _duchesse_, and the
_bourgeoise_, disguised under a similar domino, were not always
distinguishable; and I have heard of a certain French marquis, who
was here laid under heavy contribution for the momentary
gratification of his caprice, though the object of it proved to be no
other than his own _cara sposa_.