from the gums, or eyes. Every start we cast a longing look at the summit, and then holding our heads low, pressed onward, till the feeling of exhaustion became irresistible, and we sunk again quite flat and still upon the snow. I had a slight tendency to nausea, most overwhelming head-ache, some pain of the breast, and rather feared the rupture of a blood-vessel, having been subject to hæmoptysis when a boy, but this pain and the rapid beating of the heart went off when we stopped to rest. When we were within a hundred yards of the summit, I felt, in addition to other unpleasant sensations, a strong tendency to faint, greater than I ever remember to have had, except once from bleeding. Even then I was uncertain whether my strength would hold out to the last. Simeon said, that about this spot, Mr. Jackson, who asceuded in 1823, was quite exhausted, and cried out 'Laissez moi ici. Je ne peux plus.' Yet he was, perhaps, one of the most robust men who ever attempted the excursion. Good Simeon was still vigorous and cheerful. Courage, Monsieur ! Presque arrivé! Presque en haut! Allons! Again we set forward; again we all three sunk breathless with our faces on the snow. 'Combien de fois, Simeon?' Deux seulement.' We rested an extra minute;-then one desperate struggle, in which every fibre was strained to bursting;-and then at last the exulting shout: "Nous avons vaincu le Mont Blanc !" My amiable friend, Captain Sherwill, arrived at the instant, and we all sunk down together upon the summit in perfect silence. "C'etoit la plus forte sensation de ma vie." In a few moments we were able to attend to the strange scenes around and beneath us. Simeon sat by my side; and we crowded close, so as to form a snug little circle; while Coutet proceeded to deliver a short lecture on geography, to a very small audience, perched on the utmost pinnacle of Europe.* **We are reluctantly compelled to postpone the conclusion of this narrative till our next number. PICCADILLY SONNETS. No. 1. TIME, Five o'clock,-Morning. SILENT is Piccadilly! Save the roll Of some retiring carriage from some rout, Away from dull Saint Stephen's frequent shout Now through the cold grey tint of sky the sun Warns me that London's waking hour is near. * The mountain has been here some thousand years, I take it. During that period there have been recorded just a dozen excursions to the summit of it. By an odd enough coincidence this happens to complete the half-dozen English visits. It is clearly hazardous for persons predisposed to pulmonary disease to take this ramble. Though I had no hæmoptysis at the time, yet the uneasy feeling in the chest continued many days, and when standing on the Lake of Geneva, taking a last long farewell of the Mountain, a small blood-vessel suddenly burst, and for some time I expected to pay rather dearly for the whim. It was currently mentioned at Chamouni that, some years ago, one or two persons had died of consumption soon after an ascent, but such an occurrence demonstrates nothing. No. 2. Twelve o'clock,-Noon. Ladies and tea-pots, Sevres china, toast, Tell us 'tis morning-Some folks call it noon; Franks, letters, newspapers-through the saloon Then all burst forth-" Well, who d'ye think is dead? Pray, John, has Mr. Owen brought the shawls?" Fillagree silver-just the thing for tapers." "Whose cab is that?"-"It used to be Hughes Ball's." "I don't see Hal in town-where is he gone?" "He's gone-to sleep in Brookes's window."-"Pooh !" "Tell me what woman that is."-" Lady Stone." "I don't go to her parties."-"No!"-" Do you?" "Her sister always stays at home alone, Making a horrid sonnet or a shoe.” No. 4. Four o'clock. The day drags on to Howell's some repair, While thoughts of honey-water, ties, and now June VOL. XVI. NO. LXVI. 2 R No. 5. Eight o'clock. Dinner-a party-what I arrived at cight! "Will you allow me?”—“ You must taste this dish." Who would not to such converse bound his wish? No. 6. Twelve o'clock,-Night. Six crowded lines of carriages proclaim That all the world's at Lady Julia's rout- Who tired of waiting through the crowd without, "Through straight, rough, dense, swims, wades, or creeps" about: Echoes the lighted stair with many a name Miscall'd you enter-through the deafening hum Resounds quadrille or waltz-through jewell'd fair, SKETCHES OF PARISIAN SOCIETY, POLITICS, & LITERATURE. Paris, May 20th. I MET the other day an English gentleman, an old friend just arrived from London. He tells me that no idea is entertained in England of such a thing as the existence of the monastic order of the Jesuits in France. If this be the case, some of my recent letters must have appeared very absurd to you. While Louis XVIII. reigned, there was still a bare possibility of describing to a foreigner the state of our literature, without touching on politics. But with Charles X. we got the three per cents with a threat of extinguishing the fives, the indemnity for the emigrants, and, finally, not merely the existence, but, if we except their not being in the Ministry, the omnipotence of the Jesuits. The talent of the nation seems now to have no other employment than to deride the Jesuits, and to give in every possible way a hint to the royal family, that they may soon expect to be sent on a journey like that taken by your James II. In looking over the weekly catalogue of books printed in France, I do not find one worth mentioning which has not some relation to the Jesuits or to politics. It is therefore no fault of mine, if, contrary to my wish, these letters, which ought to be confined to This Catalogue, which forms a journal, affords a striking example of the accuracy of M. Bouchet. literature and manners, assume altogether a political hue. For that you must blame a ridiculous and feeble Government, at the expense of which every one has a laugh or a sarcasm. For instance, the current phrase of the day was lately borrowed from Chateaubriand, who, on setting out for Switzerland said, "I very much fear that on returning to Paris six months hence I shall miss the Bourbons." I need not point out to you the exaggeration of this remark. By-the-by, speaking of M. de Chateaubriand-it certainly is honourable for literature that 550,000 francs should have been given for the copyright of his works, by Ladvocat, the greatest puffer of all our booksellers. But subscribers do not come forward; the writings of this great Bourbon panegyrist being rather too hypocritical for the present moment. When men of property find the intrigues of the Jesuits carried so far as to try to convert their servants into spies upon their actions, they are not disposed to look with the usual indulgence upon declamations in favour of Catholicism, such as fill the pages of the Génie du Christianisme, and serve to illustrate the proposition "that eternal motion springs from eternal rest." The principal event in the annals of fashion for the past month, was the concert for the benefit of the Greeks, which was at first advertised for the 21st of April, and which took place at our Vauxhall on the 28th. This concert afforded the first instance for these twenty-six years, of the upper ranks of society assembling for any object in opposition to the Government. With you such an event is common enough, and in America the newspapers would scarcely notice it; but amongst us, this concert for an unfortunate people has acquired a degree of historical importance. The plan was at first timidly broached by the Duchess of Dalberg and some other ladies, who trembled lest the massacres of Chio should be renewed at Missolonghi. The Government opposed the project by a hundred little indiscreet measures. No clerk in any of the public offices dared to purchase a ticket; and so great was the dread of giving offence in this way, that it was feared not a thousand tickets, at twenty francs each, would be disposed of. But suddenly a number of our ultra ladies of rank began to evince symptoms of compassion, and in a day or two it became quite the fashion to patronize the concert. An English gentleman paid three hundred francs for a ticket, and the seller immediately presented the sum to the fund for the benefit of the Greeks. This bargain, which was struck on the Exchange, completely established the fashion, and the rage rapidly encreased. The Duke de Dudeauville, minister of the King's household, and one of the short-robed Jesuits, who had opposed the concert by every possible means, found himself reduced to the necessity of paying five hundred francs for two tickets. Rossini, who, it is said, received orders not to direct the concert, took great pains in superintending the rehearsals of the Duchesses, Marchionesses and Countesses, who vied with each other for the honour of singing in the choruses. To help the Ministers out of their difficulty, Rossini, who receives a handsome salary in Paris for doing nothing, declared that being a subject of the Pope, he should incur the danger of persecutions at Bologna, (where his property is situated) if he ventured to direct a concert for the benefit of revolted subjects. That nothing might be wanting to complete the eclat of this entertainment, on the morning of the 28th of April, intelligence was received that the Turks were driven from Missolonghi, which, for a week previously, was supposed to have been in their power. Some friends of Colonel Fabvier stated at the concert, that they were confidently assured Lord Cochrane intended to depart for Greece, and that he wanted only eight steam-vessels of 200 tons each, to destroy all the Austrian and Egyptian ships. Perhaps you will think I have said too much about this concert; but I assure you that for the last 15 days nothing else has been talked of in Paris. The Salle de Vauxhall is built on the plan of an antique circus. It is of an oval form. The singers were stationed in the centre, which is the lowest part of the salle. This centre is surrounded by steps, which rise to what may be termed the outer space; and a range of columns, a few paces further back, support a gallery. On the steps, behind the singers, was stationed the full orchestra of the Opera buffa. Every other part of the hall was crowded with fashionable company. The saloons of the Faubourg St. Germain were completely deserted, and the court was even more dull than usual. The audience at the concert appeared astonished at their own numbers, as well as at their courage in thus opposing the Government. The little narrow street leading to Vauxhall was completely choked up with carriages:-all the equipages in Paris seemed to be assembled there. It was expected that the doors of Vauxhall would be surrounded by the agents of M. Franchet,* for the purpose of noting down the names of the parties who attended the concert. On seeing the throng of carriages in the Rue des Marais, one could not help thinking that the police would have done better to have sent round to the porters, (who in Paris are almost all spies) to enquire the names of all the persons of fashion who stayed at home that evening. The idea of this triumph over the Government party augmented the joy which had been excited by the good news of the morning. About half past eight o'clock the hall was completely filled, and every one said to himself, "What now remains for the Bourbons?" If the Duchess de Berri had appeared at this moment, she would have been received with enthusiastic applause, and this concert, which will mark an epoch, would not have been hostile to the reigning family. The performances commenced with the Preghiera in Mosé (which in England is given in the opera of " Pietro l'Eremita.") This piece was very judiciously chosen. It is a prayer for divine protection, offered up by a whole nation on the point of being massacred. It was admirably executed by the singers of the Opera Italien, and a chorus of twenty-four voices, in which several ladies eminently distinguished for rank and talent took part. Colonel Brack sang the solo parts in this preghiera, which may be said to be Rossini's masterpiece in the pathetic style of composition. The Countess Merlin, wife of the Lieutenant General of that name, afterwards sang, in exquisite style, the grand aria from Zelmira. The lady of Colonel Dubignon, who possesses the best contralto voice in France, sang an air by Nicolini in the finished scientific style which she has acquired from her master, the celebrated Crescentini. The triumph of Madame Dubignon, and of the concert, was most complete. All the witlings of the Faubourg St. Germain were on the alert to catch at a false note or any thing that would furnish them with a subject for quizzing. But they did not enjoy this gratification. The Baron de Stael, assisted by twelve gentlemen of the committee, superintended the concert. Every thing was arranged in the most perfect taste. The proprietor of the Salle de Vauxhall declined receiving any remuneration for the use of the place, which was illuminated gratis by the lampiste of the establishment. The venerable General Lafayette, who has scarcely recovered from a severe fit of gout, attended the concert, and was received as a father would be amidst his children. Among the multitude of lovely women, who were assembled together on this occasion, your English beauties had a worthy representative in Miss Fox, a name which is held dear in Paris. The last jubilee procession, on the 3d of May, presented a complete contrast to the Greek concert. The Jesuits, piqued at the manner in which they were treated by the Cour Royale and the Chamber of Peers, which turned into ridicule the invitation to join the first jubilee procession, that Charles X. honoured with his presence, contrived the following stratagem. They announced an expiatory ceremony and the laying of the foundation stone of the monument to be erected on the spot where Louis XVI. was guillotined. Nothing could be more impolitic. Every day diminishes some portion of the synpathy that is felt for Louis XVI. of whom M. de Talleyrand observed that he evinced the courage of a woman in childbirth. M. de Villèle, our prime minister, did not approve of this jubilee proces * The Director of the Police, and a violent Jesuit. |