persons, I
suppose, who were residents of Paris, or who visiting it were stricken
by death.

One of the most superb monuments in the cemetery is that of M. Aguado, a
great financier, but it smacks too strongly of money to suit my taste.
He was a man of enormous wealth, therefore he has a magnificent
monument. According to this method, the rich men of the world shall have
monuments which pierce the skies, while the men of genius and of great
and noble character, shall go without a slab to indicate their final
resting-place.

This plan of turning a cemetery into a field for the display of splendid
marbles, is certainly not consonant with good taste. It is calculated
that in forty years not less than one hundred millions of francs have
been spent in the erection of monuments in Pere la Chaise, the number of
tombs already amounting to over fifteen thousand.

In 1814, when the allied forces were approaching Paris, heavy batteries
were planted in Pere la Chaise, commanding the plain which extends to
Vincennes. The walls had loop-holes, and the scholars of Alfort occupied
it and defended it against three Russian attacks. The last was
successful, and the Russians were masters of the field. The city of
Paris capitulated that very evening, and the Russian troops encamped
among the tombs.

[Illustration: PARIS FROM MONTMARTRE.]

[Illustration: COLUMN OF JULY 8--PLACE JUILLET.]

In coming back from Pere la Chaise, I saw the Column of July, erected in
memory of the victims of the July of the great revolution. Upon this
spot the old Bastille stood, and the column indicates it.

THE PRISONS.

The public prisons of Paris are nine in number: for persons upon whom a
verdict has not been pronounced, and against whom an indictment lies;
for debt; for political offenses; for persons sentenced to death or the
hulks; for criminals of a young age; for females; and for offenders in
the army.

In the penal prisons, the inmates are allowed books and the privilege of
writing, but are all obliged to labor, each, if he wishes, choosing the
trade in which he is fitted best to succeed. The men receive a pound and
a half of bread per day, and the women a fraction less.

The prison La Force is in the Rue du Roi de Sicile. The buildings of
which it is composed were once the hotel of the duke de La Force--hence
the name. It was converted into a prison in 1780. A new prison for
prostitutes was erected about the same time, and was call