Part 3

IN the Hotel de la Monnoye (the Mint) I procured some new coins. The silver crown piece of six livres has on one side the king's head in profile, round which is Louis XVI. Roi des Francois, 1792; over this date is a small lion passant, being a Mint mark. The reverse, is a human figure with an enormous pair of wings, holding a book in its left hand, which book rests on an altar, and with its other is represented as if writing in it; the word Constitution is already seen there. The figure is naked, except a slight drapery on the left arm; behind the figure is a bundle of staves, like the Roman Fasces, surmounted by the cap of liberty, and behind the altar is a cock standing on one leg; the inscription is Regne de la Loi. L'An 4 de la Liberte. Besides this, there are two other Mint marks, one a small lyre, and the other the letter A; at the foot of the altar is Dupre, the name of the person who engraved the die; and on the edge is La Nation, La Loi, et le Roi, in Relievo.

There are no new half crowns. The dies of the new thirty and fifteen sol pieces are just like that of the crown, except that their value is stamped on them 30 Sols, 15 Sols, and that there is no inscription on the edge.

There are two other coins, made of a sort of bell-metal; one of two Sols, with the king's profile; inscription and date like those on the silver coin, and on the reverse the Fasces and cap, between two oak branches, and the inscription, La Nation, Le Loi, Le Roi. L'an 4 de la Liberte. 2 S. The other of half this size, and with the same impressions, except that its value is specified thus, 12 D. or Deniers, equal to one Sol.

I have not seen any new Louis. No paper money or assignats is known in the Mint; I bought some coins here, and paid for them in guineas, which are currant for twenty-five livres. There are twelve or fourteen mills, which were all at work in coining crown pieces, and likewise several hammering machines, one of which was coining 2 Sols pieces.

Besides the national coins, several tradesmen have been permitted to fabricate silver and copper medals or tokens, for public convenience, the most beautiful of which are those of M. Monneron. The largest is of almost pure copper, exactly of the size and thickness of the crown piece; in an oval is represented a female figure with a helmet on, sitting on an elevated place, on which is Dupre f. (or fecit) holding a book, inscribed Constitution des Francois; at her side is a shield with the arms of France, and at her feet an altar, on one side of which is the profile of the king; several soldiers are represented extending their right arms, as if taking the oath; at top is Pacte Federatif; at bottom 14 Juillet, 1790; round the oval vivre libres ou mourir, which is repeated in one of the banners carried by a soldier. On the reverse, in a circle, is Medaille de confiance de cinq-sols remboursable en assignats de 50L et au dessus. L'An IV. de la Liberte; round this is Monneron Freres Negocians a Paris, 1792; and on the edge is cut Departemens de Paris, Rhone et Loire. Du Gard.

I have another of these pieces, not quite so large nor so well executed; one of the sides is similar to that already described; on the other is Medaille qui se vend 5 Sols a Paris chez Monneron patente. L'An IV. de la Liberte. Round this is, Revolution Francaise, 1792; and on the edge, Bon pour les 83 Departemens. I am told this was made at Birmingham.

The other token of the same merchant is rather larger and thicker than our halfpenny. On one side is a woman sitting, with a staff in her right hand with the cap of liberty; her left arm leans on a square tablet, on which are the words, Droits de l'Homme. Artic. V. the sun shines just over her head, and behind her is a cock perched on half a fluted column; round the figure, Liberte sous la Loi, and underneath, L'An III. de la Liberte. On the reverse, Medaille de confiance de deux sols a echanger contre des assignats de 50L et au dessus. 1791. Round this the merchant's name, as in the first; and on the edge, Bon pour Bord. Marseil. Lyon. Rouen. Nant. et Strasb.

I have seen a silver token almost as big as a shilling. On one side is represented a woman sitting, leaning with her left arm on a large open book, at her right is a cock perched on half a fluted column; and the inscription round these figures is, Le Fevre, Le Sage et Compie. ngt. a Paris. On the reverse is B.P. (bon pour) 20 Sols a echanger en assignats de 50L and round this, et au dessus l'an 4 me de la Liberte, 1792.

In this Hotel is the cabinet of the royal school of mineralogy, which Mr. Le Sage has been four and twenty years in forming and analyzing; it is contained in a magnificent building, with a dome and gallery almost entirely of marble.

THEATRES.

AT this time there were ten regular theatres open every evening. The first and most ancient of which is the Opera, or Royal Academy of Music. The old house which was in the Palais Royal, was burnt in 1781, and the present house, near St. Martin's Gate, was built in seventy-five days. The number of performers, vocal and instrumental, dancers, &c. employed in this theatre is about four hundred and thirty. The price of admission to the first boxes is seven livres ten sous, about six shillings and eight pence, (or three shillings and four pence as the exchange then was.)

2. The French playhouse is at present called Theatre de la Nation. In the vestibule or porch is a marble statue of Voltaire, sitting in an arm chair; it is near the Luxembourg.

3. The Italian theatre behind the Boulevart Richelieu. Notwithstanding the name, nothing but French pieces, and French music, are performed here.

4. Theatre de Monsieur. Rue Feydeau. Comedies and operas are performed here, three times a week in the Italian, and the other days in the French language; for which purpose two sets of players are engaged at this house.

5. Theatre Francais. Rue de Richelieu. At these four theatres the price of admission into the boxes was a crown.

6. Theatre de la Rue de Louvois.

7. Theatre Francais. Rue de Bondy.

8. Theatre de la Demoiselle Montansier, au Palais Royal. The box price of these three last was half a crown.

9. Theatre du Marais, quartier St. Antoine.

10. Theatre de Moliere. Rue St. Martin.

To these must be added about five and twenty more; the best of which is the Theatre de l'ambigu comique, on the North Boulevarts; the box price was half a crown. The others were rope dancers, and such kind of spectacles as Sadler's Wells, &c. and the prices were from two shillings down to sixpence. The French themselves, laughing at the great increase of their theatres, said, "We shall shortly have a public spectacle per street, an actor per house, a musician per cellar, and an author per garret."

PANTHEON. JACOBINS. QUAI VOLTAIRE. RUE ROUSSEAU. COCKADES.

THE new church of Sainte Genevieve was begun in 1757; but the building was discontinued during the last war; in 1784 it was resumed, and is at present almost finished. The whole length of the front is thus inscribed in very large gilt capitals: Aux grands hommes: la Patrie reconnoissante. To great men: their grateful country. And over the entrance: Pantheon Francais. L'An III de la Liberte.

As to the size of Paris, I saw two very large plans of that city and of London, on the same scale, on which it was said, that Paris covered 5,280,000 square Toises, and London only 3,900,000. A Toise is two yards; and from the plan it appeared to be near the truth.

The new buildings which surround the garden of the Palais Royal form a parallelogram, that for beauty is not to be matched in Europe. They consist of shops, coffee-houses, music rooms, four of which are in cellars, taverns, gaming-houses, &c. and the whole square is almost always full of people. The square is 234 yards in length, and 100 in breadth; the portico which surround it consists of 180 arches.

The celebrated Jacobins are a club, consisting at present of about 1300 members, and so called, because the place of meeting is in the hall which was formerly the library of the convent of that name, in the Rue St. Honore, about 300 yards distant from the National Assembly. The proper name of the club is, Society of the Friends of the Constitution. There are three or four other societies of less note.

The Quai, which was formerly called des Theatins is at present named Quai Voltaire, in honor of that philosopher, who died there in the house of the Marquis de Villette, in 1778.

The street which was formerly called Platriere, and in which the general post-office is situated, is called Rue Jean Jaques Rousseau, in honour of this writer, who resided some time in this street. I found him here in 1776, and he copied some music for me; he had no other books at that time than an English Robinson Crusoe and an Italian Tasso's Jerusalem. He died 1st July, 1778, very soon after Voltaire, at the country seat of le Marquis de Girardin about ten leagues from Paris; and is buried there, in a small island.