ter street, in a
dirty backroom, Charlotte Corday stabbed that beau ideal of monsters,
Marat. We will now make our way to the Rue d'Enfer, and at No. 34 is the
Hotel de Vendome, at present the royal School of Mines; this noble
mansion was erected in 1707 by the Carthusian monks, but being purchased
by the Duchess of Vendome was called after her. Every description of
tool or instrument used in mining will here be found, and perhaps the
extensive mineralogical collection is unrivalled anywhere in Europe, and
arranged in the most scientific manner by M. Hauey, with a ticket
attached to each explanatory of their quality and locality. The
geological specimens have been collected by Messrs. Cuvier and
Bronguiart; weeks might be passed in this museum by those partial to
studying mineralogy, geology, and conchology, and subjects for
examination and meditation would still not be exhausted. We will now
turn into the gardens of the Luxembourg Palace; they are in the true
French stiff style, but look at them in a slanting direction and all
the formality is lost; the statues are seen intermingled with the trees,
shrubs, flowers, parterres, walks, vases, fountains, etc. and the
coup-d'oeil has a most beautiful effect, and some of the retired walks
amongst the high trees have a very inviting though solitary appearance.

The Palace (vide page 98) was erected by Marie de Medicis, and is now
with the recent additions a very extensive building, and taken in a
general sense is decidedly a very fine monument, but I certainly think
the pillars being in such bad taste with large square knobs sticking out
all the way up the columns, in a degree spoil the effect of the whole
edifice, still there is a heavy grandeur in the ensemble which has an
imposing appearance. After having been occupied by various royal
personages, it was given by Louis the Sixteenth to his brother
afterwards Louis XVIII, who resided in it until he quitted France in
1791; it has since been appropriated to many different purposes, and is
now used as the Chamber of Peers; for their discussions a new apartment
has been constructed 92 feet in diameter, the form is semi-circular. In
the middle of the axis is a recess in which the president's and
secretaries' seats are placed; above are a range of statues in recesses,
the chairs of the peers are arranged in an amphitheatrical manner and
occupy the space in front of the president; the peer who speaks takes
his place below the pres