St 
the Hercules Commodus, as it is usually 
called, a statue from the Belvidere: be- 
tween these, and nearly on a line with 
them, are two sphinxes, of red oriental 
granite, from the Museum Pio-Clemen- 
tinum. Between the sphinxes, and be- 
hind them, forming as it were the apex 
of a triangle, stands the Apollo, sepa- 
rated by two beautiful pillars of red 
oriental granite, from the Venus of sirles 
on one side, and the Capitoline Venus, a 
statue of most exquisite Parian marble, 
onthe other. These pillars are answered 
by two others at the opposite extremity 
ot the saloon, on either side of the en-+ 
trance from the hall of the Laocoén. 
‘There are no other statues which at all 
interfere with the Apollo; for as to the 
{ndian Bacchus on the right hand wall, 
and the small statues of Yuno and Melpo- 
mene on the left, they are too distant to 
disturb the attention. The objection 
that we have to the position of this sta- 
tue is, that it is impossible to examine it 
from one point: the front view of it is 
fine, but we can take no stand on either 
side or behind it. Jn the gardens of the 
Thuilleries one can walk round the sta- 
tues, and examine them in every possi- 
ble position. We donot mean to insinu- 
ate by this that the gardens of the Thuil- 
leries would be a proper place for the 
Apollo, the Laocoén, or the Capitoline 
Venus; certainly not, on the contrary, it 
is quite melancholy to see the mutilation 
and other injuries which many fine sta- 
tues have there received from exposure ; 
but we do not approve of concealing 
half the workmanship of a statuary by 
placing the production of his chisel 
close against a wall. 
It is time to quit the Louvre. The 
foliowing account of the state of society 
: 28 . 
in Paris is very curious. ) 
«« As to society, jt appears to me, that there 
are three great diyisions, or principal classes, 
at Paris. The first, in point of antiquity, 
and perhaps still of public opinion (for, not- 
swithstanding all the laws to the contrary, 
family prejudices are as strong as ever in 
France), is that of Tancienne nollesse, whe 
separate themselves almost entirely from the 
other classes, and live together at the houses. 
of such of their body, as are still rich enough 
to give assemblies. ‘The second, which I 
* ¢« Contractors.” 
VOYAGES AND TRAVELS. 
shall call the governmental set, consists of 
the ministers, of the counsellors of state, of 
the ambassadors, of the sevators, legislators, 
tribunes, &c. in short, of all the constituted 
authorities. The third class. is what the 
pride of the first denominates ‘les parvens 
ou nouveaux riches; consisting of the weal- 
thiest individuals now in France; of persons 
who, taking advantage of the circumstances 
which have ocourred, have enriched them- 
selves during the general wreck of private 
fortunes and public credit. Army contracts, 
national estates, and speculations in the 
funds, have afforded the means, by which 
many of these individuals have accumulated 
overgrown fortunes; but several respectable 
merchants, bankers, and other commercial 
men, are unjustly confounded with these, 
and, under the general name of ‘ fournis~ 
seurs,’* held up to public contempt. 
«« The first class are still affluent, when 
spoken of as a body, though few of them 
have individually large incomes. A distins 
guished person, connected with the govern- 
ment, and to whom the most important acts. 
of state have been specially entrusted, as- 
sures me, that the old proprietors still hold 
two thirds of the landed estates of France; 
though, in consequence of the heavy taxes} 
laid on them during the revolution, by the 
loss of their woods, of their feudal rights, 
«« Le Brun, the third consul, frequently gives 
een 
but the houses are large, the attendance 
egood, and the uniforms of the constituted 
authorities, and the full dress of the ambas- 
sadors, give altogether a splendour to these 
meetings, which no others at Paris possess. 
«© The third class—I mean that of ¢ the 
parvenus,'—if not the most elegant, or the © 
most esteemed, is at least the most luxurious. 
Nothing can exceed the splendour of the-per- 
sons of this description. The furniture of 
their houses, the dress of their wives, their 
+ Every landholder in France, in consequence of a law passed in one of the most violent 
‘moments of the revolution, and which is still continued, pays one fourth of his real revenue 
to the state: and as, in particular parts of the country, the rate has been unfairly made, it 
happens, in some cases, that even a half is paid instead of a feurth. ‘The latter is the mime 
mum of the present taxation. 
eet eR Ras 
