MISCELLANIES. 
objects which, far from being ne- 
cessary to the wants of ordinary 
life, are only fitted to charm and 
embellish its highest state of re- 
finement. 
While restitution carried on its 
labours within the galleries, the 
four Corinthian horses, once des- 
tined to be harnessed to the 
Chariot of the Sun, placed almost 
since their birth on triumphal 
arches, by ancient and modern 
tyrants ; those fiery animals who 
have pranced from east to west, 
and from west to east, as symbols 
of victory, were now to descend 
from their gilded car at the entry 
of the Palace of the Tuileries, in 
order to proceed on their travels 
towards St. Mark’s church at 
Venice, where they had been till 
lately stationed. 
It must be observed, in honour 
of the Austrians, that, in their 
attempt on the Corinthian steeds, 
they had at first the moderation to 
spare the royal feelings at the 
Tuileries, by making their ap- 
proaches under cover of the night; 
perhaps also to avoid wounding 
the public, as well as the royal 
eye. There was some delicacy in 
this proceeding ; but the gardes 
du corps, on service at the palace, 
unsuspicious of such a mark of 
deference, mistook these Austrian 
dilettanti for robbers, and charg- 
ed and drove them from their la- 
bours. 
The following night, an Aus- 
trian piquet summoned to its aid 
a body of the National Guard. 
This was a most unwelcome duty 
to those citizen-soldiers ; but as 
the police of the capital always re- 
quired their presence in any mo- 
ment of contention beiween the 
_ foreign troops and the inhabitants 
591 
of Paris, they were, in the pre- 
sent case, forced to become the 
unwilling spectators, at least, of 
this act of national humiliation. 
Peace was thus preserved; but no . 
progress was madein these mighty 
operations towards the removal of 
the horses ; and after three nights 
of ineffectual labour, those ani- 
mals on the fourth morning still 
stood on their arch, pawing the 
air. 
But it was now deemed useless 
to consult feelings of any kind, 
except those of the claimants of 
the horses; and the operation of 
making them descend from their 
heights was continued in openday. 
The square was, however, dis- 
embarrassed of all French spec- 
tators, who were very noisy and 
troublesome in their disapproval 
of this spoliation. Piquets of 
Austrians were placed at every 
avenue leading to the Place of the 
Carrousel, to prevent the entrance 
of any French. ‘The palace and 
the court of the Tuileries were 
thus put into a state of siege, of 
which it was not the king, but 
the bronze horses, who were the 
object. Foreigners alone were 
admitted ; and the monarch might 
have seen from his windows an 
English engineer exercising his 
industry to unfetter the animals 
from their pedestal, the Austrians 
being clumsy artisans ; while 
English ladies placed themselves 
triumphantly on the Car of Vic- 
tory to which the steeds were yet 
harnessed. wens 
If, in these days of retributive 
justice, due respect were to be 
paid to property, those steeds be- 
longed neither to his Austrian 
majesty, nor to the municipality of 
Venice. Ina conversation which 
