Cemetery of Pere la Chaise. 289 



liarly Parisian, and when lighted up in the evening, and 

 filled with company, to a stranger they have a very pretty 

 appearance. 



Cemetery of Pere la Chaise. — This celebrated cemetery, 

 the model of Mount Auburn, and similar places of burial, is 

 one of the most interesting objects in the neighborhood of 

 Paris, and always attracts a crowd of strangers. The situa- 

 tion is on the slope of a hill, to the north-east of the city, 

 commanding a varied and picturesque view in all directions. 

 Its extent is upwards of one hundred acres. The cemetery 

 was consecrated in 1804, since which time a large portion of 

 the elevated ground is so densely covered with monuments, 

 that there are few places to erect others. 



The cemetery is approached from the Barriere d'Aulnay, 

 and the gate is in a semicircular recess, with a straight ave- 

 nue ascending nearly to the chapel, directly opposite which 

 the pathways branch off to the right and left. Taking the 

 route to the right, we passed the celebrated tomb of Abelard 

 and Heloisa, a structure in the pointed style ; a pinnacle is 

 supported by fourteen columns. Passing on, and near this, 

 we saw the monument erected in memory of the great Natu- 

 ralist, Cuvier. Further was another beautiful one to the 

 memory of Cassimer Perrier ; this was a fine statue of the 

 statesman, standing on a lofty pedestal ; and, in the vicinity 

 of this, numerous other chaste and elegant monuments. The 

 walks generally lead in curves round the hill until they reach 

 the top, and the ascent reminded us of the pathways to the 

 summit of Mount Auburn. The difierence in the two places 

 is, principally, in the greater diversity of hill and dale in 

 Mount Auburn, and beyond that the immense number of 

 monuments which occupy the highest and best part of the 

 ground of the former. A careful inspection of them would 

 require more leisure time than we could spare, though they 

 are full of interest. 



In the keeping of the walks and lots, we were disappoint- 

 ed ; the turf was very irregular, and the walks uneven, with 

 the edgings rough and broken. There was a want of neat- 

 ness and finish which we were not prepared to see, and which 

 greatly marred the beauty of the place. In this respect, 

 Mount Auburn even surpasses Pere la Chaise. 



VOL. XI. NO. VIII. 37 



