Life of Hon. Phineas T. Barnum [45]
wisely kept at the bottom of his trunk. This was the uniform of Napoleon Bonaparte, and by special request of the King, it was worn at St. Cloud. The affair was quite sub rosa, however, none of the papers mentioning it.
At the end of the visit each of the royal company gave the General a magnificent present, overwhelmed him with kisses, wishing him a safe journey through France, and a long and happy life. After making their adieux they retired to another part of the palace to permit the General to change his costume and to partake of a collation which was served them. As they were leaving the palace they passed the sitting-room where the royal family were spending the evening. The door was open, and some one spying the General there was a call for him to come in and shake hands once more. They went in, finding the Queen and her ladies engaged in embroidering, while one young lady read aloud. They all kissed and petted the General many times around before finally permitting him to depart.
After leaving Paris they made a most profitable tour, including the cities of Rouen, Orleans, Brest, and Bordeaux, where they were invited to witness a review of 20,000 soldiers by the Dukes de Nemours and d'Aumale. Thence to Toulon, Montpelier, Nismes, Marseilles, and many other less important places. At Nantes, Bordeaux, and Marseilles the General appeared in the theatres in a part written for him in a French play called "Petit Poncet."
During their stay in Paris, Barnum made a characteristically profitable investment. A Russian Prince, who had lived in great splendor in Paris, died suddenly, and his household effects were sold at auction. There was a magnificent gold tea-set, a dinner service of silver, and some rare specimens of Sevres china, the value of which were impaired by the Prince's initials being on them. The initials were "P. T ," and Mr. Barnum bought them, and adding "B." to the other letters, had a very fine table service appropriately marked.
CHAPTER XIII. IN BELGIUM.
PRESENTED TO KING LEOPOLD AND THE QUEEN--THE GENERAL'S JEWELS STOLEN--THE FIELD OF WATERLOO--AN ACCIDENT--AN EXPENSIVE EQUIPAGE--"THE CUSTOM OF THE COUNTRY."
The day after the arrival of the party in Brussels they were summoned to the palace. The king and queen had seen the General in London, but they wished their children and the distinguished people of the court to have the same pleasure.
After a delightful visit they came away, the General, as usual, laden with gifts.
The following day the exhibition opened, and from the first was crowded by throngs of the best people in the city. One day, in the midst of the exhibition, it was discovered that the case containing all the valuable presents Tom Thumb had received from royalty' etc., was missing.
The alarm was instantly given, and the police notified. A reward was offered of 2,000 francs, and, after a day or two, the thief was captured and the jewels returned. After that the case of presents was more carefully guarded.
Everyone who goes to Brussels is supposed to visit the field of Waterloo; so, before they left, the entire party--Tom Thumb, Barnum, Prof. Pinte (tutor), and Mr. Stratton (father of the General), and Mr. H. G. Sherman, went together.
After visiting the church in the village of Waterloo and viewing the memorial tablets there, they passed to the house where Lord Uxbridge--Marquis of Anglesey--had had his leg amputated. There is a little monument in the garden over the shattered limb, and a part of the boot that covered it was seen in the house. Barnum procured a three-inch bit of the boot for his Museum, at the same time remarking, that if the lady in charge was as liberal to all visitors, that boot had held out wonderfully since 1815.
On approaching the ground they were beset by a dozen or more guides, each one professing to know the exact spot where every man had stood, and each claiming to have himself taken part in the struggle, although most of them were less than twenty-five, and the battle had been fought some thirty years before. They finally accepted
At the end of the visit each of the royal company gave the General a magnificent present, overwhelmed him with kisses, wishing him a safe journey through France, and a long and happy life. After making their adieux they retired to another part of the palace to permit the General to change his costume and to partake of a collation which was served them. As they were leaving the palace they passed the sitting-room where the royal family were spending the evening. The door was open, and some one spying the General there was a call for him to come in and shake hands once more. They went in, finding the Queen and her ladies engaged in embroidering, while one young lady read aloud. They all kissed and petted the General many times around before finally permitting him to depart.
After leaving Paris they made a most profitable tour, including the cities of Rouen, Orleans, Brest, and Bordeaux, where they were invited to witness a review of 20,000 soldiers by the Dukes de Nemours and d'Aumale. Thence to Toulon, Montpelier, Nismes, Marseilles, and many other less important places. At Nantes, Bordeaux, and Marseilles the General appeared in the theatres in a part written for him in a French play called "Petit Poncet."
During their stay in Paris, Barnum made a characteristically profitable investment. A Russian Prince, who had lived in great splendor in Paris, died suddenly, and his household effects were sold at auction. There was a magnificent gold tea-set, a dinner service of silver, and some rare specimens of Sevres china, the value of which were impaired by the Prince's initials being on them. The initials were "P. T ," and Mr. Barnum bought them, and adding "B." to the other letters, had a very fine table service appropriately marked.
CHAPTER XIII. IN BELGIUM.
PRESENTED TO KING LEOPOLD AND THE QUEEN--THE GENERAL'S JEWELS STOLEN--THE FIELD OF WATERLOO--AN ACCIDENT--AN EXPENSIVE EQUIPAGE--"THE CUSTOM OF THE COUNTRY."
The day after the arrival of the party in Brussels they were summoned to the palace. The king and queen had seen the General in London, but they wished their children and the distinguished people of the court to have the same pleasure.
After a delightful visit they came away, the General, as usual, laden with gifts.
The following day the exhibition opened, and from the first was crowded by throngs of the best people in the city. One day, in the midst of the exhibition, it was discovered that the case containing all the valuable presents Tom Thumb had received from royalty' etc., was missing.
The alarm was instantly given, and the police notified. A reward was offered of 2,000 francs, and, after a day or two, the thief was captured and the jewels returned. After that the case of presents was more carefully guarded.
Everyone who goes to Brussels is supposed to visit the field of Waterloo; so, before they left, the entire party--Tom Thumb, Barnum, Prof. Pinte (tutor), and Mr. Stratton (father of the General), and Mr. H. G. Sherman, went together.
After visiting the church in the village of Waterloo and viewing the memorial tablets there, they passed to the house where Lord Uxbridge--Marquis of Anglesey--had had his leg amputated. There is a little monument in the garden over the shattered limb, and a part of the boot that covered it was seen in the house. Barnum procured a three-inch bit of the boot for his Museum, at the same time remarking, that if the lady in charge was as liberal to all visitors, that boot had held out wonderfully since 1815.
On approaching the ground they were beset by a dozen or more guides, each one professing to know the exact spot where every man had stood, and each claiming to have himself taken part in the struggle, although most of them were less than twenty-five, and the battle had been fought some thirty years before. They finally accepted