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206 and harmony in architecture which adds considerably to the beauty and magnificence of the houses and buildings.

I reached Paris on the night of the 25th September, and a fortnight was scarcely sufficient to enable me to go through this labyrinth of lovely sights and fine buildings which makes Paris the queen of modern cities in the world.

How shall I begin an account of this wonderful city? Where shall I find a starting point in this labyrinth? Probably an account of Paris should begin naturally with that portion of it which was historically the first commencement of this great city and which is still considered its centre, and called the "cité."

The Seine flows east and west, and modern Paris stretches to the north and south of this river. But in the far remote past Paris did not extend to either bank of the river but was confined to the two islands in the Seine which are now known as the cité or Old Paris. It was in these two islands that the Parisii, a wandering tribe of barbarians, settled themselves some centuries before the time of Julius Cæsar and of the Roman conquest. When the Romans conquered Gaul they made these two islands their head quarters for two or three centuries together, but in the fourth century Constantius Chlorus founded on the south bank of the river a palace, the remains of which still exist at the Hotel de Cluny of which I will speak hereafter. The wood hovels of the Parisii had by this time been replaced in the islands by