The reception of the President of the French Republic has
been a great success. The weather has been kindly, the King has worked hard to entertain his guest, and the people, who caught from the first a pleasant impression of M. Loubet's personality, have been most cordial in their welcome. They could always recognise him, for alone among the crowd of splendid uniforms M. Loubet always wore black evening dress, relieved only by the ribbon of the Legion of Honour. The speeches, though not marked by any notable passages, have been full of good feeling not too formally expressed; and from first to last no incident has disturbed the harmony of the proceedings. The President never seemed tired with the rush of entertainments, and London enjoyed the stirring music of the " Marseillaise " as if it had never regarded it as the Hymn of Revolution. On Monday the President was welcomed by the King and a host of grandees at the Victoria Station ; drove to St. James's Palace by Piccadilly, past Apsley House, where the Tricolour floated from the roof ; received the French colony at the French Embassy, and dined at Buckingham Palace. On Tuesday he lunched at the Guildhall, where the Lord Mayor delivered in French a well-worded address, extolling the French nation for all it had done for science and the arta, and lament- ing that in so hurried a visit the President could not see the great centres of English industry; and the President replied, selecting for his point of eulogy the services which Great Britain had rendered in securing the triumph of liberty throughout the world. The day ended with a gala performance at the Opera House, always on such occasions a magnificent display of uniforms, diamonds, and English beauties.
