be transferred to the Hôtel Quillacq, which has been entirely
done up, and will take the name of HÔTEL DESSEIN. The
premises of the old Hôtel Dessein having been purchased by the
town of Calais, it ceases to be an Hôtel for Travellers.'

Still, in this new function it was 'old Dessein's,' and you were shown
'Sterne's room,' etc. I recall wandering through it of a holiday,
surveying the usual museum specimens--the old stones, invariable
spear-heads, stuffed animals; in short, the usual rather heterogeneous
collection, made up of 'voluntary contributions,' prompted half by the
vanity of the donor and half by his indifference to the objects
presented. We had not, indeed, the 'old pump' or the parish stocks, as
at Little Pedlington, but there were things as interesting. Here were
a few old pictures given by the Government, and labelled in writing;
the car of Blanchard's balloon, and a cutting from a newspaper
describing his arrival; portraits of the 'Citizen King' in his white
trousers; ditto of Napoleon III., name pasted over; the flagstone,
with an inscription, celebrating the landing of Louis XVIII., removed
from the pier--in deference to Republican sensitiveness--no doubt to
be restored again in deference to monarchical feelings; and, of
course, a number of the usual uninteresting cases containing white
cards, and much cotton, pins, and insects, stuffed birds, and
symmetrically-arranged dried specimens, the invariable Indian gourds,
and arrows, and moccasins, which 'no gentlemanly collection should be
without.' Never, during many a visit, did I omit wandering up to see
this pleasing, old, but ghostly memorial. It may be conceived what a
shock it was when, on a recent visit, I found it gone--razed--carted
away. I searched and searched--fancied I had mistaken the street; but
no! it was gone for ever. During M. Jules Ferry's last administration,
when the rage for 'Communal schools' set in, this tempting site had