Moreover, there were
to be in close proximity to the entrance, stables for three coaches,
for the outriders' horses, and for the twenty-one horsemen acting
as an escort; a station for a squad of infantry of thirty-one men
and ten cent-gardes, and a stable for the horses of the latter;
and, besides, a salon for fifteen or twenty domestics. Thus arrangements
had to be made to accommodate in this part of the building about
one hundred persons, fifty horses, and half-a-dozen carriages.
The fall of the Empire suggested some changes, but ample provision
still exists for emergencies.
"Its novel conception, perfect fitness, and rare splendor of material,
make the grand stairway unquestionably one of the most remarkable
features of the building. It presents to the spectator, who has
just passed through the subscribers' pavilion, a gorgeous picture.
From this point he beholds the ceiling formed by the central landing;
this and the columns sustaining it, built of Echaillon stone,
are honeycombed with arabesques and heavy with ornaments;
the steps are of white marble, and antique red marble balusters
rest on green marble sockets and support a balustrade of onyx.
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