The Monument in Memory of the Aëronauts of the Siege of Paris

Extract

France will never cease to be proud of the aëronauts of the siege of Paris. The memory of their deeds has been lately vividly revived in the unveiling of the monument in their honour at Neuilly, on the 28th of January last, by M. Etienne, the French Minister of War.

The monument has been raised by public subscription, and is the last work of the late M. Auguste Bartholdi, who died on October 5th, 1904. On the pedestal of the monument is a group of figures, above which is a balloon, carrying a flag in its car. The principal figure in the group is a woman, the symbol of the beleagured city. She is represented with a child in her arms, and looks with eyes of hope on a pigeon which she has released. A man, sword in hand, shields the woman.