The desk and seat of the
President, formed of solid mahogany, are ornamented with _or moulu_.
The folding doors, which open into the hall, to the right and left of
the President's chair, are also of solid mahogany, embellished in the
same manner. Their frames are of white marble, richly sculptured.
Independently of these doors, there are others, serving as a
communication to the upper-seats, by means of two elegant stone
stair-cases.
In six niches, three on each side of the tribune, are so many statues
of Greek and Roman legislators. On the right, are Lycurgus, Solon,
and Demosthenes: on the left, Brutus, Cato, and Cicero. The inside of
the hall is in stucco, and the upper part is decorated by a colonnade
of the Ionic order. The light proceeds from a cupola, glazed in the
centre, and the remainder of which is divided into small
compartments, each ornamented by an emblematical figure. The floor is
paved with marble, also in compartments, embellished with allegorical
attributes.
Having made you acquainted with the hall of the sittings, I think it
may not be uninteresting to give you an account of the forms observed
in opening the session.
When I arrived, with my friend, at the Palace of the Legislative
Body, most of the members were already assembled in the apartments of
their library.
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