Inspired by his success a young literateur, Charles Duranty, attempted in 1862 to _uplift_ Guignol. He had an elegant little castellet erected and he spent months preparing the plays, giving them style and some sort of philosophical turn. His figures were created by artists. The prologue, it is said, was composed by a poet. The result was--a failure. His show appealed to too limited an audience; it was too artistic for the nursemaids and soldiers. The Tuileries were not for philosophy. The scenes soon were left to Guignol and the Commissaire who are so dear and delightful to their Parisian public. And again recently, a version of Rostand’s _Chantecler_ was given by the puppets. There were to be seen chickens, peacocks, dogs, even a magnificent rooster, but Guignol and Guillaume were wanting. Surprised at first, before long the children began to clamor for their heroes,--and they had to be satisfied. On the steamship La France, now sailing back and forth across the ocean, one may find a little theatre for Guignol in the children’s room. It is operated every day by Paul Boinet who is considered one of the best Guignol experts in France and was specially engaged by the French Line for that reason. He operates plays, we are told, in which there are sometimes as many as fifteen actors and to each puppet’s voice he manages to give a different intonation. The children’s room of the steamer holds about fifty people and is filled to capacity at each performance not only with children but with grown-up people. Meanwhile literary puppets continue to afford pleasure in the artistic salons or in semi-public productions throughout Paris. It would be vain to attempt to mention them all. They are of every type. The artists of France have the _habit_ of the marionette, they express themselves spontaneously and gladly in this métier and hence we find them giving more or less informal presentations of poetic or satiric drama here and there, from year to year. M. Émile Renie had _le théâtre des marionettes de la Rue des Martyrs_; Cayot established a _théâtre des pupazzi_ in his photographic studio. At the Paris Exposition of 1900 there flourished a marionette theatre with a troupe of 4,000 dolls of whom the leading actors were marvels of mechanical perfection. Quite recently a show was installed at the Musée Grevin with decorations by Jules Cheret. It was not a great financial success and was obliged to close its doors. In 1896 in the Salons of _la Plume_, Lugné Poë (Director of L’Œuvre) produced a marionette play of Alfred Jarry and Claude Terrasse entitled _Ubu Roi_. The former also made the drawings for two programmes, the latter was the leader of his orchestra.