Conveyances: by railway to Nantes, Bordeaux, Bourges, Limoges, Clermont-Ferrand, Lyons. Coaches, to Boiscommun, Bellegarde, Vitry, Donnery, Fay, Montargis, Lorris, Châteauneuf, Cosne, Gien, Sancerre, Sully, Jargeau, Briare, Dampierre, and Châteaudun,

horseback, representing her n armour, with her banner and sword, returning thanks to God, at the crisis of her triumph here. It is about 30 feet high, including the pedestal, the fourteen bas-reliefs round which are just finished.

Much of the old town consists of dirty irregular

By steamer, daily, up the Loire, to Gien (6 hours), Cosne (18 hours), Nevers (24 hours), and Moulins (30 hours).

OBJECTS OF NOTICE.-Cathedral-Churches of St. Pierre and St. Aignan-Hôtel de Ville-Statues of Joan of Arc-Museum-Agnes Sorel's house.

Pop., 47,390. Chief town of department Loiret (once part of Orléanais), seat of a bishop, &c., on the north bank of the Loire, in a wide plain, near the forest of Orléans. It was the Genabum of the Carnutes when Cæsar burnt it, and being rebuilt by Aurelian, A.D. 272, took his name, Aurelianum, of which the modern name is a corruption. It is noted not only as the head of a duchy, first created by Philippe de Valois for his second son (who died 1375), and revived by Louis XIII. for his brother, Gaston, whose descendant is the young Count de Paris, grandson of Louis Philippe; but also for the various sieges it has withstood. In 451 it was saved from Attila by Aetius, the Roman commander; about 570, Childeric rescued it from Odoacer; and again it was saved, in 1429, when the English, who held nearly three-fourths of France, and had almost taken the city, were driven back by the famous Jeanne d'Arc, the Pucelle, or "Maid of Orleans," a simple shepherdess, of Domremy. Believing herself inspired to save her country, she became the means of turning the tide of conquest against the English, who thenceforth lost all ground in France, but revenged themselves on poor Joan, by burning her for a witch at Rouen, two years after. It was held by the Huguenots or Protestants in the civil wars of the 16th cent., when it escaped another siege, by the sudden death of the Duke of Guise.

The river here is free from islands, and is lined with quays, (one built 1810) at each end of the modern stone bridge, which was built 1751, on nine arches, and is 1,063 feet long (the centre arch 105 feet wide), but has not much water under it in the summer. From this Rue Royale, the best street, leads up to the Place du Martroy, and Rue Bannier, dividing the city into two parts, having the Cathedral, Hotel de Ville, préfecture, &c., on the east, and Joan of Arc's house, the hospital, &c., on the west. In Place Martroy, a tasteless bronze (now removed to the south side of the river, opposite the bridge), was in 1855 replaced by Foyatier's statue of the Pucelle on

houses. The faubourgs are better built; the largest being that on the Paris road; another, called St. Marceau, is across the bridge. Pleasant country houses lie beyond. One of the best promenades is on the boulevard or site of the old walls, of which a piece 26 feet high is left, supposed to be Roman; two old towers also remain at one of the gates, near the Croix de la Pucelle, where the English were first driven back. A new street, Rue Jeanne d'Arc, leads to

St. Croix Cathedral, one of the best looking in France, rising above everything else in the town. It was rebuilt about 1000, by Bishop Arnoul, but having been ruined by the Huguenots, in 1567, it has been again gradually rebuilt (since Henry IV. laid the first stone, 1601), on a regular cross-shaped plan, in the Gothic style (spoilt by a mixture of Greek), with an east apse. It was finally completed in 1829. Over the three portals and rose windows of the front are two cruciform towers, in four decreasing stories, elegantly carved, and 263 feet high. The central clock-tower spire is nearly as high; the roof of the nave is very lofty, and the high altar and Virgin chapel are richly decorated.

St. Pierre-le-Puellier, the oldest of all the churches, in the worst part of the town, is part Romanesque, small, and ill lit, with a curious inscription to a young girl (puelle), called Rose of Paris. Its ancient crypt, brought to light in 1852, deserves attention.

St. Aignan's is a good Gothic structure, much do cayed, with a Romanesque crypt. The chapel of St. Jacques, now a salt store, has a good front, and was built about 1155, by Louis le Jeune, it is said. Another, St. Euverte's, also a magazine (as well as a third, St. Paul's) has a tower built 1566. This is to be restored to its original use. The Grand Seminary Chapel contains some wood carvings, designed by Lebrun, originally for the chapel at Versailles.

Among other buildings worth notice is the half Gothic brick Hôtel de Ville, in Place d'Etapes, begun by Jacques Groslot, for Charles VIII., and finished 1498; it offers a decorated façade, restored 1850-54; and in the court behind it there stands an ancient square tower or belfry. At the entrance is a copy of the Princess Marie's well-known beautiful Statue of the Maid in armour, embracing her sword. In one .com Mary Stuart received the parting breath of her

first husband, Francis II. At the ancient Hôtel de Ville (not far off) is placed the public Musée, founded 1825, containing between 500 and 600 paintings and designs of the French school, objects of natural history, and a gallery of medieval antiquities, with a portrait and statuette of the Maid. The Palais de Justice was built 1821, with a portico of four pillars and sphinxes. There are also a bourse, large theatre, halle-aux-grains (corn market), built 1826, a public abattoir (built 1825), a bibliothèque of 37,000 volumes, (besides MMS. and coins), a college, Protestant orphan house, jardin botanique, &c.

Several of the old Gothic houses deserve examination, such as the maison d'Agnes Sorel, No. 15, Rue du Taubourg, with a highly carved front; No. 45, in the same street, called Joan of Arc's; the maison de Francis I., No. 28, Rue Recouvrance, so called because of his arms on it; the Rennaissance house of Diane de Poictiers, in Rue Neuve; and the hôtel de Crênaux, of the time of Louis XIII. Pothier the lawyer, and Dolet the learned printer, who was burnt as an atheist, 1546, were natives.

Trade in refined sugar, wine, brandy, corn, pottery,

&c.

ROUTE 35-Continued.

Orleans, down the Loire, to Tours, Poitiers, Angouleme, Bordeaux.

Distance from Orléans to Tours, 115 kil. or 714 miles. Eight trains a day to Tours, one in 2 to 3 hours. Leaving Orléans at Faubourg Bannier, you return

to

Aubrais, for the line to Tours, which keeps the

north side of the Loire.

[CHATEAUDUN (50 kil. west-north-west of Orleans), is a sous-préfecture (department Eure-et-Loire) of 6,500 souls, who make coverlets, &c., and stands in a picturesque part of the Loire, which here flows between cultivated hills, 426 feet high. Much of the town has been rebuilt since a fire in 1723. Its castle is chiefly of the 15th cent., but the great keep is as old as Thibault le Tricheur (i.e. the Tricker), who founded it, 935. The public library contains 5,000 vols. The people are reputed to be so quick that there is a proverb, "Il est de Châteaudun; il entend à demi-mot." Jean Toulain, who invented enamel painting, was born here. Hotels.-André; Raimond. Conveyances to Chartres, Orleans, Vendôme, &c.] The first station you pass is

La Chapelle St Mesmin (4 miles), so called from an abbey of which there are slight remains at a country house.

St. Ay (4 miles), in a pretty spot, among vine yards. Pop. 1,200. [At 5 kil. south is CLÉRY-SUR-LOIRE, on a hill, in the dreary plain of

La Sologne, where stands the fine church of Nôtre Dame (rebuilt after the English leade Salisbury, had burnt the first one, 1428), by the cruel and superstitious devotee, Louis XI., and containing the Virgin's image, a model of which he carried on his hat; also his tomb and effigy, by Bourdin (not older than 1622), besides an excellent doorway and choir, with mosaic work, carved stalls, &c. Dunois, the Bastard of Or leans, lies in the Longueville chapel; but on examination, in 1854, his coffin was found to have been opened. The house of Louis XI, is close to the church. At some distance is the Butte de Mézières, a tumulus 43 feet high.] Meung, or Mehun (32 miles), at the suspension bridge on the river, has an old château, built by Louis le Gros, and taken by the English. It contains also an old collegiate battlemented church, and was a seat of the Orleans bishops. Pop., 4,650, who make hats, leather, paper, &c. Meung, the continuer of the Romance of the Rose, was a native. A viaduct on twenty-five large arches, 951 feet long, crosses the Mauves, near

Beaugency (44 miles), which stands above the embankment of the Loire (here crossed by a bridge of 26 arches), and has, besides part of its old fortified walls, the great keep of a very ancient castle, 122 feet high, and about 70 square. It has suffered in almost every contest, from the invasion of the Huns (451) downwards. Roman coins have been found. Hôtel de Ville is in the Renaissance style. Excellent wine, brandy, &c., are produced. Pop., 4,700.

The

Hotels.-De la Forêt; du Grand Cerf (Stag). Near the château d'Avary stands an immense dolmen.-At 5 kil. east is Lailly, where Condillac is buried.

Pass the Tavors viaduct on 12 arches, to

Mer (7 miles), among the vineyards and country houses, in deparment Loir-et-Cher. Pop., 4,200.

Menars (7 miles), or Ménars-le-Château, has a fine Château of the 17th cent. (with beautiful terraces on the river), which, having belonged to Madame de Pompadour and M. de Broglie, is now the property of Prince de Chimay, who, in 1832, established the Prytaneum here, (now called École Professionelle), where theoretical and practical education are carried on together.

[At 8 kil. to the south-east, is the Château de Cham bord, on the Casson, in the middle of a gre forest, where the deer and wild boar are foun

Francis I. began to build it (on a site of a hunting seat of the counts of Blois), after the designs of Primaticcio; and, as completed by his successors, it makes a quadrangle, in the Renaissance style, with great high peaked towers at the corners (60 feet diameter), a central tower and dome, 106 feet high, under which is the double staircase, besides a chapel, erected in 1854, picture galleries, &c. The front contains a great many windows, divided by pilasters and small columns, above which rises a picturesque heap of turrets and chimneys. Some parts are richly carved, and the F. and salamander (for Francis 1.*), the H. and D. (for Henry II. and Diana of Poitiers) are noticed.

At one time Chambord belonged to Stanislaus of Poland; then to Marshal Saxe, the victor at Fontenoy, who amused himself by playing at soldiers and training horses, and died here. Afterwards it came to the Polignacs, and the Prince of Wagram (Marshal Berthier), of whose widow it was bought, 1820, for the Duke of Bordeaux (now Count de Chambord, or Henry V. as he is called), by his friends. At present its 440 rooms are deserted, but it is in course of reparation, though unfurnished, except a few busts, &c. The Bourgeois Gentilhomme was first acted here, 1670, before Louis XIV.] At 5 miles further, is

BLOIS.

duke was killed in the Queen's chamber, close to the cabinet of Henry, and his body burnt two days after, and thrown into the river. The north front was built by Francis I.; east front, in 1498, by Louis XII., who was born here, and from hence issued the Ordonnance de Blois, which guaranteed the liberties of the Gallican church; west front, by Gaston, Duke of Orleans, after Mansard's designs. Catherine de Medicis' Observatory is on the south side, with the words "uraniæ sacrum" on it, indicative of her astrological propensities. An old Gothic tower remains, in which are the oubliettes or dungeons. Another tower is called Château Regnault, because that place (18 miles off) is seen from it. The Salle des Etats, where the county deputies used to meet, is of the 13th cent. This, and Francis I.'s Renaissance front, are now restored. The latter contains the Museum.

Near the castle stands the Cathedral of St. Louis, which was once part of the Jesuits' college, and rebuilt 1678, in a pseudo Gothic style. The bishopric was founded only in 1697, to control the Protestants who survived the revocation of the Edict of Nai teз. They were obliged to conform and send their children to the Convent des Nouvelles Catholiques, or to go into exile. The bishop's palace was originally built by Gabriel, for Colbert, the minister, who married a Blois lady; its fine gardens command a view of great extent along the river, &c. The Préfecture is in Grande Place; here Maria Louisa (with her son), Joseph Bonaparte, &c., met in order to form a regency,

HOTEL-D'Angleterre.

Other buildings are-the college, or seminary, at

Pop., 17,000. A fine old town, the chief place of department Loir-et-Cher, in the old province of Orléanais, on the river Loire, beautifully seated on a hill slope, and joined to Vienne by a stone bridge of 11 arches, which bends much in the middle, where stands a pyramid, 60 feet high. A fine quay of great length fronts the river. It was the head of a county which came to our King Stephen, through his mother Adela, the Conqueror's daughter, and now belonging (the title, at least) to the Orleans family.

The streets are narrow, steep, and winding. At the top of the hill, above the old town, stands the royal Castle (now used as a barrack), where Henry III. compassed the murder of the Duke of Guise (La Balafré) and his brother the Cardinal, in 1588. The

•In a fit of jealousy he wrote on one of the windows (now gone)

Souvent femme varie Mal habile qui s'y fie.

were educated; hospital, at St. Laumer's old abbey, the church of which, now being renovated, is a curious building of the 11th and 12th centuries; theatre and abattoir; lunatic asylum (l'hospice des aliénés). There are also botanic gardens, with many public fountains, supplied by a reservoir outside the walls, to which a so-called "Roman" aqueduct (styled Pont de César), half a mile long, brings the water. The best of the fountains, named after Louis XII., is near the castle. Above the town appears the Beauvoir Tower, the old seat of the seigneurs of that ilk.

Old houses worth notice are, Hotel d' Alluye, in Rue St. Honoré, in which Le Balafré resided; Hotel Denis-du-Pont, in Rue Porte Chartraine; Petit Louvre, or Hotel de Cheverney, in Rue St. Martin; Hotel d'Amboise, in Place du Château, once the seat of Cardinal d'Amboise, &c. At Château de St. Lazare, which was a priory, Victor Hugo resided with his father, General Hugo.

The Allées promenade is of great length, leading by

Manufactures of good gloves, serge, glass, and hardware; and trade in wine, vinegar, eaux-de-vie, copper, &c.

Conveyances: by coach, to Bracieux (18 kil.), Château Regnault (33 kil.), Vendôme, St. Calais, Montrichard castle (38 kil.), Ouçques (27 kil.), Romorantin (40 kil., see Route 43), St. Aignan, Valençay, Chambord.

[ST. AIGNAN (38 kil. south of Blois), an old town on the Cher (pop., 2,770), founded by the abbots of St. Martin de Tours, having an ancient tower, called Tour d'Agar, of a castle, built 1019, by the counts of Blois.-Towards Selles, to the east, is the château of Chenonceaux, in good condition, on a bridge over the Cher, near the abbey church of Aiguesvives. It belongs to Vicomte René de Villeneuve, and was the seat of his grandmother, Madam Dupin, who died here in peace, 1799. From Blois, along the railway to Tours, close by the north bank of the river, which increases in beauty as you descend, you pass

Chousy (5 miles); then

Onzain (4 miles); opposite which is

CHAUMONT-SUR-LOIRE, in a delightful spot at the foot of a wooded height, crowned by a fine old château, which is seen a long distance round. It has been carefully restored by Vicomte Walsh, its owner, and deserves a visit. Madam de Stael retired to it when exiled from Paris, by Napoleon.

Limeray (6 miles).

[At 20 kil. north-north-west, is CHÂTEAU REGNAULT, and the donjon of a castle, built 1100, by one Regnault, its seigneur. It was occupied by Henry IV. in the civil wars.]

Amboise (3 miles), in department Indre-etLoire, away from the line, on the south bank, is another fine spot, with a château above it. Pop., 4,860. The Castle, an imposing pile, with its two large towers, stands on the site of a fort, built (so they say) by Julius Cæsar, who gives name to some excavations in the rocks below, called "Greniers de César" (Cæsar's granaries). Charles VII. began to fortify the castle when forfeited to the crown by the Counts of Berri; and his son Charles VIII, was born here, 1470. Here the conjuration d'Amboise was planned by the Prince

who discovered it in time, and took a bloody revenge. The Edict of Amboise, in favour of toleration, was issued three years later. Napoleon gave it to his colleague Roger Ducos, who neglected it, but the chapel was restored by Louis Philippe. Abd-elKader was confined here 1848-52, until liberated by Louis Napoleon.

The Amasse runs into the Loire, which is crossed by two bridges, resting on an island in the middle. Madame de la Vallière was born at Amboise, and Leonardi da Vinci lived at Clous, near this, before his death at Fontainebleau.

Hotel.-Du Lion d'Or (Golden Lion).

The châteaux of Chanteloup (1 kil.) and Chenonceaux (4 kil.) are near.

[LOCHES (25 kil. south), an old town and souspréfecture (5,000 pop.) in department Indre-etLoire, agreeably placed on the Indre, the arms of which are crossed by a line of bridges to Beaulieu. Above it, on a rock, stands the picturesque remains of the Castle, older than the ninth century, and now used as a gaol. King John gave it up to France, but Coeur-de-Lion retook it, 1194, though it was taken back, 1205. Louis XI. made it a state prison, and confined Cardinal Balue in one of its oubliettes, or iron cages, which the Cardinal had invented; Philip de Comines, the historian, was also a prisoner. This was in the great machicolated round tower. Its neighbour, the square Donjon tower, is 130 feet high, in four stories. That part called Charles VII.'s château (now the Mairie), was the seat of his mistress, the beautiful and amiable Agnes Sorel; its terrace commands a fine prospect; and in one of the pointed towers is the mausoleum of Agnes, brought here, 1809, from the ancient church of Nôtre Dame, or St. Ours. The latter, founded as far back as 450, and rebuilt in the 11th cent., is worth notice for its four towers, 164 feet high, and an eight-sided vaulted roof, 85 feet from the ground. Money was struck here, as well as at Tours and Chinon. Linens and woollens are made.

Hotels.-De France; de la Promenade.

Coaches to Tours, Châteauroux, &c. In the neigh

bourhood are Loches forest, Liget Chartreuse, which Henry II. founded to Becket's memory, Chenonceaux château, &c.]

Noisay (31 miles).

Vernou (2 miles).

Vouvray (23 miles), near the châteaux of Montcontour and Rochcorbon. Here the line bends to

TOURS,

HOTELS.-De L'Univers, one of the best first-class hotels in France;

Grand Hôtel de Bordeaux;

De la Poste, opposite the Railway Station; Grand Hôtel du Faisan, a house very highly spoken of, in a good situation.

English chapel, near the Préfecture; service at 11 and 6. Rev. M. Fuzier is French Protestant pastor here.

Post Office, Rue de la Scellerie.

OBJECTS OF NOTICE.-The Bridge-Cathedral -Château-Palais de Justice-Hôtel Gouin- Statue of Descartes-Plessis les Tours.

Pop. 30,770. An ancient town, the capital of department Indre-et-Loire, seat of a military division, of an archbishop, college, &c., in a flat but pleasant part of the Loire, on a tongue of land between it and the Cher. Several English families reside here on account of the cheapness of living and its agreeable climate.

It was the Roman Cæsarodunum, and the head of the Turones; afterwards of Neustria, &c.; and of the county of Touraine, which was held by the Plantagenets till Philippe Auguste took it from King John, 1202. The States-General were summoned here in the 15th cent., when the Leaguers held possession of Paris; they met in St. Julien's abbey, Paris. It had a mint for coining "livres Tournois," or franc pieces, and still has one, ranking fifth (or letter E). Louis XI. established the silk manufacture here, and built his famous château, Plessis-les-Tours (in which he died, 1483), close by (2 kil.); parts of it are left, including his and Cardinal Balue's chambers, and a brick donjon.

Twelve gates surround the town, the old walls of which are replaced by a planted boulevard-called "Boulevart Beranger" and "the Mail;" beyond are the four faubougs of la Priche, St. Eloi, &c. A fifth, St. Symphorien, across the river, is joined to the main part by an excellent level stone bridge of 15 arches, each 80 feet span, built 1762-77; it is 1,752 feet long (174 less than the one at Bordeaux), 48 wide, and 39 above the water. A little above it are remains of the old bridge, built by the Counts of Touraine; and at equal distances above and below, are two new suspension bridges, one resting on Ile

of the hotels and cafés are here. At the bridge end is Nieuwerkerke s statue of Descartes, bearing for its motto, "Cogito, ergo sum," ("I think, therefore, I exist"). The old streets, out of Rue Royale, are narrow and dirty, but contain some ancient buildings. One of the fountains (de Baune), in the market place, is a Gothic obelisk, with many carvings on it. Promenades are laid out on the quays; and in the neighbourhood, fruit gardens, vineyards, and corn-fields

are seen.

St. Gatien's Gothic Cathedral, begun in the 12th cent., was finished 1550; and therefore comprises specimens of the Romanesque and Gothic styles in different stages, besides that of the later Renaissance in the tower. It has a wide, richly carved west front, with a triple porch, a rose window, and two towers, 260 feet high, ornamented with statues and bas reliefs (some grotesque), and built, they say, by Henry V. of England. It is worth while to mount the escalier royal for the view from the north tower. In the interior, which is 262 feet long and 88 high, are some beautiful stained windows, a fine choir, and the tomb of Charles VIII.'s two children. Some good carvings are seen in the cloisters.

The famous abbey church, founded, 347, by St. Martin de Tours, being burnt, 561, was restored by St. Gregory de Tours, and survived till the Revolution, when it was pulled down, except two towers, one called Tour de Charlemagne, the other used as a belfry. Alcuin was one of its Abbots. St. Julien's abbey church, of the 11th and 13th cent., after being used as an auberge, is to be restored for public wor ship. St. Clement's is now a corn market. At the barrack, in Quai Royal, is the tower of the old château, built by Henry II. of England, from which the Duke of Guise, then a prisoner, escaped, 1591.

The archbishop's palace, the préfecture, the palais de justice, with its eight-column portico, are large and handsome structures. In the Préfecture is the bibliothèque of 40,000 vols., besides valuable MSS. and illuminations; open 12 to 4, Tuesday to Friday; and at the Museum, in the Hotel de Ville, is a collection of 200 pictures, specimens of natural history, antiquities, &c. There are also a college, a large general hospital, botanic garden, public baths, and a theatre, near the post office. M. Gouin, formerly minister of