churches out of Paris for design, but unfortunately in a state of decay. It belonged to a rich abbey here, and once had (perhaps has now) the "real" head of St. Denis (i.e., Dionysius the Areopagite) according to a Latin rhyme,

"Nostri tenent cœnobitæ

Caput Areopagitæ."

This makes the seventh head of that famous personage known to exist-and all genuine; others being at St. Denis abbey, Nôtre Dame, &c. Coaches to Longjumeau and Balezy.

St. Michel-sur-Orge (23 miles). Here are the workshops of the company. Coaches to Montlhéry, Linas, Marcoussis.

[MONTLHÉRY, or Mont-le-héry (2 kil. west), on a hill-side, is noted for the ancient Tower which rises over it, and belonged to the strong feudal castle, built 999, by Thibauld-File-Etoupe (ie., tow thread, from his light hair). It had jurisdiction over 133 fiefs and 300 parishes, so that it was often troublesome, even to the sovereign at Paris. Five gates in the ruined walls lead up to the Tower, which looks like the Eddystone lighthouse, and is 101 feet high, and 9 to 4 thick. It has been restored, and commands a fine range of view. The English had possession of it in 1360. Porte Baudry, in the town, built 1015, was rebuilt 1589, and restored by Bonaparte in "l'An VIII. de la Republique." Population, 2,800. There is a theatre, with some good shops. A battle was fought here, 1465, between Louis XI. and his brother.]

Bretigny (1 mile), in a pretty valley, where John of France made a Treaty with Edward III., then master of the best part of France. Population, 880.

[Here the direct line to Tours, viâ Vendôme, parts off. It passes Dourdan (15} miles), an old place in a forest, on the Orge, having a ruined keep (212 feet high), and eight other towers of its ancient castle (built, they say, by Gourtrand, King of Orléans, in the 6th century); also a double spire church, and a good timbered hall, built 1223, by Louis VIII.

Gault St. Denis (33 miles).

Châteaudun (15 miles), a sous-préfecture (department Eure-et-Loire) of 6,750 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. It is the Roman Castellodunum; and has a Hôtel de Ville in an old convent in the square, a good point of view. Its castle is chiefly of the 15th century, but the great keep is as old as Thibault le Tricheur (i. e., the Tricker), who founded it, 935; and is 96 feet high, and 188 feet round. It was taken by the Germans, October, 1870.

The people are 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.-Grand Monarque; Place Imperial. Conveyances to Chartres, &c.

Vendôme (26 miles), an old sous-préfecture on the Loire, in the department Loirc-et-Cher (population, 9,360), having the ruined walls

and six towers of the castle of the Ducs de Vendôme; also the cathedral church of Ste. Croix, a college, a barrack (in the old Benedictine convent), marble fountain, &c.

But it is most remarkable for the Boy Crusades, which originated here, 1262, with a shepherd youth, Stephen. About ten thousand children were encouraged by their infatuated parents and the priesthood, to follow him to Marseilles, to embark for the Holy Land. After suffering great hardships on the way to this port, the survivors were trapped on board ships for Alexandria, and sold there as slaves. Here Perron, a general in Scindiah's service, had a fine estate, and died.

Trade in cloth, paper, fruit, &c.

Château-Regnault (19 miles), with the donjon of a Castle, built, 1109, by Regnault, its seigneur; and occupied by Henry IV. in the civil wars. Hence, it is 17 miles to Tours (see below).]

Marrolles-en-Hurepoix (3 miles), near the railway, has a merino-sheep farm at Chanteloup, which was a country-seat of Philippe-le-Bel. Bouchet powder-mill is near this. Coaches to Arpajon, Boissy, and St. Chéron.

[ARPAJON (2 kil. west), where the Remarde joins the Orge, was called Châtres till 1770, when its seigneur, Louis de Saverne, was made Marquis of Arpajon. A large church and timbered halle here. At St. Chéron (11 kil. south-west), is

the fine natural fountain of La Rachêe.-At ↑ St. Vrain, is a domed pavilion, built by Madame du Barri.

LONGJUMEAU (3 kil. west), in the pleasant valley of the Yvette, is older than the 9th century. The square church of St. Martin has a good Gothic portico.]

Bouray (2 miles), on the Juine, a little past Mesnil Voisin, seat of the Duke of Polignac. Coaches to La Ferté-Aleps, Vaire, and Malesherbes, all on the Essonne, to which Juine river runs. Malesherbes belonged to the bold defender of Louis XVI. at his trial; formerly to one of the mistresses of Henry IV., Henriette d'Entraigues.

Lardy (14 mile), on the Juine, where they make lace, edgings, &c. Here Marguerite de Valois lived.

Etrechy (34 miles), on the same river, near which, in a wooded spot, are remains of the old feudal castle of Roussay. Gypsum quarries here. Population, 1,200. Chamaraude château is one of Mansard's.

Etampes (5 miles), on the high road to Orléans and on two little branches of the Juine, is a souspréfecture of 8,220 souls, called Stampae in old times; near which Tifierry defeated his uncle, Clotaire, 604. It is chiefly a long street, with good promenades round it. At the Palais de Justice, on a rising point, are remains of a castle, built by le roi Robert for his wife, Constance. The wife of Philippe Auguste was confined here, and it was razed by Henry IV. in 1:90, except the Quinette tower, the sides of which are rounded on the plan. It belongs to the curé.

Nôtre Dame church is a large Gothic pile, of the 13th century, with a fine Norman tower, and battlemented walls. St. Martin and St. Bazil are also worth notice-the latter for its restored portal, and the former for its detached tower, which visibly inclines. Notice, too, the old Hôtel de Ville, lately restored and enlarged; and the house of Anne de Puisseleu, one of the mistresses of Francis I. In the 15th century, fireworks were invented here by a townsman, who was nick-named Jean Boutefeu. Petrified fossils are found in the gypsum quarries; and the Tour de Brunehaut is near-a fine seat, belonging to Viscount Viart.

Geoffrey St. Hilaire, the naturalist, was born here. Diane de Poictiers was Duchess of Étampes, and, upon the death of Henry II., retired to Jeuvre, near the town. Trade in grain, flour, soap, &c. There are more than 40 mills in and around the town, and a public granary.

Hotel.-Grand Couriers.

Coaches to Anneau, Inville, and Sermaise. We now begin to traverse the wide plain of Le Beauce, where corn and hemp are raised.

Monnerville (8 miles). From this there is a coach to Méréville (5 kil. south-east), on the Juine, the seat of Comte de St. Romain, in a fine park, in which are a temple, Swiss cottage, statues, and memorials of Captain Cook, and La Peyrouse.— Near Champuisteux (16 kil. east of this), is Vignay, where the Chancellor l'Hôpital died.

Angerville (3 miles), the last place in department Seine-et-Oise. Population, 1,527. Here Davoust and the army of the Loire agreed to acknowledge Louis XVIII., in 1815. Coach to Chartres, 40 kil. west-north-west (see Route 15).

Toury (84 miles), in department Eure-et-Loire, close to the border of Loiret, has a population of 1,300, with sugar works and an old château. Coaches to Janville, Châteaudun, Courtalain (seat of the Montmorencies), Droué, Montdoubleau (and its feudal ruin), St. Calais (Route 15), and Chartres. Château-Gaillard (4 miles), a village.

Artenay (33 miles). Population, 1,300. Near this are the ruins of a famous château, the lords of which were so powerful in the feudal age that it resisted all the forces of Louis le Gros in three several attacks. There is also a church of the 10th century. At Patay (15 kil. west), the great Tulbot was, for the first time, defeated (1428), and taken prisoner by the French, who were led on by Joan of Arc.

Chevilly (3 miles). Population, 1,450. Here the sandy plain of the Orléanais begins, with the forest of Orléans, which covers 94,000 acres.

Cercottes (2 miles), in the forest, the population being wood-cutters. At Les Aubrais, the line to Tours and Bourdeaux turns off; and 64 miles from Cercottes, is the Orléans terminus, near Porte Bannier, in that faubourg.

ORLEANS.

7 miles from Paris, 287 from Bordeaux. HOTELS. D'Orléans; De la Boule d'Or; Du Loiret.

Conveyances: By railway to Nantes, Bordeaux, Bourges, Limoges, Clermont-Ferrand, Lyons, &c. Omnibuses, to Ormes, Olivet, St. Mesnin, St. Denis, Bionne, Checy, St. Ay, &c.

Steamers, on the Loire.

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

During the late war, the Army of the Loire, gathered here, was driven out, 11th October, 1870, by General Von der Tann; who, in his turn, was obliged to evacuate the city, and sustained a partial defeat at Coulmiers, 9th November, from General d'Aurelle de Paladins. This was the only considerable advantage gained by the French during the war, but d'Aurelle was unable to follow it up, and advance towards Paris, as had been planned. Orléans was finally taken by the Germans, 5th December, under Prince Frederick Charles, with the loss of 10,000 men and 77 guns, on the French side.

Population, 51,000. 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 Actius, 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 Orléans," a simple shepherdess, of Domremy. Believing herself inspired to save her country, she became the means of

L

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 century, 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, Hôtel 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 horseback, representing her in 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 streets and places, with many curiously carved timber 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 1,000, 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 262 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 decayed, 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 wood Grand Seminary Chapel contains some 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 1493; 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 room 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 mediæval antiquities, with a portrait and statuette of the Maid. The Palace de Justice was built 1821, with a portico of four pillars and sphinxes. There are also a bourse, large theatre, halle-auxgrains (corn market), built 1826, a public abattoir (built 1825), a bibliothèque of 37,000 volumes (besides MSS. 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 Renaissance 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.

Lines to Chartres (see page 56) and to Pithviers (see page 158) are in progress.

ROUTE 35-Continued. Orléans, down the Loire, to Tours, Poitiers, Angoulême, Bordeaux.

Distance from Orléans to Tours, 115 kil., or 71 miles. Eight trains a day to Tours, one in 2 to 3 hours.

to

Leaving Orléans at Faubourg Bannier you return

Aubrais, for the line to Tours, which keeps the north side of the Loire.

The first station you pass is

La Chapelle St. Mesmin (43 miles), so called from in abbey, of which there are slight remains at a country house.

St. Ay (4 miles), in a pretty spot among vineyards. Population, 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 leader, 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 Orléans, 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.]

Mehung, or Mehun (3 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 Orléans bishops. Population, 4,650, who make hats, leather, paper, &c. Meung, the continuer of the Romance of the Rose, was a native. A viaduct on 25 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. The Hôtel de Ville is in the Renaissance style. Excellent wine, brandy, &c., are produced. Population, 5,050.

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 department Loire-et-Cher. Population, 4,200.

Menars (7 miles), or Ménars-le-Château, has a fine Château of the 17th century (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 Professionel'e), where theoretical and practical education are carried on together.

[At S kil. to the south-east, is the Château de Chambord, on the Casson, in the middle of a great forest, where the deer and wild boar are found. 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 I.*), the H. and D. (for Henry II. and Diana of Poitiers) are noticed.

In a ft of jealousy he wrote on one of the windows (Dow

Souvent femine vario Mel kebile qui s'y file:

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

OBJECTS OF NOTICE.-Castle-Salle-desEtats-Cathedral-Allée Promenade.

Population, 20,330. 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 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 Orléans family. It was occupied by the Germans, December, 1870, in their progress westward.

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) an! his brother the Cardinal, in 1588. The 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 Gasten, Duke of Orléans, after Mansand s designs. Catherine de Medicis' Observatory is on