, I;"!'- B. 



CBEWK. 



north-western direction, it divide* for aevcral miles the depirtment* 

 nne and Indre-et-Loira, posses Guerohe and La-Haye, and enter* 

 the Viuune on the right bank a few mile* north-welt of the latter 

 town. lu whole length U about 130 mile*, only 61 of which are 

 navigable. It U nibjeot to flood*, which frequently rlia to the height 

 of SO feet in the narrow valley drained by it in thit department ; but 

 in summer it is in many place* almo*t dry. The western alope of 

 the d-partment U drained by the Maude and the Thorion, feeders of 

 the Vienne, and by the Gartempe and the Sedelle, feeder* of the 

 Creuae. The eastern part U drained by the Cher (which ha* ita 

 aouroe here) and iu tributary the Tardes," which ia itaelf fed by 

 the Vouize. The J'clile-Creiur riae* in the department of Allii-r, a 

 little beyond the eastern border of Creuae, and flowing weat at 

 the baae of a range of hill* which stretches along the northern 

 boundary, enter* the Creuae on the right bank near the north-weatern 

 angle of the department. None of these rivers ia navigable in this 

 department ; loose timber U floated down most of them. 



The department contains 1,376,007 acres, of which area 592,560 

 acres are capable of cultivation, 327,030 acres are natural pastures, 

 81,840 acres are covered with woods and forests, and 297,800 acres 

 consul of wild moors covered with heath, gorse, fern, and broom. 

 Hye is the chief object of cultivation ; buckwheat, oats, potatoes, and 

 turnips are also raised. Agriculture is in a very backward state ; the 

 consumption exceeds the produce. The best land is in the basin of 

 the Cher in the east of the department ; in the other parts the soil is 

 poor. Chestnuts, walnuts, and cherries are very generally grown ; 

 the canton of St-Feyre is famous for its apples. Horned cattle and 

 horses are numerous, but small in size ; the sheep are much esteemed 

 for their flesh, but they are small, and their wool is bad. Great 

 number* of pigs are reared, and when fattened these animals form 

 'the most important export of the department. Asses and mule* 

 are commonly used as beasts of burden. Honey of good quality is 

 gathered, and game is plentiful. The farms are in general divided by 

 quickset hedges, in which are planted trees of different kinds, so that 

 the country has in many parts a very pleasing appearance. The 

 spring and summer pasture on the hills is particularly good. 



Iron, copper, manganese, antimony, and lead are found ; coal mines 

 are worked; granite and building stone are quarried, and potter's 

 clay of good quality is raised. The department ia famous for the 

 manufacture of tapestry and carpets. Coarse calicoes, worsted and 

 cotton yarn, leather, and paper are alto made. Great numbers of the 

 inhabitants emigrate yearly, and are to be met with in most parts of 

 France, as stone-masons, tilers, sawyers, hemp and wool combers, flax- 

 dressers, carpenters, *c. A large part of the human hair supplied to 

 the hairdressers of the capital comes from this department, the young 

 women generally bartering their hair for silk handkerchiefs, shawls, 

 and other articles of drea* temptingly exposed for sale at the doors of 

 the perruquiers' shops during fair-time. About 275 fairs are held in 

 tiie year. Roadway accommodation ia afforded by six state and nine 

 departmental roads, the total length of which is 496 miles. The 

 department contains several hundreds of wind and water-mills, one 

 iron foundry, 67 factories of different kinds. 



The department is divided into four arrondissements, which, with 

 their subdivisions and population, are at follows : 



1. In the first arrondissement the chief town itOufrel, formerly the 

 capital of Haute-Marohe, but now of the department of Creuae. It 

 is situated on the slope of a hill between the Creuae and the Qartempe, 

 and has a tribunal of first instance, a college, public library, and 4446 

 inhabitant*, including the whole commune. Ouerct has some trade 

 in cattle and butter. It grew up around a monastery built here 

 in A.D. 720. The town became the residence of the counts of 

 U-Marcbe who fortified it and built a castle here, part of which (till 

 remains. CbarU* VII. occupied the castle in his war against tha 

 Dauphin, afterwards Louis XI. Oucrct has Mat clean streets, in which 

 are several fountains. Among the other towns the most important 

 are the following : the population given is that of the commune. 

 Akin, 10 inilen 1i. from Ouoret, In a district famous for cattle and 

 dairy produce, and near a large coal 8eW, h<u 2212 inhabitants. 

 Bmnal, in which there are several Roman remains, has a population 

 of 8880. Haloynar, on the left bank of the Oartempe, has 2801 

 inhabitant*. L-8ouHmn>t, an ancient town on the 8edell, takes it* 

 name from a Urge cavern near it, in which then U a stream that turns 

 a mill; it ha* linen factories, and 8092 inhabitant*. Hl.-Ynulry 

 6 miln N.W. from Outfrct, ha* a population of 2522. 



2. Of the second arroBdioament the chief town is Aubuuon, which 

 stand* on the Ctvuae in a wild r-\\ defile, 20 mile* U.K. from 

 Que'ret ; it ia an ill-built but improving town, with a tribunal of fir-si 

 instance, and 5196 inhabitant*, who manufacture carpet*, tapestry 

 coarse woollen*, and calicoes. The town also has woollen and cottoi 



yarn factories, dye-houses, and tan-yard*. The town of Aubusson 

 sprung up in the 8th century round a strong cattle, part of which 

 till remains bearing marks of Komon construction. The lurd of the 

 castle afforded protection to a party of Saracens who escaped from the 

 defeat of Abdflrrshman by Charles Martel(a.D. 782); they set t It- ! 

 and established the wool-dying and tanning trades, to which the town 

 owes its prosperity, t'.raiu-, formerly the capital of Pays-de-Combrailles, 

 stands in a well-cultivated plain between the Cher and the Tardes ; 

 t is a walled town, and has a population of 2698. In a narrow valley 

 about half a mile north of the town are hot springs and baths, whim 

 appear from some constructions about them to have been known to 

 the Romans. The two hottest springs, called Caesar's Wells, have a 

 temperature of 152 Fahr. There are several other springs here, the 

 temperature of the coldest is indicated by 86 Fahr. These waters 

 are frequented from May to the end of September ; they are used 

 uoth as drink and for baths, and are advantageous in eases of muscular 

 rheumatism, old ulcers, scrofulous tumour*, and all cutaneous diseases. 

 , on the right bank of the Crcusc, is an ancient town with a 

 college and 3814 inhabitant*, who manufacture cloth, coarse cottons, 

 excellent carpets, worsted, paper, leather, &c. 1,'hcueruilla. 10 miles 

 N. from Aubusson, formerly a fortified town, now a small p! 

 1100 inhabitants, deserves mention on account of the great in: 



in remains, funeral urus, and medals t'. mini near it. 

 :;. Tli" third arrondissement takes ita name from its chief town 

 Buuryaneuf, which is prettily situated on an eminence near the left 

 bank of the Thorion, and has a tribunal of first instance, some 

 n 1 p.iroelaiu factories, and 8095 inhabitants. In the priory <! 

 Bourganeuf, which was then a commandery of the Knights of St. John 

 of Jerusalem, /ixim, the elder brother of the Sultan liajazct II., 

 found an asylum. A lofty tower, solidly built with cut st<" 

 said to have been erected by that prince, and is called by his name. 

 There is a large coal-field near Bourganeuf, and some iron mines are 

 worked. Royire, 10 miles from Bourganeuf, has a population "i 

 Blnfvfnt (formerly called Styunztltu), an i which are 



extensive caverns and the remains of a Roman bridge over the 

 Thorion, are small places that give names to the other cantons. 



4. The fourth arroudissement is named from Bouttac or Boutsac- 

 VMe, once an important fortress situated in a mountain gorge at the 

 junction of the Veron and the Pctite-Creuse. The town stands on a 

 bteep rock and is Hiirroundod by walls flanked with tower*. It ia 

 commanded by an old castle situated on the summit of a lofty rock 

 above the Petite-Creuse. This castle is still in good repair, and its 

 rampart* and towers form perhaps the most interesting struct i 

 the kind in the dqamnrm. Near Boussac ia Boussac-Bourg ; the 

 united population of the two places is 2212. (7i//.// </>, iu tin- 

 fork between the Tardes and the Vouize, which meet below the town, 

 has a tribunal of first instance, some Celtic and Roman remains, and 

 2125 inhabitants. According to Baraillou in his ' Recherches Historiquos 

 sur le Departement de la Crease,' Chsmbon marks the site of tlir 

 chief town of the Cambiovicenses, named in the 'Peutinger TaMrs.' 

 Atunntx, in a marshy district near the source of the Cher and 

 Chuteliu, W. of Boussao, aw villages which give names to the other 

 cantons. 



The department of Creuse, together with that of Hante-Vienno, 

 forms the see of the Bishop of Limoges. It is comprised iu t lie- 

 jurisdiction of the High Court of Limoges, and belongs to the 21st 

 Military Division, of which Limoges is head-quarters. 

 (Victionnmrt de la Prance; Annwiirc pour FAn 1853.) 

 CKKUTZ. [CBOATIA.] 



( HKUZNACH, properly KREUZXACH, a town in the adminis- 

 trative government of Cobleuz, iu the Prussian province of the Rhine, 

 U situated on the* banks of the Nahe, which is here traversed by a 

 stone bridge, in the centre of a rich and delightful country, in 49 51' 

 N. lat., 7 68' E. long., 40 miles S. from Cobleuz, 6 miles S. from Bingcn, 

 and lia about 9000 inhabitant*. It is supposed to 1. ' lie site 



of a Roman castrum. It is built in the old style, without any regular 

 plan, and the street* are narrow and crooked ; it has two I 

 Catholic and two Protestant churches, a synagogue, a gymnasium, and 

 an hospital The town bos some trade in corn, wine, cattle, salt, flax, 

 to., and manufactures of leather, woollen cloth, brandy, tobacco, snuff, 

 and soap. There are important salt-works close to the town on the 

 banks of the Nahe. The environs of the town abound in beautiful 

 scenery and interesting sites. Kreuziioch has recently risen into 

 great repute as a watering-place. 



( i;i;u !:, Cheshire, a town in the parish of Coppcuhall and hundred 

 of Nantwich, is situated in 53 6' N. lat, 2 25 ; W. long., distant 24 

 miles 8.E. by E. from Chester, 166 miles N.W. from London by road, 

 ami I.'i74 mile* by the London and North- Western railway vifi Trent 

 Valley. The population of tho town of Crewe in 1851 was 4491. 

 Tli- living is a perpetual curacy in the archdeaconry and diocese of 

 ( 1,. -t. r. 



The town of Crewe owes it* erection entirely to the formation of 

 the London and North-Western line of railway. The inhabitants 

 consist chiefly of persons in the employment of the railway company, 

 with tbrir families. The house* and shop* are well built; the streets 

 are wide, and the footpaths ore laid with asphalte. The town is 

 lighted with gas, and well supplied with water, a powerful steam- 

 pump supplying at once the engines iu the extensive workshops of 



