101* 



KIXISTERE. 



FINLAND. 



: _' 



the bay, the yearly produce of which i about 85.000 bureli of 

 pilchards an.l 15,000 to 10,000 barrel* of oil. The islet of Trittan, 

 contaiiu storehouses for the fish, stands near the town, and is 

 defended by a battery of twelve guns. Fotumml, a village 8. of 

 Quimper, and near the sea, has 3172 inhabitant*. Ponl-Cnir, 

 18 miles W. from Quimper, has an ecclesiastical school and 2175 

 inhabitant* ; it stands on the top of a high hill, anil consist* of ill- 

 built houses and steep streets ; there is a splendid view of the storms 

 of the Bay of liiscay and the Atlantic from this place. Pont-fAbbf 

 stands at the head of an inlet from Bcnodet Bay, and has a good 

 harbour and 8325 inhabitant*, who manufacture linen, and trade in 

 wine and agricultural produce. 



-. In the second arrondissement the chief town is Brat, which is the 

 largest and most important town in the department ; and is noticed 

 in a separate article. [BREST.] Among the other towns are the 

 following : iMndtrntau, a small seaport 15 miles E. from Brest, has 

 4904 inhabitants. It stands at the mouth of the Elorn, which here 

 forms a harbour surrounded by hills, high and steep on the left bank 

 of the river, but sloping gradually on the right bank into a plain on 

 which the chief part of the town is built. The upper town contains 

 some very ancient structures ; a house on the bridge over the Elorn 

 bears the date 1518. The town has a very agreeable appearance ; 

 clear streams run from the hills through all the streets into the 

 harbour, which is lined with extensive quays. The principal buildings 

 are the church of St.-Houardou, the marine hospital, and barracks. 

 A promenade, nearly a mile in length and well planted, lends from 

 the town to a vast building occupied as a nunnery. The chief manu- 

 factures are leather, linen, and glazed hats. There are also bleaching 

 establishment*, and a good trade in canvass, linen-yarn, pitch and 

 tar, Dutch cheeses, corn, horses, &c. Ltnnilit stands 15 miles N. 

 from Brest, in a picturesque country watered by the Aber-Benouhic, 

 and has 3124 inhabitant*. Letneren stands on a height that rises 

 from the middle of a fertile plain, 9 miles N.N.W. from Landerneau, 

 and has an hospital and 2832 inhabitant*. Near this place is the church 

 of Notre-Dome-de-Folgoat, which is built of Kersonton stone, and for 

 the delicacy of its sculptured and carved work, its beautiful portals 

 and windows, but especially for its magnificent rood-loft, ia acknow- 

 ledged to be without a parallel in this part of France ; it was founded 

 by John de Montfort, and finished under his sou John V., duke of 

 Bretagne in 1423. Plabnmec stands on a hill 9 miles N.K. IV.. in 

 Brest, and has 3555 inhabitants. Plowmd, N. of Brest, has 2214 

 inhabitant* ; on a hill close to it is a ' menhir ' or druidical granite 

 monolith, which is 43 feet high. Plotulalme:eau, 1 2 miles N. from 

 Brest, contains some ancient houses of remarkable construction, and 

 has 3209 inhabitants. 



3. In the third arrondissement the chief town, C/ulieauHn, an ill- 

 built place, with a population of 2758, stands in a very pretty country, 

 on the Aulne, which divides it into two parts, and forms a small 

 harbour to which barks of 80 tons go up. On a hill above the river 

 are seen the ruins of the ancient castle of the lords of Ch&teaulin, 

 which was built in A.D. 1000 by Budie, count of Cornouailles. The 

 trade of the place consist* in cattle, fish, butter, iron, lead, slates, &c. 

 / it is a small place at the head of the Bay of Brest, with some 

 remarkably built timber-framed old houses, and a population of 975. 

 Carhaix, an ill-built town, stands on a high hill above the little river 

 llliers, nearly in the centre of Basse-Bretagne, and has a population 

 of 2021. It is considered important in a military point of view ; ix 

 great road* lead from it to Brest, Quimper, Chateaulin, Vanned, St.- 

 llrieuc, and Morlaix. C hdtcauneuf-du-faou, beautifully situated on 

 the southern slope of a hill above the Aulne, which here winds its 

 way through rich meadows and turns several corn-mills, has a popu- 

 lation of 2586. Croion is situated on the peninsula, between the Bay 

 of Douarncnez and Brest roads ; there are caverns near it inhabited 

 by vast numbers of sea-birds. The population of the commune is 

 8858. J/utlgoat, a small place, with 1156 inhabitants, and PoMaoiun 

 near it, with 3700 inhabitants, have rich lead mines and smelting 

 furnace*, which yield 10,000 cwt. of lead and 1500 Iba, of silver 

 annually. Pleylen E. of Ch&teaulin. has a fine gothic church and 

 4672 inhabitant*. 



4. In the fourth arrondissement the chief town Morlaix, a sea-port 

 with ll,6K!i inhabitant*, is very prettily situated at the foot of two 

 lilla, and at the junction of theJarleauandthe Kevleut, which throw 

 their waters into a creek from the English Channel that forms the 

 harbour. Venal* of 300 to 400 tons come up to the quays at fiow 

 tide*, which rise from 18 to 28 feet; the entrance however is very 

 intricate and dangerous, from the number of rocks and islets. The 

 river and the harbour divide the town into two quarters, the side of 

 Loon to the west, and the side of Trognier to the east. In the Utter 

 the houses arc almoet all ancient and the street* irregular. The aide 

 of Leon is more regular ; it has a large square, surrounded by hand- 

 some modem houses, and In the centre of it, on the site of the old 

 town-house, which was demolished in 1836, stands an elegant structure 

 occupied by the tribunals of first instance and of commerce, the 

 mayor's offices, and by the linen and corn market*. Modern structures 

 have replaced many of the curious timber-framed houses of the old 

 town; but in part* of it are still seen facades ornamented with 

 sculptures, and also some very remarkable interiors. The St-Martin 

 quarter, built on high ground, which is ascended by * great number 



of stops, Is the finest part of the town ; it has a pretty modern chureli 

 surrounded by fine gardens, from which there is an extensive view. 

 The other remarkable objects are the churches St-M 

 Melaine, the tobacco manufactory on the hill of Leon, and the Cours 

 Biuimont, a beautiful promenade which extend* above a mile along 

 the harbour. The town has tribunals of first instance and uf com- 

 merce, a college, a school of navigation, manufactures of lin> 

 and candles, besides a considerable trade in butter, corn, seeds, hides, 

 pigs, cattle, sheep, horses, linen, linen-thread, paper, flax, h.-mji, wine, 

 and brandy. It is an entrepot for foreign produce. The winding 

 1 between the town is navigated by steamers, and affords much 

 :'ul scenery. Mary, queen of Scots, landed here in 1548 on her 

 way to Paris to espouse the Dauphin. Morlaix was formerly sur- 

 rounded with walls and defended by a stron Its defences 

 were demolished under Henri IV. Landritiau, a well-built town, 

 stands on a high hill 12 miles W. from Morlaix on the road to Brest, 

 and has 3217 inhabitants : it is remarkable for its church, which has 

 a lofty bell-tower, supported on slender columns ; tl. <-rtain 

 aspects are lost to th view of the approaching traveller, so that the 

 tower seems suspended in the air. Lanmcur, an ancient place, with 

 2750 inhabitant* and two very ancient churches, one dedicated to 

 Notre-Dame-de-Kernitroun, which was built about the middle of the 

 12th century and is perfectly preserved, and the church of St. - v 

 which dates from the early part of the llth century, and is bui!' 

 a crypt which belongs to a much earlier period. In the crypt there 

 is a fine fountain, for which the Bretons have great reverence. 

 Plouetcat, near the coast, has 3314 inhabitants : near it are seen some 

 Druidical stones of great size. Rotcoff, a small town on th< 

 opposite the isle of Batz or Bas, has a pretty good harboi 

 by a jetty : the population, which consist? chiefly of smugglt : 

 sailors, amounts to 3640. v >\". from Morlaix, has :!7 

 ants, who are engaged iu agriculture and the. linen manufacture. 

 St.-Pol-dt-Lton, on a hill above the sea, 10 miles X.N.XV. from Morluix, 

 is a cleitn but ill-built town. It possesses two noble cli 

 former cathednil, which is remarkable for its delicate wood-carviM 

 and sculptured ornaments, and contains the tomb < 

 the church of Kreizkor (middle of the town) built towards tli, end of 

 the 14th century by John IV., duke of Bretagne. The 

 tower of this church, surmounted by a cornice and an elegant balus- 

 trade, from which springs a lofty spire flanked by four turn 

 whole built of granite, is the finest work of the kind in France. The 

 summit of the spire is 404 feet above the ground, being the highest 

 spire in France, except that of Strasbourg. A suburb called Penpoull 

 is built on the sea-shore, and forms the port; it contains several 

 houses of remarkable construction ; some of them are fortified. The 

 population amounts to 6655. This town, formerly the seat of a bishop, 

 is now going to decay. St.-TMgonnec, S.W. of Morluix, ; 

 centre of u considerable linen manufacture, and has 3'.r_".i inhabitants, 

 and a fine church built of granite. TovM, N. of Morlaix, has paper- 

 mills, and 2905 inhabitants. 



6. In the fifth arroudissement the chief town Quimperlc, a small 

 sea-port situated at the junction of the Isole and the Elh : , ami sur- 

 rounded by high hills, has a communal college, and 5261 inhabitants, 

 who manufacture leather, paper, and sabots. Vessels of 50 tons come 

 up to the town, and unload their cargoes at a large quay lined with 

 stores and handsome houses. The Benedictine convent, now the 

 residence of the mayor, is an imposing building ; behind it is the 

 interesting round church of Sainte-Croix, which dates from the llth 

 century. On one of the hills above the town stands the gothic church 

 of St.-Michel, the Capuchin and Ursuline convents, which with several 

 pretty houses, gardens, and orchards, render this a very agreeable 

 part of the town. Bannalec, N.W. of Quimperl<5, famous for the 

 wrestling-matches held near it every September, at which 

 variety and oddity of Breton costume may bo seen among the num- 

 bers drawn together to witness and take part in the national game, 



has a population of 4264. Font-area, a small place near tli. uth..f 



a little river with the pure Celtic name of Aven, and 11 miles W. from 

 Quimperle', has a small harbour for vessels of 60 or 70 tons : popula- 

 tion, 834. Sctur, N.W. of Quimperlc', stands on an eminence on 

 the right bank of the Isole, and has 4005 inhabitants. From ih,- 

 tower of the church of Scaor is one of the most extensive views in 

 Bretagne. Near the town ia the beautiful well of Sainte-Candide, the 

 basin of which is 76 feet long, 16J feet wi 1< , :m,l V 



The department forms the see of the Bishop of Quimper, is com- 

 prised in the jurisdiction of the High Court of Reunee, and belongs to 

 th Military Division, of which Rennes is head-quarters. 



(IHctionnairc de la France; Statuliyue de la France; Annaire 

 An 1853.) 



FINLAND, the Grand-duchy of, forms a Russian government com- 

 posed of Finland, the two Lapmarks of Kemi and Tome*, and the 

 province of Wiborg. It lies between 59" 48' and 70 6' N. lat, 

 88 10' and 60 25' E. long. ; and is bounded N. by Norwegian 

 Finmark ; N.E. by the government* of Archangel, Olonetz, and St. 

 Petersburg; a by the Gulf of Finland ; and W. by the Gulf of Bothnia 

 and Sweden. Its present name was given to it by the Swedes ; but 

 the natives call it Snomemna, the ' Region of Lakes or Swamps.' Its area 

 is estimated at 145,482 square miles ; aud the population, according to 

 th* census of 1852, amounted to 1,630,815, The Lapmarks of Keini 



