﻿e«6 



LOIRE. 



LOIEF. 



6C6 



chain of hills runniog eaat and west, and uniting the two mountain 

 ranges before named, except at the point where it is broken through 

 by the Loire. A small portion of the south-east of the department 

 extends eastward of the C^vennea into the basin of the Rh6ne, which 

 river runs along the boundaiy for about 6 miles. In the western part 

 of the plain, at the foot of the mountains, several isolated volcanic 

 swells, consisting of black basalt, lie in a general direction of north 

 and south, and have in some instances their summits crowned with 

 the ruins of ancient castles or monasteries. There are several of these 

 basaltic excrescences on the slope of the mountains also. 



The principal rivers are the Loire and the Rbose, by means of 

 which the various industrial products of the department are conveyed 

 to the Atlantic, or to the Mediterranean. The Loire runs through 

 the centre of the department in a direction of north by west, and is 

 navigable, in its whole length, in this department ; but owing to the 

 rapidity of the current it is only the down navigation that is available 

 as far as lioanne, where the general navigation of the river commencea 

 Its principal feeders in this department are the Ond^ne, the Fiirens, 

 the Coise, the Lignon, and the Somin. The GUr, the only feeder 

 which the Rhdne receives from this department, rises in Mont Pilat, 

 in descendmg which it forma several cascades, passes 8t-Chamond and 

 Rive-de-Gier and enters the Rhdne at Qivors. The lateral canal of 

 the Loire from Roanne to Digoin runs through the north of the 

 department ; another, the Givors Canal, which is fed by the Oier, 

 runs from Rive-de-Gier to the Rhdne. The department contains many 

 ponds and tarns, about 450 of which are in the plain of Forez. A 

 railroad runs along the right bank of the Loire, from Roanne to St- 

 £tienne, with a branch westward to Montbrison. From St-£tienne 

 the line is carried through the C^vennes, and continues up the right 

 bank of the Rhdne to Lyon ; its length in this department is 79 miles. 

 The department ia also trarened by 6 atate, 11 departmental, and 21 

 parish roads. 



The heights of Forez and La-Madeleine, separating the valley of the 

 Loire from that of the Allier, are chiefly composed of granitic rocks 

 or of the older limestones and sandstones, disturbed in places by those 

 enrioua protuberances of oompaot basalt thrown up by ancient volcanic 

 agency already alluded to. Part of the high ground between the 

 Loire and Rhdne is occupied by the coal-measures ; and the valley 

 of the Loire is occupied by strata belonging to the supraorataoeous 

 group. 



The mountains of the department abound with excellent pasture 

 and medicinal plants; their lower slopes are cultivated or covered with 

 TUieyards and chestnut woods. In the upland districts of the dopart- 

 ment great numbers of cattle are reared and much cbeeae ia made. 

 In the plains the common breadstufis — wheat, rye, barley, oats, &c. — 

 are grown, but in quantity insufficient for the consumption ; hemp, 

 excellent fruits, oleaginous seeds, and dyestuSs are also raised. About 

 6,000,000 gallons of good ordinary red and white wines are produced 

 annually. Horses and black cattle are small ; the sheep are noted for 

 their sweet flesh ; poultry and game are abtindant In the valley of 

 the Rhdne, mulberry-trees are extensively grown for the production of 

 silk. There are also extensive forests of pine, fir, beech, and oak ; on 

 Mont Pilat, near St.-£tienne, an immense number of deals are cut, 

 aaw-mills being established on every avaiUble stream of water. But 

 much of the finest pine-timber is made into charcoal, in consequence 

 of the great difficulty of transport from the mountain-heights on 

 which it grows ; the finest treea vary from 98 to 115 feet in height. 

 Great quantities of chestnuts are grown ; these enter largely into the 

 food of the people ; the finest are sent to Paris, where they are sold 

 (like those of Ard^he) under the name of Harrons de Lyon. 



The department contains one of the richest coal-fields in France, 

 which, b««ides supplying the numerous factories and furnaces of St.- 

 Gtienne, and other places in the department, also furnishes large quan- 

 tities forexportstion to Lyon and the towns on the Rhdne. The quantity 

 of coal annually furnished by the mines of Loire amounts to one-third 

 of all the coal raised in France. Lead- and iron-mines are also worked ; 

 building stone, granite, potters' clay, &c., are found ; mineral springs 

 are nnmeroua 



The manufactures of the department are of groat variety and 

 importance, and give rise to a very extensive commerce. The chief 

 products are fire-arms, ironmongery, and machinery of all kinds, 

 silks, ribands, crape, velvet, pluab, laces, linen, cotton, glass, bricks, 

 steel, iron, scythes, hardware, canvas, mill-castings, files and tools of 

 all descriptions, , cotton and linen yam, lace, cutlery, earthenware, 

 tiles, lime, Ac, &c. Great numbers of coal-barges and canal-boats are 

 built at Roanne and St.-Rambert. The great centra of manufacturing 

 industry ia St-Gtieuna The number of wind- and water-mills amounts 

 to 986 ; of iron- and steel-works to 94 ; of factories of diif.^rent kinds 

 to 714. About 300 fairs are held yearly for the sale of cattle and 

 agricultural produce. 



The department contains 1,178,780 acres, of which area 618,100 

 B«res ore arable land; 211,6a0 acres natural pasture land; 34,342 

 Mrs* are laid out in vineyards f 1 56,824 acres are covered with woods ; 

 81,821 acres with rivers, ponds, canals, &c. ; 92,329 acres consist of 

 barren heath and moorland ; and 35,322 acres are occupied with roads, 

 ■treeta, buildings, &c. 



. ^''* 4*P'?''*™*°'' '* div^d into three arrondissements, which, with 

 I liQiulation, are as follows : — I 



Arrondissements. 



Cantons. 



Commanei. 



Population in 18S1. 



1. Montbrison 



2. Roanne . . . 



3. St.-Etienne . 



9 

 10 



8 



133 



IDS 



73 



132,116 

 135,324 

 205, U8 



Total . . . 



27 



319 



472,588 



tlMlr lalHliTiaioiia and i 



1. Of the first arrondissement, and of the whole department, the 

 capital is ifontbrinon, which stands on the Vizdzy, a small feeder of 

 the Loire, in 45° 36' N. lat., 4° 3' 45" E. long., at a distance of 45 miles 

 W. from Lyon (60 miles by railway), and has 6435 inhabitants in the 

 commune. It is built round a basaltic hill (from the summit of which 

 there is a fine view over the plain of Forez), and at the extremity of 

 a branch railroad that joins the St.-£tieune-Roanne line at Montrond. 

 The town, which is ill built, with narrow winding streets and low 

 houses, has a tribunal of first instance, communal and ecclesiastical 

 colleges, a primary normal school, and a public library of 15,000 

 volumes. The principal building is the cathedral of Notre-Dame, 

 which dates from 1225. The old ramparts and ditches are now re- 

 placed by handsome promenades. Montbrison is the capital of the 

 department of Loire, which distinction it owes solely to its central 

 situation ; for with respect to population, for commercial and industrial 

 activity^ it is greatly surpassed by St-fitienne and Roanne. The town 

 originated in a castle ond church built on the summit of a volcanic 

 hill by the counts of Forez in the 1 3th century. It became the chief 

 town of Forez and was taken and burnt by the English in the 14th 

 century. In the rehgious wars of the 16th century it was taken by 

 the ferocious baron Adreta, who committed unparalleled cruelties 

 against the townsfolk and the garrison. In 1590 the Leaguers, under 

 the Duke de Nemours, took the castle of Montbrison, which was soon 

 afterwards demolished by Henri IV. Of the other towns that are 

 noticed the population is that of the commune in each case. St.- 

 Bonnet-le-ChdIeau, on a high hill in the south of the department, and 

 on the Roman road made here by Agrippa, has 2068 inhabitants. 

 CfuaeUet-ntr- Li/on, a small but well-built walled town E. of Montbrison, 

 has a population of 3011. Peurt, the ancient Forum Segutianorum, 

 and the midway station on the railroad from St.-Etienne to Roanne, 

 from each of which towns it is 25 miles distant, stands in a fertile, 

 well-watered plain near the right bank of the Loire, and has 2646 

 inhabitants. Roman antiquities, comprising four milestones, remains 

 of an aqueduct, some mosaics, corinthian columns, and baths, still 

 exist in the town ; the high stone dykes which confine the Loire iu the 

 neighbourhood are said to be of Roman construction. The territory of 

 Forum was calle<l Pagus Forensis, whence the Forez is said to 

 derive its name. The church of Feurs is built with materials from 

 Roman buildings. St.-Galmier, 12 miles E. of Montbrison, on the 

 St.-£tienne-Roanue railroad, 37 miles from Roanne, stands on a high 

 bill near the right bank of the Coise, and has a population of 2758. 

 It is said to occupy the site of the ancient Aqucc-Segete : and is still 

 famous for its cold mineral spring. St.-Rambert, 11 miles S.K. from 

 Montbrison, is prettily situated on the left bank of the Loire, and has 

 3078 inhabitants. The church of St.-Rambert is remarkable for its 

 great antiquity. Nearly 8000 barges are built here annually, and 

 sent down the Loire laden with coal to Roanne. In the neighbour- 

 hood are several iron-foi|;es and smelting furnaces. Sury-le-Comtal, 

 7 miles S. from St.-Rambert, for a long time the residence of the 

 counts of Forez, whose caatle ia still in good preservation, has 2464 

 inhabitants. 



2. In the second arrondissement the chief town, Roanne, is situated 

 on the left bank of the Loire, which is here navigable, at a distance of 

 50 miles by riilroad from St.-fitieaue, and has a tribunal of first 

 instance, a consultative chamber of manufactures, a college, and 13,221 

 inhabitants in the commune. The town is well-built, with straight 

 wide streets, formed by handsome houses; the bridge over the 

 Loire, the public library, and the college buildings are the most 

 remarkable structures. The manufactures, which are important, con- 

 sist of muslin, calico, broadcloth, handkerchiefs, glue, oil, porcelain, 

 linen thread, cotton-yam, and leather ; there are several dye-houses, 

 and numerous boat-building yards. By mean.^ of the lateral caual of 

 the Loire, which enters that river at Digoin, and by the numerous 

 canals and rivers that join the Loire, Roanne has water communication 

 with all the principal towns in France. The trade in com, wine, flour, 

 spun cotton, calico, planks, coal, charcoal, the manufactures of Lyon, 

 and of the southern and easteru departments of France, is very con- 

 siderable. Jielmont, 3 miles N.E. from Roanne, has 3440 inhabitants. 

 GKarlieu, 12 miles N by E. from Roanne, on the Sornin, a feeder of 

 the Loire, is famous for the remains of a Benedictine abbey, iiud has 

 3689 inhabitants, who manufacture linen, cotton, silk and cotton-yarn, 

 and shoe- and glove-leather. The hospital of Charlieu, one of the 

 oldest in Prance, was founded by St-Louif. Perrevuc, on the Ro<lon, 

 4 miles firom Roanne, has 2517 inhabitants. St.-Symphorien-de-Lay, 

 10 miles by railway S.E. from Roanne, has cotton factories, coal-mines, 

 and 3989 inhabitants. 



3. Of the third arrondissement, the chief town is Sl,-/ilienne. 

 [|5tienne, St.] Bourg-Argental, on the DiSome, in a fertile valley 

 abounding with mulberry plantations, from which silk of the best 



