FIFTY YEARS OF A SHOWMAN'S LIFE 



in the future than there has been in the past to 

 consider the subject as of national importance. 

 This being so, we shall have much to learn from 

 the French. 



St. Brieuc is a little town in Brittany of about 

 20,000 inhabitants overlooking the English 

 Channel. It is situated in the centre of a large 

 cider-making district, iron and steel works being 

 its chief industry. It is a most delightfully quaint 

 old place, and, with its narrow streets, picturesque 

 architecture and generally old-world look, re- 

 minded one of what an English town must have 

 been like in the middle-ages. It boasts a cathedral 

 and several churches, all of ancient origin, and all 

 possessing many interesting architectural features. 

 Yet, although the place affords abundant materials 

 for the artist, and has qualities attractive to the 

 ordinary tourist, the outside world seems to pass 

 it by. This is due in a great measure to the fact 

 that it does not do anything or, at any rate, it 

 did not at that time to exploit itself. Ihere 

 were no guides, no photographs, or anything that 

 would help to convey the impression that it was a 

 place well worth visiting. 



The exhibition of implements and appliances 

 was held in a fenced-off portion of the Champ de 

 Mars, a large open space, used for drilling purposes, 

 in front of the barracks, St. Brieuc being a garrison 

 town. The smaller exhibits were under shedding, 

 the larger ones being shown in the open. As the 

 weather was beautifully fine there was no dis- 

 advantage in the latter arrangement, but, had it 

 been wet, it would have been attended with much 

 inconvenience. 



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