478 



MUSHROO:,! CULTURE. 



being scraped away_, and the place left to recruit itself for a 

 year or two. In 1867 M. Renaudot had the extraordi- 

 nary length of over twenty-one miles of Mushroom beds in 

 one great cave at Mery^ last year there were sixteen miles 

 in a cave at Frepillon. This is a clean^ lonely ^illage^ just 

 touching on the gigantic cemetery which ^I. Haussmann 

 has projected. 



The distant view of 

 the entrance to the 

 quarries has much the 

 appearance of an Eng- 

 lish chalk pit. But 

 there is a great rude 

 arch cut into the rock^ 

 and into this we enter^ 

 meeting j)!'^^^^'^^ ^ 

 waggon coming forth 

 with a load of stones^ 

 the waggoner with 

 lamp in hand. To the 

 visitor who has seen 

 the low jMushroom 

 caves near Paris,, where 

 it is sometimes neces- 

 sary to stoop very low 

 to avoid knocking 

 one^s head against the 

 roof rocksj the surprise 

 is great on getting a 



Entrance to large Subterranean Quarry. little way in. At least 



it is so as soon as one 

 can see ; the darkness is so profound that a few candles or 

 lamps merely make it more visible. The tunnel we traverse 

 is nearly regularly arched^ masonry being used here and 

 there^ so as to render the suppiort secure and symmetrical^ 

 the arches being flat at the top for six feet or so^ and about 

 twenty-five feet high ; sometimes five feet higher. 



Presently we turn to the rights and a scene like a vast 

 subterranean rock temple presents itself. At one end 



