FRANCE 



603 



road, which extends from Lyons to Andrezieux on the Loire, 35 miles. The manufactures 

 of St. Etienne, and its vicinity, are arms, jewelry, silk and cotton stufi's, &,c. Populalion of 

 the town and adjacent country, 50,000. To the southeast of Lyons, is Grenoble, ujion the 

 Isere, with 25,000 inhabitants, a strongly fortified place, with extensive manufactures of gloves 

 and liqueurs. It has several important literary establishments, and is interesting in history, as 

 the former capital of Dauphiny ; in its neighborhood is a celebiated Carthusian monastery, 

 called the Great Chartreuse. 



Marseilles^ the principal commercial city of France, is delightfully situated upon the Lion's 

 gulf, with a spacious harbor. The new city is handsomely built, with wide, straight streets, 

 and many fine promenades and public squares. The old part of the city consists of narrow 

 streets and mean houses. The lazaretto, or quarantine hospital, is esteemed the finest in Eu- 

 rope ; and the ancient cathedral, the hotel de ville, the numerous hospitals, the 21 churches, 

 &c., are among the ornaments of the city. The extensive quays are crowded with meichants 

 and mariners from all parts of the world. The manufactures are also extensive. Marseilles 

 is one of the most ancient cities of France, having been founded by a Giecian colony 2,40C 

 years ago. Population, 121,300. 



The other principal cities in this quarter, are Toulon^ with 28,500 inhabitants, remarkable for 

 its commerce, its excellent port, arsenals, docks, &c. ; it is strongly fortified, and is the chief 

 station of the French navy in the south of France ; Jlix^ with 22,600 inhabitants, lying to the 

 north of Marseilles, once the residence of the Counts of Provence, whose court was the most 

 refined and splendid in Europe, and still distinguished for its literary institutions ; ^flrles^ with 

 20,000 inhabitants, interesting for its antiquities, and once the capital of an independent king- 

 dom ; and Jlvignon^ with 30,000 inhabitants, for some time the residence of the Popes, and 

 now a flourishing manufacturing town ; near Avignon, is the little village of Vaucluse, celebrated 

 by the muse of Petrarch. 



To the west of Marseilles, is MonlpeUier, with 36,000 inhabitants, a flourishing commercial 

 and manufacturing town, celebrated for the beauty of its situation, the elegance of some of its 

 public edifices, its delightful public walk, esteemed the finest in Europe, the salubrity of its air, 

 and its famous university. JYimes, to the north of Montpelller, is a place of great antiquity, 

 and still contains many relics of its ancient magnificence ; it has 41,300 inhabitants, who are 

 engaged in extensive manufacturing and commercial operations. 



Bordeaux, or Bourdeaux, is situated upon the Garonne, 60 miles from its mouth. The river 

 IS navigable to this place by the largest ships, and forms, at Bordeaux, a spacious harbor, which 

 is connected, by the canal of Languedoc, with the Mediterranean. Bordeaux is one of the 

 handsomest, and most flourishing and commercial cities of Fiance, and contains 100,000 in- 

 habitants. In the new part of the city, the streets are spacious and elegant, and there are 

 many delightful promenades, beautiful squares, and splendid edifices. The manufactures are 

 extensive, comprising sugar refineries, distilleries, vinegar works, &c. Ship-building and the 

 whale fishery are also carried on largely, and Bordeaux is the great wine and brandy mart of 

 the south and west of France. Its literary institutions are also numerous and important, and 

 its public library contains 110,000 volumes. 



Bayonne, on the Adour, a pretty town, with 15,000 inhabitants, a good haibor, and an active 

 commerce, — and Rochelle, a commercial and strongly fortified town, with about the same num- 

 ber of inhabitants, are both places of historical interest. 



Aan^es, on the Loire, 25 miles from its mouth, is one of the largest, richest, and most flour- 

 ishing commercial cities of France, with a population of 87,200 souls. Its manufactures are 

 extensive and increasing, and the fisheries are actively prosecuted by the inhabitants. Nantes 

 is very pleasantly situated, and handsomely built, and contains many elegant squares and public 

 edifices. It is famous m history, from its giving name to the edict issued here, in 1598, by 

 Henry the Fourth, granting to the Huguenots, or French Protestants, the free exercise of their 

 religion ; this edict was revoked by Louis the Fourteenth, nearly a century later. Above 

 Nantes, on the Loire, are Jlngiers, with 32,750 inhabitants ; Tours, with 23,250 inhabitants ; 

 and Orleans, with 40,000 inhabitants, cities of some note in history, and which, at present, 

 contain some literary institutions, and have considerable manufactures. 



Rouen, upon the Seine, 70 miles from its mouth, is the centre of a populous manufacturing 

 district, and has, itself, extensive manufactures and a brisk trade. It was formerly the capital 

 of Normandy, and is meanly built, although it contains some remarkable edifices. The neigh- 

 borhood is filled with flourishing manufacturing towns and villages. Principal articles of man- 

 ufacture, cotton, linen, and woolen goods. Population of Rouen, 89,000. 



