ROUTE 67.

BORDEAUX TO TOULOUSE,

MONTPELLIER, AND

MARSEILLES.

(4244 miles. 1st class, 76-35 francs, 2nd, 57.25 francs; 3rd, 4160 francs).

EAR Bègles (two miles), we see the remains of a Roman aqueduct, and at Villenave-d'Ornon (33 miles), those of an ancient Roman temple. In the neighbourhood of St. Medard d'Eyrans (83 miles), is the Château de Montesquieu, in which the illustrious author of "l'Esprit des Lois" resided for some time, and where he died. At Beautiran (114 miles) are the vestiges of some Roman roads, and, in the vicinity, traces of Roman encampments. We pass, for several miles, through a district celebrated for its white wines.

The first place worth mentioning on our route is AGEN (85 miles), (Hotel: du Petit St. Jean), population about 18,000. It is pleasantly situate on the right bank of the Garonne, and upon the side of the hill above the river. The Canal de la Garonne is here carried across the river by an aqueduct. Agen was called Agedinum by the Romans,under whom the early Christians of the place were cruelly persecuted. A fine view is to be had from the summit of the hill rising above the town. Agen is celebrated for its plums, and the neighbourhood abounds with orchards of several kinds of fruit trees. The renowned scholar, Julius Scaliger, died and his son was born here. It is also the birth-place of the celebrated Ber

nard Palissy, who invented a fine description of earthenware. At MOISSAC (110 miles), there is a beautiful abbey-church, dedicated to St. Peter and St. Paul, supposed to have been built in the 7th century; the porch and cloisters (of a later date than the church), are very interesting.

MONTAUBAN (128 miles), (Hotels: du Midi, de l'Europe) is a town of about 26,000 inhabitants, situated on the right bank of the Tarn. The Cathedral, a building in the Italian style, contains two paintings by Ingres, a native of the place. Many of his works are to be seen in the collection_preserved at the Hôtel de Ville. From the Promenade of Les Terrasses, there is a magnificent view, extending to the Pyrenees. the town is a College for the education of Protestant ministers. Montauban was early distinguished for its zeal in the cause of Protestantism. On this ground it was besieged, but without success, by Louis XIII. in 1621, and Louis XIV. also subjected the inhabitants to great persecutions at the instigation of Madame de Maintenon. Wool is extensively manufactured here.

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We next reach TOULOUSE (160 miles), (Hotels: Souville, de 'Europe), population, 127,000. It is situated on the right bank of the river Garonne, and surrounded by ramparts, flanked with towers. The chief attractions of the place are the public promenades, the river, the quays, and the bridge over the Garonne, which is upwards of 810 ft. in length, and connects Toulouse with the suburb of St. Cyprien; the Cathedral, containing the tombs of the Counts of Toulouse; the Hótel-de-Ville; the Church of St. Sernin, the oldest and most perfect of the ecclesiastical edifices built in the Roman

esque style; and the Musée, with its interesting collection of antiquities, carrying the history of Art down from the Gallo-Roman to the Renaissance period. The town also contains a Theatre, a Public Library of 50,000 volumes, a Botanical Garden, and a Picture Gallery.

The manufactures consist of silks, woollens, leather, vermicelli, porcelain, cutlery, and pottery. There are also copper-works, distilleries, and a cannon foundry. Toulouse is a place of great antiquity, and rose to eminence under the Romans, who adorned it with a Capitol, Amphitheatre, and other buildings, of which vestiges still remain. The most memorable event in the modern history of Toulouse, is the defeat of the French under Marshal Soult, by the British under the Duke of Wellington, in 1814. In earlier times, it was known as the only place in France where the Inquisition was allowed to exist. The Convent of the Inquisition is now a school. Leaving Toulouse, we presently reach CASTELNAUDARY (194 miles). This town was, for a time, one of the seats of the Inquisition. During the persecution of the Albigenses, it was taken by Simon de Montfort. It is noted for the great battle, fought in 1632, between Louis XIII. and the Duke of Orleans. CARCASSONNE (216 miles), (Hotels: Bernard, Bonnet), is a manufacturing town, with a population of about 22,000 inhabitants, situated on the Aude. It consists of an old and a new town. The former, or Cité, is fortified, and of very great antiquity. It was besieged, for a considerable time, by Simon de Montfort, in 1210, and was only gained by treachery. It was also unsuccessfully assailed in 1356, by the Black Prince.

The Church of St. Nazaire is mixed Romanesque and Gothic. The interior is very fine, and contains some beautiful stained glass, sculptures, &c.

The next place of interest is

NARBONNE (253 miles), (Hotel: de France), population 17,172. This town was called Narbo Martius by the Romans, who made it one of their earliest settlements in Gaul. The fortifications were constructed by Louis XIII., who employed all the existing remains of Roman and Arabian masonry for the purpose. The Hotel-de

Ville, with its three ancient towers, is an interesting structure. It contains a museum of ancient sculptures, a good picture gallery, and a library.

The Cathedral of St. Just is a fine Gothic building of the 14th century. It contains some handsome tombs and other sculptures, ivory carvings, illuminated missals, and other treasures. The painting by Sebastian del Piombo, "The Kaising of Lazarus," now in the National Gallery in London, was painted for this Cathedral. Narbonne is celebrated for its honey, which is largely exported. Leaving Narbonne, we arrive at BEZIERS (169 miles), a town of about 18,000 inhabitants. The Cathedral is an ancient building, and contains some old stained glass. In 1209 a frightful massacre took place at Béziers, in which 60,000 of the sect of the Albigenses were put to death. Near AGDE (282 miles), towards the sea, is the Pic de St. Loup, an extinct volcano. Agde is a seaport town of 9,586 inhabitants. It is called the Ville Noire from the dark coloured stone of which its houses are built. CETTE (297 miles), (Hotels: Barillon, Grand Gaillon), population 24,177. This prosperous seaport town was esta-.

B

blished as a European state in 1830, though one of the smallest, is one of the most active and thriving countries of Europe. Upon the north it is bounded by Holland, upon the east by a portion of Prussia, and on the south by France. Its greatest extent, east and west, is about 160 miles, and north and south about 115 miles. The area of the country is 11,366 English square miles. These comparatively straitened limits, however, comprehend within them an industrious, thriving, and contented population, by whom the natural resources of their country have been developed to the best advantage.

The kingdom is divided into nine provinces, the population of which, as given in the official enumeration of December 31, 1866, were as follows: Antwerp, 474,145; Brabant, 820,179; East and West Flanders, 1,441,581; Hainault, 847,775; Liège, 556,666; Limburg, 199,856; Luxemburg, 196,173; Namur, 302,719-Total, 4,839,094.

The ratio of the population of Belgium to its geographical area gives 430 per square mile, showing the kingdom to be more densely inhabited than any other country in Europe. About 58 per cent. of the inhabitants are Flemish, the rest Walloon and French, with rather more than 30,000 Germans in the provence of Luxemburg.

The larger part of Belgium is level, and the country belongs, as a whole, to the great plain which stretches over so large an extent of the European continent. The south-eastern provinces are hilly, and the ground rises gradually into the wooded tract of the Ardennes, situated beyond the eastern banks of the River Meuse, and which forms a portion of the ancient forest of Ardennes. From this region the general slope of the country is to the west and north-west, and all the rivers flow accordingly in that direction. Towards the sea, Belgium exhibits an almost perfect level, excepting immediately along the coast, where there occurs a tract of sand-hills or downs, varying from one to three miles in breadth, and about 50 or 60 ft. in height.

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These downs are in some places thickly covered with pine trees.

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Belgium has two considerable rivers, the Meuse and the Scheldt, besides a great number of smaller streams. The whole country is well-watered, and contains large extent of river-navigation. Nearly a fifth part of the entire surface of the country is covered with wood. Many portions of the forest are here still in their natural state, and afford shelter to the wolf and the wild boar. They consist chiefly of oaks, which often attain a great size, and supply large quantities of valuable timber.

The climate of Belgium bears a considerable general resemblance to that of England, but is subject to greater extremes of heat and cold. It is, however, temperate, healthy, and agreeable.

The mineral produce of Belgium is rich and varied, and, next to its abundant agriculture, constitutes the chief source of its national prosperity. The provinces in which these mineral treasures are most abundant are Hainault, Namur, Liege, and Luxemburg. They include coal, iron, lead, copper, zinc, marble, limestone, slate, &c. But most of these products are insignificant compared to the superabundance of coal-from anthracite to the richest gas-coal-and iron, in both of which Belgium ranks next to England.

MONEY.

The currency of Belgium has the same coins and divisions as the French, except that the Belgian includes a piece of 24 francs. Their small coins, 5, 10, and 20 centimes, are made of Nickel. French money is current in all parts of Belgium.

from the Northern Railway Station, we see, on the left (3 miles), the Palace of Lacken, a residence of the King of the Belgians. The gardens are beautifully laid out. The cemetery of Lacken contains the tomb of Madame Malibran. From this place to Brussels, a distance of 3 miles, a long avenue of trees extends, called the Allée Verte. VILVORDE (6 miles) is noted as the place where Tindal, the translator of the Bible, underwent martyrdom. The prison in which he was confined is now a Penitentiary. There are a great number of fine hopgardens in this neighbourhood. We next reach

MALINES, or MECHLIN (13 miles), (Hotels: La Grue, de Brabant, St. Jacques), population, 34,500. This ancient, and once important manufacturing town, dates from the 5th century, when its site is said to have been washed by the sea, from which circumstance its name (maris linea) is conjectured to have been derived. It is now situated upon the Dyle, an affluent of the Scheldt, into which it falls at some distance above Antwerp. It is the religious metropolis of Belgium, and is no longer known for the manufactures for which it was once famous, except that of lace, which, however, has greatly fallen off, of late years. The