CALVADOS

CALVADOS, a department in the north of France, ex-
tending from 48. 46. to 49. 25. N. Lat., and from 0. 26. E.
to 1. 10. W. Long., formed out of that part of Lower Nor-
mandy which comprised Bessin, Bocage, the Champagne
de Caen, Auge, and the western part of Lieuvin. It re-
ceived its present name from a ledge of rocks stretching
along the coast for a distance of about 15 miles between
the mouths of the rivers Orne and Vire, on which the Cal-
rados, a vessel belonging to the Spanish Armada, was
wrecked in 1588. It is bounded north by the English
Channel; east by the department of Eure; south by that
of Orne; west by that of Manche; and has an area of 2143
square miles. The southern part of the department is
somewhat elevated, being crossed by a mountain range,
and forms a continuation of the great water-shed between
the basins of the Seine and Loire; but the rest of the sur-
face is gently undulating, and consists of extensive valleys
watered by numerous streams which fall into the English
Channel. The coast is high, and generally inaccessible ex-
cept at the mouths of the principal rivers, such as the
Touque, the Dive, the Orne, and the Vire, which are navi-
gable at high tide for several miles inland, and are indicated
by lighthouses at their mouths. The valleys, which gen-
erally slope in a direction from south to north, afford abun-
dant pasture for horses and cattle, and the agriculture of

the district is superior to that of most of the other departments. Wheat, potatoes, and all kinds of vegetables are raised in great quantities for the markets of the interior and for exportation. The orchards of the Auge district produce a very superior kind of cider, of which upwards of 30,000,000 gallons are made in the department; while Isigny is the centre of a large domestic and export trade in butter, cheese, and other dairy produce. Poultry is reared to a considerable extent for the Paris market. In the larger towns, of which, on account of the agricultural pursuits of the inhabitants there are very few, there are manufactories of lace, (employing upwards of 50,000 persons), woollen yarn and cloth, linen, calicoes, flannel, shawls, cutlery, and earthenware. Besides these the paper-mills, oil-mills, tanneries, refineries of beet-root and foreign sugar, distilleries and bleach-fields scattered throughout the department, give employment to a great number of hands. Although seams of coal are found and wrought at Ligny, most of the coal used in the department is imported from England or Belgium. The fisheries along the coast are extensively prosecuted for Parisian consumpt, and consist chiefly of lobster, oyster, herring, and mackerel fishing. The imports of the department are principally iron, wool, raw cotton, hides, and colonial produce, which form the raw materials for home manufacture. The principal towns are Caen (the capital), Lisieux, Bayeux, Falaise, Honfleur, and Vire, which communicate with each other by excellent roads. The first three stand on the great road from Paris to Cherbourg.

Calvados is divided into six arrondissements, which are peopled and divided as follows: viz.—