|FROM the railway station one could see the towers of the cathedral and
the old church of St. Pierre, above the heavy trees of a short avenue
which led to that part of the town, where formerly stood the old
ramparts--and to the Porte Royale.
The best and most picturesque part of the town, of interest to the
antiquary, was the western end, and here were tortuous and delightful
crooked narrow streets, quaint little gabled houses, old mossy walls
surrounding luxuriant gardens, and some remains of the remarkable
chateaux of a bygone period.
Ancient stronghold in past centuries, it had become a little old
sleepy town given over to churches and the priesthood. Of the ancient
Gallo-Roman fortifications there were still to be seen, up to the
outbreak of the war in 1914, sixteen of the Roman towers in a fair state
of preservation. A small river, the Nonette, passes through it, winding
most exquisitely. Situated some thirty-five miles from Paris, and on the
edge of the Champagne district, its character could be best appraised
from the charming public promenade along the river's bank, lined with
fine trees and offering vistas of great picturesqueness.
The old cathedral dates back to the early days of the thirteenth
century; its lace-like gray tower, covered with exquisite Gothic
ornamentation, was a source of delight to artists and antiquarians.
Usually covered with scaffolding, the tower was in a constant state of
repair, but the spidery scaffolding seemed not at all to detract from
the charm of its lines.
One of the architects in charge explained that the vaulting and the
first stage of the choir, the "triform ambulatory" had been removed
because of cracks developing in the masonry, but this alteration did not
seem to have resulted in any loss to the interior artistically. Indeed,
as it stood in 1910, the choir elevation was a most exquisite example of
thirteenth century construction and design.