CHAPTER III.

Scenery around Louvain--_The Belgian railroad system_--Peculiar adaptation of the country--Policy of Government interference in their construction--The average cost per mile--Causes of the difference in outlay between Belgium and England--Cheap rates of travelling in Belgium--_Accidents_--Success not yet decided--Louvain--Its extent--THE UNIVERSITY OF LOUVAIN--Its former fame--Its present condition--The bierre de Louvain--_The great brewery_--Its processes--Amazing consumption of beer in Belgium--Its different characters--_The Hôtel de Ville_--Its pictures--Gallery of M. Vanderschreick--The collegiate church of St. Pierre--_Legend of Saint Margaret of Louvain_--Tomb of Justus Lipsius--Flight of the “braves Belges” at Louvain in 1832--Singular change in the character of the people for courage--The present soldiery--_Terveuren_--The park and palace of the Prince of Orange--_The Forest of Soigné_--WATERLOO--The Belgic Lion--Its injury to the field--Irish anecdote--Bravery of the Irish troops at Waterloo--_Hougemont_--The orchard--Relics of the fight--The Duke of Wellington’s estate--No monument to him on the field--The Duke of Marlborough--La Belle Alliance--_Quatre Bras_--The woods cut down--Beautiful scenery of the Meuse and the Sambre--NAMUR--My Uncle Toby--The citadel--Don John of Austria--The cathedral--_The church of St. Loup_--The trade in cutlery--THE DESCENT OF THE MEUSE--Its beauty and its wealth--Andennes--_History of Mr. Cockerill_--His influence on the manufactures of Belgium--_His print-works at Andennes_--Ruined by the revolution--_The manufacture of paper in Belgium_--Huy. 117