QUINTIN, S•. is a town of France, in the depart ment of the Aisne. It stands on the river Somme, on the canals of Crozat and St. Quintin. The streets, which are numerous, are tolerably wide, clean, and re gular, and many of the houses good and well built. The market place is square. On one side of it is the Hotel de Ville, and in the middle is a well with an ele gant iron rail and framing. The cathedral is a huge mass of building, without either towers or spires, and rising high above all the other houses in the town. It is plain, and rather ugly on the outside, with a very steep roof. The portal at the west end is very heavy, with a mixture of Greek architecture. The cathedral has, what is unusual, two transepts, which give great variety and richness to the interior. In consequence of this, the breadth of the whole of the choir, including the isles, Ste. is the breadth or length of the transept. The sculptures between the pillars of the choir, and seen from behind, have been much defaced. In one of the little chapels on the right hand of the altar there are some fine paintings and tapestry, and the painted glass in the windows, particularly in those of the choir, is very grand. A noble iron grate and railing separates the choir from the nave. The north window of the great transept is very grand, and there is a fine circular vitrage in the north end of the little transept. The south window of
it is not circular, but is very grandly painted. The lowest window in the little transept is covered with vitrages, composed of very large figures.
The Halle aux Bled, near the market place, has a high turret, and has Formerly been a church.
The Maison de Ville is a singular piece of Gothic architecture, situated on the north side of the market place. It is two stories high, and has an arcade below of seven pointed arches. On the second story there are nine gothic windows. This is surmounted with an ornamented ballustrade, and the front terminates with three pediments, each of which is nearly an equilateral trangle. On the middle pediment a clock has been placed. There is a foundling hospital in the town, which is a plain brick building. The country around St Quin tin is in general bare. Though rich, the soil is-red and clayey, and there are great numbers of wind-mills in the vicinity.
This town has long been celebrated for its manufac tures of thread, linen, cambric, lawn, gauze, and cot ton ; and it carries on a great export trade with France, Holland, Germany, Ste. The population of toe town is about 11,000. The number of houses is above 1800.
A full account of the magnificent canal of St Quintin, will be found in our article on INLAND Navica tion.