330. Paris.—Nearly all the railroads and finest highways of France lead to Paris, the capital 'city. It is the third city of the world in size, and has beautiful buildings and wide, shady streets called boulevards. Automobiles run in every direction, and omnibuses with people riding inside and on the roof go up and down the streets of the city. Travelers from every state in America, indeed, from almost every coun try in the world, may be seen on the streets of Paris. We May visit the famous build ings filled with wonderful paintings, and then go to the fine stores to buy presents for our friends at home. There are many beautiful things in Paris, for the French people are fond of pretty things, and know well how to make even commonplace things beautiful. The French are an artistic people. Because the French make such pretty things, Paris is a great producer and exporter of dresses, hats, gloves, silk and satin goods, jewelry, perfumes and many other fine goods that go to the stores in America. River boats bring freight from ocean steamers at Havre up the Seine River to Paris.
. 331. has four great seaports. Brest, on the western corner, is the nearest to America, and hundreds of thousands of American soldiers landed there during the World War. Havre, on the north, is the port for Paris; Bordeaux, on the west, is the wine port; and Mar seille, on the south, is the port for the trade with French possessions in Africa and in Asia. France is like England in having colonies • that are larger than the mother country. See Fig. 40 to find the French colonies. Many coconuts and peanuts are brought to Marseille and crushed in the oil mills, for which the city is famous. Some of the French people eat the oil from these nuts in the place of butter.
332. Northern France and the north of France, where Jean Ribot lives (Sec. 319), and in Belgium, which is very near by and very much like' France, the farms are smaller than they are in the rest of France, and the population is very dense.
There is some coal in this part of France,' and the same coal, layers extend under Belgium and on into Germany. In north ern France there are manufacturing towns such as we find in England. The largest of these French towns is Lille, where much wool and cotton cloth were made before the World War. Near the French border are several Belgian towns where glass, cement, and iron are made. Even in the time of Columbus, Belgium was famous for its manufactures of woolen and linen cloth, and these industries still thrive. Lace making is another of the famous industries of Belgium. The women of the country villages often use their spare time in making most beautiful lace by hand. It is sent to Brussels to be sold.
per square mile as has the United States. No other country in Europe has so dense a population. The people cultivate their little farms almost like gardens, but they must buy much of the food they eat, and they must pay for it with manufactures. You can see why they suffered so when the World War stopped their trade, and why they would have starved if the Belgian Relief Committee had not brought them food through the Dutch port of Rotterdam.
The people of both France and Belgium are intelligent and well educated.
333. Trade through Belgium. — Ant werp, the big port of Belgium, lies up the • river Scheldt, and has more vessels coming into it than has any KA of France. From Antwerp, goods bound for France and Germany often go forward to those coun tries by canal boats. The same canal boats bring French and German exports to the ocean steamers at Antwerp. Many vessels daily cross from England to France and Belgium, for there is a lively trade between these countries.
Brussels, the capital of Belgium, is much like Paris, except that it is smaller. Bel gium is about the size of Maryland. It is like England in having . a king, and a Parliament that really rules.
334. Dense population.—With its small farms and many manufacturing towns, Belgium has twenty times as many people