interest, but that efforts may be made to secure
the better preservation of the original carvings in Rouen. The
connection between that city and England is of long standing. It was
the capital of those Norman dukes who conquered us at Hastings and
flooded us with their art, their learning, and their civilisation. It
was the most cherished foreign possession of our King Henry the Fifth,
who died too soon to wear the crown in Paris. It has been the especial
pilgrimage of our best historians and archaeologists and artists almost
from that time until the present day. The "Monuments Historiques" in
which it is so rich are being worthily cared for by an enlightened
government, and I must believe that the sympathy and kindness extended
by every authority in Rouen towards a visitor who honestly confessed
his interest and carefully explored many of its inexhaustible
treasures, would be more than doubled if that interest were expressed
by some representative body like our Society of Antiquaries. That
society would once more deserve well of its country, in the interests
of both history and art, if it would come forward with some suggestion
either to the Ministre des Beaux Arts, or to the local authorities.
The Maison Bourgtheroulde is now in the safe hands of the Comptoir
d'Escompte de Rouen. Every English traveller goes there to change his
notes; and every Englishman must see with regret that the English
portion of these valuable carvings is the one that is most damaged.
This was inevitable from their position; but further injury can at
once be prevented by shielding them with glass. If these modest pages
which bring the subject before the notice of a somewhat wider, and
perhaps a more influential public, succeed in suggesting some movement
that will, I am confident, be welcomed in the best spirit by Frenchmen
on the spot, I shall feel that the "Story of Rouen" has not been told
in vain.

There is another house belonging to a famous citizen in Rouen, which
is very different, but perhaps even more characteristic of the place;
and with our walk towards it we may resume that discovery of the life
of the town which I am just now concerned that you should realise. To
reach the Maison Caradas you have a pleasant choice of paths. As you
stand outside the Maison Bourgtheroulde and look east towards the
Cathedral towers, the first street that goes south towards the river
is the Rue Herbiere, on your right out of the Place de la Pucelle,