by M. Lair of Caen, by the Comte de Beaurepaire de Louvagny, and by the Abbé Daniel, Rector of the 'Academie' at Caen; and shortly afterwards by many members of the 'Institut de France' and other learned societies, besides several of the noblesse and enlightened persons of its agricultural and industrial classes. At first the Society held its meetings only in Normandy; but it was soon invited to visit other provinces of France, in order to confer with their various literary bodies, and the clergy and gentlemen who were laudably endeavouring to restore their desecrated churches, and to prevent that destruction of feudal castles, and Roman and Gaulish remains then daily perpetrated: and this feeling has since so much increased, that the Society is now called on to visit several provinces in one year, diffusing thus its civilizing influence over nearly the whole kingdom.
The meetings of the Society in 1841 took place at Clermont, at Le Mans, at Angers, at Cherbourg, and at Lyon during the session there of the Congres Scientifique de France. The meeting at Clermont was held on the 11th of June, under the presidency of M. Bouillet, its divisional inspector; but as its object was only to visit those churches and other monuments in that province, which, with the aid of government, it had recently restored, I shall proceed to relate the transactions of the sitting at Le Mans, on the 17th of June, under the presidency of the venerable M. Cauvin, and at which his wife, with a few other ladies of acknowledged literary acquirements were permitted to be present. Business commenced by a report on the restoration of a window of the twelfth century in the cathedral there, and a description of its subject, (the history of St. Julien;) followed by a notice of a Dolmen lately discovered in the vicinity, and the presentation of sundry archæological prints and drawings. M. de Caumont, as Director of the Society, then distributed a list of the questions for discussion at its subsequent great meeting at Angers, in which those questions not otherwise intelligible were illustrated by marginal woodcuts, and he afterwards read an essay on the Lantern-towers of ancient cemeteries, which was succeeded by a description of a beautifully carved organ-case put up A.D. 1531. A grant of money was then voted for two casts from some ancient sculpture at Le Mans; one for the museum there, and one for the Society's museum at Caen. A statistical report was next made on the civil and religious edifices in the diocese of Le Mans, whence it appeared that of seven hundred churches therein no fewer than five hundred were as old as the eleventh and twelfth centuries—many of them having crypts and stained glass, of which a tabular view was in course of publication for the Society. An enquiry was thereupon addressed to the Clergy present as to what particular restorations were most urgently requisite in the diocese, and their replies having been noted by the Secretary, the sitting at Le Mans then terminated.
The Society subsequently met on the 21st, 22nd, 23rd, 24th, and 25th of June, at Angers, into which city it was honourably welcomed by the Bishop, the Clergy, and the literary societies there. The business was
