nce of its
contaminating influence in this one example alone, traces of nearly
every classical order, from the simple Doric column to a hybrid which
shall be unnamed.

The interior presents a general array of incongruities quite as
remarkable as those of the exterior. The nave is very narrow; but the
choir widens out perhaps a dozen feet on either side, adding
immeasurably to an effect which is far more impressive than might
otherwise be supposed.

The nave itself shows many varieties of building, ranging from the
Gothic of the early twelfth to the late fifteenth centuries; the lower
part and the easterly bays are Romanesque, or what perhaps has been
popularly accepted as Norman, and date from 1125; the remainder and the
triforium are of a century later.

The choir is of the decorated species of the early fourteenth century,
with its arcaded triforium glazed, whereas in the nave it is without
glass. The lady-chapel, of the time of Louis XI., shows that inevitable
mark of degeneracy, the "_fleur-de-lys_," in the elaborated tracery of
the window framing. The glass here is, however, excellent, in effect at
any rate, with its gorgeous figures of knights, angels, and peers of
France, drawn with a masterly skill which is often lacking in even more
precious glass.

The chapel screens, some twenty in all, are wondrously turned and carved
of wood. This leads one to venture the thought that the similar
decorative embellishments of the Renaissance chateaux of the Loire
country were slowly creeping northward, and leaving their impress upon
the work of the ecclesiastical builder and decorator. Certainly, the
numerous fine examples of the art of the wood-carver, to be seen in this
cathedral, bespeak much for the decorative quality of wood, when used
considerately in conjunction with stone.

There are two rose windows, of the petal species, unquestionably fine as
to framing, but leaving little space for the effect of the glass, which
they hold only in small proportion.

The "treasury," alone, is enclosed with iron bars, and a _grille_ of
graceful late flowing ironwork forms the screen of the choir. Altogether
the Cathedral at Evreux will be remembered quite as much for its
wonderful array of wooden and iron _grilles_ as for any other of the
specific details among its mass of general attributes.

[Illustration: _Window Framing--Evreux_]

[Illustration: _Notre Dame d'Alencon_]

III

NOTRE DAME D'ALENCON

This for