housand
inhabitants, but has almost the primitive look of a village. Many of the
people still wear the costumes of the place, especially on a Sunday,
when the interior of the church at high mass looks very picturesque and
imposing.

The dress of the women is peculiar, and at first sight they might almost
be taken for nuns or sisters of mercy: a dress which leaves scope for a
certain refinement rather contradicted by the physical appearance of the
women themselves. Men and women, in fact, belong for the most part to
the peasantry, and pass their simple lives labouring in the fields,
beating out flax, cultivating their little gardens, so that such an
official as the gravedigger becomes an important personage amongst them.
We came across him, at his melancholy work, but could make no more of
him than we made of the people of Roscoff. He understood no word of
French, but spoke his own native tongue, the language of la Bretagne
Bretonnante, as Froissart has it, in contradistinction to la Bretagne
douce. Nothing, certainly, can be softer and more beautiful than the
pure French language; but that of Brittany is hard and guttural, without
beauty or refinement of any sort.

The men of St. Thegonnec dress very differently from the women, but the
costume is also very characteristic. It is entirely black, and consists
of wide breeches, pleated and strapped at the knee; a square tunic; a
scarf tied round the waist, with loose ends; a large hat, and shoes with
buckles.

[Illustration: OLD HOUSE ST. POL DE LEON.]

To-day few inhabitants were visible. We seemed to be in possession of
the place, together with the old gravedigger, who stopped his work and
escorted us about, but was too stupid to understand even the most
intelligent signs.

The church is very elaborate and fanciful, cruciform and sixteenth
century, in the Renaissance style, much decorated with sculptures in
dark Kersanton stone. The word _Kersanton_ is Breton for St. Anthony's
House; therefore we may suppose that the Saint had his house, and
possibly his pig-stye, built of this same stone. For, as we know, St.
Anthony had a weakness for pigs, and was famous for recovering one of
his favourites from the devil, who had stolen it: recovered it not quite
undamaged, as the animal was restored with his tail on fire: a base
return for the Saint's politeness, who had offered his petition in
poetical terms to which his audience could scarcely have been
accustomed.

"R