Chapter III

Scenery around Louvain--_The Belgian railroad system_--Peculiar
adaptation of the country--Policy of Government interference
in their construction--The average cost per mile--Causes of
the difference in outlay between Belgium and England--Cheap
rates of travelling in Belgium--_Accidents_--Success not yet
decided--Louvain--Its extent--THE UNIVERSITY OF LOUVAIN--Its
former fame--Its present condition--The bierre de Louvain--_The
great brewery_--Its processes--Amazing consumption of beer in
Belgium--Its different characters--_The Hôtel de Ville_--Its
pictures--Gallery of M. Vanderschreick--The collegiate church of
St. Pierre--_Legend of Saint Margaret of Louvain_--Tomb of Justus
Lipsius--Flight of the “braves Belges” at Louvain in 1832--Singular
change in the character of the people for courage--The present
soldiery--_Terveuren_--The park and palace of the Prince of
Orange--_The Forest of Soigné_--WATERLOO--The Belgic Lion--Its
injury to the field--Irish anecdote--Bravery of the Irish troops
at Waterloo--_Hougemont_--The orchard--Relics of the fight--The
Duke of Wellington’s estate--No monument to him on the field--The
Duke of Marlborough--La Belle Alliance--_Quatre Bras_--The woods
cut down--Beautiful scenery of the Meuse and the Sambre--NAMUR--My
Uncle Toby--The citadel--Don John of Austria--The cathedral--_The
church of St. Loup_--The trade in cutlery--THE DESCENT OF THE
MEUSE--Its beauty and its wealth--Andennes--_History of Mr.
Cockerill_--His influence on the manufactures of Belgium--_His
print-works at Andennes_--Ruined by the revolution--_The
manufacture of paper in Belgium_--Huy. 117