av AMERICAS WAY TO THE WAR IN FRANCE
• I A GREAT FRENCH RAILROAD : CHEMIN DE FER DE PARIS A ORLÉANS
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••SB
IRON ARTERIES of FRANCE•
A GREAT FRENCH RAILROAD CHEMIN DE FER DE PARIS A ORLÉANS
• •••IBMIIIIIII11HIEIIIIBIBIIII S FOR EVERY INFORMATION • • • • APPLY TO : • • B 5 PARIS-ORLEANS RAILROAD . COMPANY " " ("BUREAU DU TRAFIC-VOYAGEURS") Jj • n° l, place Valbubert • • • 5 OR JO THE COMPANY'S AGENCY J B là, boulevard deâ Capucines m E • 5 PARIS g • • •••BBBBBHHHHHBBBBBBBBHHBHBBaBBBBBB A GREAT FRENCH RAILROAD CHEMIN DE FER DE PARIS A ORLÉANS
• COMPANY- AND ITS SYSTEM •
HE might of the United States has already begun to be T revealed in the steadily increasing stream of troops, material and provisions to the ocean shores of France, the coasts that look towards America. From the Atlantic ports to the front the American troops travel over the railroad system of the Paris-Orleans Company, which in the early period of the war played an important part in the transport of the allied armies, including the British troops landed at Saint-Nazaire and the Indian divisions sent through Marseilles and Toulouse. In view of its special situation which makes it the principal line for the conveyance of American troops, the Paris-Orleans Company believes the people of the United States will be interested to learn something about" this railroad, about its economic and financial features, the great services it has already rendered to the cause of national Defence, its resources, the ports it serves, the characteristics of the country crossed by its lines, the industrial or agricultural wealth of each
W"»M"***#***«**t*»**#»»»******«
? HISTORY OF THE COMPANY % Ï GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF ITS SYSTEM I * m
For the origin of the Orleans Company we must go back to the epoch when the first French railroads were built. The Company was formed in i83*8, and took its name from its first line, that from Paris to Orleans. As a result of subsequent amalgamations •with other Companies, and of constant exten sions, its trains to-day run over a total of 4-869 miles of rails, linking up more than 1.100 stations. The Company's network of lines penetrates and clusters around the very heart of France, and covers the whole of the vast region betwen the valleys of the Loire and Garonne. The Orleans system, indeed, embraces the 3z Departments forming the ancient provinces of the Isle of France, Touraine, Anjou, Brittany, Berry, Angoumois, Limousin, Auvergne, Perigord, Guyenne, Gascony and Languedoc. Of the four main lines radiating from Paris and constituting the framework of the system two stretch to the Ocean. One, thrown out westward, follows the valley of the Loire from Orleans, through Blois, Tours, Saumur, and Angers, and has its termini at the ports of Nantes and Saint-Nazaire, at the mouth of the river. A branch of this line runs through Vannes, Lorient and Quimper, on the Southern coast of Brittany, to Brest. The main artery of the system, and the most important by the amount of traffic and the riches of the country it traverses,,
illJIIIIIM^
i ; mWÊÊÊÊ^Êmt-- •-'• • " ----^s»4j(^^^^^^^^ " ^1^Jgajy; * ^~n^SB B m \ •5|Vr tf^^^M
*•
TOURS iiimn 1111111 ********************* A GREAT FRENCH RAILROAD **************************************************************************** links Paris with Bordeaux, the great port at the mouth of the Garonne, passing through Tours, Poitiers and Angoulême. It is also the route to the -western Pyrenees, the Basque Coast (including the -well known resorts of Arcachon and Biarritz), Spain and Portugal. A third line cuts through Central France from North to South, leading via Vierzon, Issoudun, Châteauroux, Limoges and Cahors, to Toulouse, connecting thence with the Central and Eastern Pyrenees and the Western Mediterranean coasts of France and Spain. The fourth line opens up a great industrial region of which the centres are Bourges and Montluçon, climbs into the Mountains of Auvergne, and reaches the cities of Clermont- Ferrand and Aurillac, besides the spas of Royat, Mont-Dore, La Bourboule, Saint-Nectaire and Vic-sur-Cère. These main lines are completed by a series of transversal lines running Eastward from the ports of Saint-Nazaire and Nantes to Nevers, via Tours and Bourges ; from Bordeaux to Nevers, via Perigueux, Limoges and Bourges; to Clermont- Ferrand via Perigueux, Brive and Tulle.
I FINANCIAL FEATURES \ *************************************************************************
The capital of the Orleans Company amounts to 3oo mil lions francs (60 millions dollars) divided into six hundred thousand 5oo fr. shares. The surplus capital required for building expenses, mate rial and rolling stock, viz, two milliards 900 millions (58o.ooo.000 dollars) Was raised by obligations or bonds of **********************************
5 A GREAT FRENCH RAILROAD different types — 2 1/2 0/0, 3 0/0 and 4 0/0. A considerable part of this capital — over a milliard francs or 200 mil lions dollars, — tas already been redeemed. By the terms of agreements with the French Government in i883, interest on the bonds as •well as the sinking fund are guaranteed by the state until the expiry of the company's concession, that is to say until December 3i, 1956. Except in particularly critical periods such as the first year of the present war the Company has never failed to pay interest and sinking fund out of its working profits, and as a result its Bonds have always been considered to be a first class investment. The following figures 'will give an idea of the importance of the Orleans Railroad system : the receipts in 1916 amounted to 3?5 millions francs (75 millions dollars) ; in. the same year the company carried 5i .269.575 pas sengers and 18.377.687 tons of goods. These figures do not include the military transports effected by the company ; on this subject we give some information further on.
I WORKING OF THE ORLEANS RAILROAD J
On December 3i 1914» &e Orleans Company possessed 2.094 locomotives, including 18 electric engines. Its rolling stock comprised 4-44° passenger cars, and 46.366 goods trucks. The passenger trains are characterized by a maximum of comfort and hygiene, and all the latest perfections are found on the Bordeaux and Saint-Nazaire lines, the principal expresses being provided, before the war, with smoking and ladies' saloons, open to passengers without extra charge. mini
sili CHATEAU OF CHENONCKAUX m liiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiifiin
POITIERS.
NOTRE-DAME
LA-GRANDE
V
SAUMUR.
THE
CHATEAU
III! A GREAT FRENCH RAILROAD
Restaurant-cars are attached to all long distance trains, and for night journeys sleeping-cars are available. The International Sleeping-Car Company's trains de luxe also ran, before thé war, on the Bordeaux and Toulouse lines through to Madrid, Lisbon and Barcelona. The Orleans Company has always made it a rule to give equal attention to the comfort and interests of every class of passenger. Most of its fast trains, for instant, carry third class passengers. As regards speed, it may be mentioned here that the Company possesses the most powerful locomo tives of the Pacific and Atlantic types, capable of pulling the heaviest trains at express speed.
•" THE ORLEANS COMPANY'S SHARE '% | IN THE NATIONAL DEFENCE EFFORT I « .* Directly the war broke out the Orleans Company was called upon to undertake heavy army transport work. The Company may say that its task was accomplished without a hitch and "with perfect regularity and smoothness. During the first days of the mobilisation, between the 2 nd and 5th August 1914» it put on about i.5oo trains; between the 5th and i9t]l August it conveyed nearly 600.000 officers and soldiers belonging to the metropolitan corps and the colonials of Algeria, Senegal and Morocco ; i44-°°° Worses, 4°-00° carts and cannons, and 64-000 tons of material and provisions. During the year 1916 it carriedg.ôoo.ooo officers and soldiers on personal journeys, while the number of truckloads of troops', horses, war material and provisions of all kinds carried was i.o63.63o, over and above the ordinary commercial traffic.
5 if orbe IP — {Melun
lale#.erfces*r^\ \c
ûy IMPER > T\ospord^.. benegard^r- ^eauni4aHL^^pfSfTj' LÇ MANS % S ChTtea tapuimpeflé Sablé Montas Aufcn^ Vendu iâteaubnant îsegre
i Avslloh TOUB iXosne
i —'A ^ .'l'uliillili ' ' i) ^^ancerre ——-^1^ f ' Saumu i b flignan" Gtè/rer^SJ/ierzin lANTEV ChoM D1 . I \ Mçntresor f I w^^ L^i^dJp IssoudufVtfB • -^ Chmon ^) ^^ 5aincaiz
LVjflanc g \ - ^Bourbon- Un\n IN •CHE-S-rol/ p Tf **ÛJIlta«r "S/LsCftitr. \.|«rch "°3!bh!i
MoKmorillonlctc., ( \ ^vl V SebaVt.en BWsjjMoi/nLiçon
Sal- GinnaV^ >Vichy Sdlac loche fqi A u^y sson Bourganeu
llTSUÎGES Rj^al»^ÇI7ERM0N iSaintes .guratdJ - l/quauillX -FER GOUEÉME'
'IDoro AArvanl ,d< FRibi/ae LPÉRIGÎ
Dfiff^UEoran, 50; V\A&ibourne LaBuisSonJk . / J" :-«tUsra>. ""* oPad.rac (*^UR1LLAC Jsrgdfac icamadoar [r J'V. / u i 11 "-argentSre luourdon^W ™/ Mapveiol9 1 Lanpf^Jfan.and Capdjwfs/'P" ,O0E2 Ba2 ï LO • . Aonn4.S«r- * iep VAHORS tv,||tf Ke >.s»6» f / P%a^X ' \ /•de-Rojrtrque
Milia .S.brc6 ; .-•/«, ^^Casté * ...rai» rr- j.'oMoreanx / S*\ i ,ALB1 i=0 | IÎ&NT^OE^MAKSA}»^ Letloure GailMm^T"?l S'AfTrigu ,', Ar /Condon* l Lodève
/^-ySavar V^i Auch /-JTOULOUS^T La'
.Orthei \\ k/rénche , Jalonne ' ^r; - vV - -Miilnde Mure
«Tolosa .•.• ,r-*SUean'' rSoSUcan» . -M , .•'.V- Z.. ' Vi'â-b Jl^-'.T Pam,er, V--. ^-^^v/ // SU vP.eJ JePorl ',Lourda».S |°Limoux. ,P.i.', (Ul« WD.».- ^«FOIJC, / £ :PiUr,ee(H REFERENCE r rî'. J Â • \ ' MV*. 3lUirons \ of Laux-LhiiJtle:P _ ) ^ ,, 7\ Lavelanet Wrti'n /fA«4 f Orleans ^y>Painpiilurie BranIrancb tinté ) System s •s ^- BaS*T$b»-~"\----Ax-le3^i^rfTies PERPICNA .oe-lucSon -, /•-», ,/n r . >^—' JUainjffain tintélined ff Midi V —-V>J J ei ra n cnt-j^ 5&
Branch hncà } System Bourg-Madamef ^"~'l*i>5?"t« S - Other linta S P A G N " È
MAP OF THE PARIS-ORLEANS SYSTEM vf GREAT FRENCH RAILROAD
A few months after the outbreak of the war, moreover, the Company transformed its workshops into munition factories. It has turned out more than two million shells of various calibres.
Î THE PORTS SERVED BY THE ORLEANS COMPANY "* *• ' »*
Saint-Nazaire, Nantes and Bordeaux have contributed very largely to the revictualling of the country, furnishing it with provisions, munitions and material of all sorts from over-seas. Their importance is due chiefly to their position adjacent to safe roadsteads, as well as to the commercial value of the cities of Nantes and Bordeaux. Saint-Nâzaire is the starting point of steamers for the Antilles, Mexico and Central America. Bordeaux, always the principal port of departure for Morocco, West-Africa and South America, has become since the war the great port for transatlantic traffic between New-York and France. The activity of these ports has increased by leaps and bounds since the beginning of the war. Such an increase of traffic could only be dealt with by effecting great alterations and adding largely to the material and equipment already existing. Additional lines had to be created in order to increase the capacity of the quays as well as that of goods stations connected with the main lines. Thus ten miles of new rails have been laid down at Saint-Nazaire, two miles at Nantes, and twenty two miles at Bordeaux and the annex of Bassens. The equipment of these ports has in general been conside rably developed, and entireley new annexes have even been 11^
m BORDEAUX lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll llllIlHIIIIIJIIIIIiîlllilllHlIIJIIIIIIM A GREAT FRENCH RAILROAD created. Special mention may be made of Roche-Maurice, just below Nantes, which sprung into existence in 1912 ; while near by, at Donges, new quays have been built and specially equipped for the rapid transshipment of coal, minerals, etc. The supplementary port of Bassens, a few miles below Bordeaux, has also attained immense importance. It was only created in 1915, the quays on the right bank of the river at Bordeaux having proved quite inadequate despite their excep tional capacity. The needs of the American army will doubtless contribute still further to the development of the new annex.
From the economic point of view the Orleans Railroad system must be Considered as essentially agricultural, although the regions it serves are very diversified in, so far as the nature of the soil and climate is concerned. Much of the country traversed by the Orleans lines ranks among the most fertile in France. Mountains, vast plateaux, broad valleys, extensive plains — all are found within the Orleans Railroad system, and it is easy, therefore, to imagine their wealth and variety of resources. Let us see what these resources are. Who has not heard of the riches of Beauce, Berry and Poitou in cereals ? Or of the great wine-growing industry of Bordeaux, the Garonne, Poitou, Touraine, Anjou, etc. ? Certain vineyards are world- famous — some of those in the region of Bordeaux especially. Fruit-growing prospers in the South, and a speciality is made of early season fruits in the valleys of the Garonne, A GREAT IRENCH RAILROAD •+»«»••••••••••»•••»••••»••••••••••»•••»•••••+••»•••»••»»»•»••»••••»••••»•»• the Tarn and the Lot, and in the district of Brive. Market- gardening is practiced on a large scale in the environs of Paris, as well as at Orleans, Tours, Nantes, Bordeaux, etc. The rolling plains of the Central Plateau are well suited to pastoral agriculture; horse-breeding and cattle-fattening are carried on with success in Auvergne, the Central regions, the basin of the Garonne, Poitou, and South Brittany. Dairy produce is a feature of Beauce, Gâtinais, Berry, Touraine, Poitou and Creuse. The Orleans Company has, for its part, made every effort to help the development of agriculture and agricultural com merce by circulating the best publications on the subject, by stimulating the energy of producers, and by organising visits to model farms. The Company has a special agricultural propaganda depart ment which arranges constant series of lectures, and is full of initiative in awakening interest in all matters pertaining to agriculture. Industrialism, too, has reached a high degree of develop ment in the regions reached by the Orleans Railroad. Alimentary industries take first place, as is only natural in view of the great agricultural production already described. Preserved foods of all sorts are a feature, including poul try, truffled pates, confectionery, prunes, and the like, all enjoying a well merited reputation. The metallurgical indus try is represented by important works at Bourges, Montluçon, Commentary, Fumel, Decazeville, etc. Extensive iron ore beds are found in Anjou and Brittany, and although it is not long since they were begun to be wor ked, the production of raw material for war factories is already considerable, and is increasing rapidly. These mines m m
LIMOGES.
CATHEDRAL
AND
SAINT ETIENNE
BRIDGE
"S r î **•'* * t J 1 1 TOULOUSE. 1* ËËIIÉH THE MUSEUM 2t- • 4. • HI [| ' te ' H* j|
CAIIORS.
VALENTRÉ
BRIDGE
nillllln IIIIIH L*3t«f ^% \ ^L^S; _+_ iS MAB CM PAST w OF A MERICAN : «si «| .-IB f| — kjws 1 I ÎOOPS
I•T Jf ' \ ' A,H
K^_^^»
LAMM NG M -S» f OF TR< JO PS L. r «t. --Kl / Itu ! '-^% , Wl ; ' •.» J ^ ^
Ç£?T •
fis A GREAT FRENCH RAILROAD
•will become undoubtedly of the first importance in the future. Gien, Choisy-le-Roi are famed for their earthen-ware, while the porcelaine manufactories of Limousin (at Limoges), Berry (at Vierzon, Mehun-sur-Yèvre, and Foëcy, etc.), are -world- renowned, the finer and more artistic creations of Limoges being particularly prized in America. Carpets and tapestries of wonderful beauty are made at Aubusson and Felletin, which were recently visited by American delegations. Paper factories are numerous : writing and printing paper in Charente, Indre-et-Loire, Loir-et-Cher, Sarthe, etc. ; packing paper in the central districts.
S TOURING, HEALTH RESORTS, \ Î AND SPAS ON THE ORLEANS RAILROAD | •••••»***«*****«*»*******'W*«*****4 ***•«•****+**•> fr*4.****6+***fr» *«**+**•**** For the tourist the Orleans Railroad offers exceptional attractions. The beauty, picturesqueness and variety of its landscapes are unrivalled. By the seaside, in the country or in the mountains, the line offers the holiday-maker a choice of hundreds of delightful sites where happy summer or winter months may be spent, to say nothing of the celebrated ther mal resorts which compare favorably with the best-known Spas of Germany and Austria. Architectural monuments are met with everywhere, many being unique examples of the Roman, Ogival and Renaissance styles. Without entering into the details of each region, a few- words may be said concerning their main features. The valley of the Loire — -which travellers from Saint- Nazaire and Bordeaux follow on their journey to Paris or to the east of France — is the famous * Château Country ».
•^•«••frM************************* * " ****#*#»*$*«**«••#••**••****••**** »••»»•»»•••••••••»••»»»•»»•»••»•••••»•••»»»»••••»•»»•••»»••••»•••»•••••••••» A GREAT FRENCH RAILROAD
Many of these chateaux have their place in the history of France. Some were royal residences, notably the celebrated châteaux of Blois, Chambord and Amboise. The best centre from -which to visit them is Tours, the capital of the enchan ting province of Touraine, the well-named * Garden of France ». Among the other châteaux which few tourists fail to visit are Chenonceaux, prettily built on a bridge in the bed of the river Cher; Azay-le-Rideau, a Museum of the Renais sance period; Loches, -where Agnès Sorel, the favourite of Charles VII lived; Chinon, that saw Joan of Arc; Ussé, crowned by its multitude of turrets; and Langeais, a typical specimen of a Feudal Castle. Between Tours and the month of the Loire the châteaux of Saumur, Angers and Nantes claim attention. The South Brittany coast, including the mouth of the Loire, Morbihan and Finistère, are studded with charming, golden beaches. Close to Saint-Nazaire are Pornichet, La Baule, Le Pouliguen ; -while further north in the direction of Brest, are Quiberon, Douarnenez, Beg-Meil, Concarneau, Morgat, etc. Parts of the same coast consist of magnificent, rugged and rocky cliffs like the Pointe du Raz and the Pointe de Pen- march. The country is not without considerable archeological interest. Numerous churches with characteristic, slender spires attract the stranger's visit; so do, too, the artistically •wrought calvaries, and the profusion of megalithic monuments. Mention must be made again of the celebrated thermal stations in Auvergne and neighbouring regions : La Bour- boule, for the cure of anemia, lymphatism, and skin diseases ; Mont-Dore, the « Asthmatics Providence » ; Saint-Nectaire, for kidney troubles ; Royat, for heart-sufferers ; Vic-sur- Cère, Le Lioran (a mountain resort, altitude 3.5oo feet),
><******««**««*«*** 14 *•*****»*#••****»*»***•*»*»»*»*«#• A GREAT FRENCH RAILROAD
Neris-les-Bains, Evaux-les-Bains, and Miers. Apart from their health-giving waters all these resorts offer every attraction to the tourist, who may explore the beautiful vales and dales, or wander around the extinct volcanoes where the relics and imprint of centuries are a never-failing source of interest. Mountaineers find plenty of climbing to do in Auvergne, and the ordinary visitor can make any number of charming, easy excursions. Between the Loire and the Garonne a succession of antique provinces offer a special attraction in the singular charm of the countryside, the extreme picturesqueness of their valleys, such as the Creuse, the Dordogne, the Lot and the Aveyron. The country is dotted with interesting cities possessing art treasures of universal celebrity : Bourges, Poitiers, Bordeaux, Toulouse, Albi and Cahors, to name but a few, with their cathedrals, grand Palaces and old houses. All this country is famed for its curious old townships of bygone ages, possessing an archaic beauty of their own, and always amazingly situated ; such are Uzerche, Najac, Penne and Rocamadour. Dismantled castles and ruins are countless. With reminders of still more remote epochs Perigueux, and particularly the valley of the Vezère, is the best-known centre of Prehistoric Research in Europe. Caves decorated v/ith the dra wings of our ancestors of the earliest ages have been explored, and provide the visitor with a spectacle of uncommon interest. The Orleans Railroad connects with that of the Midi by the main Bordeaux and Toulouse lines. The latter passes through regions of unusual variety of scenery : the Pyrenees, with their peaks of over 9.000 feet, such as the Néthou, the Balaïtous, the Vignemale ; majestic, rocky pyramids like the Canigou; the snowy summits of the Pic du Midi and the Pic de Bigorre;
•»•*••*•»••••»•*•*•*•••*••••••«••• j g ••* *999************i *************************************** •••••»•»*••••••••••»•«•••»••• ******** , ; 'À GREAT FRENCH RAILROAD **************************************************************************** \ magnificent glaciers, sparkling lakes and cirques of surpassing grandeur, such as that of Gavarnie. Here, too, is Lourdes, in its glorious setting, the -world-renowned resort of pilgrims. Amid the Pyrenees, or quite near, are a number of thermal resorts where every disease finds its remedy. Rheumatism ' and chest diseases are treated with remarkable success by means of the sulphur springs at Cauterets, Luchon, Les Eaux- Bonnes, Les Eaux-Chaudes, Ax-les-Thermes, Vernet and Amélie-les-Bains. Sufferers from nervous affections andchest diseases seek health at Bagnères-de-Bigorre. Dax is recom mended for rheumatism and gout ; Le Boulou (the * Vichy of the South»), Saint-Sauveur, for neurosis; Biarritz, Salies-de- Béarn, Salies-du-Salat are famous for their saline waters. Then there are the beautiful winter resorts of Pau and Arcachon, and a wonderful chain of other watering-places which, on account of their mild climate, are frequented all the year round : Arcachon, Saint-Jean-de-Luz, Hendaye, and Biarritz, all exquisitely situated on the Gulf of Gascony. Biarritz is, of course, one of the most fashionable places of Europe ; members of several royal families often make long sojourns there. King Edward VII sought rest and relaxation from the cares of state at this favourite resort. At the other extremity of the Pyrenees, after passing through Carcassonne, which, as a perfect specimen of a city of the middle Ages, suspended, as it were, in the spirit and atmosphere of the epoch, is absolutely unique, the Midi lines reach yet another series of health resorts and watering places : Amélie-les-Bains, Vernet-les-Bains on the slopes of Mont Canigou(8.355 feet) and the sun-bathedbeaches of Argelès-sur- Mer, Collioure and Banyuls, not far from the Spanish frontier. c\ife-*5
PARIS-ORLEANS Ry
G. DE MALHERBE * C I'. O. — Trafic-Yorageurs et Publu!» . N' ti. 1917- Imprimeur* Pari*