(especially when seen from the north side) have been the admiration of
ages of architects and the occasion of many a special pilgrimage in our
own day. Pugin has sketched its western façade and its 'lancet windows;'
and Prout has given us drawings of the spire, '_percée au
jour_'--perforated with such mathematical accuracy that, as we approach
the tower, there is always one, or more, opening in view--as one star
disappears, another shines out, as in the cathedral at Bourgos in Spain.

[Illustration: TOWER OF ST PIERRE. CAEN.]

In the interior, the nave is chiefly remarkable for its proportions; but
the choir is richly ornamented in the style of the renaissance.[15] It
has been restored at different periods, but, as usual in France, the
whole interior has been coloured or whitewashed, so that it is difficult
to detect the old work from the new. The sculptured pendants and the
decorations of the aisles will attract us by their boldness and
originality, and the curious legends in stone on the capitals of the
pillars, of 'Alexander and his Mistress,' of 'Launcelot crossing the Sea
on his Sword,' and of 'St. Paul being lowered in a Basket,' may take
our attention a little too much from the carving in the chapels; but
when we have examined them all, we shall probably remember St. Pierre
best as Prout and Pugin have shewn it to us, and care for it most (as do
the inhabitants of Caen) for its beautiful exterior.[16]

We should mention a handsome carved oak pulpit in the style of the
fifteenth century, which has lately been erected; it is an ornament to
the church in spite of its new and temporary appearance--taking away
from the cold effect of the interior, and relieving the monotony of its
aisles. The people of Caen are indebted to M. V. Hugot, curé of St.
Pierre, for this pulpit. 'A mon arrivée dans la paroisse,' he says (in a