ARCACHON.
On the west coast of France, in the
department of the Gironde, and thirty-five miles from Bordeaux,
the pleasant town of Arcachon is situated on the shores of a landlocked
inlet, the Bassin; which has an area of not less than seventy square
miles, and is sheltered by the Dunes from the waves of the Bay
of Biscay. Within the Bassin, while the tide from the ocean rises
rapidly to a considerable height, the water is smooth, and is a
great deal more salt than that of the sea outside, as well as much
warmer. It is therefore singularly well adapted for winter bathing
; while Arcachon has the further advantage of being surrounded,
for miles, with forests of the maritime pine, trees of great height
and growth, the balsamic emanations from which impart a most salubrious
influence to the air. This place, some forty years ago, was comparatively
unknown to those in search of a warm or agreable winter climate.
It has, however, come to the knowledge of the medical faculty,
and is generally recognised as being one of the most desirable
and remarkable of sanitary stations for the restoration of persona
in debilitated health; and of those in the decline of life, who
seek the atmosphere of the pine woods, under a pure and clement
sky, for the cure or the mitigation of inveterate maladies, from
which they may be suffering. In the summer season, which lasts
for six months, the saline cures are completed. The absence of
waves, and the genial, temperature, permit of the bath being indulged
in for an hour at a time, at the discretion of the doctors ordering
such treatment. Persons of a delicate and lymphatic nature, and
those who cannot support the force of the ordinary sea air or of
the ocean wave, can bathe here in comfort, and find their health
rapidly restored or improved by the soothing influence of these
waters, which are reputed also more suitable than any others for
children.
The "Sanatorium" under which name the winter town of Arcachon
is known, is of more recent creation, and was the first of the medical
stations installed in the pine forests. It consists of a collection
of elegant villas, of a luxurious or most comfortable character,
each having its flower garden, well stocked with shrubs and trees,
with its lawn, and some with croquet and lawn-tennis grounds. Some
of these are immediately sheltered by the pine-trees; others are
situated below these woods, which cover the hills for thousands of
acres, and impart to the atmosphere a peculiar salubrity. There is
a rapidly increasing demand for those villas, and every year the
winter colony augments in number, including many persons of rank.
The cures of persons suffering from chest complaints, bronchitis,
phthisis, asthma, and nervous diseases are becoming very numerous.
It must not be supposed that it is a matter of indifference whether
invalids are sent to this or any other part of of the west of France,
because the influence of the air of this vast "Sanatorium" has
a powerful sedative effect. It acts efficaciously on nervons persons,
and is a remedy for the complicated maladies to which they are
subject.
The climate of Arcachon is temperate,
rather humid than dry, and it is exempt from abrupt variations
of temperature. The following is the summary of the average temperature
taken at the Observatory : Winter, 48 deg. ; spring, 61 deg.: summer,
78 deg. ; autumn, 78 deg.; mean temperature on the whole year,
about 63 deg. The large quantity of ozone contained in the air
of the forest is an indisputable condition of its salubrity. The
fine sand of the soil of Arcachon, and especially that of the forest,
rapidly absorbs the rain as it
falls, and contributes to healthfulness. Arcachon is the Brighton
of Bordeaux, while the predilection of French and foreign visitors
for this place of resort, both in winter and in summer, proves
not only the merits of the climate, but the convenience of this
town for comfortable living at an unusually cheap rate.
On reference to our Illustration, in the centre of the Marine Panorama
will be seen a very commanding edifice, dominating all the rest;
this is the Grand Hotel, which was built by the Railway Company.
It is situated on the borders of the seashore, and is directed by
Mr. Van Hymbeeck. the former Director of the Grand Hotel at Paris,
of which he is the correspondent at Arcachon. These establishments,
at Paris and Arcachon, are equivalent in point of comfort: there
is but one difference, that of prices : for the charges are unusually
moderate at the Grand Hotel, Arcachon -probably lower than any other
superior first-class hotel in France; the charge for pension during1
winter is nine francs a day, all charges included. The view from
the south apartments of this hotel, towards the Pine Forest, and
over the splendid gardens of the Casino, is one of the finest that
can be enjoyed ; it is represented in one section of our Engraving,
the panorama is equally fine as viewed from the beautifully situated
Casino, and this is shown in the other section of our Illustration.
The sports, pastimes, and amusements of Arcachon are yachting, boating,
regattas, bathing, fishing in the Bassin and in the ocean, hunting
the wild boar, fox-hunting, snipe and wild duck shooting. There is
a Museum of Natural History, a Marine Aquarium, and a Zoological
Laboratory. Bathing is enjoyed on beautifully soft sands, in all
states of the tide ; there are no rapid currents, yet the Humane
Society boats are always in attendance. Arcachon has its club, its
theatre, its reading-rooms, its casino, billiard-rooms, and lawn-tennis,
and beautiful walks in the grounds ; while horses and carriages may
be hired for excursions, and ponies and saddle donkeys for children
or the infirm.
The oyster culture here is a very remarkable and highly productive
institution. There are upwards of two thousand oyster-parks, each
park containing a considerable number of oyster beds; oysters can
be bought for twopence per dozen, and large quantities are sent to
England by some resident English cultivators who are large oyster-park
proprietors.
There are many doctors of great reputation here, and some of them
speak English; there is also a resident English doctor during the
winter. There is an English chemist, an English church and minister,
and shops where most articles of English comfort or manufacture can
be obtained. Mr, Hennon, of Villa Hennon, and Mrs Brannens are the
principal house agents. From London Arcachon can be reached in twenty-four
hours, via Paris and Bordeaux; and those intending travellers who,
from motives of economy or preferring the voyage, desire to travel
by sea, will find steamers sailing direct, and weekly, from London
to Bordeaux.