Landes

Landes, a maritime department in the southwest of France, between the Garonne and the Pyrenees, having an area of 3,598 square miles. Its name is derived from the heaths which cover the greater part of its surface, but which extend also into the department of Gironde. Along the coast are lagoons, which communicate with the sea, intersected by sandy downs covered with pine-trees. The department is watered by the Adour and other rivers. It is thickly-populated, although much progress has been made since the last century in the reclamation of the soil. Sheep and pigs are kept, and much timber is cut from the extensive forests; while in the south the vine, rye, and maize are grown. There are also iron- and coal-mines. The department is divided into the arrondissements of Mont de Marsan (including the capital of the same name), Sever, and Dax, where there are mineral springs.