Tarn

Tarn, a French department of the south, having Aveyron and Tarn-et-Garonne on the N., Haute-Garonne on the W., Aude on the S., and Herault on the E. It contains 2,217 square miles, and the northern part is traversed from W. to E. by the river Tarn. The surface is generally lofty, and in the S. and S.W. offshoots of the Cevennes rise to a height of over 4,000 feet. The mountains are well wooded, and the vine is extensively cultivated on the hills. There are fertile alluvial valleys and fine forests of beech and oak. The chief productions are grain, potatoes, fruit, wine, cattle, geese, turkeys, and cheese; coal, marble, etc., are among the minerals; and among the chief industries are the manufacture of wool, silk, steel, glass, and pottery, and dyeing, The department is divided into four arrondissements, and has for its capital Alby.