UNDERGROUND TOWN.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVIII, Issue 156, 3 July 1937, Page 13

UNDERGROUND TOWN.

NEARLY 2000 YEARS OLD. ONCE SMUGGLERS' REFUGE. PARIS. A few miles north of Amiens, and easily reached by a regular service from that town, is one of the curiosities of the north of France, the "Ville Souterraine de Naours," or underground town of Naours, which dates from the third century. The underground town of Naours consists of a succession of galleries dug in chalk. It was used as a refuge against invaders. The entrance to this underground town was well hidden and it was last a repair of smugglers at the end of the eighteenth century. The chalk in one place has become deteriorated where heaps of salt were stored in the da'vs just preceding the Revolution, when a heavy tax placed on that commodity encouraged smuggling.

After that, all trace of the caves was lost, and the underground town of Naours was considered only a myth. But the cure of the district, after con-

suiting a number of old documents, was I convinced of its existence, and one day stumbled upon the entrance. With the ! aid of villagers, he excavated part of the ' caves, and visitors can now visit many hundred yards of galleries. On each side of these galleries are chambers, about 10ft square, arranged so that the doors do not face each other, thus ensuring privacy. At one point the roof is high and fdur large chambers form a chapel, the place where the altar stood being plainly visible. At another place a number of galleries converge where is quite a large hall. Because of the higher temperature below ground, the only fire needed was for cooking, and a chimney emerges on a hillside. In order that smoke should not attract undue attention, above this chimney a small house was built, and the smoke made to appear as. though issuing from it. Half-way down a deep well a passage leads to another hidden exit. During the war the caves of Naours were a great attraction for the soldiers resting behind the Yillers-Bretonneux front —'most of them Australians. Here in these caves they have left a memorial of their passage, for every foot of the chalk walls is covered with names of colonial soldiers. In many cases they

have-indicated not only their name, but their regimental .number, regiment, and home town way ffer the other side of the world. Although scribbled between battles 20 year* ago. the signatures are so well preserved as to appear as though written only yesterday. Some of the soldiers found time to draw a regimental badge or some naive design, and occasionally they wrote. •'Are we downhearted?"' There is nowhere a word of complaint. And one of them wrote in a tirm, determined hand, "Australia will be there."