MAYENNE, a department of France, formed out of a part of the lower Mayenne, and a small portion of the ancient duchy of Anjou. It extends in north latitude from 47° 51' to 48° 33' and in west longitude from 0° 16' to l 0 15'. It contains 2161 square miles, or 518,363 hectares. It is divided into 3 arrondissements, 27 cantons, and 288 commimes, and is peopled by 336,150 inhabitants. It is bounded on the north by the departments of the Ome and of the channel; on the east by the Sarthe, on the south by the Mayenne and Loire, and on the west by Ille-Villaire. The surface is undulating, with no hills of great elevation. The soil is only partially fertile. The principal river is the Mayenne, which enters the department from that of the Orne, and collects the waters of the Varenne, Colmont, Ernée, Vicon, and Jouanne, and ultimately falls into the Loire. The agriculture is not well conducted; in many parts the soil is left in fallow for three or four years, and then sowed with oats, followed by buck wheat, and then again left in fallow. In one district named Campagne, all kinds of grain succeeds; but generally pasturage of cows and sheep is found a more beneficial application of the land than the use of the plough. Fruit, especially apples, from which much cedar is made, is an advantageous part of rural economy; and abundance both of walnuts and filberts are collected, and form a substitute for bread. The produce of bee’s wax and of honey is very considerable. Some good white wine is made in the parts of the department bordering on Mayenne Loire. There are some iron mines at work, which yield yearly about 4000 tons of iron, partly cast and partly hammered. Manufactories of linen and woollen goods exist, and some of paper, leather, and hardware, but chiefly for the domestic consumption. The department furnishes three deputies to the legislature. The capital is Laval.

Mayenne, an arrondissement of the department of that name in France, extending over 869 square miles. It is divided into 12 cantons, and 116 communes, and contains 160,500 inhabitants. The capital bears the same name as the river on which it stands, and contains four churches, an hospital, a castle on a rocky height, and 920 dwellings, with 9500 inhabitants, who are chiefly employed in making linen and thin woollen goods, and some few cottons. Latitude 48° 18'. Longitude 0° 42' west.

Mayenne and Loire, a department of France, formed out of the ancient province of Anjou. It extends in north latitude from 47° 4', to 47° 43', and in west longitude from 0° 2' to 1° 13'. It is bounded on the north by the department of the Mayenne and the Sarthe, on the east by the Indre-Loire, on the south by the Vienne, the two Sevres and Vendée, and on the west by the Lower Loire. It is 3063 square miles, or 718,807 hectares in extent. The surface is a mixture of plains and hills, but the former predominate. The most hilly parts are on both the banks of the Loire, and in the southern parts on the frontiers of Vienne and the two Sevres. The river Loire is navigable throughout the whole of the department, and receives the water of the numerous streams which during its course fall into it. The soil is naturally fertile but not in all parts carefully cultivated, and the practice of fallowing is generally pursued. It does, however, produce more corn than the consumption requires. It yields two good crops of hemp and flax, the conversion of which into linen affords employment to a great portion of the inhabitants. Fruit is generally grown, especially apples, pears, nuts and plums. The vineyards are extensive, and . yield abundance of white wine, the select part of which is sold to Nantes, but the greater part of it is converted into brandy. In the neighbourhood of Samur some silk is produced, but the quantity has diminished since the revolution. There are some mines of iron and of coal, but they are worked to a very limited extent, especially the former. The forests are not extensive, and coal is valuable for fuel instead of wood. Besides the linen manufacture [7:14:335]there are cotton and woollen goods made, and some glass, ' hosier y and hats; and there are refiners of sugar and saltpetre, and many distillers. The department is divided into 5 arrondissements, 34 cantons, and 385 communes, and contains 401,240 inhabitants, who with the exception of a few scattered Calvinists, adhere to the Catholic church. The capital is the city of Angers.