_Entering the Cathedral by the Lions' Doorway_, the tourist will be struck by the lightness and richness of the decoration of the interior, which has been subjected to extensive restoration. The great height of the aisles is noticeable. It is explained by the existence, in the original church, of vaulted galleries which were raised above the aisles, as in Senlis and Notre-Dame de Paris. These galleries disappeared in the great transformations which took place at the end of the twelfth century and the aisles therefore remained notably super-elevated. [Illustration: VIEW OF THE NAVE OF THE CATHEDRAL] The +Tomb of the "Eagle of Meaux"+ is in the choir, on the right, marked by a tablet of black marble. The +PULPIT+ (see on the right in the opposite view) was made from some of the panels from the old pulpit where preached the great Bossuet. The bishop of Meaux, in spite of his cares at court, worked very energetically in his diocese and preached in the cathedral many sermons with that same inspiration that shone through the magnificent discourses delivered, during his career as a preacher, before the royal audience. He maintained strict discipline among the clergy and religious orders under his jurisdiction. His contests with the Abbess of Jouarre went as far as a forcible seizure of the abbey buildings. [Illustration: TRANSEPT AND CHOIR OF CATHEDRAL] The opposite view shows the further end of the +TRANSEPT+, to which corresponds the Lions' Door on the exterior. The decoration here is particularly rich. Above the transept rose a beautiful spire in timber-work covered with lead, but as it was in a very precarious condition it was found necessary to demolish it in 1640. On the left of the view one sees the commencement of the +CHOIR+, the execution of which shows to what heights of lightness and boldness of construction Gothic architecture had arrived. The walls between the piers are hollowed out by piercings and mouldings; it is a miracle of equilibrium. Originally the choir had only three chapels, but two intermediary chapels were added in the fourteenth century. _When making the tour of the choir_ the visitor will see opening on the north into the courtyard of the old chapter house the beautiful +Porte Maugarni+, dating from the fifteenth century. The name of Maugarni (a gaolbird hanged on this spot in 1372, by order of the bailiff of Meaux) came down to posterity by reason of the long lawsuit that the chapter of the cathedral brought against the bailiff because of this execution, carried out in ecclesiastical precincts. [Illustration: PORTE MAUGARNI (Cathedral)] Almost directly in front of the Porte Maugarni, with its back to the choir, is a white marble statue representing the kneeling figure of a young knight, Philippe de Castille. In 1603 his father founded the barefoot order of Notre-Dame-de-la-Merci. The statue comes from the church belonging to the convent of that order.