SAAR  , a

river of Germany, a right-bank tributary of the Mosel . It rises in the Donon, an eminence of the Vosges, close to the Franco-German frontier, and flows at first north, then north-west and finally north again to its junction with the Mosel at Konz . Its length is 143 M . The middle part of its valley is an important industrial district, with coal-mines and a variety of manufactures; the Saar wines are also well known . The principal towns on the Saar are Saargemund, Saarbrucken and St Johann (which face each other across the river), Saarlouis and Saarburg . The river is navigable up to Saargemund, a distance of 75 M . From here there is connexion with the Rhine-Marne canal by way of the Saar canal, built in 1862, and 40 M. in length, following the Saar valley upwards for about half that distance .