THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE.. 



expense of cultivation amounts, for tye, to 175f. ; clearing, 

 50f.; three harrowings, 15f. ; five hectolitres of charcoal, 75f.; 

 seed, two hectolitres, 30f. ; for sowing, and mixing the char- 

 coal, average expense 5f. ; average harvest, 20 hectolitres, 

 800f. The straw is considered as paying the expence of har- 

 vesting, cleaning, and thrashing. The net profit should, there- 

 fore, be 125f. ; but the chapter of accidents is such, that in 

 reality it is much reduced. This year, for example, rye being 

 at 9f., the crop scarcely suffices to pay the expenses. 



For oats the expenses are diminished by one-third, as they 

 require only two harrowings and 2^ hectolitres of charcoal. 

 M. de Vogue thinks that four consecutive crops may be taken 

 with the same charcoal without impoverishing the soil. These 

 successive crops cost a little less than the first, because the 

 labour is estimated at only 25 fr. I asked him if he intended 

 afterwards to let the land resume the heath, or whether he pro- 

 posed to establish a domain upon it ? He has not yet deter- 

 mined this question, but he is inclined to think that the ex- 

 pense of forming a domain would be too great, and he would 

 prefer converting it into a sheep farm, as is done in Scotland. 

 It is certain that the pasturage is better than formerly. A 

 singular phenomenon occurs ; the small sorrel which was rarely 

 seen amongst the heather, springs, on the contrary, on all 

 aides on those lands which have been dressed with charcoal, 

 when they are again left to themselves. What is the cause of 

 this fact, and what conclusion may we draw from it ? 



We started from Ivoy to go and pass the night at tha 

 chateau of Aubigny. We crossed a forest formed by the 

 union of the wood of Ivoy with that of Aubigny. The united 

 properties form a block of more than 3,000 hectares, belonging 

 to M. de Vogue. The history of this estate of Aubigny is 

 remarkable. When King Charles VII. was only sovereign of 

 Bourges, the rest of the kingdom being occupied by the 

 English, a Scotch noble named John Stuart, Earl of Lennox, 

 came to his help with his armed retainers. In acknowledg- 

 ment, the king ga je him the lands of Aubigny, which descended 

 to his posterity. The property having reverted to the Crown 

 in default of male heirs, the King of England, Charles II., aa 

 belonging to one of the branches of the House of Stuart, de- 

 manded its restoration of Louis XIV , who gave it up to him ; 

 but he obtained at the same time a decree, which placed it in 

 the hands of the Duchess of Portland, his mistress, and the 

 natural son whom he had by her, and who then became Duke 

 of Richmond in England, of Lennox in Scotland, and of 

 Aubigny in France. The Dukes of Richmond were, as Dukes 

 of Aubigny, admitted to the French parliament, but as fo- 

 reigners they were not received. 



During the revolution, the estate of Aubigny was seized and 

 put up to sale, but no purchaser presented himself. They 

 could only sell it for 34,000 francs ; and out of that sum, one 

 of the two chateaus which belonged to it, and which stood in 

 the village of Aubigny, and was purchased by the Commune, 

 went for 15,000 francs. The second chateau, therefore, which 

 was called the Chateau of the Forest, with the woods and 

 domains, remained as national property, except that the feudal 

 rights were abolished. In 1807, Napoleon caused the lands to 

 be again brought to sale, but still no purchaser could be found. 

 In 1814, the Duke of Richmond who had been aid-decamp to 

 the Duke of Wellington claimed the property. A special 

 article of the treaty of Paris gave it up to him, and he enjoyed it 

 for thirty years, and the peasantry still recognise him as their 

 old master the Englishman. A circumstance not less remark- 

 able than the foregoing, was the cause of his losing it. Col- 

 lateral heirs raised a question of succession, and main- 

 tained that this estate, being situated in France, ought to be 

 subject to the French law of succession, instead of belonging 



to the eldest son, aa in England. This claim gave rise to a 

 celebrated action at law, which the Duke of Richmond lost. 



It was then that the estate was put up for sale, and pur- 

 chased by Messrs. Chevreux and Legentil, who have re-sold it 

 to M. de Vogue. In cutting down a large part of the old 

 forest trees which had begun to decay, he has preserved those 

 which might contribute to the beauty of the landscape. These 

 vast woods shelter many wild animals. In a single battue 

 they have taken in it a dozen wolves. We reached the cha- 

 teau at sunset. Its towers rise in the midst of the forest, and 

 on the border of a large moat, and is a perfect specimen of the 

 middle ages. We should call it the Chateau of (lie Sleeping 

 Beauty in the Woods. We entered by a fortified gate into a 

 court-yard covered with grass. A winding stone staircase in 

 one of the towers led us to the interior, where we found vast 

 apartments, scarcely altered for adaptation to modern resi- 

 dence. A long gallery, which occupies one of the wings, is 

 covered with paintings in fresco, half effaced, which should be- 

 long to the fifteenth century, and represent the ancestors of 

 Aubigny of the House of Stuart, some on foot, others mounted 

 on war horses. This gallery is temporarily occupied with the 

 extraordinary crops produced by the clearings. 



2nd June. — At break of day I opened my window, which 

 looked out upon the moat. This feudal feature, which has 

 aot been altered since the days of Charles VII. (1422), 

 gives the idea of incomparable calmness and solitude. The 

 same sun still rises behind those venerable trees whose roots 

 are bathed by the same waters of the moat. 



The estate of Aubigny has, besides the wood, a dozen 

 domains. We visited several of them, and met everywhere 

 metayers who still talk like the peasants of Molifere : "J'allons, 

 j disons, j'aoons hen besoin d'iau pour les avenes ; boii jour, 

 lof mailre; comment se porte nof mailresse ?" Not only the 

 language, but the costume of the past is retained. A young 

 shepherdess wears a hooded woollen neck-handkerchief, as we 

 see them in the ancient paintings ; indeed, the coat of arms of 

 Bourges are supported by the pastourelle (the shepherdess). 

 Fortunately, if the shepherdesses have not changed, the flocks 

 have been improved. Most of these are of the pure Solognote 

 breed, but strengthened by a better treatment. These poor 

 animals are very warm under their fleeces, the custom of the 

 country beiug not to shear them till Saint John's day. We 

 found everywhere new homesteads, reconstructed dwellings, 

 courts levelled, enormous heaps of marl extracted from the 

 depths of the soil, and fine crops coming forward. In the 

 domain that adjoins the chateau, aud which is farmed by M. 

 de Vo^ue, we saw a magnificent field of lucern, handsome 

 crossbreeds of oxen and sheep, and even attempts at pisci- 

 culture. naiad of the Nere — of that river which, according 

 to the ancient historian of Berry, was " sown with trout and 

 paved with crawfish — " what would you say to this ? 



The fields here are surrounded with enormous hedges, 

 called "houchures,"* formed of large trees, the branches of 

 which are bent to the ground, in order to interlace them with 

 each other. These hedges must be a great hindrance to the 

 cultivation, on account of the innumerable pollards which grow 

 up from them, whose deformed trunks effectually shut out the 

 light and air. The roads, cut up by the carriage-wheels, wind 

 under these thickets, which preserve the humidity in winter, 

 and render the road impassable. The air is impregnated with 

 nnhealthy exhalations, and hurtful animals of all kinds find 

 refuge there. The whole has a wild and forest-like aspect. 

 We must not forget that this country is one of the most 

 thinly-peopled parts of France : the arrondissemeiU (district) 



* A technical term, only local, and untranslatable. 



