CHARACTERS. 
bakers, people who scarcely read 
any, he induced Government to 
establish a School of Baking, 
from which the pupils would 
speedily carry into the provinces 
all the good practices. He went 
himself to Britanny and Langue- 
doc, with M. Cadet-Devaux, in 
order to propagate his doctrine. 
He caused the greatest part of 
the bran which was mixed with the 
bread of the soldiers to be with- 
drawn; and by procuring them a 
more healthy and agreeable ,arti- 
ele of food, he put an end toa 
multitude of abuses of which this 
mixture was the source. 
Skilful men have calculated 
that the progress of knowledge 
in our days relative to grinding 
and baking has been such, that 
abstracting from the other vege- 
tables which may be substituted 
for corn, the quantity of corn ne- 
cessary for the food of an indivi- 
dual may be reduced more than a 
third. As it is chiefly to Parmen- 
tier that the almost general adop- 
tion of these new processes is ow- 
ing, this calculation establishes his 
services better than a thousand 
panegyrics. 
Ardent as Parmentier was fer 
the public utility, it was to be ex- 
pected that he would interest him- 
self much in the efforts occasioned 
by the last war to supply exotic 
luxuries. It was he that brought 
the syrup of grapes to the greatest 
perfection. This preparation which 
may be ridiculed by those who 
wish to assimilate it to sugar, 
has notwithstanding reduced the 
consumption of sugar many thou- 
sand quintals, and has produced 
immense savings in our hospitals, 
of which the poor have reaped 
the advantage, has given a new 
443 
value to our vines at a time when 
the war and the taxes made them 
be pulled up in many places, and 
will not remain less useful for 
many purposes, even if stgar 
should again fall in this country 
to its old price. 
We have seen above how Par- 
mentier, being by pretty singular 
accidents deprived of the active 
superintendance of the Invalids, 
had been stopped in the natural 
line of his advancement. He had 
too much merit to allow this injus- 
tice toe continue long. Govern=- 
ment employed him in different 
circumstances as a military apo- 
thecary ; and when in 1788 a con- 
sulting council of physicians and 
surgeons was organized for the 
army, the minister wished to place 
him there as apothecary; but 
Bayen was then alive, and Par- 
mentier was the first to represent 
that he could not take his seat 
above lis master. He was there- 
fore named assistant to Bayen.— 
This institution, like many others, 
was suppressed during the period of 
revolutionary anarchy, an epoch 
during which even medical subor- 
dination was rejected. But neces- 
sity obliged them soon to re-esta- 
blish it under the names of Com- 
mission and Council of Health for 
the Armies; and Parmentier,whom 
the reign of terror had for a time 
driven from Paris, was speedily 
placed in it. 
He showed in this situation the 
same zeal as in all others; and 
the hospitals of the army were pro- 
digiously indebted to his care. He 
neglected nothing—instructions, 
repeated orders to his inferiors, 
pressing solicitations to men in 
authority. We have seen him 
within these few years pedo 
the 
