MADDER 173 



being sufficient. The farmers, however, always look for rain in the spring to facilitate 

 the germination of the seed, and in autumn to facilitate the digging-up the roots ; for 

 the rest of the year it is not of any importance to have rain. Rotation of crops is 

 usually practised, though in some districts madder is grown year after year upon the 

 same soil, by giving plenty of manure. This, however, is not considered a wise plan, 

 and all the farmers I talked with condemned it. The usual rotation is one madder 

 crop, then a crop of wheat, and lastly lucerne for one or two years, generally the 

 Intter, lucerne being a good paying crop. I saw in October lucerne being cut and 

 made into hay for the fourth time that year, and even then a splendid crop. Where 

 it is practicable, they irrigate the lucerne three or four times a year. In many places 

 this is very easy, by damming across one of the numerous streamlets of the fountain 

 of Vaucluse water, so as to cause the water to cover the adjacent land. Thus, once 

 manuring, with irrigation, lasts six years. 



' The roots when pulled are spread out on sheets on the ground and dried in the 

 sun, and sold in this state to the merchant or grinder. The farmers deliver them as 

 damp as they dare ; as soon as a bundle of them, taken in the hand and twisted round, 

 breaks easily, the roots are considered commercially dry. On being stove-dried for 

 grinding, the dried roots lose for paluds, 20 per cent. ; for rosee, 18 per cent. 



' The digging up of madder is evidently the most expensive part of the business, 

 but it is not surprising when you see the leisurely way in which they go about it: a 

 man digs down a breadth of a bed, and then puts down his louche (a sort of spade- 

 hoe) and picks out the madder roots, shakes them, and throws them into a basket. 

 By hiring children to follow the digger, to pick up and clear the roots, a great saving 

 could be effected. A madder-digger gets three francs a day ; the ordinary wages for 

 other labourers is two and a half francs per day. It would seem easy to adapt horse 

 machinery to digging up madder. I was told as one reason why the roots are often 

 pulled up at eighteen months old, that if left in the ground longer they rottsd ; this, 

 however, is only said of low-lying lands, and is not the case near the mountains. I 

 am inclined to think, however, that poverty is more frequently the cause. 



' I saw near Pernes, in the paluds country, some splendid madder that had been 

 forty-two months in the ground ; the farmer had been too busy in the autumn of 1865 

 to pull it at the usual time, and knew, he said, that he should be rather a gainer than 

 a loser by letting it stay in the ground another year. This madder had all the 

 appearance of good Turkey madder ; and a French madder-grinder and garancine- 

 maker, who was with me, told me that he had never seen any so good before. 



' The rent of good madder-land is high. About Avignon the land that grows rosee 

 roots is let at 20 francs to 25 francs per eminee per annum ; an eminee being one- 

 tenth of an hectare, or about a quarter acre English. 1 The rent of paluds land, near 

 Orange and Pernes, is 30 francs to 35 francs per eminee ; so that an acre (English) of 

 rosee lands lets at 64s. to 80s. per annum. An acre of paluds land lets at from 96s. 

 to 112s. per acre. The yield per acre is two tons for pahids roots ; for rosee roots it 

 is not so much. 2 The present price of ros6e roots, as delivered by the farmer, is 55 

 francs per 100 kilos. ; of paluds, 65 francs per 100 kilos. These prices correspond to 

 22,1. per ton for rosee, and 26/. per ton for paluds. These prices are exceptionally 

 low; and a madder-grinder told me that 55 francs per 100 kilos, only about covered 

 the cost of rent, manure, and labour, and that 75 francs was a good paying price ; 75 

 francs is at the rate of 301. per ton. Colza-oil cake is used as a manure for grain 

 crops and lucerne, when not following madder, but it docs not suit madder good farm- 

 yard manure being what is required ; superphosphate of lime does not appear to have 

 been tried. 



'Madder of very fine quality, almost paluds, is now grown in the alluvial ^lands of 

 the Bouches du Knone, near Aries, and even down nearly to Marseilles. This land is 

 impregnated with salt, and I was told more than once that a little salt as a top dressing 

 was useful to improve the yield of the lands in the Comtat of Avignon. _ It is a curious 

 coincidence that in the district where madder is principally cultivated in Spain that 

 is, between Segovia and Valladolid there are large salt lakes, though almost in the 

 centre of Spain ; indeed, salt is made from some of them.' 



The following, extracted from 'A Practical Handbook on Dyeing and Calico- 



* The eminee varies in size in different parts of the country ; at Entraignea (terrains paluds) It 

 contains 7 ares 85 centiares, at Avignon 8 ares 54 centiares, and at Orange 5 ares 84 ecntiares. 



- Tliis quantity is somewhat above the average. According to Mr. Pernod, on eminent garancine 

 manufacturer at Avignon, 5 ares 84 centiares (Avignon eminGe) yield 800 kilogrammes of fiesh 

 madder roots, equal to 200 kilogrammes of dry roots ; one are or 100 square m6tros equals 0-0247 of 

 an English acre ; 5'84 x -0247 = 0-144248 acres, and 200 -r- '144248 = KiSU'S kilos, which x 2'2 = 

 3,050 IDS., or 27 cwts. 0-26 dry rosee roots per acre. This is for 18 months old roots. The quantity 

 produced of 30 months old roots is one-third more, or an increased weight of one-third by keeping the 

 roots another year in the ground, giving on above data 3G cwts. 1 qr. 6 Ibs. for 30 months roots. 



