708 
Statistics. partment of Aveiron, especially in the vicinity of Rhodez, 
—r— the princi earn, Chop teal 6 viata 
Oxen. 
in which the inhabitants carry on a considerable trade ; 
for it is said that during the two fairs that are ‘kept 
yearly at Rhodez, this trade rg in ‘above 300,000 
crowns. The breed of mules in Poitou, is particularly 
celebrated for their size and strength, and is in great 
demand all over France. 
The provinces in which oxen and cows ‘are princi- 
pally bred or fattened, are, Perche, ‘Cham e, Lor- 
raine, Alsace, Hainault, Flanders, Normandy, Brittany, 
La Maine, Anjou, Poitou, Berry, Nivernois, Burgun- 
dy, Limosin, Auvergne, Bresse, Languedoc, and Dau- 
phiny. ‘The prevalent colour of the cattle in France, 
trom Calais to the Pyrenees, is a reddish, or rather 
a cream colour. This is decidedly the colour of »the 
cattle of the Limosin, which are .an excellent breed, 
probably the best in France. From this district, num- 
bers of fine oxen, fattened in winter, are sent to the 
Paris market, which is also supplied by those fattened 
in Normandy during summer. » The cattle of the Li- 
mosin have short’ legs, ‘strait and flat backs, well arch- 
ed ribs, deep and h car¢ases, and their weight 
from 60 to 80 stone, 14 lb. to the stone. Tew thay 
singular circumstance ing them is, 
should be in excellent condition in the month of May, 
the season when they are usually driven from Limoges 
to the Paris market, as at this time of the year there is 
in most countries a scarcity of fat cattle, when they 
have not been fattened on spring grass ; and any 
which they could have in a climate not v erent 
from that of the south of England, could have but a 
small share in bringing them to the condition in which 
they reach Paris, The method by which they are brought 
into this condition is very extraordinary: they are put 
on grass till the beginning of November ; then on raves 
‘or turnips. When the turnips fail, they give them rye- 
flour, in a peculiar manner: the flour is mix- 
ed a. water, so as to make a’paste, which is suffered 
to stand till it ferments. In some instances the fermen- 
tation ene and accelerated by the addition of 
leaven. is ‘rye- is never given to the oxen till 
it becomes sour. .At first they refuse it; but when they 
-take to it, they prefer this acid food to any other. A 
large ox will eat in this manner about 22 Ib. of the 
paste a-day: it is given thrice a-day. The oil-cake of 
-walnuts is also given to oxenin the Limosin, with the 
greatest success, In some -of this district, boiled 
potatoes and chesnuts are given); in other parts, boiled 
maize rendered tender by pouring -boiling water upon 
it. 
In other parts of France; oxen are fed on leaves. 
This seems to- have been an established custom in the 
time of Henry IV. as it is particularly mentioned by 
Oliver de Serres, who wrote, under the auspices of that 
monarch, the Theatre d’ Agriculture. e ‘practice 
was formerly usual in England also, in Henry Eighth’s 
time, and even so late as the reign of Charles LI. as ap- 
pears from Evelyn. The leaves used in France are 
principally those of the beech. They are gathered when 
‘.on the point of falling, or immediately after they have 
fallen, and are* preserved as as possible by bein 
-covered with ero The _ t of ete of 
ing cattle is best understood .in Franche Com 
Auvergne. ; 
Where the Rhone divides’ between Tarascon and 
Arles, an island or delta is formed,called Camargue. This 
island is nearly an -equilateral triangle. of about seven 
leagues each way. It was formerly covered with wood, 
FRANCE. 
are 
computed to be bred annually, withoxen and sheep in 
proportion. The oxen are reserved cag le sup- 
a being a‘small black ‘breed, not: t 
e. They make excellent beef. . They are very. wild, 
of thers be Posen hip cob clscpecsivestetiion 
to T ne rare a 
go ick with a javelin in bi : 
i! 
ield. This provinee, y the 
Jagny in Lower Normandy, and Brittany, especially 
near Lanion, in the department of the North, and the 
Boulonnais, supply excellent butter, both fresh and salt. 
Gournay, a town in the department of the Lower, is 
particularly celebrated for its market of fine fresh but- 
ter, which is chiefly consumed in Paris. In the neigh- 
bourhood of Ma where cows are seldom seen, 
milk is furnished from sheep and goats : paces: | 
made from sheep’s milk: a kind of curd is also 
from this milk, erpabscerrepmeting 1 mgs is: 
into little pots, and brought tb country: 
ple for sale: . Chess latvengeBidle in France. . 
edoc, Provence, Brittany, Normandy, .Forez, and 
furnish it in the est qui Vi 
nk 
They are sent to very distant parts in little 
feeding 
young oxen, 1,456,000 ; cows, 1,016,000; making a 
total of 6,084,500. — i eeaeks lf Fo srapeteenert wi 
The native breeds of 
iS. 
carcases, and coarse wool ; t 
bad. The same characteristics prevail 
south, except in the north the sheep are larger. 
arse moc Pe es ¢ wever, 
nants om i daeaie vf fone 
Louis XVI. in 1786, first established.a flock of Me- Merinos. 
rinos at Rambouillet. .The produce, for some time, 
was given away. Recourse wan. gheo ee ew Bato 
sale. The sheep sold high, but weg My at a 
not giv roportion i i wool. 
this ‘crisig jai peace digs a on. There were | 
unl, theerot eckenlicen hibinalberaren, aed 
namely, ert if 
eoes - r; but the Revolution still farther depressed 
the demand for their wool. In 1811, Bonaparte pub- 
Butter, 
in France are, 1, The sheep. 
' 
