937 



BAVARIA. 



BAVARIA. 



038 



terminates at Munich ; but this line has several branches. From 

 Hof the main line runs in a generally south-western direction past 

 Neumarkt to Culmbach, where it turns westward to Lichteufels, 

 and is continued thence in a nearly southern direction past Bain- 

 berg to Niirnberg. From Bamberg a branch diverges west by 

 north to Schweinfurt, and thence south-west to Wiirzburg ; whence a 

 continuation of it is in course of construction north-westward past 

 Aschafienburg to join the Rhine lines at Frankfurt. A short branch 

 also connects the busy commercial towns of Ntirnbei-g and Fiirth. 

 From Niirnberg the main line is continued under the title of the 

 Royal Bavarian Railway past Oettingen, Nordlingen, Donauworth, 

 and Augsburg to Munich. The entire length of this main line, from 

 Hof to Munich, is about 262 miles. From Augsburg a branch quits 

 it in a south-western direction to Kempten, whence a continuation of 

 it is in course of construction to Lindau near the head of Lake Con- 

 stanz. In the detached portion of Bavaria, or the Palatinate, the 

 great line from Paris enters the province at Bexbach, and runs in a 

 generally eastern direction by Homburg, Kaiserslautern, and Neustadt 

 to Speyer and Ludwigshafen : its entire length in Bavaria is about 70 

 mile*, 



Climate, Soil, Prodttctiont. The climate of Bavaria is on the whole 

 temperate and healthy. It is cold and bleak in the mountainous 

 districts, but milder in the plains and valleys through which the 

 Main, Altrnuhl, and Regnitz flow, particularly in the parts adjacent 

 to the first of those streams where the Thuringian and other 

 mountains shelter them from north winds. In these parts the 

 chestnut and almond thrive ; and the vine is cultivated for wine : 

 but the vine does not succeed so well in the low country about the 

 Danube, which suffers from extreme cold in winter and oppressive 

 heat in summer. In the elevated regions of southern Bavaria fruit 

 cannot be raised. The Rhenish possessions have a climate as mild 

 and salubrious as the country traversed by the Main, except in some 

 districts of the west, which are intersected by the Vosges and their 

 branches : here the winter still prevails, while flowers and fruit-trees 

 are blossoming in the rich and sunny plains. 



Few countries possess a more productive soil than Bavaria ; yet 

 until very recently few people have turned their natural advantages 

 to so little account. It is not many years since nearly one-third of 

 the available surface of the circles of Upper and Lower Bavaria and the 

 Upper Palatinate was lying waste and uncultivated ; but agricultural 

 enterprise has been roused, and antiquated habits and prejudices are 

 rapidly giving way to improved methods of cultivation. Large 

 tracts of the moos, or moors, have been brought under cultivation ; 

 and the quantity of land under the plough has increased to above 

 half of the whole surface of the Bavarian dominions. Of this 

 quantity six-sevenths belong to the provinces of Bavaria Proper, the 

 area of which is more than nine-tenths of that of the whole kingdom ; 

 the remaining seventh belongs to Rhenish Bavaria or the Palati- 

 nate. According to the most recent but still very vague estimates, 

 53 per cent, of the available surface of the kingdom is occupied by 

 arable and pasture-land, vineyards, Ac. ; 29 per cent, by forests and 

 woodlands, while 18 per cent, is waste. The soil is divided into 

 pretty equal proportions. Large properties occur but rarely. Public 

 law and the prevalent feeling have long been favourable to the sub- 

 division of estates, and the practice has therefore generally prevailed ; 

 but it has been found advisable within the last few years to impose 

 a legal limit to the subdivision, and the practice has consequently 

 been somewhat checked. In Upper and Lower Bavaria and the 

 Upper Palatinate we find many comparatively large properties, 

 between 170 and 340 acres in extent ; in these quarters such sub- 

 divisions bein" least known, on account of the thinness of the 

 population. The state is said by St. Behlen to possess in landed 

 property and ground-rents between a fifth and a sixth part of the 

 entire value of landed property in Bavaria. 



Agricultural industry is principally directed to the cultivation of 

 wheat, rye, barley, and oats : the produce of the crops however varies 

 considerably both in quality and quantity. The annual quantity of 

 grain which Bavaria raises is estimated at about 



English Quarters. 



BT 3,700,000 



\Vhrat 3,100,000 



Barley 2,300,000 



OaU . . 4,000,000 



Total 



. 13,100,000 



Neit to grain the vine and hop-plant are important objects of 



cultivation. The vine is grown in few districts, except the Palatinate 



anil Lower Franconia. The latter produces the Franconian wines, 



i v white, known by the names of the Main, Were, Saale, and 



Tauber wines, which indicate the districts where they are made : the 



western declivity of the Steigcrwald and the Plain of Oeroldshofen 



i heir vineyards al. j <>. T|,,. celebrated Steinwcin is a produce of 



tin- Steinberg in the Mark of Wiirzburg; and the no less celebrated 



nwein is from the same quarter, namely, the southern slope of 



tho Marienberg, near the town of Wiirzburg. Those parts of the 



Pnlatin i> v.liir-li pi-n-lnr,- the choicest wine are the vineyards near 



ii, and Wachenheim, on the declivities of the Hardt 



Mountains. The quantity of wine annually produced in Bavaria is 



estimated at about 7,000,000 gallons. The cultivation of hops has 

 made much progress in Bavaria ; and the produce of the plantations 

 around Spalt and Heersbriick (in Middle Franconia), and Hb'chstadt 

 and other parts of Suabia, is accounted scarcely inferior to the finest 

 Bohemian : the quantity raised every year is about 38,500 cwt. 

 Considerable quantities of tobacco are grown in Middle Franconia 

 and the Palatinate : the entire quantity raised is estimated at upwards 

 of 90,000 cwt. Beet-root is cultivated to a considerable extent ; and 

 there are several establishments for the manufacture of beet-root 

 sugar. The cultivation of flax and hemp has greatly increased ; the 

 annual produce is estimated by Berghaus at 372,787 cwt. Oil extracted 

 from linseed, rape, and other seeds is manufactured to such an extent, 

 especially in Franconia and the Palatinate, that the exportation 

 frequently exceeds the importation : much oil is likewise obtained 

 from poppies in Lower Franconia ; but the finer descriptions of oils 

 consumed are of foreign growth. The raising of silk has occupied 

 the attention of the government for some years past, and it has to 

 a certain extent succeeded. Fruit is most extensively raised in the 

 southern districts of the kingdom ; though the finest sorts are 

 probably those which are cultivated in the environs of the Main and 

 in the Palatinate, whence considerable quantities are exported. 

 Liquorice (of which the Bamberg sort is considered the finest raised 

 in Germany), aniseed, coriander, cumminseed, and saft'rou are culti- 

 vated in many parts. Madder forms an article of considerable export 

 from the Palatinate ; and generally the cultivation of such roots and 

 plants as afford a dye appears to have been successful. The potato 

 is more generally cultivated in the northern districts and in the 

 Palatinate than in the southern : the total quantity raised is estimated 

 at 116,094,213 bushels. Hay and other fodder for cattle are produced 

 in abundance. Iceland moss is also collected in Bavaria. 



Forests, Timber, &c. Most of the mountains in Bavaria are finely 

 wooded : many of the more extensive plains also contain forests. 

 Those of the Spessart and Rhb'u mountains in the circle of Lower Fran- 

 conia may be considered as the most valuable ; the oak obtained from 

 the Spessart is highly esteemed, and is exported to a large amount ; 

 but the beech of the Rhbn is very little inferior to it in strength. It 

 may be observed in general that the woods in the lowlands consist 

 of oaks and beeches, but in the elevated regions of junipers, with 

 firs, pines, and others of the same species. Extensive tracts of 

 wretched woodland occur in some parts, as for instance in Upper 

 Bavaria. The yearly produce of the Bavarian forests, independently 

 of fire-wood and brushwood, is estimated at about 2,400,000 fathoms, 

 and the quantity of timber thus produced is so much beyond the 

 domestic consumption as to form an important article of export. 

 The total quantity of woodland is said to amount to 6,363,876 acres; 

 of which 2,412,329 acres belong to the state, 1,246,898 to corpo- 

 rations and public bodies, and 2,704,649 to private persons. The 

 largest forests are those near Kempten which cover a surface of 

 235,143 acres, and those in the region of the Spessart, which are 91,740 

 acres in extent : but in the Palatinate both timber and fuel are 

 comparatively scarce. Potashes, tar, turpentine, and juniper berries 

 are among the other products of the Bavarian forests. 



Bavaria is full of rivers and streams, the banks of which j-re 

 bordered with excellent pastures ; and they have been rendered still 

 more productive in Franconia by artificial irrigation. The mountains 

 also abound in pastures, which have been improved in many parts by 

 careful cultivation. No branch of grazing however is so extensively 

 pursued as the rearing of horned cattle ; and in this Upper Bavaria 

 and Suabia take the lead ; yet the whole stock is inadequate to the 

 wants if the inhabitants, and by no means commensurate with the 

 capabilities of the country. In 1837 the number of horned cattle was 

 2,350,386. Much has been done to improve the breeds, but there is 

 still room for great improvement. Of sheep the number in 1837 

 was 1,484,080. Middle- Franconia is the principal sheep district. 

 The majority of the Bavarian flocks are of the native breed ; but great 

 pains are now bestowed upon their improvement. Much also remains 

 to be done towards improving the domestic breed of horses : their 

 number was 330,620 in 1837. Swine are reared in all quarters, but 

 more particularly in the neighbourhood of the Spessart and Rhbn 

 mountains, where acorns are abundant : no accurate account of their 

 numbers is extant. Of goats the stock is not large ; and few mules 

 or asses are bred. Fowl, both wild and domestic, are plentiful : the 

 rearing of bees has been neglected until of late years. The lakes and 

 rivers of Bavaria abound with fish : in Upper Bavaria especially, 

 where the largest inland waters exist, and along the banks of the Main 

 and Rhine, thousands derive a comfortable livelihood from the fisheries. 

 The most noted species are the salmon of the Rhine, the trout of the 

 Franconian streams, and the crayfish of the Altmiihl. Pearls are 

 found in the Hz and other minor streams. The wolves and bears, 

 which used to infest the forests and highlands of Bavaria, are rapidly 

 diminishing. 



Metals and Mineral}, -Every inducement has been held out by the 

 Bavarian government, both to natives and strangers, with a view to 

 encourage the working of the mines. The principal products are 

 iron, coals, and salt ; gold and silver are found in small quantities 

 only in the waters of the Inn, Rhine, Danube, and Isar ; quicksilver 

 at three or four places in the Palatinate. Copper is principally raised 

 in Upper Franconia, where cobalt, tin, lead, and antimony are also 



