SUBSTITUTES FOR CEREALS 85 



afford a never-failing market to the produce of Normandy 

 enterprise and industry in the shape of butter, poultry, 

 eggs, potatoes, and vegetables. . . . 



Farmers in this district have realized that Europe can 

 no longer be a wheat-growing competitor of the new 

 worlds. Protective tariffs have not procured for them 

 remunerative prices, though they have prevented a further 

 fall. . . . The advice given to farmers to give up cereals for 

 permanent pasture is considered to have been the saving 

 of the farmers of La Manche, who one and all followed the 

 advice given. . . . The agriculturists of Western Normandy, 

 having abandoned cereals, now get a very fair return for 

 their capital and labour out of dairy-farming, horse- 

 breeding, poultry-rearing, cider-apple orchards, and market 

 gardening. 



The butter export from Cherbourg, which 

 rose from 1,8.50 tons in 1869 to 21,519 tons in 

 1897, has since declined to about 16,000 tons (in 

 the face of Danish and other competition), not- 

 withstanding a temporary increase in 1902, and 

 the export of poultry, as well as eggs, has also 

 fallen off during the last few years. But, in the 

 spirit referred to by Mr. Gurney, the farmers 

 of the district are again showing their powers of 

 adaptability to circumstances by pushing their 

 alternative trade in potatoes and vegetables. 

 The position to-day is that nearly all the avail- 

 able land between Cherbourg and Barfleur, and 

 on to St. Vast, is being devoted to potatoes and 

 cauliflowers. In the district between Cape La 



