132 



FARMERS' REGISTER 



[No. 3. 



still too many traces of imperfect culture — the 

 lands are disposed to get foul Avith weeds very 

 quickly. These various reasons oppose the sup- 

 pression of naked fallows, (which he cannot use 

 but with much caution,) and of course, oppose 

 the developement of a system of agriculture en- 

 tirely prosperous. * * * 



M. Vignier has attempted this year to make a 

 large quantity of field beets, [bctteraves] or man- 

 gel wortzel, (seventeen arpents;)* they were not 

 advanced at the time of our visit, hut were coming 

 on well, and will doubtless give good products. 

 He regularly has ten arpents in potatoes, well 

 cultivated. 



We remarked a field of rape [colza] of some 

 arpents, promising a good crop. This is a novelt} 7 , 

 which is so much the more useful as it has had 

 complete success, which will, without doubt, en- 

 courage the cultivators of the country to follow 

 the example, 



The proprietor of this farm, M. Caron, has not 

 confined to the buildings his participation in the 

 improvements. He has devoted himself, with in- 

 terest, to all that can favor the culture of Ihe land. 

 A general marling — numerous ditches which he 

 has made at the demand of the farmer — planta- 

 tions of fruit trees — roads — in short, all that can 

 be useful, is executed by him as soon as the utility 

 is known. 



Farm of Koas — Commune de Pecy. 



It is on the farm of Noas that we have seen 

 established most completely, and with the most 

 remarkable success, the regular four-shift [quad- 

 riennal] rotation. On a middling soil, there are 

 seen the finest, crops. Upon 400 arpents of arable 

 land, nearly all unfit for lucerne, M. Vignier culti- 

 vates 100 arpents of wheat — 70 in clover, made 

 on the manured wheat. — 90 in oats, of which 70 

 are upon a clover lay, [defHche des trefles,] the 

 balance upon a lay of lucerne, or after vetches, or 

 potatoes, or other roots. 



YVe will again call attention to this point, that 

 generally the soils of this farm are middling — in 

 many places even the land is very bad. Well! 

 no where is there found a bad crop: every part 

 bears what might be hoped from good culture, 

 with success proportioned to the worth of the dif- 

 ferent pieces of land compared with each other. 



The fallow (this year lost for the bad cultivator) 

 is in this farm devoted entirely, according to a 

 rational system, to the melioration of the land, and 

 to the production of useful crops. Fifteen arpents 

 only have been left in naked fallow: this was the 

 part which had need of repeated ploughings, per- 

 fectly executed, and at precise times, to bring it to 

 the state of good order common to the other land 

 of the farm : the remainder had been in rye, 

 grazed by the sheep, and in vetches, also grazed 

 or cut green; and five arpents in potatoes and thir- 

 ty-five in field beets or mangel wortzel. These 

 roots are made after three ploughings, and receive 

 three hoeings [binagesj~\ they are of the finest 

 growth, and promise a very abundant crop. M. 

 Vignier has told us that he has made this root at 



*The arpent is not now a legal measure in France, 

 and was not uniform every where when it was legal. 

 Jt does not vary much from our acre. — Jr. 



the rate of about 35,000 weight to the arpent — 

 which may perhaps be equivalent to 1000 bottcs of 

 dry forage. He prefers the beet to the potato, 

 for the consumption of beasts, because it appears 

 to him to contain less of the water of vegetation 

 — and also for the preparation of the soil, because 

 that wheat grows well enough after the beefs, 

 whilst the trials that he has made after potatoes 

 have been without success. 



The interior of the farm, [homestead, or farm 

 buildings] answer well to the exterior culture. A 

 cow-house contained 24 cows of the finest form, 

 in the best condition, and appearing fit to yield 

 good products. The flock consisted of about 700 

 sheep, and 200 lambs, all of fine wool. The 

 grown sheep are in good condition; but the lambs 

 appeared not to be in such state as might have 

 been expected. It appeared that the pasturage 

 being short, the lambs had not yet been turned 

 out. This is the only thing which the inspection 

 of this fine establishment showed to be defective; 

 but the good state of the rest of the flock, proves 

 that circumstance is but accidental: and it should 

 be remarked, that the range or "commons" [par- 

 cours'] of the farm is limited to about 450 arpents, 

 near the lands which compose it.* 



M. Vignier has established at Noas, at his own 

 expense, those parts of buildings which would 

 have been deficient, as extensive sheds, sheep 

 folds of light construction, and a thrashing ma- 

 chine. 



We have no need of telling you, gentlemen, 

 how much satisfaction we have experienced in 

 visiting the establishment of M. Vignier. Such 

 complete success of intelligent labor has confirmed 

 us in the opinion, that the most prosperous destiny 

 awaits agriculture, when it shall have received 

 the developements of industry. 



###### 



Farm of La Grangc-Blesneau — Commune de 

 Courpalais — belonging to Gen. Lafayette, di- 

 rected by 31. Lecuyer. 



We have ended our rural visits with the farm of 



*The "parcours" does not consist of pasture land 

 belonging to a particular farm — but to the whole com- 

 mune, or territorial district — and indeed the parcours of 

 adjacent communes, by law, owe reciprocal service, by 

 which the beasts of one commune, may be driven to 

 graze on the territory of a neighboring commune. See 

 "Parcours" Vol. VII. p. 235, Cours Complet d'Agriad- 

 ture etc. par I' Abbe Rozier. Thus the grass furnished 

 to the flock of any one proprietor, by 450 arpents of 

 "parcours," is a very indefinite amount — but could 

 scarcely be of much value in any case. There is 

 another legal right of grazing in France, sometimes 

 (as Rozier says) confounded with this, and which is 

 still more injurious to agriculture. This is the local 

 usage and right of "vaine pasture," by which the 

 owners of beasts may graze them upon the lands of 

 the commune generally, after the crops have been taken 

 off. A similar usage was getting established in Vir- 

 ginia — and though without legal sanction, would have 

 became "time honored" and irrevocable, if Arator had 

 not taught us the necessity of protecting our fields 

 from grazing, and thus induced the expulsion of the 

 intruders, before they had become too strong to be 

 resisted. — Ed. Farm. Reg. 



