138 RURAL ECONOMY OP ENGLAND. 



To be sure, Sully was not without his faults. His pride, 

 cupidity, and avarice would have rendered him unbear- 

 able, had he lived in our day ; even for his own time, he 

 was excessively prejudiced : he hated commerce and 

 manufactures, then beginning to dawn ; but fortunately 

 he failed in his efforts to prevent the introduction of 

 silk into France. Still, with all his faults, he was right 

 in one thing he understood the importance of agricul- 

 ture, if he mistook that of commerce ; and his encour- 

 agement sufficed to provoke an agricultural expansion, 

 surprising for that period. 



Oliver de Serres, a contemporaneous writer, has left us 

 an admirable work, testifying to the general movement 

 which then took place. The Theatre d' Agriculture ap- 

 peared in 1600 : its author was a noble Protestant, lord 

 of Pradel, in Vivarais, who lived a retired life upon his 

 own estates during the period of religious and political 

 convulsions. His work, which he dedicated to Henry 

 IV., is both the best and oldest treatise on agriculture 

 which exists in any modern language. His name is 

 one of the glories of France : succeeding times forgot 

 Jiim ; and when, fifty years ago, he was again brought 

 to light, after another general peace gave an impetus to 

 labour, it was truly a resurrection. This is the way we 

 reward our great men. All the good systems of agricul- 

 ture were known in Oliver's time ; he gives directions 

 which might be adopted by our agriculturists at the 

 present day : production made rapid progress in the 

 course of a few years, "to the great profit of your people" 

 he says, addressing the king in his dedication, " dwelling 

 safely under their fig-tree, cultivating their land, and who, 

 under shelter of your majesty, have justice and peace 

 dwelling with them!' 



The fatal genius which rules our destinies did not long 



