TO ENGLISH NEEDS. 155 



this province, mostly in the department of 

 Deux-Sevres, which comprised no fewer 

 than 50,000 mares, of which 38,000 were 

 devoted to the production of mules, the 

 remainder heing used for maintaining a 

 breed of horses suitable for the purpose, 

 which is called race chevctline mnlassiere ; 

 and probably, so great has been the demand 

 for large draught mules, these numbers 

 have considerably increased during the last 

 decade. The sum annually realised by the 

 sale of these mules has been estimated at 

 over eleven million francs, which would 

 amount to some £451,000 of our money. 

 The Poitou m.are, la jtmient Foitevine 

 mulassiere, used for the purpose, is a big 

 heavy cart mare, with large barrel and big 

 bone, bred mostly on the marshes of La 

 Vendue, land very similar to that on which 

 the nearly extinct black Lincolnshire dray- 

 horse was reared. The Poitevin breeders 

 (who by the way seem to labour under 



