318 . THE PARKS AND GARDENS OP PARIS. [Chap. XIX. 



vermin and other interlopers, is another of the many advantages 

 presented by this plan. In places where the stock of Grapes is 

 not sufficient to require a special room for their keeping, part of 

 the fruit-room, or even a dry cellar or store-room, might be 

 adapted to this purpose. 



M. Eose-Charmeux, when he originated the plan, began by 

 having a stove and a couple of chimneys to try to regulate the 

 atmosphere of his large Grape-room ; but finding that the Grapes 

 kept very much better without this, he simply devoted to his 

 winter stock of Grapes a large room in his house. It is fitted up 

 in all parts to accommodate handily the little bottles before spoken 

 of, padding the inside of the windows so as to exclude light, and 

 obviate, as far as possible, changes of temperature. The Grapes 

 are cut in October, and preserved in good condition until April, 

 when the earliest of the new crop are ready to cut. He has fre- 

 quently preserved them till May, and even till August. 



A small room in M. Kose-Charmeux's house demonstrates that 

 a similar one in most houses might be made to answer the pur- 

 poses of keeping Grapes. It has no windows, and scarcely any 

 means of ventilation. The house is heated by hot air ; but while 

 there are openings in the floor of the passages and other rooms to 

 admit this, there are none in this little room in which the Grapes 

 keep perfectly. Thus it is clear that the ordinary dwelling-house 

 will present suitable conditions for the preservation of Grapes 

 throughout the winter. The system was attractive enough when 

 it was considered necessary to construct a room specially to carry 

 it out ; it is much more so now when it has been proved that not 

 only is it unnecessary to take any special means , to warm or 

 ventilate the structure, but that the Grapes keep much better 

 without that trouble. The first result of the method was an 

 annual gain to the village of Thomery, which is almost wholly 

 occupied with Grape-culture, of from £4000 to £6000. The 

 system enables the cultivators to keep their Grapes much later 

 than of old, and thus to add considerably to their revenue. 



In England the system has been tried and favourably reported 

 on by Mr. Hill of Keele Hall, the famous Grape grower, and by 

 other good growers. Mr. Whittaker of Crewe Hall sent some 

 to a meeting of the Horticultural Society, but he had taken 

 unnecessary trouble by corking and sealing the bottles. The 



