in the North-west of France. 91 
procuring it. At present, the ordinary pay of a garden-labourer 
ranges from 4.s-. (u/. to o.v. per diem ; but, en revanche, the day's 
work round Paris averages 14 hours. 
Market-Gardens of Paris. 
The brilliant French capital abounds in attractions to every 
class of Englishman, but it is doubtful whether anything more 
interesting to the cultivator of the soil can be found than the 
market-gardens on the outskirts of the city, and especially those 
within the fortifications in the quarter and neighbourhood ot 
Vaugirard.* 
The market-gardens within the enceinte of Paris occupy an 
area of nearly 3500 acres. The largest are about 2^- acres in 
extent, and the smallest are scarcely more than an acre. The 
gardener is not often the owner of his land, and the rent paid 
varies chiefly with the distance of the garden from the central 
market (Halle) of Paris. Each garden has attached to it a 
dwelling-house, a stable, a cart-shed, and an elevated reservoir 
of water, generally supplied from a well, the water being 
pumped up daily by horse-power. An abundant supply ol 
water, which can be economically distributed as required, by 
means of numerous hydrants and attached hose, is an essential 
element of success, and forms invariably one of the most im- 
portant adjuncts to the garden. The system of cultivation is 
essentially a forcing one, with a view to bring vegetables oi 
all kinds very early in the year to the Paris market. The 
land itself plays, comparatively speaking, a subordinate part 
in the growth of the crops, its place being taken by a mixture 
of earth and manure known as terreau, which cannot be pro- 
perly made in less than four years, and beneath which a layer 
of long manure is placed. The garden is therefore a great hot- 
bed, covered more or less with glass in the colder months, but 
of course open to the sun and air in summer. Instead of giving 
any general description of the management and results of these 
gardens, I will briefly state the facts relating to two gardens at 
Vaugirard, and merely glance at two others at greater distances 
from the market, and in the less fashionable neighbourhood of 
St. Denis. 
The first garden which I visited at Vaugirard is in the occu- 
pation of M. C. Lecomte, and comprises 1 acre 16 perches. 
The rent is 56Z. per annum, and the annual expenditure for 
manure 96Z. The plant, including bell-glasses, frames and 
* I am again indebted to M. Henri Vilmorin for special facilities in making 
an inspection of the market-gardens at Vaugirard, St. Denis, Etampes, Mantes, 
and elsewhere. 
