FRENCH NATIONAL EXHIBITION OF INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTIONS. 
307 
skins, and giving unmistakable evidences of their 
propensity to “ run to milk.” They are of a dark- 
red color, with some white on the face, and short, 
crumpled horns. There are several fine horses in 
the fair, mostly of the Normandy breed; the one, 
as far as I have seen, pretty generally in use for 
heavy draught throughout France. They combine 
with strength a certain amount of speed. The 
diligences are principally drawn by them at the 
rate of six or seven miles per hour, including stop¬ 
pages. They are heavy, snug-built animals, true 
in the harness, and never refuse to draw. I have 
seen one of them attached to a heavily-loaded cart, 
pull against a gall on his shoulder, nearly as large 
as my hand, six times, coming down on his knees 
to the smooth pavement nearly every time. The 
seventh time, when another horse had been put 
forward, he pulled his best, as if nothing had hap¬ 
pened. Put these horses to their speed, and they 
get over the ground remarkably well, and without 
much ado either. The horses are almost invariably 
kept stallions. I cannot say, however, that I like 
the collar with which the French work their cart 
horses. It is a tremendous thing, rigged off with 
lettered sign boards, bells, and a large sheep skin, 
with the wool colored blue, the whole large 
enough for a dozen. It weighs from 20 to 50 lbs. 
The show of swine, though small, is very good. 
Here again the institution of Griegnon is represented. 
It has sent in some profitable pigs, I make no doubt, 
which it has styled u Berkshire-Chinese;” large, 
white pigs, with small-boned legs and prick ears. 
We have, besides, several of the Chinese breed, 
decidedly the nicest-looking pigs I ever saw. They 
are very much, in shape and size, like a breed of 
black hogs, called Chinese, or grass breed, common 
in some parts of America, but from their color and 
appearance of thriftiness, I think they would meet 
with better success there, both with breeders and 
pork raisers. Their pork, I understand, is very 
tender and sweet, and commands a much higher 
rice in the market than that of a larger size and 
eavier bone. As the hogs are white, the looks 
of the pork is not injured by that peculiarity which 
attaches itself to black hogs. The Berkshires 
claimed as full-blooded, are large and coarse, and 
one of them is white—a color which, I believe, is 
not peculiar to that breed. The French, as far as 
I have seen, are not very great pork eaters nor 
raisers; and consequently they cannot be expected 
to carry swine breeding to that extent to which it 
is carried in other countries where pork fattening 
is more of a business. 
The display of sheep is rich in Merinos and 
crosses with Merinos. There are two pens of 
ewes from the national establishment of Ram- 
bouiilet, that are very fine. I think I never saw 
such fine carcasses combined with such heavy and 
valuable fleeces. The wool, however, is not so 
fine in fibre as I could have expected—not so fine 
as I have seen at home; but with such thick, 
heavy fleeces, such hardy, sound constitutions, 
with face and legs so well covered with wool, we 
cannot expect the fineness of the Saxony fleece. 
M. Guynot, of Donarriere, near Rambouillet, has 
some ram lambs, six and a half months old, at the 
show, which are nearly as heavy as our full-grown 
ones. They also unite a fine carcass to a heavy i 
fleece. The institution of Greignon has sent up 
several half and quarter bloods; but, of course, 
such crosses, with us, will not bear mentioning 
when Rambouillet can be brought into the ques¬ 
tion. 
For the credit of France, I would leave unno¬ 
ticed and undescribed its implements of agriculture. 
It is strange, but it is nevertheless true, that the 
French appear to have no ingenuity—I may say 
taste—for this branch of manufacture. They can 
make beautiful optical and mathematical instru¬ 
ments ; beautiful apparatus for the illustration of 
anatomical, chemical, and philosophical experi¬ 
ments ; but in implements of agriculture and hus¬ 
bandry, they are entirely behind the age. There 
is quite a variety of plows here, but not one which 
an American farmer would use, when he could get 
the poorest even made in his own country. But 
these French plows appear to work well, because 
they are generally drawn by from three to six 
heavy horses through a mellow soil. They are most¬ 
ly short, clumsy, wrought-iron, and now and then, 
half-wooden things. In the eastern part of France, 
towards ancient Alsacia, I have seen farmers plow¬ 
ing on a side hill, with perhaps a pair of horses, a 
pair of cows, and a bull and heifer, or donkey, 
yoked together, for a team. Their plows are no 
less singular and antique than their teams. They 
consist of an iron frame with a wooden moldboard, 
attached in a very ingenious manner, without doubt. 
At the end of each furrow, the board is taken quite 
off and put upon the other side, in order to turn 
the sod the contrary way. The operation is always 
attended with more or less difficulty, as the long 
line of horses, cows, and mules must be stopped a 
short time at every turn. This is the only side- 
hill plow I have seen in operation from one end of 
France to the other. There are two side-hill plows 
at the show, or at least plows arranged for turning 
furrows to the right or left, at will, but which, from 
their extreme unwieldiness and length of bottom, 
must be entirely impracticable for any but smooth, 
even ground. I might describe several shovel har¬ 
rows, seed sowers, as well as hay and vegetable 
cutters, but they would only amuse you by their 
singularity. 
In my rambles through France, I have thought 
I was only passing through the most uncouth and 
unenlightened parts. I everywhere saw men, and 
women, too, for that matter, at work with wooden 
shovels, such as anybody with an axe and knife 
could make from a plank, an inch and a half thick, 
heavy, wrought-iron hoes, with short, thick handles, 
and enormous wooden hay forks, with natural 
crotches of trees serving for tines, and short, broad, 
droll-looking scythes, with snathes perfectly straight. 
But I see these same implements at the exhibition, 
and 1 conclude from it that they are the best the 
country affords. 
No one, I think, will refuse to admit that France 
possesses all the requisite elements for making one 
of the first agricultural countries on the globe. All 
it wants is something to turn public attention from 
its ancient, and unfortunately, from present indica¬ 
tions, stiJl-existing hobby of war, to agriculture. 
The arts of war have been cultivated and carried 
almost to perfection, at the expense of the arts and 
I of agriculture. We have only to open our eyes to 
