526 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
June  11,  1903. 
Naturally,  Paris  was  the  first  point  made  for,  and  from 
Paris  to  Grignon  is  but  twenty  miles,  via  Versailles.  At 
Grignon  is  situated  the  National  School  of  Agriculture.  We 
have  not  anything  quite  corresponding  to  this  here.  The 
farm  is  32p  acres  ;  the  pupils  at  present  number  120,  and 
their  term  is  for  2^  years.  The  cost  for  whole  boarders  is 
under  £60  per  annum,  and  what  may  be  termed  day  pupils 
pay  somewhat  less  than  £20  per  annum.  There  are  on  the 
farm  several  breeds  of  dairy  cows,,,  and,  what  is  strange  to 
English  eyes,  fourteen  pairs  of  working  oxen.  We  don’t 
quite  gather  how  old  these  oxen  are  when  given  over  to  the 
butcher,  but  we  should  have  imagined  that  the  beef  they 
make  would  be  lacking  in  quality.  As  we  fancy  beef  in 
France  is  mostly  treated  in  the  stewpot  or  saucepan,  pos¬ 
sibly  a  little  toughness  more  or  less  is  not  material. 
The  Leicester  is  the  favourite  breed  of  sheep,  and  they 
are  mostly  housed  during  the  year  ;  why,  we  hardly  see, 
unless  it  is  to  economise  keep.  Certainly  they  clip  well. 
Pigs  were  much  in  evidence :  a  French  breed,  and  our 
English  Berkshires,  and  a  cross  of  the  two,  which  has  proved 
very  satisfactory.  As  part  of  their  diet  these  pigs  get 
separated  milk  and  whey.  We  are  amused  to  hear  that  the 
corn  on  this  National  Farm  was  full  of  weeds,  and  that  the 
Lucerne  had  more  than  its  share  of  them.  It  is  refreshing 
to  find  that  Jove  nods  sometimes ! 
In  a  botanical  garden  2^  acres  are  set  apart,  and  the 
plants  (agricultural  and  horticultural)  are  grouped  in  orders, 
genera,  and  species  ;  there  is,  besides,  a  valuable  arboretum. 
Paris  draws  one-fifth  of  her  milk  suiDply  from  an  estab¬ 
lishment  belonging  to  the  United  Dairy  Farmers  at  Chau- 
mont.  Here  is  collected  milk  from  small  producers  ;  we 
say  small  advisedljq  as  some  only^  send  up  as  little  as  three 
gallons.  The  society  buys  as  much  as  20,000,000  gallons 
yearly,  varying  in  price  from  5d.  to  7d.  per  gallon  :  and 
although  this  milk  is  from  so  many  sources,  the  quality  is 
quite  up  to  the  mark,  averaging  3.6  of  fatty  matter.  The 
skim  milk  is  either  given  to  pigs  or  made  in  hardened  curd 
(galalite),  which  is  used  in  the  manufacture  of  buttons  and 
so  forth. 
Vernon,  ten  miles  from  Chaumont,  is  the  seat  of  the 
Gruyere  cheese  industiy,  still  under  the  management  of  the 
United  Daily  Farmers.  From  Vernon  to  Eouen  ;  to  Honfleur 
by  water  by  train  to  Breuil,  to  visit  the  famous  Camem- 
bert  cheese  factory  of  Mons.  Blondell.  This  enterprising 
gentleman  does  not  confine  himself  to  Camembert,  though 
that  cheese  (or  the  manufacture  thereof)  accounts  for  12,000 
litres  of  milk  daily,  but  he  also  produces  Coulommiers,  Avith 
Avhich  most  of  us  are  acquainted,  and  Livarot,  a  cheese  prin¬ 
cipally-made  for  the  labouring  classes.  To  use  up  success¬ 
fully  the  bye-products  from  these  huge  cheese  factories, 
hundreds  of  pigs  are  kept,  and  fed  on  meal  and  wheyq  AA’hich 
must  give  sAA'eet,  good  bacon. 
From  Breuil  they  Avent  to  Caen  (for  those  Avho  have  for¬ 
gotten,  Ave  may'  add  Caen  is  in  Calvados,  Normandy),  Avhere 
may  be  found  much  land  of  surpassing  excellence  ;  a  land 
of  large  farmers  and  prosperous.  Normandy  cattle !  Nor¬ 
mandy  horses!  Normandy^  butter!  Normandy'  Pippins! 
A  land  floAAing  AA’ith  milk  and  honey'.  From  Bayeux,  in 
Calvados,  an  excursion  AA*as  made  to  the  farm  of  Mons. 
Caesar  Vautier,  a  gentleman  aaFo, 'as  lately  as  February, 
AA'on  the  gold  medal  at  a  Paris  exhibition  for  dairy  produce. 
As  his  butter  can  command  the  price  of  2s.  2d.  and  2s.  6d. 
per  lb.,  it  is  tolerable  proof  of  its  excellence.  No  salt  in 
this  butter !  Land  on  a  property  adjoining,  OAvned  by' 
Baron  Gerard,  is  estimated  to  be  Avorth  £180  per  acre.  Here 
cattle  are  fatted  off  on  grass  alone,  no  extra  food  being 
required.  Naturally  it  folloAvs  that  the  stock  is  all  of  first 
class  quality,  all  pedigree. 
Of  course,  one  outcome  of  this  excursion  Avas  speech¬ 
making.  There  Avas  the  first  banquet  at  Paris  ;  and  here  again 
at  Caen  Avas  a  conference  of  French  and  English  saA’ants, 
and  among  other  subjects  under  discussion  Avas  that  of 
humanising  milk  for  infants.  The  method  Avas  described 
l)y  Professor  Louise,  of  Caen,  and  Ave  cannot  but  think  that 
this  milk,  prepared  as  it  is,  and  each  bottle  contain¬ 
ing  one  single  meal,  so  that  the  child  has  it  just  “  fresh  and 
fresh."  must  be  a  tremendous  boon  that  should  not  be  con¬ 
fined  to  French  children  only. 
Noav  for  the  butter  factory  at  St.  Pierre-sur-Dives.  AA'here 
•'2.s'/i)()lbs  are  blended  and  sold  daily'  by'  Mons.  Le  Petit.  The 
i.uil.v  :-omes  in  from  various  markets,  is  graded  and 
1-1  rd.  ;-.  and  packed  for  export.  Here,  also,  are  made  tAvo 
i'Uuu  (h  cream  cheese,  both  very'  popular.  At  another  fac- 
V  !  ■  L  'nenibprt  is  the  leading.  Ave  should  say,  sole  article. 
10,000  cheeses  being  turned  out  daily.  Another  feast  and 
more  speeches,  pretty  things  said  on  both  sides,  and  Mend- 
ship’s  bonds  strengthened.  We  are  glad  these  good  dairy' 
folks  had  an  ey'e  for  something  beside  dairy  products,  for 
Ave  find  one  day  they'  go  to  see  the  horses  of  Mons.  Aumont, 
AA'ho  has  done  no  little  execution  on  the  English  turf,  as  Avell 
as  on  the  course  at  Paris.  The  horses  are  given  but  a  pass¬ 
ing  Avord,  AA’hile  AA'e  should  like  to  have  knoAA'n  if  there  Avere 
other  than  thoroughbreds  among  them — anything  of  the 
heaA'y  type  of  the  Normandy  carthorse.  We,  however,  hear 
more  of  the  three  breeds  of  cattle,  Charolais,  Monceau,  and 
Cotentin :  the  first-named  being  draught  oxen. 
From  Mons.  Aumont  to  yet  another  butter  blending 
establishment,  OAA'ned  by  a  Mons.  Vigoreaux,  Avho  also,  too, 
is  a  manufacturer  of  Camembert,  Avent  the  party.  So  far 
as  Ave  can  gather,  it  is  the  Co-operative  French  farmer  who 
produces  the  best  butter.  With  few'  exceptions,  the  indi¬ 
vidual  farmer’s  butter  is  much  on  the  same  lines  as  our  own, 
some  very  good,  others  moderate  or  indifferent.  We  suppose 
that  in  the  blending  of  butters,  done  by  such  men  as  Mons. 
Le  Petit,  the  moderate  qualities  are  improved  by  the  three 
processes  through  AA'hich  it  passes.  Any  liquid,  either 
buttermilk  or  Avater,  AA'ill  be  expressed,  and  if  the  butter  is 
fresh  at  the  time  of  Avorking  it  Avill  thus  lose  AA'hat  w'ould 
tend  in  a  day  or  tAvo  to  give  it  an  objectionable  flavour. 
We  should  imagine,  hoAA'ever,  that  still  better  results  AA'ould 
be  obtained  if  in  the  first  instance  the  milk  Avere  blended 
and  then  submitted  to  the  churn.  We  also  gather  that 
butter  must  be  more  cheaply  produced  in  Normandy  than  in 
any  save  the  most  favoured  grass  counties  of  England.  If 
a  pound  of  butter  can  be  produced  from  2.8  gallons  of  milk, 
and  that  AA'ithout  any  adjunct  of  cake  to  the  ordinary  grass 
rations,  that  grass  must  be  Avonderfully  rich.  We  believe 
it  is  open  to  question  AA'hether  Ave  do  not  possess  better 
cattle  ;  in  fact,  Ave  believe  that  our  best  milking  stock  is 
superior,  so  that,  supposing  our  Normandy  friends  had 
specimens  of,  say.  Dr.  Herbert  Watney’s  herd,  or  Mr.  Evens, 
of  Burton,  Ave  should  hardly  dare  guess  w'hat  their  butter 
average  Avould  become.  Fancy  cheeses  seem  to  be  in  great 
demand  across  the  Channel,  A'arieties  of  Avhich  Ave  never 
hear.  Paris  alone  consumes  27,000,000lbs  per  annum.  We 
rest  content  Avith  our  old  standards,  and  what  feAV  fancy 
cheeses  have  been  made  and  circulated  through  the  medium 
of  dairy  schools  have  taken  no  great  hold  on  the  public 
taste. 
Work  on  the  Home  Farm. 
The  Aveather  has  been  A'ery  dry  Avith  us  lately',  and  avo  have 
heard  eiiA'iously^  of  the  thundorstorm.s  Avhich  hav'e  A'isited  more 
favpured  localities.  We  haA'e  been  busy  finishing  the  soAving  of 
SAvedes;  and,  in  spite  of  eveiw  precaution,  the  land  during  the 
process  of  ridging,  manuring,  and  splitting,  has  lost  very  )nuch 
of  its  moisture.  If  all  the  seed  does  not  germinate  at  once,  Ave 
hope  there  Avill  be  sufficient  to  make  a  plant. 
We  shall  defer  the  soAving  of  common  Turnips  until  there  has 
been  rain,  Avhich  Ave  fei’A'ently  hope  may  come  soon.  The  dry' 
Aveather  is  not  eA'ery'Avhere  unAvelcome,  for  there  are  abvays  a  feAv 
farmers  belated  AAith  the  cleaning  of  their  falloAvs,  and  this  is 
just  the  time  for  killing  tAvitch.  Wheats,  too,  Avere  on  deep 
.soils  inclined  to  be  too  long  in  the  straAv,  and  dry'  Aveather  ahvays 
suits  Wheat.  It  is  A'ery'  different  as  regards  the  late  soAvn  Barley 
and  Oats,  of  Avhicli  this  season  there  is  suclj  a  large  acreage.  They 
Avere  put  in  badly',  as  a  rule,  and  have  not  come  up  too  , 
well ;  they  have  not  had  time  to  make  good  roots,  and  a  drought 
Avould  be  serious  in  their  case. 
Mangolds  are  groAA'ing  Avell,  and  Avill  soon  be  ready'  to  strike 
out,  but  it  is  not  uniA'ersally'  the  case,  for  Ave  hear  of  some  Avhich 
are  only  .just  shoAving  above  ground,  and  others  Avhich  haA'e  not 
yet  germinated,  but  these  latter  Avere  A’ery'  late  soAvn. 
We  are  liaA’ing  a  someAvliat  educational  experience  Avith  a 
field  of  loAv-lying  black  soil.  Avhich  had  accumulated  a  good  deal 
of  tAvitch,  &c.  There  Ava-s  no  opportunity  of  cleaning  it  aft-er  the 
late  harvest,  and  although  it  has  been  Avell  Avorked  since  AA'inter, 
it  is  .still  anything  but  clean.  We  shall  noAv  plough  it  OA'er  again, 
Avhich  Avill  mean  that  it  Avill  be  completely’  dried  through  the  sole, 
unless  the  Aveather  changes.  We  shall  drag  it,  and  try  to  gty 
every  bit  of  rubbish  dried  up  and  Avithered.  ■  If  Ave  hav'e  no  rain 
for  a  long  period,  Ave  shall  make  it  a  summer  falloAv,  but  if  rain 
comes  Avithin  a  month  Ave  shall  soav  Rape,  and,  if  later,  Mustard. 
We  hear  comiilaints  of  pastures  falling  off,  but  really'  there  is  any 
amount  of  green  food,  and  farmers  aLvay's  cry  out  before  they  are 
hurt.  There  is.  however,  a  decided  drop  in  the  mutton  market, 
and  lambs  are  becoming  easy  to  buy.  Good  fat  lambs  ai'e  being 
offered  by  Aveight  at  lOd  per  lb,  and  no  buy'ers ;  butchers  offering 
9d.  Lambs  are  so  good  this  year  that  a  good  supply  tyr  the 
.summer  is  assured,  and  farmers  Avill  naturally  sell  lambs  in  pre¬ 
ference  to  shearlings  at  the  same  price  per  head. 
