Lynchburg Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1829-185?, 1849-06-04
NEAR PARIS, MAY 4th lS4b.

NEAR PARIS, May 4th lS41
! The French have reputation for dining well. In
my opinion the Americans dine much better but they
will scarcely believe this until they have seen with the
own eyes. viii ,hey believe me when say that ham
bacon is of the greatest rartes in France? You
cannot find one in provincial town. / made day
the tour OF all the pork merchants in of more
than 23,0OO inhabitants, for the purpose of buying
ham or two for family use The merchants showed
me souse, sausages fresh pork, and balls of pork sal
ted for preservation, but CURED ham was an apocry
pha thing. Some of them thought it would not be
good; and all of them concurred in saying that il
might be found in Paris for all they knew, but not II
the provinces
The fact is that France is not adapted 70 the raising
OF porF, either by its productions by the Of
enclosing the fields Indian is cultivated at
all and the wheat crop is about half that Of England
on the extent Of ground AS the farms are small
and such thing hog pasture is unknown, it would
be necessary to feed the animal grain for
The expense of this may be Judged from the fact that
fresh pork averages in France about twenty per
pound.
This exorbtant price must be attributed partly "a
the e1pensiveness Of the necessary enclosures The
farms and fields of France usually separated from
each other by deep furrows by stones, by row
of shade trees occasionally by thin hedge. This
offers no difficulty to shepherds and graziers the frs
entrust their iocks to good dog, with or without a
Keeper, and the second their herds to boy or girl who
keeps them easily in bounds. But the hog, being the
world over an unruy and vagrant animal requires Ell
Their stone wall confinement in pen. 1t is useless
therefore, to expect that France can by any change in
its AGRICULTURAL system become adequate to the sup
ply of its own pork.
might say almost much Of its incapacity to pro-
duce other kinds Of meat. What can we expect of a
country divided into innumerabe small FARMS where
for 36OOOOOO of inhabitants there 100000 FARMS
where nearly every farmer poor and needs the labor
Fall his family upon his farm and in his vineyard
lie is not able to spare them to watch every sheep,
hog, OK, or turkey he might own. For this reason in
passing through French village one never sees an v
poultry or pigs the gardens being all without fences
The people do not eat meat how can they when the
price OF chickens is from twenty to forty cents and
that of pound of good beef from twelve to twenty
cents? In this calculation we must not forget that
the French butcher always insists upon making up a.
bout half the pound in bones
The people live principally upon bread, vegetables
and common wine. This kind of diet is extremely in
furious One notice this in the complexion Of the
young PEASANTS which is faded and pale. young
girl OF the lower classes will appear at sixteen as if
she were twenty five, an1 it really difficult to deter
mine by his looks tho age of young ipt fresh
from the country he is pale and thin and his eyes
dull and lifeless After few months Of the easy
life Of soldier, sleeping regularly eating good nutr
tous food and drinking the generous wine of the
try he becomes rosy, stout and active. The army al
though expensive TO the country godsend for the
poor peasant.