Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1875-11-19
The Vintage OF France.
HARVESTING The WINE CROP.

4
! stating that the vintage Will commence in
/ fifteen days, and designate the precise day
| for each VI the e0mmunes under their juris-
| diction. Due regard is had, of course, TO
! the maturity OF the grape IN each locality,
/ and also 10 the necessities OF labor When
/ ever possible the schedule OF the bans is so
arranged that the rcndanquerS can begin in
the commune where the grapes aresupposed
| to be ripest, and 90 straight through the
/ department, thus avoiding the long night
| journeys they would have to make if the
/ bans wee issued in a hap-hszlrd fashion.
/ la the large towns, like Bordeaux, Toul-
ouse, Lyons, Marselles, Dion, and Aux
ere. the opening of the vintage is announc
cd by preIectoral degree, printed upon
white paper and posted Up throughout the
! department in tue same manner rs the
laws. la France white paper for posters is
reserved for the u.s. Of the Government. and
all other placaIds, whether electoral ad-
/ dresses or business announcements. must be
/ printed upon colOred paper. Ia smaller
! places X = the Mayo who announces that
the Project has ordered the opening OF the
vintage, and in the villages and hlmlets
this l. done by the public crier, who Rp-
pears with Ais drum. generally when the
people are coming out of church, and.
after beating it until he has collected a
crowd about him, the Crier reads the May
or order from the manuscript The crier
Is bound to beat his drdm Ut The door Of all
toe churches, and IN the public place Of
every hamic. or bours IN ins commune.
The bans must be published fifteen days
before that fixed for the opening. and IN
ne-cr1wing hamiots the visit OF the crier
Is awaited with anxiety. As soon as he
appears a crowd collects about him he
Z .L-aa nj led Bvy a
large escort. and. proud of his uniform and
of the importance OF his mission, he beats
his drum longer than necessary, perhaps,
Tor the amusement of admirlng children.
then draws 4 iormidabe-lOoking document
from his belt " Oye-, oyc-. Oyt- ' be
cries three times, then announ es that " IN
the name OF VI ls M4ire, the vintage viii
be opened on and after" such date
PROVINCIAL usAGzs.
In Burgundy aud the south of France.
where the people are all religious. the
ceremony of Publishing the vintage bans i
( regarded d d public icJe. Alter the morn
ing mass all rush 10 the spot wae.e the
crier stands beaIng his drum, and, alter
/ the reading, there are cries oi lrc " .t
/ Mairs. when that funciiolary Is popular
great Joy prevails GI1 the bells of the
/ church begin q lively carrillion. This Is
! heard by those in the tarm-houseS, WhO get
cut at once the baskets and casks used Tor
/ the vintage. and set them upon the grass 10
greet the eyes OF those returning from
church. The evening Is passed in iestiyI-
ties. During the fortnight that e.apses,
everything is prepared. and when the ~
portant day arrives every one l. in readI-
ness TO begin work by > o'clock IN the
morning. The masters then 90 - the pub
lie place to recruit their force from the zen
dqHgeurs who have arrived during the night.
some o. them coming from distant parts Of
| the country Hundreds Of n1ma1ic har
yos;ers come from districts where wine Is
/ not cultivated on account OF the superior
wages paid during the grape harvest. This
| force Is COMPOSED of old men. robust wo-
men, and Young girls. When the rsVaGlt-
CusrS have been placed. the master gives
signal 10 begin all strike up hceiy har-
vest song and 20 at their work with a will
| When the wooden hods are filed thew are
placed in a cart and sent off to the press.
/ The h0d- are water-tight like casks for the
weight Of the grapes presses greal deal ot
! iuice from the banchos first thrown IN. Rni
this has u be preserved. At night, despite
their fatigue. Jhe rsndGHguerS enjoy their
harvest feast, always cnGlng IN dance,
" Whieh recalls the ancient bacchanaie, but
DAYS, these dances are simply gay. The
ancient Gaul-, We are told. were in the
habit OF carrying their god- about the
vines before beginning the vintage, and
some yos.iges Of these ancient customs are
still preserved in Llngued0c where the
priests are called 0at TO bless the vines, and
where the people carry the sacred relics OF
their church or the statue ot the patron
saint of the locality through their vine
wards. These statues are covered with vine
leaves and punches OF grapes, and resemble
the picture OF BscchUs or OF the bacchan-
tes In mary OF these vintage scenes we
find relics Of the customs Of more than 1wo
Thousand years ago.
CHOICE wlSEs
4 few words about the superior quality
of wine may be found Of interest. Great
precautions are taken with three or four
yintages in France, and the regaaTgHsrs
arc not recruited from the ordinary run OF
such laborers They are all picked men,
very well paid. and are mads To understand
that they occupy positions Of trust. lake
Clos-Eougeot, for example. the first quality
Of wine produced IL the world. and held q
a price which places 1t beyond the reach o
ali bat a few crowned heads and archl-
liouaires. The vintage ofthe Clos -Nougeo
Is as solemn a. religious ceremony. anC
the men are made 70 understand that every
cluster of grapes Is worth about il weigh
IN gold Yet even the confidential agent
, employed to gather the grapes have to d.
50 under the eyes OF inspectors, and strlc
guard Is kept over the baskets Every yea
a company OF soldiers arrive from DDOn
and are posted as sentlnels about the vine
ward and about the buildings IN which th
grapes are stored. 4 powder magazine o
lot Of cavalry forage could not be nor
: carefully guarded The soldiers have or
ders TO arrest any man seen taking slngi
grape. This guard is kept up until th
: wine is put in bottles.
IMPORTANCE or Tie yiNrAGE.
Ii j. needless to say that the wine crop
the most important OF ali in France, il
value largely exceeding that Of all kinds q
! grain. In ordinary years 1t i estimated d
considerably over TWO milliards OF franc
For twenty years It's expectation alone ha
E had a NEAR value OF two hundred and hit
3 millions Of francs. and in 1873 France sol
D three hundred millions worth OF her vine
b In addition to this.there is sixty million
! worth OF brandy. The vintage contrib It'
= three hundred and f.ty odd millions To ii
. budget of the STATE, besides paying lars
y sums in octroi taxes TO the towns In wnic
il Is consumed. From these estimates OF
can readily comprehend the general Intere
>. taken in the annual vintage, for SUPERB
wine crop means national prosperity h'
> the vintage is poor the whole country
! pinched when it is good the entire natli
d ieels at case. Fortunately the present VII
. crop promises well, and 1t Is supposed tn
+ 1875 will count among the notable wears.