The St. Cloud journal. [volume] (St. Cloud, Minn.) 1866-1876, 1876-03-09

their inclination. At 10 or IL
o'clock occurs the principal meal of
the daytime deje4ner la toerchette.
At this repast it is customary to have
dish Of meat, a dish Of vegetables,
and desert composed chiefly Of
fruit. The wine drank at meals is
always some cheap ri'a ordinaire, and
of this the gentlemen may each con-
sumo an entire bottle, but the ladies
seldom 60 beyond halfpottle.
Dinner at 6 o'clock is the second and
concluding meal and, nothwithstan1-
ing the long interval separating it
from the deieuner, the food is light
and simple, frequently consisting Of
merely an omelette and salad, or
thin soup and cold chicken. Tea is
never drank during any repast; in
deed, it is seldom used unless as
sort of medicine. The habit of ear
" rising induces a corresponding
habit of early retiring, and the rural
French are generally in bed by 9
o'clock or little after.
The bourgeoisie are, as a class,
shrewd and close fnanciers, living
apparently for no other purpose than
gain, and sacrificing every feeling of
independence and every elevated SEN
timent to the pu: suit Of money-get-
ting. By dint of vigilant industry,
economy, and thrift, the class are
continually increasing their wealth,
and with y, their influence. The
aims of the boaryeo;sie aress ignoble;
they narrow and debase the higher
qualities of heart and mind i; and
still some stubborn virtues, like cour-
age, patience, and tortitude, dist1n-
guish the order.
The peasantry, who compose the
great body of the rural population Of
France, are stolid, ignorant, obstinate
and unmanageable as is this part of
the population, it has enormous pow.
er for good or evil in the destinies Of
France. The nobility itself, with its
culture and ancient prestige, has less
influence in deciding the political
fate Of the country. 1t is difficult to
conceive of the illite racy, the super
stition, and the intractabili.y that
characterize the class. Few among
them can read, and the book and the
newspaper have no avenues by which
to reach them. The two currents Of
communication open to them are tra-
dition and rumor, both of which are
treacherous and misleading. The
authority of the priests is too slight
to guide and control them like sheep
they blindly follow the multitude
! in paths the wisest can never make
| sure beforehand that they will break
| into. Political parties have tried in
vain to affect the peasant vote. The
Legit,mists have used ladies and
priests as their agents, and both have
failed utterly of their object.
The customs Of thepeasantry are rig
orous and unchangeable. The bour-
gois may wear a coat Of any color he
chooses. The peasant must wear
blouse, and the blouse must be blue.
Peasants of the same age always wear
the same kind of hat, the same tex
| ture Of linen, and, when they buy
| cloak, in these parts at least,-it
| is always sure to be of a brownish~
gray, with brown stripes of a particu-
lar pattern. Custom, indeed, has
been powerful enough to put all the
class into uniform. In the furniture
of their house, the peasants areequal-
ly regulated by fixed usages. The
| cabinet.maker's work is always of
| walnut, and nearly of the same de-
| sign. The bed, the linen-press, and
the clock are the three items to which
| most care is given. Sometimes you
will find ito beds, two a,moires,
| and two clocks in the same room,-
one set belonging to the parents, the
! other to married son. The women
| are proud Of their a1,moires, which
are prettily paneled, and they rub
| the panels till they shine, AS the
furniture and manner of life in the
peasants houses is always exactly
| alike, and all know the same things,
| and are equally ignorant of every
thing else, the consequence must be,
| and is, wonderful narrowness Of ex-
perience in the class, and cores
| bonding mental narrowness.
The peasant woman works vigor-
| ously in The fields, but at home she
shirks what domestic duties she can,
concealing her Incidence in an affected
necessity for knitting. Her ignorance
of cookery, of the preparation of SIM
pie remedies for the sick, and Of pro-
| vision for the comfort of her family,
| IS gross and irreclaimab]e. The
morning-meal in every PEASANTS house
| consists Of a very cheap soup filled
| with thin slices of bread the DIM
ner is composedinvariably of potatoes
with second dish, either pancake,
or salad, or clotted milk. Only on
festival occasions is meat eaten, and
| then it forms the sole dish, and each
man will consume as much as ten
Englishmen will eat at an ordinary
meal. Wine is not commonly used
as beverage, except during haying