The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1878-06-29
RENCH MUSHROOM CULTURE.
Somo Curious Facts About How the
Dainty Is Grown aud Sent to Market.

From he London Gatlcn.]
The cricure who enjoys so much
cr0ute dttn chonapignoUs docs not
dream of tho amount of work
which has been gone through in
older to crafty his tastes. There
are in the neighborhood of Paris
from ESQ to 300 mushroom growers,
who live under ground at depth
OF from 60 feet to 100 feet below
the surface. This subterrunean
world is reached by shafts furnish.
cd with an upright ladder. op and
down which the laborers a..e con-
stantly passing. it is also down
these shafts that the manure for
the beds is thrown, and, when
spent, it is sent up again in buckets
by means of rope and pulley.
In some Of tile galleries the
laborcrs can work upright, but
there are Others which are barely
four feet high. In these latter the
laborcr is obliged to work half
doubled OF on his knees, pushing
his whcelbarrow full of soil or
manure before him in the same
posture. He also has to look after
the beds and gather the mushrooms,
lamp in hand, and work his way
clevcrly along the narrow paths
between the beds, many Of which
are barely eight inches or ten
inches in width, without onco
Strengthening himself. When tho
beds are made, trimmed and "soil-
ed, the watering has to be regu-
/ larly performcd--no easy task when
it is remembered that every drop
OF water has to be brought to the
foot of the shaft from above, and
then carried by hand along the
galleries, often to the distance of
500 feet or 800 feet.
The life of tho mushroom grower
is really IL hard one and the mush~
room cater, while swallowing his
dainty productions, rarcly gives him
sufficient credit for his efforts, 1t
is not all profit, either, for his en-
ploycr. First of all, he has to pay
heavy rent for his quarry--from
$50 to Sl25 per notwithstanding
to it's size. The cost of the manure
and its transport form q large item
of expenditure, and his crops very
often fail through one or other of
the causes detailed above. Luckily
for him the Partisan epicure is
excessively fond of mushrooms. so
that, protiting by this amiabIe
weakness, the mushroom grower
often manages to bring up and
cducatc Il large family, and yet be
able TO lay something by for old
age. We know ono mushroom
grower who owns property in
Paris, but all his brethren are not
SO fortunate.
The daily production of mush-
rooms IN and around Paris may be
reclSoned ut 25.000 kiIogrammes
(about 25 tons) which, at / franc
per kilogramme, gives 5000 francs,
or $4,000 IL day, or close upon
$2,OO0,OOO per annum. The whole
produce goes to the market, to the
preserved vegetable manufacturers,
or TO the provinces. Formerly
mushrooms were sold in the
markets in sicvcs or small fiat
baskets. NJ. Bourget Of the Rue dc
In Petite Truanderie, agent and
manufacturer Of preserved pro-
visions, was the first to introduce
the system of selling them by
weight His firm uses oyor 200
tons of mushrooms per annum,
either for preserving or sending
into the country. His country
orders for fresh mushrooms often
reach as much rs half a ton per
day.
Growers mako special arrange
ments with preserved vegetable
manufacturers at price all round
Of from about $40 to $14 per cwt.,
the contracts being for six months
or n year. In the markets they are
sold by auction, as they arrive.
Mushrooms are sent into the PROV
inces in baskets. They are care
fully packed in hay or straw, so as
to keep them from breaking or
chating. The baskets are carried
in special vans, which travel the
whole distance, so that there is no
need to disturb the baskets during
tho journey.
A few figures will give an idea Of
the Importance of tho mushrooms
growing trade of Paris and its
neighbcrhood. NJ. Gerard, a grow