New-York tribune., 1907-06-03
FRENCH WINE FRAUDS.
Causes of the Present Distress an
Grape Gro1cing Regions.

Paris June 2-The general and profound distress
which has overtakeu the wine growers of France.
reducing some regions to a pitiable condition OF
poverty. Is due TO a variety Of causes. but chiefly
to overproduction and consequent low prices. The
result has been agitation on the part of the
wine growers For the complete suppression Of
manufactured wine sold in competition with the
natural product. The great popular demonstra-
tions at Beziers and Perpguan had this as their
direct object. 1t is hardly likely that legislative
action in this direction will relieve the wine grow
crs. as there are other evils of which they them
selves have been guilty, as, indeed. most OF them
have been guilty OF the adulteration against which
they bitterly complain.
II should be understood that the wine crisis has
affected only slightly the higher class OF wines.
champaEnes. bordeaux and burgundies. known
generally under the name of 'Grands crus.' which
are exported and consumed by the rich. It is con-
fined TO the low grade wine drunk by the masses.
and known commercially win OTdinatre' and
"vin du pays"
The beginning OF the trouble dates back to thirty
years ago. when two-thirds of the vineyards OF
France were practically destroyed by the phyI-
loxera This scourge, IL was found. attacked only
degenerate plants enfeebled by decades. il not
centuries. of growth The strong, vigorous Amer
lean plant was immune. and it used generally
in replauting the vineyards the French varieties
OF grapes being subsequently grated on the
American roots. During the period OF renewal.
however. from 1876 1855, the production of
natural wine largely below consumption.
The South or France Tor instance 1ITnlShed only
about half Of the 5O000Co0 hectoItres consumed,
Resort was naturally had to adulteration. which
first took the form Of reinforcing the third wine
DRESSINGS with alcohol and other chemicals.
Fraudulent WINE at that time deemed a sort
Of public beI efdCtiOu, as II enabled the poorer
classes accustomed 10 the beverase 10 obtain II AT
a reasonable price. But the deficit in the natural
product, besides inducing the planting of q inn
mense area of new vineyards hitherto devoted 10
cereals. etc, led 10 various eNpedieuts for inCrcas
ing tls yield of the vine. The most effective
was &sCertatned To be the submergng of the vine
yards in the low valleys during portion of the
sen 1SDu nett hOi cod fNlD sal
hectare which formerly yielded from thirty TO fifty
hectotres tthe normal production OF hillside vine
YARDS was made 10 produce two hundred hecto-
litres. reproduction aai fraudulent wine then
steadily cut prices. until. after the enormous crops
of 1899 and 1900. IL fell at one time francs
u heCtoNtre as against a normal price of from
20 20 This crisis followed in the north
districts by the growth OF the manufacture
of wine from sugSr and chemicals and when the
Brussels agreement In 1898. the growers themselves
were in the business OF adulteration by whole
sale. The Temps printed a table giving scores
OF COmmuncS where the output of wine exceeded
twofod and th-eefold the quantity of grapes grown
one district threw l5,4I0OJo heCtolitTes the ma
tiOnal market. Tho amount of spurious wine sold
the substitution OF beer among the working classes
Physicians found il deleterious. and among the
common people the first admouition always
nsainst the use of wine. Among the middle classes
It led 10 the gradual increase Of total abstinence
ana to-day there are thousands of French families
who seldom never have wine their tables
was universal. II is estimated that half million
persons in Paris do not drink wine
While tha rigorous suppression of fraudulent wine
VIII undoubtedly greatly relieve the situation OF
the growers ii is the opinion OF the closest students
of conditions that there will stI be overproduction
and the only effective remedy for the present
now planted in vineyards to wheat potatoes and
other products of agriculture