Geology, etc.—F. presents a great variety of geological formations, but although we• meet with an almost complete succession of all the stratified and non-stratified forma tions, they are distributed with great inequality. Thus, for instance, while nearly one third of the soil is composed of tertiary formations, a mere fractional part only is made up of coal-beds. A belt of primary rocks, forming the skeleton of some portions of the Vosges, Alps, and Pyrenees, and of the great plateaus of Brittany and La Vendee, encircles the great central basin in which rises the volcanic formation of the mountains; of Auvergne, with their extinct craters, lava-streams, etc. The spaces between this; external breast-work and its volcanic nucleus is occupied by secondary and tertiary formations. Alluvial deposits are met with in all the valleys, but they occur in exten sive beds only in the neighborhood of Dunkirk and Niort, and on the borders of the Mediterranean. to M. Maurice Block's estimate, the physical and agricul tural character of the soil of F. may be comprised under the following heads: Climate.—F. possesses one of the finest climates in Europe, although, owing to its great extent of area, very considerable diversities of temperature are to be met with thus, for instance, the n.e. parts of the country have a continental, and the n.w. parts. an oceanic climate, resembling those of Germany and Great Britain; while the Medi terranean districts are exposed at times to the ravages of the burning winds which have passed over the deserts of Africa, and to the destructive n.w. wind known as the mi4tral, which. often does great injury to the fields near the mouths of the Rhone and. Var. The mean annual temperature of different parts of F. has been estimated as fol lows by IIumboldt: Toulon, 62° F. ; Marseilles, 59.5°; Bordeaux, 56°; Nantes, 55.2°;: Paris, 51.2*; Dunkirk, 50.5°.
the vegetable products of F., which, from varied climatic and geog nostic relations, are necessarily characterized by great abundance and diversity, the most generally cultivated are the cereals, the vine, chestnuts, olives, culinary fruits and. vegetables, hops, beet-root for the manufacture of sugar, tobacco, madder, chicory, flax, etc. In 1862, the yield of wheat in F. was 116 millions of hectoliters, the maximum annual quantity as yet on record. During the. last 50 years, the importation of cereals has so far exceeded the supplies for home consumption and exportation, as to leave F. the loser by 850 millions of francs. The cultivation of wheat has gradually increased. during the last 50 years, but that of rye, barley, and maize haS exhibited little variation; while the growth of potatoes has been most extensively"augmented during the same period. The following table shows the fluctuations to which these alimentary sub stances have been subjected: The mean annual yields of these productions may be estimated as follows: Wheat, 73,000,000 hectoliters; rye, 22,000,000 hectoliters; barley and oats, 40,000,000 hectoliters; maize, 9,100,000 hectoliters; potatoes, 95,000,000 hectoliters.* The subdivision or farms, the short leases (of less than 10 years) on which the majority are let, and the small number of the great land-owners who reside on their estates, have hitherto tended to check the progress of agriculture in France. Agricultural exhibitions have been held since 1830; 360,000 francs are annually given in prizes, etc.; and there are now
nearly 1000 agricultural associations in different parts of France.
The manufacture of sugar from beet-root, which took its origin during the great wars of the early part of the century, has been prosecuted with much vigor during the last 50 years, and about 150 millions of kilograms* are annually manufactured. Since the appearance of the vine-disease, beet-root has been extensively employed in the manufac ture of alcohol. In 1873, there were 415,204,000 kilograms of beet-root sugar produced. The cultivation is almost limited to the north and east; hemp and flax are grown • chiefly in the northern, but also in the south-western departments. The entire produc tion of hemp was estimated in 1842 at 67,507,076 kilograms, worth 86,237,300 francs; and that of flax at 36,875,400 kilograms, worth 57,507,400 francs. Since that period, there has been little difference iu the home production, but an enormous increase in the importation of foreign flax and hemp; the value of the hemp (not to speak of jute) im ported in 1873 amounting to 16 millions of francs, and of the flax, 76,700,000 francs. The • cultivation of the mulberry-tree derives importance from its bearing on the production of silk. In 1858, the department du Gard had monopolized nearly half the culture of these trees, which in its aggregate amount has continued unchanged. From its connec tion with the mulberry, we here refer to the production of silk, which began at the opening of the 17th c., and which in 1790 had reached such vast dimensions, that the produce at that period was already 6+ million kilograms of cocoons, worth 164- mil lion francs. Since that period, it has exhibited great variations. From 1840 to 1853, the production continued steadily to increase from 17 to 26 millions of kilograms; but the diseases to which the silk-worm has been liable since that period reduced the yield of silk to so great an extent, that in 1857 it scarcely amounted to 7 millions of cocoons. Raw silk, since the abatement of this disease, has again assumed its place among the chief sources of industrial wealth in F.; and, besides the enormous quantity consumed in home manufactures, the total exports for the year 1873 amounted to no less a value than 100 millions of francs.
The vine has, from a very early period, constituted one of the principal sources of the agricultural wealth of France. The choicest wines are grown in the Bordelais, Bur gundy, and Champagne, but some excellent kinds are produced on the banks of the Loire, and in some of the southern departments. The breadth of soil devoted to this -culture fluctuates, but may be stated at about 2,000,000 hectares. The mean produce for every hectare was, in 1788, 21 hectoliters 21 liters; in 1829, 27 hectoliters 20 liters; in 1850, 32 hectoliters 35 liters. Some time ago, the fungus known as the oldium attacked the vine, and inflicted such serious damage on the plant, that in 1854 (the worst year), the hectare yielded 5 hectoliters, instead of the average quantity of 23 hectoliters. A new and very destructive. vine-disease, occasioned by the ravages of an insect which has been called the phylloxera vastatrix, appeared in the s.e. of F. in 1865, and by 1873 had established itself in 12 departments. The following table shows some of the annual yields of wine between 1808 and 1874: Hectoliters. Hectoliters.