第183章

In the most fertile regions， for instance， in Limagne， both cottages and faces denote "misery and privation."[39] "The peasants are generally feeble， emaciated and of slight stature." Nearly all derive wheat and wine from their homesteads， but they are forced to sell this to pay their rents and taxes； they eat black bread， made of rye and barley， and their sole beverage is water poured on the lees and the husks. "An Englishman[40] who has not traveled can not imagine the figure made by infinitely the greater part of the countrywomen in France." Arthur Young， who stops to talk with one of these in Champagne， says that "this woman， at no great distance， might have been taken for sixty or seventy， her figure was so bent and her face so hardened and furrowed by labor， - but she said she was only twenty-eight." This woman， her husband and her household， afford a sufficiently accurate example of the condition of the small proprietary husbandmen. Their property consists simply of a patch of ground， with a cow and a poor little horse； their seven children consume the whole of the cow's milk. They owe to one seignior a franchard (forty-two pounds) of flour， and three chickens； to another three franchards of oats， one chicken and one sou， to which must be added the taille and other taxes. "God keep us！" she said， "for the tailles and the dues crush us." - What must it be in districts where the soil is poor！ -"From Ormes， (near Chatellerault)， as far as Poitiers，" writes a lady，[41] "there is a good deal of ground which brings in nothing， and from Poitiers to my residence (in Limousin) 25，000 arpents of ground consist wholly of heath and sea-grass. The peasantry live on rye， of which they do not remove the bran， and which is as black and heavy as lead. - In Poitou， and here， they plow up only the skin of the ground with a miserable little plow without wheels. . . . From Poitiers to Montmorillon it is nine leagues， equal to sixteen of Paris， and I assure you that I have seen but four men on the road， and， between Montmorillon and my own house， which is four leagues， but three； and then only at a distance， not having met one on the road.

You need not be surprised at this in such a country. . . Marriage takes place as early as with the grand seigniors，" doubtless for fear of the militia. "But the population of the country is no greater because almost every infant dies. Mothers having scarcely any milk， their infants eat the bread of which I spoke， the stomach of a girl of four years being as big as that of a pregnant woman. . . . The rye crop this year was ruined by the frost on Easter day； flour is scarce；of the twelve métairies owned by my mother， four of them may， perhaps， have some on hand. There has been no rain since Easter； no hay， no pasture， no vegetables， no fruit. You see the lot of the poor peasant.