Normandy is the home of cider, and if this beverage is to take its proper place over here as a wholesome and economic article of diet, it is to Normandy we must look for instruction and experience. Mr Hertslet, our energetic Consul-General at Havre, has just prepared a careful and exhaustive report on the cider of the province, in which he dwells on every stage of preparation. The planting of the trees, the necessary elements in the juice of the apple, the gathering, crushing, and pressing the pulp are all explained.
In France, cider is regarded as the most hygienic of all drinks, more so than the best of wines; and, curiously enough, nearly all the product made is for home consumption, the exports being practically nil. Considering that it is commonly reported that in Monmouthshire and Glamorganshire existing orchards are falling into disuse, we quite agree that it is to the national interests that an important industry like this should not be supposed to die out.
It has taken many years to bring it to maturity, it is capable of earning a profit which Mr Hertslet estimates as high as 20 to 25 per cent, and undoubtedly it is also capable of giving employment to our agricultural population and so checking the flow of urban immigration.
Key quote
“The difficulty is, not to devise a workable scheme of pensions, but how to find the money, and that difficulty is all the greater because of the high figure which our national expenditure has reached.”
Neville Chamberlain on the problem of old age pensions
Talking point
Following the report by Boer sources that the British sustained a severe defeat near Pretoria on 2 May, losing forty-six killed, eighty wounded, and 600 taken prisoner, the War Office has said “we have no official information” . Observer news story