Sheep are grown for the finer grades of wool, but
so much of the sheep pasture has been given to the cultivation of the
sugar-beet, that a considerable part of the woollen textiles are now
made of wool imported from Argentina. A large part of the eggs and table
poultry consumed in London are products of northwestern France.

The coal-fields of the north produce nearly two-thirds of the total
amount consumed. Iron ores are found near the German border; they are
sent to coal-fields in the neighborhood of St. Etienne and Le Creuzot to
be manufactured into steel. Both coal and iron ore are deficient. To
meet the requirements of consumption, the former is imported from Great
Britain, Germany, and Belgium; the latter, mainly from Germany and
Spain.

The manufactures of France have a wide influence. From the coal and iron
are derived the intricate machinery that has made the country famous,
the railways, the powerful navy, and the merchant marine that has made
the country a great commercial nation. Because of the great creative
skill and taste of the people, French textiles are standards of good
taste, and they find a ready market in all parts of the world. In
textile manufactures more than one million people and upward of one
hundred thousand looms are employed.

The United States is a heavy buyer of the woollen cloths and the finer
qualities of dress goods. Inasmuch as these goods have not been
successfully imitated elsewhere, the French trade does not suffer from
competition. The best goods are made from the fleeces of French merino
sheep, and are manufactured mainly in the northern towns. The Gobelin
tapestries of Paris are famous the world over.

The cotton manufactures depend mainly on American cotton. About
two-thirds of the cotton is purchased in the United States, a part of
which returns in the form of fine goods that may be classed as muslins,
tulles, and art textiles. The market for such goods is also general. In
the manufacture of fine laces, such as the Point d'Alencon fabrics, the
French have few equals and no superiors. The flax is imported mainly
from Belgium.

Silk culture is aided by the government, and is carried on mainly in
the south. The amount grown, however, is insufficient to keep the
factories busy, and more than four-fifths of the raw silk and cocoons
are imported from Italy and other southern countries.

The chief imports to France are coal, raw textile fibres, wine, wheat,
and lumber. The l