Double, treble if you will, the present consumption of France, and _you will still find that a very small portion of her soil will suffice for this consumption_.

(Truly a most singular cause of complaint!) Do you wish the proof of this?
How many hectares were planted in beets in the year 1828?
3,130, which is 1-10540th of our cultivable soil.

How many are there at this time, when our domestic sugar supplies one-third of the consumption of the country?
16,700 hectares, or 1-1978th of the cultivable soil, or 45 centiares for each commune.

Suppose that our domestic sugar should monopolize the supply of the whole consumption, we still would have but 48,000 hectares or 1-689th of our cultivable soil in beets."[8] [Footnote 8: In justice to Mr.d'Argout we should say that this singular language is given by him as the argument of the enemies of the beet.

But he made it his own, and sanctioned it by the law in justification of which he adduced it.] There are two things to consider in this quotation.