Chronicles of Time…

 The grapes harvest between 1925 and 1939, “The grape harvest with the Poles”.

During this period, we used Poles as complement labour for the grape harvest- women or girls- who came accompanied with 2 or 3 men in order to carry the grape baskets.
They came from “les Gautherets”, a workers’ house, by train to Beaune where we would pick them up.
The first few years had been rather difficult as these people hardly spoke French. Furthermore, the installation was organised little by little and in the 1930’s the system worked well.

I have very precise memories of my childhood.
There was Madam KOSZAREK, a woman of about forty years of age, who was the leader of the group and she did not speak French very well but she got by. She was their translator and their cook.
Their dormitory was settled in the storeroom at the foot of the house at the end of street “La Métairie”, just in front of the main entrance of the yard. The cooking was done mainly with the use of the oven, which was situated at the entrance of the garden.
Mom made all of the purchases, and according to everyone’s needs, gave provisions to Madam K. who would cook polish dishes.
She cooked on a charcoal stove.
This is what I loved the most, watching her.
She taught me some Polish words …
I remember very well this girl, she was about 14-years-old and had a slight handicap which you could see in the way that she walked.
We always believed that she was going to fall, but she was surprisingly strong.

I still smell the cocoa in the cellar, the evenings when the dinner consisted of bowls of chocolate milk with bread and butter. I would have invited myself very gladly !
At the end of the grape harvests, by way of “Paulée”, we offered them sparkling wines and biscuits. We drunk with them and they gave my grandmother and my Mom, very beautiful bouquets with flowers from the garden, which were very plentiful at this time.
My mom was in possession and also managed all of the accounts. She recorded valuable information on the dates of grape harvests, the salary given to the harvesters and the food expenses.


I shall quote an example from the year 1930 :
Grape harvests from September 25 till October 2 included
15 polish adluts + 1 child
food expenses was a total amount of 910,95 francs.
The harvesters that were fed by us, were paid 12 francs a day ( the orders 17 francs a day).