6 3 6 



THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



zones), and the steppe. The peculiarities 

 of each of these are described by a writer 

 in the Geographical Magazine, who derives 

 his information from authentic sources. 

 Of the tundras, those bare, damp, arctic 

 wastes, mostly situated between the arctic 

 circle and the polar ocean, he says that in 

 winter they are frozen, and that in summer 

 they thaw to the depth of a foot or so. 

 The tundra area is about 144,820 square 

 miles, and almost the sole vegetable pro- 

 ductions are turf-moss and reindeer-moss. 

 This region does not promise ever to be 

 of any considerable economic value. The 

 forest zone extends from the limit of trees 

 southward to 60 north latitude, and em- 

 braces the greater part of Finland, the 

 governments of Olonetz, Vologda, most of 

 Archangel, and the northern districts of 

 Novgorod, Vyatka, and Perm. Area, 815,- 

 790 square miles. Population, between 

 thirteen and fourteen souls per square 

 mile. The economic products are fur, tim- 

 ber, tar, and potash. The four northern 

 governments of Archangel, Vologda, Olo- 

 netz, and Uleaborg, cannot expect ever to 

 attain a much higher degree of cultivation 

 than at present. The inhabitants prefer 

 the chase to agriculture, and devote only 

 three months in the year to the latter. The 

 agricultural zone extends from the sixtieth 

 parallel to the steppe. Of this zone, the 

 northern and central portions are a diluvial 

 deposit, forming a thin, sandy soil that re- 

 quires plentiful manuring ; but the south- 

 ern zone, the " black-earth " region, yields 

 rich harvests without manuring or labor. 

 Thus this zone may be divided into two 

 belts, northern and southern. The north- 

 ern belt includes fifteen entire governments 

 and parts of others, with a total area of 

 371,900 square miles ; average population 

 fifty-four to the square mile. The region 

 yields too little wheat for the support of its 

 inhabitants, i. e., of the minimum allowance, 

 2.3 chetverts per head, only 1.7 chetvert is 

 produced at home. The industrial wealth 

 of Russia is mostly confined to this north- 

 em agricultural zone, the centre of manu- 

 facturing industry being the government of 

 Moscow. The forests are gradually being 

 diminished, through supplying fuel to carry 

 on these industries, and there is the same 

 improvident waste of timber which is to be 



seen in our backwoods. The output of 

 coal in the Moscow district rose from 1,500,- 

 000 puds in 1860 to 9,000,000 puds in 18*72 ; 

 in the same year the Polish yield was 17,- 

 500,000 puds. The coal-deposits on both 

 sides of the Ural, though rich and easily 

 worked, are only used for the neighboring 

 iron and copper works. The southern agri- 

 cultural zone is so destitute of timber that 

 the only fuel obtainable there, besides the 

 droppings of cattle, is dry, half-wooded 

 grain-stalks. The total area of the " black 

 earth " is estimated at 250,760 square miles, 

 extending over twenty-two governments, 

 eight of which belong to the steppe region. 

 In addition to these, six of the West Rus- 

 sia governments and Poland are noted for 

 their fertility. The wheat produced in the 

 black-earth country amounts to more than 

 two-thirds of Russia's total yield, while 

 potatoes are chiefly grown in the Polish 

 and Baltic provinces. The population of the 

 black-earth region forms 53 per cent, of the 

 entire population of the country, and its 

 crops 68 per cent, of the total yield. The 

 manufacture of sugar from the beet is car- 

 ried on extensively in the Kiev government. 

 The crying want of this region is good 

 roads. The chief vegetation found on the 

 steppe is grasses, spiniferous and leafless 

 plants, bulbous plants, etc. Forest-growth 

 and cultivation are found only near the 

 rivers ; fuel is very scarce. The population 

 of the steppe zone is very sparse, and the 

 chief dependence of the inhabitants is on 

 their cattle. In the south and southeast 

 portions of the empire horses are bred in 

 great numbers. The steppe zone is also 

 rich in oxen and sheep. The grape is culti- 

 vated here to a considerable extent. South- 

 ern Russia is furthermore the chief source 

 of salt-supply to the other governments of 

 the empire. 



Meteorological Notes. Prof. Loomis's 

 ninth paper on meteorology in the Ameri- 

 can Journal of Science and Arts for July is 

 based on the observations of the United 

 States Signal Service made between Sep- 

 tember, 1872, and October, 1874. 



In tracing the rise and phenomena of 

 the great storms which traverse the northern 

 United States and British America, observa- 

 tions made at Portland, Oregon, were stud- 



