THE CONDITIONS OF RUSSIAN AGRICULTURE 177 



this region, agriculture is practised but it is only of the most 

 primitive order. The soil is poor and the peasants have nothing 

 wherewith to enrich it. During nearly seven months out of the 

 twelve, the land is held in the grip of winter and much of the 

 open period is affected by cold rain. The land at present culti- 

 vated in the district is mostly farmed in small plots, which are 

 rented by the peasants, who work them as it suits their con- 

 venience. The plots are dotted about in the scrub, advantage 

 being taken of any natural shelter this offers and of favourable 

 variations in the soil. Owing to migration of the peasantry to 

 more congenial conditions, the northern parts of the country are 

 very sparsely populated; standing there beside one cultivated plot, 

 it is seldom possible to see another. When serfdom prevailed, 

 a far greater proportion of the land was under cultivation, so 

 that probably only the best is still worked. Ploughing is often 

 done entirely by human labour, the plough, a simple implement 

 of wood, being pulled and pushed across the small field by the 

 capable members of the household. Seldom is the land given 

 any dressing of manure, because cattle are scarce. Year after 

 year the same plot of land is scratched over and a crop raised ; 

 the miserable crop is sometimes a little better, sometimes a little 

 worse than usual but the peasant says nothing and accepts as 

 inevitable the small success which attends his labour. Generally 

 oats or barley are grown but the crops are very poor indeed 

 both as regards yield of grain and straw. It is a common thing 

 to see fully grown crops of oats standing no higher than ten or 

 twelve inches and carrying but little grain. Artificial manure is 

 seldom used because so few can afford the outlay ; the farmers 

 possessed of small capital who farm the very light soil between 

 Vologda and Moscow apply a dressing of some 3 cwt. of kainite 

 to the acre and reap a benefit of a 30 per cent, increased yield. 



The best results are obtained with flax ; though not so adverse 

 to the production of good fibre crops, the climate is not suited 

 to the successful harvesting of seed. Much flax is grown in 

 the district of which Vologda is the centre, more especially in 

 the vicinity of the river Suhona, where, despite the poorness 

 of the soil, flax grows a good length and fibre is produced which 

 is the best raised in Russia and possibly second to none as 

 regards quality and strength. 



Although it is recognised as being the best practice to ret 

 flax in water, there are many large areas where no water 



