[7] CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF FISH PRODUCTS. 1025 



aud not less than 2,500,000 cows for breeding. Consequently, even 

 under the most fortunate (but impossible) circumstances, such as the 

 absence of special cattle diseases, sterility of cows, etc., the number of 

 black cattle in Russia would have to be increased by at least 10,500,000 

 in order to supply those 3,330,000 puds of albumen, and it would re- 

 quire not less than 25,000,000 desiatin* of meadows and pastures of 

 good quality to keep and feed these cattle. 



IIow enormous these figures are will be seen from the fact that the 

 number of milch cows in European Russia (not including Poland aud 

 Finland) is estimated by various authors at from five to ten millions, 

 and the area of pasturage at 55,000,000 desiatin. 



We have, however, neglected in our calculation to take into account 

 the milk provided by the cows. ' Supposing that, on an average, every 

 cow gives 60 pails, or 180 pounds, of milk, this milk represents 1.41 pud 

 of albuminous matter (the average proportion of albumen in milk being 

 3.2 per cent.). Every cow thus furnishes nearly as much albumiuous 

 matter per year as is contained in the flesh of the full grown animal. 



Taking into account the milk, our figures will therefore have to be 

 reduced by one-half. But even then they are exceedingly high, amount, 

 ing to 6,000,000 head of cattle that would require over 12,000,000 desia- 

 tin of meadows and pastures. Approximately, we may adopt as our 

 final result that, in order to substitute the albuminous matter of the 

 milk and flesh of our domestic animals for that obtained from our fish- 

 eries, we would have to raise by 10 per cent, the productivity of our 

 cattle-breeding industry and the supply of food for the same. 



These figures define (with the degree of approximation attainable 

 with the available statistical data) the position aud rank the fisheries 

 take in the animal food-supply of the population of Russia. It would 

 of course be possible to replace it by the products of cattle-breeding, 

 but only with the same prices for food. But the prices for the products 

 derived from cattle are far higher than those for the corresponding 

 nutritive products of fish (taken on an average, of course): 1 pud of 

 albuminous matter of fish is worth less than 20 roubles [1 rouble=58.2 

 cents], whereas the same amount derived from the flesh of cattle will 

 be worth not less than 40 to 50 roubles; the latter food is therefore acces- 

 sible to a smaller number of people. 



It is true, however, that to replace fish by vegetable, food would re- 

 quire very much smaller resources. To produce 3,330,000 puds of albu- 

 minous matter requires, for instance, only 600,000 desiatin of rye, assum- 

 ing a yield of 55 puds per desiatina exclusive of seed, or not over 900,000 

 desiatin in the case of triennial farming and neglecting the meadows 

 necessary for obtaining manure. 



* 1 desiatin — about 2.7 acres. 

 S. Mis. 90 65 



