594 



RUSSIA. 



3.021,000 rubles, manganese ore for 3,021,000 ru- 

 bies, woolen goods for 1,235,000 rubles, and metal 

 manufactures for 653,000 rubles. 



The values in rubles of the imports from and 

 exports to the various foreign countries in 1898 

 are given in the following table: 



The imports by the European frontiers in 1898 

 were 541,500,000 rubles in value; by the Asiatic 

 frontiers, 55,400,000 rubies; from Finland, 20,- 

 600,000 rubles; total merchandise imports, 617,- 

 500,000 rubles. The exports by the European 

 frontiers were 675,600,000 rubles; by the Asiatic 

 frontiers, 23,800,000 rubles; to Finland, 33,300,000 

 rubles. The imports of precious metals were 

 131,489,000 rubles, and exports 4,868,000 rubles. 



A crisis in Russian industry, following on a 

 period of extraordinary expansion, began in the 

 latter half of 1899 and still continued in 1901. 

 During the period of activity enormous amounts 

 of capital were invested in new enterprises, a great 

 part of it French and Belgian capital, and when 

 the depression set in some of these enterprises 

 were arrested before their plant was finished. The 

 scarcity and dearness of coal and naphtha checked 

 manufacturing in general. In the cotton industry 

 the price of the raw material was increased by a 

 sudden increase of the duties. The iron industry, 

 which had been stimulated by the demand for 

 railroad material and, after the construction of 

 new railroads, for iron goods of all descriptions 

 in the country which they opened up, saw the 

 demand gradually diminish. The Government or- 

 ders by which this industry had been fostered, 

 as well as by high protective tariffs, ceased. The 

 furnaces and factories still went on producing 

 and piling up goods for which there was no mar- 

 ket. The high profits of prosperous years, per- 

 mitting in many cases dividends of 40 or 50 per 

 cent., had caused an inflation in the value of the 

 shares, which now shrank to such an extent as 

 to ruin a great number of small investors and to 

 cause the failure of banks which had loaned 

 money on these securities. The commercial 

 banks in Russia had played a large part in start- 

 ing and furthering a vast number of industrial 

 enterprises which now suffered in the general de- 

 pression. All securities fell in value except those 

 of railroads and land banks. The banks, the 

 Ministry of Finance having refused them permis- 

 sion to resort to their reserve funds or to issue 

 new shares, were unable to give any support to 

 the enterprises which they had taken a direct part 

 in starting. The shares of the Belgian com- 

 panies fell to a half and even a tenth of their 

 former value. Many factories and blast-furnaces 

 were closed and mortgage and discount banks 

 failed, as well as industrial companies. The firms 

 of individuals and partnerships had been con- 

 verted into joint-stock companies on an enormous 

 scale during the speculative fever, and when the 

 bubble burst the deluded purchasers of the shares 



blamed the Government or looked to the Govern- 

 ment to furnish relief, so dependent is everybody 

 in Russia on the Government. Recent harvest* 

 have been bad, and the harvest of 1901 was in- 

 sufficient. In some parts of Russia the people 

 have suffered partial famine year after year, and 

 their situation has grown steadily worse. The 

 cattle become fewer, and the land yields poorer 

 returns on account of exhaustive methods of till- 

 age. Famines in consequence occur with greater 

 frequency and more disastrous and lasting results. 

 Although forty years have passed since the eman- 

 cipation of the serfs and much has been done to 

 improve their material well-being, their condition 

 in most parts of the empire is such as to cause 

 serious apprehension. Among the measures 

 adopted in favor of the peasantry were the abo- 

 lition of the poll-tax, the diminution and the 

 partial remission and postponement of the annual 

 redemption payments, the establishment of the 

 Peasants' Bank, and the encouragement of mi- 

 gration. The advantages conferred by a diminu- 

 tion of direct exactions were, however, neutral- 

 ized to a great extent by an increase in indirect 

 taxes on articles of primary necessity through the 

 protective duties levied for the advantage of the 

 manufacturing class. Although arrears of the 

 redemption payments amounting to great sums 

 have been remitted from time to time, these ar- 

 rears have grown nevertheless without abate- 

 ment, amounting in 1901 to at least $55,000,000. 

 Since the emancipation in 1861 the Government 

 has spent $475,000,000 in redeeming from the pro- 

 prietors 89,500,000 acres of agricultural land, 

 which was turned over to 90,000 communes. 



The foreign commerce in 1901 showed a slight 

 increase over that of 1900, exports being much 

 larger in value, while imports decreased. Of the 

 exports over 56 per cent, consisted of grain and 

 other agricultural food products, 38 per cent, of 

 raw materials, and 2J per cent, of cattle and 

 poultry. Of the imports 15 per cent, consisted 

 of provisions, 53 per cent, of raw materials and 

 partly finished manufactures, and 31 per cent, of 

 manufactured goods. The increase of exports, 

 although most pronounced in foodstuffs and 

 unmanufactured products, is distributed over 

 every branch of the export trade. 



Navigation. The number of vessels in the 

 foreign trade entered at White Sea ports during 

 1899 was 668, of 331,000 tons; at Baltic ports, 

 5,643, of 3,721,000 tons; at ports of the Black 

 Sea and the Sea of Azov, 4,161, of 4,636,000 tons; 

 total number, 10,472, of 8,688,000 tons. The total 

 number cleared was 10,423, of 8,677,000 tons. 

 The number of vessels that visited Russian ports 

 of the Caspian Sea in 1898 was 20,114, against 

 19,407 in 1897. The number that visited the 

 ports of Vladivostok and Nikolaievsk in 1898 

 was 384. The number of coasting vessels that 

 visited ports of the White Sea, the Baltic, and 

 the Black Sea was 47,552 in 1898, and 19,171 

 visited ports of the Caspian Sea. 



The merchant navy on Jan. 1, 1899, consisted 

 of 2,143 sailing vessels, of 254,116 tons, and 657 

 steamers, of 299,724 tons. On Jan. 1, 1899, there 

 were 2,294 sailing vessels, of which 586, of 78,745 

 tons, belonged in the Baltic, 396, of 22,149 tons, 

 in the White Sea, 773, of 54,535 tons, in the 

 Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, and 539 in the 

 Caspian Sea; and the number of steamers was 

 604, of which 95, of 19,053 tons, belonged in the 

 Baltic, 33, of 5,028 tons, in the White Sea, 263, 

 of 142,512 tons, in the Black Sea and the Sea of 

 Azov, and 213 in the Caspian. 



Railroads, Posts, and Telegraphs. In 1900 

 there were 34,485 miles of railroads in operation, 



