RUSSIA. 



785 



some kind or other." He further informs us that 

 " not only have the Russian nobles, from the na- 

 ture of their property and the constitution of their 

 country, become manufacturers, but they carry on 

 the business in every branch almost entirely to the 

 exclusion of other classes, since they alone can 

 command without difficulty, and on advantageous 

 terms, the hands necessary for the purpose. A 

 manufacturer who is not noble, being incapable by 

 law of possessing serfs, while free labour is scarce, 

 must compete at a disadvantage with a rival who 

 can enforce the performance of whatever work he 

 requires, and who has his operatives as it were 

 under military discipline." The Russian peasant 

 manifests an extraordinary aptitude for the varied 

 labours which he is required to perform. " He 

 will plough to-day, weave to-morrow, and help to 

 build a house the third day." Many travellers 

 have concurred in praising the handiness and in- 

 genuity of the peasantry. 



In addition to the work carried on in factories, 

 there is a great amount of industry engaged in 

 household manufactures. These afford employ- 

 ment during the winter, and also at other times, as 

 they may be suspended or resumed at convenience. 

 Mr Venables tells us that " the exercise of various 

 arts on a small scale in private houses, either for 

 profit or home consumption, is very great." 

 " Many ladies employ a number, generally the chil- 

 dren of household servants, in embroidering and 

 making all kinds of fancy-work." " Women are 

 employed in spinning, weaving, knitting, carpet- 

 weaving, &c., for the raw material in Russia is 

 worth little, and the manufactured article alone is 

 valuable in the market." Almost all travellers in 

 Russia speak in terms of praise of the industry of 

 the peasants' wives; and the same causes which 

 lead the richer classes to employ their dependents 

 in giving value to an article by the skilful labours 

 of the needle, direct the female peasants to the 

 means of increasing their humble comforts ata small 

 expense, while time is profitably filled up for which 

 there is no other demand. Captain Cochrane, the 

 pedestrian tourist, says : " The women (wives of 

 the peasantry) I have always found engaged in some 

 employment : they make very good coarse woollen 

 cloths and linens, as well as knit stockings and spin 

 thread. The whole work of the house is thrown 

 upon them, while they also partake the labours of 

 the field." In the towns and villages on the banks 

 of the Kolyma, in Eastern Siberia, " the women 

 embroider gloves, caps, boots, and various things, 

 in a very neat manner." 



There can be no doubt, therefore, that Russia 

 manufactures for her own consumption an immense 

 quantity of cotton, linen, and woollen goods. The 

 government makes great exertions to encourage 

 home manufactures, and its agents abroad are di- 

 rected to forward models of all new machinery and 

 patterns of new manufactures to St Petersburg, 

 and foreign workmen are not unfrequently engaged 

 by them to conduct Russian factories. Within the 

 last few years great efforts have been made to im- 

 prove the quantity and quality of Russian wool. 

 The Merino sheep has been successfully naturalised, 

 not only in the central and southern governments, 

 but in Esthonia and Livonia, on the shores of the 

 Baltic, where, though nature has done less, the 

 great care which is necessary in the management 

 of a sheep-fold has occasioned the improvement of 

 wool to be equally if not more rapid than in more 

 favoured provinces. In 1832, a society for the 



improvement of wool was formed in Siberia. The 

 first Merino sheep were introduced into the Russian 

 empire less than thirty years since, and there are 

 now about a million in the government of Jeka- 

 terinoslaw, and in the Crimea and the government 

 of Cherson probably by this time nearly as many. 

 In 1826 the exports of wool from Russia amounted 

 to 35,800 poods; in 1834 to 281,450 poods. The 

 purchase of Russian wool for the English manu- 

 facturer has greatly increased within the last few 

 years, the imports of wool from Russia in 1820 

 having been 75,614 Ibs., and in 1838 3,769,102 

 Ibs. Our exports of woollen goods have decreased, 

 being valued at 346,331 in 1820, and at 94,419 

 in 1838. The raw material in Russia has not only 

 increased in quantity and value, but the increase 

 has been accompanied by greater facilities in work- 

 ing it up for home consumption. It is only with- 

 in the last twenty-eight years that factories on a 

 large scale have been established. From 1822 to 

 1830 the quantity of cloth manufactured had in- 

 creased from 6^- to 8 millions " arskeens;" and in 

 the latter year two-fifths were of coarse quality, 

 for the use of the army, two-fifths of middling, and 

 one-fifth of fine quality. 



Since 1824 the cotton manufacture has made 

 rapid progress, as may be inferred from the follow- 

 ing facts : 



Cotton yarn and twist exported to Russia from 

 the United Kingdom : 



1820 

 1830 - 

 1837 



8,762,324 Ibs. 

 - 18,565,753 

 24,108,593 



Cotton goods exported to Russia : 



1820. 1837. 



White or plain cottons yards 9,754,400 980,779 



Printed or dyed cottous 3,449,391 145,760 



13,203,831 1,126,539 



In 1835 new cotton- spinning establishments 

 were formed at St Petersburg, Moscow, and Kal- 

 ouga. 



Great efforts have been made to establish the 

 silk manufacture, and especially to produce the raw 

 material. The mulberry-tree is grown as far north 

 as the governments of Minsk, Poltawa, and Mohi- 

 lew, and southward to the base of the Caucasus. 

 Near all the principal towns of the south, large 

 plantations of mulberry-trees have been planted 

 within the last few years. In the government of 

 CharkofF, particularly, 15,000 trees are planted 

 every year at the expense of the crown, and valu- 

 able privileges are in all cases afforded to those 

 who embark their capital in the production of 

 silk. 



We have not the means of ascertaining the pro- 

 gress of manufactures in hardware and cutlery, but 

 the advance which has been made in this branch 

 has not been so great as in the cotton, silk, and 

 cloth manufactures. In 1832 we exported 4596 

 cwts. of hardwares and cutlery to Russia, valued 

 at 27,619; and in 1838 7082 cwts., valued at 

 36,830. Russia annually imports edge tools and 

 scythes from Austria of the value of 80,000. In 

 1835 a manufactory of surgical instruments at St 

 Petersburg furnished the army and the public de- 

 partments with instruments of the value of 184,000 

 roubles. In the same year a company was esta- 

 blished at St Petersburg for the manufacture of 

 plated goods. The total number of manufacturing 

 concerns in the empire in 1835 was 6045, of which 

 381 were established in that year. Mines, forges, 

 and furnaces are not included in this enumeration. 



3D 



