T58 



RUSSIA. 



arms, part are enrolled in the reserve of the active 

 army and the rest in the zapas, or second reserve. 

 There were 987,917 young men who reached the 

 military age in 189(5, and of these 77,542 did 

 not come up to the physical standard, while 30,- 

 585 failed to appear. The- number taken into the 

 active army was 275,247; the number enrolled 

 in the reserve, 212,209. There were, moreover, 

 3,394 Caucasian recruits inscribed in the regular 

 army. The reserves are required to drill for six 

 weeks twice a year. The infantry troops are 

 armed with a new small-bore rifle with a maga- 

 zine holding five cartridges. The dragoons carry 

 a carbine of the same caliber. The artillery have 

 steel breech-loading ordnance, the heavy guns 

 carrying 4,150 yards, the light guns 4,480 yards. 

 The peace strength of the Russian army is esti- 

 mated at 36,000 officers and 860,000 men : the war 

 strength at 63,000 officers and 3,440,000 men. 



The KTavy. The Russian fleet in the Baltic 

 has 6 first-class battle ships, 3 of the second, 

 and 5 of the third class, 11 coast-defense vessels, 

 9 first-class, 3 second-class, and 4 third-class cruis- 

 ers, 30 gunboats, and 74 first-class torpedo boats, 

 and it will soon be strengthened by the addition 

 of 5 first-class battle ships, 1 coast-defense vessel, 

 8 first-class and 4 second-class cruisers, 2 gun- 

 boats, and 24 first-class torpedo boats. In the 

 Black Sea fleet are 5 first-class battle ships, 2 of 

 the second class, 2 monitors, I third-class cruiser, 

 8 gunboats, and 25 first-class torpedo boats, and 

 there are building 1 first-class and 1 second-class 

 battle ship and 4 large torpedo craft. The Osly- 

 abya and Peresvyet, of 12,674 tons, launched in 

 1898, represent the new type of battle ships, excel- 

 ling in gun power the Petropavlovsk. Poltava, 

 and Sevastopol, of 10,960 tons, although these 

 carry 12-inch guns coupled in their fore and aft 

 turrets, while the newer vessels have 10-inch 

 Oushakoff guns, but a powerful quick-firing arma- 

 ment, consisting of 8 6-inch. 6 4.7 -inch, and 30 

 smaller guns. They are plated with 9 J -inch armor 

 on the sides and 9-inch armor on the turrets, 

 all of Harveyized steel, and are provided with 

 water-tube boilers of 12,000 horse power, giving 

 a speed of 18 knots an hour. Two more of this 

 class, the Pobieda and Retwisan, are in hand, one 

 in the Government yards on the Neva and one 

 in Philadelphia. A third is being constructed by 

 a Russian engineering firm, and one in a new 

 shipbuilding yard of the Russian Government. 

 These are somewhat heavier than the first built. 

 The latest development is the Tsarevioh, of 13,100 

 tons, built in France. The Kniaz Potemkin Ta- 

 vrichesky, of 12,480 tons, built at Nikolaieff for 

 the Black Sea fleet, of the same class as the Tri 

 Sviatitelia, or Three Saints, has 10 inches of side 

 armor, and carries 4 12-inch breech-loading guns 

 in armored turrets, with a secondary armament 

 of 10 6-inch, 16 3-inch, and 30 small "quick firers, 

 yet is designed to steam 17 knots with engines of 

 10,600 horse power. The Rostislav, of 8,880 tons, 

 launched in 1896, a sister to the Sissoi Veliky, 

 but carrying 10-inch instead of 12-inch guns in 

 the turrets and 8 6-inch and 26 small quick-firing 

 guns, instead of 6 6-inch and 18 small ones, has 

 been followed by another of the same class, hav- 

 ing, like the others, 16 inches on the sides and 

 engines of 8,500 horse power, capable of making 

 16 knots. The armored cruisers of the new Rus- 

 sian navy have been developed from the Dmitri 

 Donskoi, of 5,700 tons, built in 1883, which carries 

 6 6-inch guns and a powerful quick-firing arma- 

 ment. The Pamiat Azova, of 6,000 tons, built in 

 1888, has a maximum speed of nearly 19 knots, 

 and is armed with 2 8-inch and 13 6-inch breech- 

 loading guns and 17 quick firers. The Rurik, built 



in 1892, has a displacement of 10,933 tons, and 

 is armed with 4 8-inch and 10 0-inch guns and 

 4.7-inch and 18 smaller quick firers, and furnished 

 with engines of 13.250 horse power, capable of 

 making 18 knots. Larger, faster, and more pow- 

 erful yet is the Rossia, having a displacement of 

 12,130 tons, with from 5 to 8 inches of armor, 

 having 3 engines of 18,000 horse power, capable 

 of making 19A knots, and carrying an armament 

 of 4 8-inch and 24 6-inch uns and 4.7-inch and 

 30 smaller quick firers. Built larger still, to cany 

 more terrific batteries, is the Gromoboi, of 12.330 

 tons, armed with 4 8-inch, 16 0-inch, 4.7 in< li. 

 and 50 small guns, all quick firers. The Bavan 

 is a new cruiser of 7,800 tons, built in France. 

 The Diana, Pallada, and Aurora are deck -pro- 

 tected cruisers of 6,500 tons, launched in ls<s. 

 having engines of 11.010 horse power, capable of 

 steaming 20 knots, and armed with 0-inch. 6 

 4.7-inch. and 35 small quick-firing guns. I lie 

 Bogatyr. Waryag, and Askold, of 0,500 tons, have 

 been added to this class, and 3 more have been 

 begun. The volunteer fleet, composed of mer- 

 chant steamers that can readily be converted into 

 cruisers, already numbers 15 vessels, which earrv 

 on the tea trade and other traffic between Ode-^a 

 and China, and at the same time serve as tra im- 

 ports for the conveyance of Russian troop- to 

 Vladivostok and Port Arthur. 



The Retwisan has the entire hull amidships coi 

 ered with armor instead of confining protection 

 to a belt encircling the ship at the water line. 

 This novelty of design is the result of the le~-c.ii- 

 of the Spanish war, in which much damage \\as 

 wrought in the upper structures of ship*. The 

 plates taper from 9 inches at the water line to 

 inches above and 5 inches in the vieinil y of the 

 central battery. The protective deck slopes down 

 to the water fine. The turrets have in indie- of 

 armor. The ship is 374 feet long, 72 feet in the 

 beam, drawing 25 feet of water, and with lii.ooo 

 horse power, will have blinkers for 2,000 ton- of 

 coal and a speed of 18 knots. The battery will 

 consist of 4 12-inch guns in turret-. 12 0-inch 

 quick-firing guns in a central battery, am! a- 

 auxiliary armament 20 3-inch, 20 3-pounder, and 

 1 -pounder quick firers. 



The new shipbuilding programme adopted in 

 1898 involves the expenditure of .~>H> .IMMI.OIMI rubles 

 in the course of seven years, of which '.KI.OIHI.IHM) 

 rubles were granted for construction in ls'.'.. Tin- 

 program me includes 8 battle ships, 1 armored 

 cruiser, first-class protected cruisers, 10 3.i nut- 

 ton cruisers, a mining ship of 0,000 tons, a tor- 

 pedo transport, about 20 destroyers, and 30 tor- 

 pedo boats. A number of vessels were ordered 

 in France. Germany, and the United States. I <.ur 

 destroyers were built at St. Petersburg. 4 at Kl- 

 bing, 5* at Havre, and 1 at Birkenhead. The Kniaz 

 Potemkin Tavrichesky and Tsarevich are included 

 in the new programme. 



Commerce and Production. The area of Rus- 

 sia in Europe is estimated at 1.098.507.780 acre-.. 

 exclusive of the islands of Arkhangelsk and tin- 

 pasture lands of the Kalmucks and Kirghiz Tar- 

 tars, estimated at 40,925,000 acres. The fiovcrn- 

 ment owns 410,808,807 acres, including 130.397.- 

 498 acres of roads, waste land, etc. The domains 

 of the imperial family have an extent of I!.s'.in.s3;> 

 acres. The remainder of the total area is di- 

 vided among the peasants and landownrrs. the 

 former having 373.310,496 acres, of which 35.515.- 

 735 acres are waste, and the latter 2!U..">" 

 acres, comprising 80,063,271 acres of arable soil, 

 08,628.269 acres of orchards, meadows, and pa-- 

 ture, 110,697,486 acres of forests, and 35.11.V,r.ii 

 acres of waste land. Of the total area, 287,969,552 



