^ILK (KiODS. 



59 



factories had increased to 210. lu 1823 Jacquard looms were first introduced into 

 the Eussian factories, as in 1822 the Department of Manufactures and Internal Trade 

 published the drawing-s and description of these looms and sliortly afterwards one was 

 exhibited in Moscow at the house of the Committee for supplying- soldiers cloth. 

 They began to spread widely in 1825; and in 1830 they were in use in many of the 

 smaller factories ; they were similar to those used iu Lyons, Berlin and ^'ieuna. This 

 circumstance at once gave considerable impetus to the silk-weaving trade, greatly 

 increasing the production, variety and excellence of the goods, so that the average 

 for the period between 1826 and 1829 was about 5,000,000 arshines and 115,000 

 pieces of silk. In 1845 the value of the pi-oduct of all the silk mills was 6,000,000 

 roubles, and in 1850 it rose 6,500,000 millions. 



The further gradual development of the silk-weaving industry may be partly 

 guaged by the amount of silk imported and Avorked up in the Eussian mills. The 

 following table gives the average import through the European frontier for periods 

 of five years from 1855 to 1879 : 



This progressive increase of the import of raw material, caused by the rise of 

 the internal production, was not accompanied by a decrease in the import of foreign 

 stuffs, as is shown by the mean yearly import value of silk and half-silk goods foi- 

 the same periods, also through the European frontier. 



1855-1859 

 1860-1861 

 1865—1869 

 1870—1874 

 1875—1879 



6,172,000 roubles. 

 4,087,000 » 

 4,869,000 » 

 5,920,000 

 4,244,000 



Tims, although the production greatly developed, still at the same time, the 

 demand for silk goods was so great that the home manufacturers were unable to 

 satisfy it. 



Having briefly dealt with the history of the development of the Russian silk- 

 Aveaving trade a more or less detailed investigation of its condition during the last 

 fifteen years, should be considered. 



