LEATHER GOODS. 



81 



Total amount of leather. 



Goods 



Russia leather. . . 

 Other dressed hides 

 Pells 



1778-1780 



1790-1792 



ROUBLES 



1,049,642 



1,010,288 



33,713 



6,641 



1,493,354 



1,258,106 



228,521 



6,727 



Russia leather was evidently the most important item of export, and pelts tlie 

 most; insignificant. The wars at the commencement of the present century created 

 a great demand for boots and other leathern goods and enormously increased the 

 production of the leather factories. In 1804 there were 850 tanneries employing 

 6,304 hands, and in 1814 the number had increased to 1,530 with 7,799 hands. 



The quality of the goods did not however improve with the increased produc- 

 tion nor keep pace with the progress made abroad in this branch of industry, 

 therefore the export soon began to decline, as shown by the accompanying figures, 

 which give the amount passed through the European frontier in roubles. 



Total leather export 

 Russia leather . . 

 Other hides .... 



1814-1815 



1,472,196 



1,271,845 



201,351 



1820—1821. 1824—1826. 



813,183 



785,392 



27,791 



704,460 



641,001 



63,459 



The decrease in the export of dressed hides occasioned an increased export of 

 pelts as shown by the following figures: 



1802—1804 



1814—1815 



1824 



81,751 roubles 

 149,823 » 

 631,686 » 



The import of leathern goods wvas very small and averaged about 90,000 

 roubles. In course of time the demand for such goods still further increased, and in 

 1835 there were already 1,862 tanneries ; in 1850 the number rose to 2,063, employing 

 10,383 men with a production of 8,500,277 roubles. The greater part of this quan- 

 tity was, however, the produce of small tanneries, the owners of which possess 

 neither sufficient knowledge nor capital to improve their methods or increase their 

 production. These defects were most apparent in the manufacture of boot soles, and 

 partly depended upon the small necessities of the consumers and partly upon the 

 demand for cheap goods. 



The introduction of more rapid tanning processes and of other improvements in 

 the trade, the increased competition and the import of foreign goods and likewise 



6 



