LEATHEK GOODS. ^) 1 



The iini)Oit ot raw hides amounted to 163,222 ponds in 1869, and with some 

 slij^ht tiiictiiations continually increased. From 1869 to 1872 it reached the yearly 

 averag'e of 308,638 pouds and durinj^' the next period of four years, from 1872 to 

 1876, the mean yearly import rose to 320,460 pouds. In 1877 this import decreased 

 to almost one-half, or 185,726 pouds. During the next period of four years, from 

 1878 to 1881, the import of raw hides showed great variations, but attained the very 

 high average of 507,168 ponds, that of 1879 being the highest, namely 715,677 

 pouds. After the introduction of the customhouse duty in 1882 the import of raw 

 hides through the European frontier showed a constant decrease, the average for 

 1882 and 1883 being 321,173 pouds, and the mean yearly import during the three 

 years period from 1884 to 1886 fell to 243,815 pouds or 2,033,988 roubles. The 

 total import through the European, Finnish and Asiatic frontiers was as follows, 

 exhibiting a marked decrease every year: 



1884 .... 2,484,003 roubles 



1885 .... 2,419,785 » 



1886 .... 1,644,184 » 



During the next five years the import fluctuated considerably but showed a 

 great tendency to rise, as seen by the item a. in the table of the leather goods 

 import, increasing suddenly in 1889 to the sum of 2.484,003 roubles, or 60 per 

 cent higher than in the preceding year ; the import rapidly decreased and in 

 1887 it fell to 1,233,478 roubles, in 1888 however it again rose to 3,611,895 roubles; 

 in the following year of 1889 it increased to 4,339,336 roubles and in 1890 it again 

 decreased to 3,642,157 roubles. The import of salted hides showed tlie greatest fluc- 

 tuations; in 1887 it amounted to 406,350 i-oubles and in the following year it increased 

 to 2,066,944 roubles or live times. 



Of late years the import has chiefly consisted of American bull hides, as there 

 are not many large bulls in Eussia. The hides of the Eussian cattle have a 

 tendency to become thinner, and yet they are becoming more expensive. In St. 

 Petersburg fresh raw hides of Circassian cattle, -weighing from 60 to 70 pounds per 

 hide, cost from 3.60 to 4.20 roubles per poud, and American salted hides from Eio 

 Grande, Buenos Ayres and Eio Janeiro, weighing from 70 to 80 pounds per hide 

 cost 6.50 to 7.50 i oubles. The import of foreign thick hides does not only arise from 

 the insufficient quantity of Circassian hides, but also from the fact that American 

 thick hides are in many cases indispensable for manufacturing the heavier kinds of 

 sole leather and belting. The American hides are principally imported in the salted 

 state. 



From 1869 to 1884 inclusive, the import of dressed hides constantly increased. 

 This increase was uninterrupted from 1869 to 1876 but in the latter year, just 

 before the duty was considerably raised in consequence of its being charged in gold, 

 the import suddenly showed a considerable increase, and then in 1877 it greatly 

 diminished; in 1878 it again rose and exceeded the amount of all the preceding 

 years, and kept on increasing until 1884. From this date the import of dressed hides 

 has remained pretty constant, excepting a slight rise in 1885 and a fall in 1888, and 

 keeps very near the average of 4,500,000 roubles, or 30 per cent of the total 



