36 THE DECENTRALISATION 



True, that the finest sorts of yarn, as well as 

 sewing cotton, have still to be imported. But 

 Lancashire manufacturers will soon see to that ; 

 they now plant their mills in Russia. Two large 

 mills for spinning the finest sorts of cotton yarn 

 were opened in Russia in 1897, with the aid of 

 English capital and English engineers, and a 

 factory for making thin wire for cotton-carding 

 has lately been opened at Moscow by a well- 

 known Manchester manufacturer. Several more 

 have followed since. Capital is international and, 

 protection or no protection, it crosses the fron- 

 tiers. 



The same is true of woollens. In this branch 

 Russia was for a certain time relatively back- 

 ward. However, wool-combing, spinning and 

 weaving mills, provided with the best modern 

 plant, were built every year in Russia and 

 Poland by English, German and Belgian mill- 

 owners ; so that now four-fifths of the ordinary 

 wool, and as much of the finer sorts obtainable 

 in Russia, are combed and spun at home one 

 fifth part only of each being sent abroad. The 



in 1910). They are quite a recent growth, the first plantations 

 of the American cotton tree having been introduced in Turke- 

 stan by the Russians, as well as the first sorting and pressing 

 establishments. The relative cheapness of the plain cottons 

 in Russia, and the good qualities of the printed cottons, 

 attracted the attention of the British Commissioner at the 

 Nijni Novgorod Exhibition in 1897, and are spoken of at some 

 length in his report. 



