Agricultural Machinery in Russia. 



235 



About seventy -five per cent, of these shipments have, as a 

 rule, of late years been destined for the United Kingdom and 

 Australia. 



Agricultural Machinery in South Russia. 



Acting-Consul-General Mackie, in his annual report to the 

 Foreign Office on the trade of the consular district of Odessa 

 for the year 1897, observes that in portable engines and 

 threshers German competition has made itself felt. The 

 success realised by German machines over English is due to 

 the long terms of credit given by German firms, in some 

 instances amounting to three or four 3^ears, and the small 

 amount of cash-payment taken ; cases are known where the 

 sum received actually failed to cover duty and freight. 



Business could, it appears, be done by English firms 

 in manual-delivery reapers if in point of weight these 

 machines could be adapted to Russian requirements. An 

 energetic representative of a well-known English firm sent a 

 machine of Russian make home as a pattern to copy, but his 

 firm came to the conclusion that the market was closed to 

 them by customs protection. An American firm is now 

 successfully introducing these machines into Russia. Their 

 success is due to the malleable steel exclusively used by them 

 in casting harvesting machinery. Prices of local machines 

 range from £14. to £1^, American ones between 15 and;^! ;, 

 the superior quality more than making up for the difference 

 in price. 



England principally supplies portable engines and threshers 

 of a complicated system not produced in Russia, but with the 

 successful introduction into the country of a plough specially 

 manufactured in England to meet the peculiar requirements 

 of the Russian agriculturist, similar implements of home 

 make were driven down 20 per cent, in price, in spite of 

 •customs protection. 



There is said to be a good market in the district of 

 Theodosia for all kinds of British agricultural implements, 

 .such as ploughs, seed-drills, manual- delivery reapers, horse- 



