THE RUSSIAN POULTRY AND EGG INDUSTRY. 



One of the most noteworthy features of our agricultural 

 trade in late years has been the rapid development in the 

 importation of eggs from Russia. It will be remembered 

 that in 1897 that Empire attained the first place among the 

 contributors to our supply of eggs, so far as regards 

 quantity, although in value the French consignments were 

 still the greater ; while last year Russia still further dis- 

 tanced her rivals in this trade, and the total value, as well as 

 the number, derived thence was larger than that from any 

 other country. These facts lend additional interest to the 

 proceedings of the International Congress on Aviculture, 

 recently held at St. Petersburg, and more especially to 

 such papers as deal with the subject from the Russian point 

 of view. 



Among these reports one of the most interesting is by M. 

 N. Krioukow, Agronome attached to the Department of 

 Agriculture, who discussed the export trade in avicultural 

 products. The outward commerce of Russia is, owing to the 

 nature of the country, pre-eminently of an agricultural 

 character, some eignty per cent, of the total value representing 

 the produce of rural industry. In view of the importance of 

 the country as an exporter of grain, etc., poultry and its 

 products naturally form only a small percentage of the total ; 

 but this percentage has steadily grown during the past 

 decade, so much so that, whereas in 1887 such products 

 amounted to but 2 per cent, (or ^1,310,000 out of a grand 

 total of ^61,731,000), they had in 1897 reached a value of 

 ^3j53°) 000 > or 5 per cent, of the exports, in spite of an 

 increase of over ten millions in the latter. A closer examina- 

 tion of the figures shows, however, that this large increase 



