Reports ox Foreign Crops. 



523 



the Central Provinces, and those situated in the basin of the 

 Volga and in the region of the Ural Mountains, the harvest 

 in 1898 was from 60 to 70 per cent, below the preceding 

 quinquennial average. Hence, the very part which usually 

 exported its surplus to the rest of Russia, was not only 

 unable to supply its own requirements, but the importation 

 of grain for food and seed became necessary. 



The grain harvest of 1899 promised well at the outset. In 

 64 provinces in European Russia and the Caucasus the 

 summer and w r inter cereals yielded 13 per cent, more 

 than the average. But there was an absolute scarcity in 

 several provinces, and in others the crops suffered much from 

 the heavy rains. 



This series of three bad harvests caused some apprehension 

 that there might be no improvement in the current year. 

 Last year's crops, however, give indications to the contrary, 

 inasmuch as the eastern and central provinces, which yielded 

 a poor harvest in 1898, gave a most abundant return in 1899; 

 and, conversely, the districts which yielded least last year 

 had produced a crop about the average in 1898. Hence it is 

 inferred that the recent bad harvests are merely due to tem- 

 porary causes and not to the exhaustion of the soil. At the 

 time of writing the Minister states that the promising appear- 

 ance of the young crops gave good prospects of an abundant 

 yield of winter corn in 1900. 



Crops in India. 



The first general memorandum on the wheat crop of the 

 season 1899- 1900 was issued at the end of last December. 

 In all the wheat-producing region a very restricted area was 

 placed under this grain, the season being adverse to sowing*. 

 The seed germinated well, however, in Northern India, and 

 on irrigated lands the crop was coming on, but would be 

 greatly helped by the arrival of the winter rains. 



In the Panjab, especially, everything depended on the 

 rain. The area sown there was just under five million acres, 

 or 36 per cent, below the area of 1898-99, the irrigated area 

 being 18 per cent, below last year. This outlook at the time 



