Reports on Foreign Crops. 



103 



Barley is reported to cover an area of 2,721,000 acres, or 

 92*2 per cent, of the acreage sown in 1896. The average 

 condition of the crop in June was 87*4, against 98 in the same 

 month of 1896. The acreage of rye this year is estimated at 

 1,703,000 acres. 



Cotton has been sown on 24,000,000 acres : a diminution of 

 600,000 acres compared with the area under this crop in 1896. 

 The average condition of the crop was put at 83*5, as against 

 97*2 at the corresponding period of last year. 



Crops in Russia. 



The St. Petersburg Journal of Industry and Commerce 

 states that the snow melted somewhat earlier than usual in 

 Russia this spring, but that the subsequent weather was cold 

 and dry, with results unsatisfactory to the winter crops, more 

 especially in the south and centre of the empire. Dry 

 weather during the preceding autumn had also been 

 unfavourable to the newly sown crops in many districts. 

 Towards the extreme south and south-east, however, although 

 the winter crops have suffered severely, it is expected that 

 the final yield will not be so seriously affected, as the area 

 under winter grain is comparatively small. It is also stated 

 that considerable areas, more particularly those devoted to 

 rape, in the south-west had been resown with spring corn. 

 Field mice had done some damage in the central governments. 

 Prospects were better in the rest of the empire, notably in 

 Poland and the Baltic provinces, where they were described 

 as very good. 



Crops in Austria. 



The Wiener Landwirtschaftliche Zeitung of 26th May last, 

 quoting from the report of the Austrian Ministry of Agri- 

 culture, states that the weather in that country during the 

 first half of May was abnormally cold and wet, with falls of 

 snow ; but the frosts were not generally injurious, as they 

 were mostly slight. In some parts of the empire vegetation 



