increased yield to the fleece or an increased source of supply. The one conclusion is opposed by the general information we have of the woolgrowing interest in southern Russia, whence the United States draws its supplies; the other is opposed by the returns of the number of sheep in the Russian Empire. In 1844 it was written, "Russia may be said to prohibit the importation of every material like those which can be drawn, by the labor of her serfs, from her mines and forests; and of every foreign manufactured article, in order that the labor of those serfs, with the aid of machinery either imported or made in the country and directed by skillful foreign artisans, shall be made to produce articles either similar to or that may be substituted for those of foreign manufacture. We readily admit that this prohibitive system, so generally injurious to the Empire, may be very profitable to the nobles at Moscow and elsewhere who are the proprietors of the cheaply and coarsely fed and clad serfs. Cotton twist, still required by her, and sheep's wool, several other articles not enumerated, are admitted at small nominal duties." In 1841 the duty on sheep's wool raw was 1 ruble 90 kopecs the pood, and on wool of camels, goats, etc., 12 kopecks the pood. Sheep's wool scoured paid a duty of 2 rubles the pood, and when combed, but not dyed, 4 rubles the pood. Dyed wool, combed or spun, paid a duty of 4 rubles 30 kopecks the pood. By a law of 1882 the duties were as follows: * Wool and down: WOOL. Duty. Cents per pound. Raw, washed and not washed, not dyed; also flock wool and 1 ruble per pood...... cloth shearings. Unspun, of every kind, dyed; also artificial wool (shoddy, 2 rubles per pood..... mungo), cloth rags, and wool waste dyed. A new general law was approved by the imperial ukase of June 11, 1891, imposing duties, as follows: Wool or hair, neither combed or spun: (1) Raw or washed, not dyed; combings and waste of wool, not dyed...... Dyed. 2 rubles the pood. 3 rubles the pood. 5.50 rubles the pood. 7 rubles the pood. The well-known Russian carpet wool is a product of the southeastern governments, and not to be found equal in length and strength in any other part of the world. The most valuable are the "Savolga" fleeces, of 4 to 6 inches in length, and as the climate is a very trying one in these provinces, the wool becomes soft and downy. The next best quality are the "Donskoi" fleeces, to be found in the steppes on both sides of the River Don. The production of the Savolga fleeces has dimished considerably during the last decade, as the original breeders of this kind of sheep, the Khirgese, are becoming poorer from year to year. The pastures of these nomads extended as far as the Volga, and the rich, flat country bordering the river had placed them in the position of keeping large herds of steppe sheep. Gradually the pastures of the Khirgese were cultivated by the Government, who also took possession of them, and therefore they were driven back into the uncultivated steppes, where, in consequence of the bad climate and the scarcity of food, their live stock diminished considerably. Peasants settled on this land, formerly used for pastures, and began to breed the steppe sheep. These peasants, and those in the Don districts, are the only ones that breed this kind of sheep, which do not require shelter or much care. Wealthier peasants occupy their time with breeding the Merino sheep, which pays them better. The difference in price is as follows: The Savolga or Donskoi fleeces realize from 10 to 12 rubles against 28 to 32 rubles per pound for the merino fleeces. The trade with carpet wools is consequently a most difficult one. While merino wool is brought into the market in large quantities, carpet wool is brought by the farmers in small quantities and sold again to the wool cleaners, who, after having washed and assorted the same, bring it to market. The wool is very often mixed with burs, which grow in abundance in several of the districts mentioned and are difficult to remove. The most important wool-washers have their offices in Moscow, as the best carpet wool is brought here for home consumption as well as for export purposes. This city (Moscow) is the center for all dealers and manufacturers in Russia. The wool that comes on the market in the interior, say Charkow, Rostow on the Don, is very often very unreliable, and great care and observation are necessary when purchasing; whereas the wool sold in Moscow can better be relied upon. This also applies to the "camel hair," "autumn," and "lamb's wools," which are likewise used for the manufacture of carpets. This is the cheapest and best material used at a reasonable price for this purpose. The trade in these articles is confined almost exclusively to Armenians and Tartars, who realize from their sale, partly at Nijni fair and partly at Moscow. The price of this kind of wool differs according to quality and purity."" From a report made to the Department by George Scott, U. S. consul at Odessa, under date May 28, 1885, I extract the following: * * * There are several denominations of wool, namely, Cherromari, coarse long wool; Belovadsk, coarse, very long wool; Don wool of the Cossack territory, short or second clip; Line, short wool of the Caucasus, soft texture staple; Manitch, or Don wool, from the villages along the river Manitch, of good length, although clipped in the autumn; and Brook-washed wool, autumn shorn, also in grease. All of the above are sold or shipped under the denomination of Donskoi wool. The total quantity of Donskoi wools in grease bought annually in this consular district amounts to about 400,000 poods (2,400,000 pounds), exclusive of brook-washed and greasy autumns. After going through the process of washing the wool is shipped mostly to the United States and a small portion to France and England. The loss in washing depends on the condition of the wools in the grease and the cleanliness required; it is about 40 to 45 per cent. Russian washed wools are also brought to the ports for sale under the denomination Donskoi. Those wools are, the greatest portion, in foot bales, and some in press boles, washed in the interior at Barosiliptz, on the River Coper; at Saritsine, on the Volga; in the Caucasus, near Stasoropol, and in villages on the river Manitch; also near Cherson. In 1884 something over 5,000 bales were sold to exporters and rebaled. Merino fine wools, grown on the line of the Caucasus, near and along the river Kuban and in the district of the Don Cossack territory, form a great portion of the commerce in Rostow on the Don. There are many large sheep farms kept by set *U. S. Consul Van Riper, Consular Report 41, May, 1884. tlers from the Tauride, who took their sheep there during the Crimean war. The high prices paid during some years have enticed many peasants and small farmers to rear this class of sheep, finding it more advantageous than rearing common sheep. Of the quantity fine merino wool in the grease brought to the ports of this district annually one-half is generally contracted for at fixed prices during the winter. A large portion is exported in the grease to France, England, Belgium, and Prussia. The remainder is sent to the interior towns to be scoured for the Moscow market and manufactories. * * The weight of fleece of merino wool is, from ewes, 6 to 7 pounds; from rams, 8 to 9 pounds, Russian; but all depends on the winter, the pastures, the locality, and the spring weather. From a report made by Thomas E. Heenan, U. S. consul at Odessa, in March, 1890, I gather that the quantity of Donskoi, or coarse wool, brought in the grease to the washeries in Rostow on the Don, in 1889, amounted to nearly 10,000,000 pounds, of which 9,000,000 pounds were sent to the United States. This wool when washed was reduced in weight about one-half. The quantity of merino wool brought to the same place amounted to 40,000,000 pounds in that year. The consul reports: The quantity of merino wool increases every year in Russia, as woolgrowers find it a good investment, prices during the past four years ruling very high. England takes more than half the total quantity of merino wool offered for sale in Russia, and the United States nearly all of the coarse wool. Merino wools are never shipped from Russia to the United States. The same consul, in a report made three months later, attempted to give the cost of sheep-raising in South Russia, but omitted to state whether it was the coarse or the merino wools that the farmer was raising. According to his statement the average size of the flock was about 1,200 sheep and the number of attendants for such a flock was 4, 3 men and a boy. The wages of a man was $50 a year, and of the boy $20, with food, shelter, and a part of their clothes. The average cost of sheep per year to the breeders was placed at 2 rubles, and its equivalent in American currency was $1.09, though I can not determine what rate he takes for the ruble, as the silver value would by no means correspond to this equivalent. The average weight of a fleece was 9 pounds and the average price per pound was from 10 to 123 cents. From 5 to 10 per cent of sheep are lost annually through disease, age, and neglect. The proportion of lambs is about 20 per cent. Sheep imported from other countries change their fleece, the wool grows coarser and loses its grease. The conditions as described probably apply to the carpet wool, or Donskoi grade. The usual quantity of merino wool found its way to this market during the past season, viz, about 17,460 tons; of these about 15,080 tons were bought up by Russian and Polish manufacturers, only about 1,746 tons being exported to England, while 635 tons still remain here in the hands of speculators. It may be observed that the exports of merino wool are yearly decreasing, owing to the inability of exporters to offer the prices the Russian buying are in a position to pay consequent upon the everincreasing demand for home consumption. The prices paid were from 41d. to 5§d. per pound, some of the higher qualities fetching 54d. per pound towards the end of the season. |