constitutional authority at the time, organized

a

coalition cabinet. The new government, which modestly called itself "provisional," was fairly representative of the leading parties composing the last Duma and the elements that hastened the Revolution. It was headed by Prince Lvov, a liberal Octobrist, elected to the premiership conjointly by the Duma and the labor elements (subsequently succeeded by the famous Kerensky), and included such other popular leaders as Paul Milyukov, Constitutional Democrat; Tereshtchenko, a many-sided liberal of truest color; and the above-mentioned Kerensky, a revolutionary Socialist representing the workmen and soldiers, who soon dominated the whole Provisional Government. Under stress of factional criticism, the coalition ministry was repeatedly reformed, becoming every time more and more representative. Five new departments were created to cope with the exigencies of war and peace. departments

of Labor, Public Relief, Food Supplies, Posts and Telegraphs, and a department for the Affairs of the Constituent Assembly.

The new government at once declared itself in favor of immediate and numerous radical reforms along every line (including such matters as social, religious and racial equality, and universal suffrage). But the execution of its ambitious program, difficult enough in itself, was rendered well-nigh impossible by the everincreasing interference with the affairs of government on the part of an emergency organization called into being during the Revolution and known as "the Council of Workmen's and Soldiers' Deputies." Such were the power and popularity of this council that its wishes. and they commonly took the form of mandates could not well be ignored. From the very first, the provisional government had to reckon with this new influential factor in Russian politics, and such constant reckoning inevitably clogged the wheels of government machinery. Hence the Kerensky government spent most of its short career in finding its bearings and in trying to reconcile the various discordant factions, which lacked both the temper and the tradition of democratic citizenship.

But, little as the first revolutionary government actually accomplished, it gave Russia her first taste of real Democracy, which she is never likely to forget. The spirit, the machinery of administration and the reforms proposed were thoroughly democratic. Seemingly, time and administrative experience were all that was needed for the completion of the colossal task of Russian democratization, but these were denied by the Bolshevik coup d'état that soon followed.

Ostensibly, the Bolshevik government was placed in the hands of the Council of Workmen's, Soldiers' and Peasants' Deputies, the popular organization already alluded to but somewhat enlarged to appease the peasant element. This mixed organization, called in Russian simply the Soviet, has numerous branches and acts through innumerable agents styled "People's Kommissars" (a term borrowed from the French revolutionists), backed by the force of well-armed soldiers called Red Guards. All these executive officers are supposedly carrying out the will of The Central Executive Committee of the Federal Soviets, which is a longer name for the Bolshevik government.

43

The central figures and guiding spirits of the "Soviet Republic," as the Bolshevik rulers themselves style their form of government, have been and still are Nikolai Lenine, Premier, and Leon Trotzky, Minister of War and formerly Minister of Foreign Affairs. The rest of the cabinet has been changed frequently, but probably still includes Tchitcherin as "People's Commissioner» for Foreign Affairs, Lunacharsky as "People's Commissioner» for Public Instruction, and a few others fairly well known for their revolutionary sympathies.

The rule of a single class, the proletariat, is the ideal of this ultra-revolutionary government, which has been aptly characterized as a "Proletarian Dictatorship." If the first transitional government may be said to have been a "Democracy in the Making," then, surely, the second is a democracy in the unmaking.

Political Parties.- Russia had no political parties in the Western sense before the constitutional era, which is quite natural in view of the notorious want of free political discussion in that country in strictly monarchial times. Such organizations as existed in absolutist Russia were secret debating societies advocating and frequently indulging in terrorism, with revolution as their battle-cry. With the convocation of the first Duma, however— or, rather, with the promulgation of "The Fundamental Laws of 1905" granting the right of free political discussion - regular political parties became for the first time possible in Russia, and the vital factor of political struggle commenced to stir that country's otherwise sluggish life.

Historically the first political party to come into prominence in Russia was that of the "Octobrists," a conservative organization which received its name from the unbounded enthusiasm with which it hailed the famous Manifesto of 30 Oct. 1905. It was this party organized by Milyutin and Shipov, that dominated the Third Duma (1907–12).

A more liberal and more important political party was that of The Constitutional Democrats, formed, also under the influence of the manifesto above mentioned, by radical and independent elements and led by Paul Milyukov, a statesman of international fame. Its membership has included many of the most prominent leaders of Russian thought, and it was the first to frame a definite political program. This party, nicknamed from its initials (K. D.) the "Kadets" has long dominated Russian politics, being both well organized and well directed. It had its own newspaper, Ryatch, which was so well edited (by Milyukov) that it soon became one of the leading Russian dailies.

The most radical and aggressive political parties in Russia and the only ones except the party of Constitutional Democrats to have survived the first Revolutionare, naturally, the various Socialist organizations. There was The Group of Toil, a Socialist labor party represented in the Duma by Alexander Kerensky himself; the Party of Democratic Reform, which was mildly socialistic; the Party of Peaceful Revolution, which believed in Parliamentary reform; the Peasants' Union which stood for the nationalization of land; and numerous other more or less radical parties.

The principal parties advocating revolu

44

tionary socialism do not properly concern us here, since they are not political parties in the accepted sense of the term. Owing to the current prominence, however, of some of these, mention might be made of the Social Revolutionists, a Marxist organization led by Chernov; the Social Democratic party, which in 1903 branched out into the Bolshevik (Maximalist) and the Menshevik (Minimalist) wings. The bitter struggle between these two factions cannot be entered into here (see RUSSIA — HISTORY), except to say that the former, the. extremist wing represented by the present ruling régime in the greater part of Russia, aspires to eliminate entirely every class but the proletariat, while the latter, the more moderate wing, seeks only to place the laborer on a political and economic level with all other classes of society. There are of course other essential differences in both principles and policies, but this single instance will serve as an illustration.

DAVID A. MODELL,

Specialist in Russian Subjects.

12. RUSSIAN INDUSTRY. Introductory. The total national wealth of the Russian Empire, including Poland and Finland, in 1914, was estimated at about $60,000,000,000, and the total population may be estimated at about 160,000,000, the average wealth thus being about $375 per capita whereas in the United States the per capita wealth is about $2,200. The national income was estimated at $7,500,000,000 of which agriculture furnished about $4,900,000,000. These figures are a striking illustration of the low stage of Russia's economic development. Though occupying nearly one-sixth of the total land area of the earth, Russia, owing to her geographical situation, as well as to unfavorable historical conditions, has been very backward, economically and industrially.

The transportation system of a country may be taken as the best index of its industrial development. The total length of all the inland waters of Russia reaches about 200,000 miles, yet the length of all Russian canals and improved rivers totals only 1,100 miles, of which the canals represent about 550 miles. The total length of Russian railroads is 46,600 miles, i.e., 0.28 mile per 1,000 inhabitants. In the United States the respective figures are 261,000, and 2.66 miles. Tsarism had a very unfavorable influence upon the development of civilization in Russia, generally, and particularly upon its economic development. Innumerable legal restrictions prevented the development of initiative and enterprise. In Russia in 1913 the total number of joint-stock companies was less than 2,000 and their total capital stock amounted to less than $2,000,000,000. The total number of wage-earners employed in factories and mines was about 3,500,000. The total amount of horse power used in manufacturing industries of Russia in 1914 was 2,500,000, as against 22,500,000 in the United States. The total foreign capital invested in Russia before the amounted to about $4,300,000,000. The largest investors were the French. French capital was invested in government and municipal bonds, and in coal and metallurgical enterprises in South Russia (the Donetz Basin). Next to the French came Belgian capital, invested in street railways, electric plants, coal mines and metal

war

lurgical mills. British capital was invested mostly in oil and gold mining, and plaved a less important role in the development of Russian industry than French and Belgian capital.

It must be noted, in this connection, that the government itself was the largest industrial establishment. It owned metallurgical mills, the greatest part of the railroad mileage, the greatest land area and was the largest purchaser of the products of the Russian mining and metallurgical industry. The imperialistic policy of the government determined the direction of Russian railway construction, and of the whole Russian industry.

Russia's share in the world's trade amounted in 1911-13 to 3.6 per cent. Her exports for 1909-13 averaged 1,501,400,000 roubles annually. Her imports for the same years averaged 1,136,900,000 roubles. During the last decade preceding the World War the total of Russian foreign trade was gradually increasing, but the imports were increasing faster than the exports. This was due to the fact that during the years preceding the war Russia was going through a period of intensive industrial development which caused a substantial increase in the imports of machinery.

I. Agriculture and Forestry. 1. Agriculture. The part played by agriculture in Russia's economics appears from the following figures: in 1910 the total value of the agricultural products of Russia was about 9,500,000,000 roubles in gold (1 rouble in gold=512 cents); the total value of manufactured products, 4,900,000,000 roubles. Thus, in 1910, agriculture furnished two-thirds of Russia's total national income. According to the census of 1897, 70 per cent of the population of the Russian Empire were supported wholly or partly by agriculture.

Only about one-twentieth of Russia's territory is under cultivation. This proportion varies considerably throughout the vast area of the empire, viz.: Russia in Europe, 17.5 per cent; the Caucasus, 20.3 per cent; western Siberia, 1 per cent; eastern Siberia, 0.1 per cent; the Steppe region (of central Asia), 1.3 per cent; Turkestan, 1.9 per cent. The total area of the principal crops in 1910-12 is shown in the following table:

The average yield is very low, owing to lack of fertilizers. Artificial fertilizers are almost unknown in Russia. The annual yield of wheat averaged in Russia in 1907-13 10.0 bushels per acre, whereas in the United States it averaged 14.4 bushels, in Canada 19.2 bushels. Modern improved agricultural machinery is scarcely used, yet despite these handicaps Russia contributed a large share to the world's production of grains. During the years 190712 Russia produced 48.1 per cent of the world's supply of rye; 31.6 per cent of the total supply of barley; 24.3 per cent of the supply of oats; and 19.0 per cent of the supply of wheat., The export of grains played the most important

part in Russia's foreign trade. The average annual exports for 1910-13 amounted to 11,791,800 short tons, valued at 639,900,000 roubles ($329,300,000).

2. Forestry. The Russian forests cover about 3,150,000,000 acres, or nearly thrice as great an area as the combined forests of the United States and Canada. Most of these forests are in Siberia. In European Russia there are about 383,000,000 acres, of which 40.7 per cent are in the province of Archangel, 27.1 per cent in the province of Vologda, 8.5 per cent in the province of Perm and 6.2 per cent in the province of Olonetz, in all 82.5 per cent in northern Russia. Of the Siberian forests 30.9 per cent are situated in the province of Tobolsk, 17 per cent in the Maritime province, 16.9 per cent in the province of Tomsk, 16 per cent in the Amur region and 8.8 per cent in the TransBaikal region. The forests cover an area of about 54,000,000 acres in central Asia and about 13,500,000 acres in the Caucasus. Russian forests furnish excellent timber and represent one of Russia's greatest Nevertheless the lumber industry in Russia is still in its infancy. A very large part of Russia's forests, especially in Siberia, has not been surveyed at all. Under the old régime no serious attention was paid to conservation of the forests. In some places, as in the Ural Mountains, forests were being destroyed. The income from them was extremely low. Before the World War the net income of the government from the state-owned forests did not exceed 12 cents per acre, and in Asiatic Russia it was as low as one mill per acre. The total value of exports of lumber and timber from Russia for the calendar year 1913 was $84,850,000. It may be safely anticipated, however, that the lumber industry has a splendid future and will play a very important part in the national economy of the country.

resources.

II. Cattle, and Meat Industry.- Russia possesses vast prairies, suitable for extensive cattle breeding. Nevertheless the number of cattle per capita of population in Russia is onefourteenth that of Argentina and less than one-half of the per capita of the United States. Taking eight sheep or three hogs as equivalent to one head of cattle we find in Russia 390 heads of cattle to every 1,000 of population, whereas the respective figure for Argentina is 5,320, and that for the United States 860. It must further be borne in mind that the livestock of Russia's peasantry is of an inferior quality compared to that of Argentina and the United States.

The number of heads of animals by geographical divisions in 1912 is shown in the following table:

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tions and cold storage plants first made their appearance shortly before the World War.

III. Mineral Resources and Mining. The mineral resources of Russia have scarcely been explored, yet from the available sources of information it can be stated as a fact that Russia is very rich in all kinds of minerals. As far as iron ore is concerned, Russia doubtless holds the first place in the world, although not all iron ore deposits have been explored or surveyed. The iron ore deposits of the Ural Mountains occupy the first place, not only in Russia, but in the whole world. The mountain Blagodat alone contains over 100,000,000 tons of iron ore; the mountain Magnitnaya over 100,000,000 tons. The surveyed deposits of the Ural Mountains contain more than 500,000,000 tons of iron ore. The Ural iron ore is of a very high quality, containing no less than 65 per cent of pure iron and a very small quantity of sulphur. In the Donetz Basin, in southern Russia, there are two deposits of iron ore of high quality; in Krivoi Rog and the Kerch Peninsula the total surveyed deposits exceed 1,000,000,000 tons. There are also several deposits of iron ore in central Russia, but these are of a lower grade and the ore itself is of a lower quality. The iron ore deposits of Siberia have not been explored at all, but several deposits are known in the Minusinsk district, in the Trans-Baikal province in the Amur district, in the Ussuri province, in the Bay of Saint Olga, near Vladivostok, etc.

The coal deposits are not as plentiful. The greatest coal deposits in European Russia are situated in the Donetz Basin. Large deposits of bituminous coal exist in the western and central parts of the basin and anthracite in the high quality, and good coke for metallurgical eastern part. The bituminous coal is of very purposes is produced, but the geological conditions are not as favorable as in England or in the United States. The anthracite of the eastern part of the Donetz Basin (Grushevskaya Moolda) ranks as the best in the world. The second place in the Russian Empire was held by the Dombrowo Basin, in Poland, which has now been detached from Russia. The coal deposits of central Russia are of a low grade (brown coal and lignite). The Ural Mountains contain no deposits of good coal suitable for coking. The deposits of coal in the northern and central parts of the Ural Mountains contain only brown coal and lignite. In the southern part of the Ural Mountains (the Orenburg region), deposits of anthracite are found. In the Caucasus there are some deposits of coal containing a large supply of high grade coal. In Siberia there are very rich coal beds. The best coal deposit is that of Kuznetsk (in the Tomsk province), whose geological conditions are much more favorable than those of the Donetz Basin. Coal beds are found all along the Siberian Railroad at short distances from one another, also in the Maritime and Yakutsk provinces, and in the Fergan province in central Asia. Good beds worked in the Augersky (Tomsk province) and Cheremkhovsky (Irkutsk province) mines. There are very rich deposits of excellent coal on the island of Sakhalien, in the northern part, belonging to Russia. Although the coal deposits of Siberia have not been explored and surveyed, yet from all indications it may be

are

46

safely assumed that the reserves of coal there are very large.

The oil fields of Russia are likewise unexplored. The best-known fields are found in the Caucasus. The fields of Balakhani, Sourakhani, Sviatoy and Grozny furnish about 85 per cent of Russia's total oil production. Oil is also found on the Taman Peninsula, in the region of the Pechora River (Oukhta in northern Russia), in the Transcaucasian region, between the Caspian Sea and the Ural Mountains, in the province of Fergan (central Asia) and on Sakhalien Island.

Copper ore deposits are situated mainly in Asia, viz., in the Ural Mountains, in Siberia, Minusinsk, Akmolinsk, Semipalatinsk, in Turkestan, in Fergana and in the Caucasus, but also in the provinces of northern Russia. The richest manganese ore deposits are situated in the Caucasus (Chiaturi) and next in southern Russia. There are known, also, manganese ore deposits in the Ural Mountains. The richest gold ore and placer deposits are located in Siberia, the Lena deposits in the province of Yakutsk, along the river Vitim, in the Nerchinsk and Barguzin districts, in the Amur region, in the Maritime region and in the Altai Mountains. Next follow the Ural Mountains. Gold is also known to exist in Kamchatka, Sakhalien and in the Caucasus. Platinum deposits, the richest in the world, are located in the Ural Mountains. Silver and lead ore deposits are located in Siberia - in the Altai Mountains, in the Ural Mountains and in the Caucasus.

There are large deposits of phosphates, pyrites, asbestos, graphite, marble, very extensive peat fields, deposits of mica, mercury and nickel. There are also deposits of precious and semi-precious stones, of rare metals, such as tungsten, osmium, vanadium, molybdenum, iridium, etc.

The development of the Russian mining industry is at a very low stage, especially if contrasted with the country's rich mineral resources. The leading part in Russian mining is played by the Donetz Basin in South Russia, which appears from the following comparative figures of production of the principal minerals in the Russian Empire and the Donetz Basin: AVERAGE ANNUAL PRODUCTION 1912 AND 1913. In the Donetz Basin Total for the empire. Per cent Metric tons Metric tons of total

Coal. Coke.

MINERAL

Iron ore.

8,900,000

6,300,000

The Donetz Basin is also important as a producer of heavy oils, coal tar and other chemical by-products of the coke industry.

The second place in the mining industry belongs to the Caucasus. In 1913 it supplied 85 per cent of the total of oil, 70 per cent of the total of manganese ore, 56 per cent of the total of silver and lead ore, 96 per cent of the total output of lead, 30 per cent of that of copper and 24 per cent of the total of silver.

Coal. The growth of the coal mining in

Total.

Iron ore

Pig iron

Long tons Per cent Long tons Per cent .5,700,000 70.3

2,800,000

67.7

.1,800,000

22.5

800,000

19.8

300,000 3.6

100,000

3.2

300,000 3.6

400,000

9.3

.8,100,000 100.0 4,100,000 100.0

The relatively small production of pig iron in the Ural Mountain region is due to the fact that it has no coking coal and uses charcoal for producing pig iron. Therefore the Ural region produces the finest kind of sheet iron, its only competitor being Sweden, which also uses charcoal for smelting iron ore.

Oil. The production of crude oil (naphtha) in 1913 amounted to 9,000,000 long tons, of which 97 per cent was produced in the Caucasus and the rest mostly in central Asia.

Gold. The production of gold in the Russian Empire in 1910-12 averaged 1,350,000 ounces Troy, of which 80 per cent was produced in Siberia and 20 per cent in the Ural Mountains.

Platinum.- Russia is the chief source of the world's supply of platinum. The world's production in 1912-14 averaged 280,000 ounces Troy, of which the Ural Mountains contributed 263,700 ounces, i.e., 94.1 per cent, British Columbia, 4,800 ounces, i.e., 5.3 per cent and other countries 0.6 per cent.

Copper. The production of copper has rapidly grown since the beginning of the present century, as appears from the following table: