The Russellville Democrat., 1877-05-24
THE RUSSIAN EMPIRE.
It's Extent, Population and Army.

It's Extent, Population and Army.
 1t IS calculated that the empire of the czar extends over one-sevcnth of the land surface of the globe and re- presents about one-twenty-sixth of its entire superficial area. It is difficult to arrive at the true area of Russia, on account of the obstacles that present themselves to the making of general survey of such an immense extent of country. The nearest estimate, be- cause it was deemed the most accurate, was made in 1874, whereby the area of the empire was set down at 8, ,4O4,- 767 square miles. It is divided into two sections, the European and Asiatic. the former having an area of about 86, ,039 square miles and population of 63, ,658, 1884. This does not include either the kingdom of Poland, the grand duchy of Finland or the Cauca> sian provinces. The population of Russian Poland is 5,705,607 and its area 1,216 square miles. Finland has 1,943, 245 inhabitants and an area of G. 835, square miles, and the Caucasus 4,661 ,824 inhabitants and is 7,938 square miles in area. Russia in Asia
 has an estimated population of 6,302,
 412, but these inhabitants belong
 chiefly to the Nomadic tribes.
 The population of Russia is divided
 into three great groups. besides va.
 riety of national elements intermixed
 in the general mass sf the inhabitants.
 The Great Russians, or Veliko Russ,
 number 35,000,00 and occupy the
 provinces. The little Russians, or
 Malo Russ, number about Il ,00O, ,0OO,
 and form the bulk of fthe population in
 Pultava, Kharkof, Chernigof, Kief,
 Volhynia, Podolsk, Ekaterinoslaf and
 the Laurida. The white Russians,
 about 5000, ,000 in number, are found
 in Montlef, Minsk, Vitebsk and
 Grodno. With these groups are the
 Films, 3,038,000; Llthuanians, P 343, ,00O; Jews, 1,631, ,000; Tartars 2,500,000; Slavonians in Poland and Lithuania, about 10000 and Ar menians, 100000.
 From the above described popula tion is drawn the regular army of th' ? Russian empire. The armed force O I Russia is composed of an active ant
 territorial army. The first is divided - into the land and marine forces. Th' land force comprises the regular troop t annually recruited throughout the em t pire; the reserved intended to com ' plete the strength of the army to { 1 war footing and composed of men ol , leave {; the irregular troops such as thu Cossacks and the troops composed 0 foreign elements.
 , The territorial army is formed b, l all the male inhabitants of the empire between the ages of twenty and forty who are fit for military service and no already enrolled in the active or re u t lar army. By a law of January 13 3 1874. the military service is rendered } obligatory on all Russians subjects, ex cept in some of the most isolated dis l tricts of Siberia, Turkestan and thu trans Caucasian territory. Exception , are, however, made in favor of certain 2 professions, such as clergymen, doe t tors, etc. The duration of service il T European Russia is fixed at fifteel I years-that is, six years in the activ'
 army and nine in the reserves. II , Asiatic Russia the term of service i l limited to ten years, seven of whicl I are spent in the active army and three t in the reserves.