Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1899-06-09
AN OPPORTUNITY FOX AMERICA.

of Commerce and Finance of the United
States" issued by the Bureau of Sta
tistics OF the Treasury Department, re-
prints striking article from the Jour-
nal of the British Board of Trade, in
which the early opening up Of
Siberia, in its trade and CONNER
cial aspects, are set forth in a manner
which forcibly suggests the Importance
of the matter to American manufacture
ers and business men.
After predatory explanation of the
governmental divisions of this vast
area of Russian territory, and some
comments upon the vast expenditure of
350,000,000 rubles in the construction
of the great Siberian railroad, the ar
ticle calls attention to the great nat
ural wealth of the region, its very large
population, its capacities to absorb
manufactured products in immense
quantities, and then proceeds to dwell
upon the opportunities for the develop
ment of trade presented in the great
annual fairs SO typical of interior Rus
STA, and concerning which so little is
even yet known to the commercial
world.
The article says upon this subject:
Fairs in Siberia possess a great import
ance and are very numerous. The most
ancient and important Siberian fair is
that of Irbit, founded in 1913. admins
tratively forming part of the govern
ment of Perm-that is of European Rus
STA, but geographicaiy an integral part
OF Siberian territory. Situated at the con-
1uence of the Irb.t and N4tsa, tributaries
of the Tura, Irb-t forms the half way
house for number OF routes. The fair
there open from LIST of February to LIST
of March, and during this little time the
little town wakes UP and welcomes 1900
to D,GG0 strangers, doing business worth
100000 to 55. 100000 rubleS each time. In
1868 various goods were brought to this
town to the amount of 1881, 900 rubles, of
which 34,959,000 rubles We're sold; in 1876
the figures were 100000 and A., 1857, 600
rubles respectively: in 1894, 547l0,000 and
81, $4,000 isles. The chief articles of
trade there, after tea, are skins, honey,
wax, nuts, hardware and cutlery, wool
ems and cottOnS.
ION the whole, it will be seen that there
is a large fed for foreign traders in ST.
IBERIA. The Ural works are not able to
meet the demand for iron and steel in
European Russia, and the imports of
machinery into Russia are weary .ncreas-
ing. During the years 1S93-1S96 they were
as follows:
1898 OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES, 701, 623 rubles
1894 ........................46 . 34o, 1888 rubleS
1885 ........................53, 1l6, 205 rubieS
1870 ........................b 0, 4l2,00U ruDieS
Russia is exerting herself to the ut
most in order to develop her own machin-
cry industry, and there IS still much TO be
done. European Russia Will not be able
to supply the Siberian market which will
almost fnttrplV dPDapd i'm, a tipr
from abroad.
The construction of the trans-Siberian
railroad around the southern part of Bal
kal Sea offers immense technical difficult
ties; the Imperial Government intends
now to cross the sea (about 60 versts,
equal to 2I12 miles, by a trestle bridge or
sible. the Government would save about
100000 rubes in the construction.
THE Chinese East Railroad will be
Connected with the Russian railways by
two lines; the first one will start from
the station of Onon,' of the transit a.-
kalian railway, 440 versts; the second from
Nikolskoje. of the Ussuri railway, 50
versts, to the eastern torder of Manchur-
ia. The Government has approved of the
following rolling stock fos these lines:
Trans Ba kalian railway-44 S-wheel To-
comotlVeS, 40 passenger cars. i5S freight
cars, $50 open freight cars. Ussuri rail-
way-10 locomotives. Is passenger cars, 1I9
freight ears, so open freight cars
In Siberia and China combined there
is vast field for the sale of American
manufactures of almost every coneeiv-
able description, at good prices,
and the field is one richly
worth careful and systematic cul-
tivation. A like opportunity Tor
our enterprise has never before
presented itself, and the indications are
decidedly that it will be fully taken adj
vantage of. Those first in the field win
reap reward commensurate with the
enterprise displayed, and the result will
be to add most decidedly to the present
very satisfactory balance of trade in
our favor.