New-York tribune., 1900-12-05
PROGRESS IN RUSSIA.
FAcTs WHICH SHOW THB czAR's EN-
PIRE rs NOT so BLACK AS PAINTED.

81 P.tershure Nov Is.-The population or H'1s-
aa was estimated az about 100000 In lSl me year
of the emancipation OF the serfs. II Is now oacu-
lated 70 be over Is6cOoooo. according 70 state
roaut lust published by the Ministry OF Finance.
THIS ertinate is obtained 10y adding the oaleu-
LATED annual OF births over deaths whloh IL
certainly 100000 10 the total OF lZsVOO'o" gwen
nv the CENSUS OF January IS 1897, which was Ia
1oo0o without the Grand Duchy OF Finland. or
r2e OO0o0o including Finland. The Slavic popula-
fion Is "a per cent Of the whole, Russians alone
numbering s6OooOoo. OF 90 per cent. and the Poles
100000. or per cent The total Finnish popule-
ton Is ovsr 6OOoOoO and the Lithuanians almost
reach the same figures. numbering SsOo.oOo Various
Turkish peoples OF the Volga, the Cr1mea. the
Caucasus and Siberia number u-oo0,oo or about
per cent OF the whole. There are 100000 Hebrews
and about 100000 persons OF German descent or
birth.
II has 80 long been the fashion to describe the
land OF the Car as Darkest Russia" or starving
Russia" that people have difhculty in reaIis-
ing that there has been any progress IN the h'ih-
pre IN the last forty years. except IN popu-
iation. An observer who is not preJuoiced rehoHs
nnds proof 70 the contrary. one who has open
eyes is fairly overwhelmed with evidences OF a
forward movement along thousand lines slnoe
the glooEnier view Is maintained stuooorLiy' IN
spite OF the immense railway constructions OF re-
cent years Il may be worth while 20 point out a
few OF the numerous minor indications OF QUICK
ened lse which have come 10 hand unsought and
70 mention some Of the erroneous impressions
which 8 residence here dispels.
AS TO THE CLIMATE
Take the simple facts Of the climate. One is
accustomed 70 think Of St Petersburg as haro
frozen more than half the year. with the theT-
nometer usually 80 TO 20 degrees below zero
Persons who think nothing OF winter IN St
Paul Duluth or Canada return from short Vislt
70 Russia with the most exaggerated nouons OF
the intensity OF its winter The Russians are
rbernselves 10 biane FOR this The houses are con-
Ftructed with double windows which are rarely
opened except IN midsummer, and are herInet-
fcaIly sealed except for small sirholes, which In
the windows OF the better class OF houses are
opened once a day. The windows were all sealed
up two months ago. in spite OF the fact that
the Thermometer has registered freezing weather
only two or three days OF the present autumn and
winter. The writer has seen native Russians run
from a room where the window was opened Tor
rlomeut as from pesthouse. That IL Is an unusu-
ally uild EAR Is not asserted here Winter terrors
vanish upon closer inspection. Colonel Holloway
the Consul-General OF the United States, who has
lived here three years. has never known the Their
lnometsr 70 register 10 p degrees below zero.
and is comfortable IN the Consulate with no more
clothing than he wore in his Indianapolis home.
Many other impressions have no more secure
foundation They can often be traced 70 the in
nuenoe of residents whose ideas became hXed
twenty thirty years ago. A young man who
spent few weeks here last summer IN company
with one OF these pessimiste authorities de-
teresting one and two story sort OF town. which
resembled g mushroom prairie city IN the early
days OF the Western plains. He had simply looked
through another mans blue spectacles- II has
proved the same with information about certain
restrictive regulations. one was warned against
carrying books in ones baggage, since the ponce
would attempt 20 read them all and would prob
Rbiy 'caviare'-biot out with an impsnetrable ink
any passages which they ala not understand The
fact is the police cid not read the titles OF any
books in the luggage OF a single passenger the
evening the writer crossed the frontier. Warnings
were given BY Russian journalist, whose active
work was finished many years ago, and who has
been the adviser OF numerous correspondents and
writers from abroad, that the supervision Of
political telegrAms 90 strict that II was best
not 70 touch upon politics at all. Instead. foreign
newspapers filed with the most varied criticism OF
Russian Affairs found TO be freely admitted
and widely read The official whose duty Il IS pass
upon political teleErsms sent abroad was found 20
be pleasant well Informed. polished gentleman
whose blue pencil is not in evidence much as IS
generally imagined
one usually comes to Russia with the most ez-
account OF passport regulations With the exoep-
Russian aroa8 ePo4s eTassne sq by re
fronuer the police requirements are IN reality far
must usually appear The police station In person
81 PeSsTsbng M Ppor Sfan e sysTts Tssk Or 70 two We
hotel proprietor. who sends il 20 the police II js
pay small foe The police ook to the hotei Stf
pfepflelof or 70 the coOrEeepers ho,
aor the proper enforcement OF their regulations
TIE PRODUCTION OF PIG IRON.
The present period Is usually described abroad ss
one OF Industrial stagnation. The word crisis Is
Frequently met with IN foreign reviews OF Russian
business. What are the facts? The production OF
pig ron usually regarded the barometer OF
commerce and industry. has been thus far dl1r,ng
1900 more than twelve million pools greater than
during the corresponding period OF 1922 ,rhs Rus
sian iron producers however, complain Of dun
Nnes because the Increase this year has NOT been
rsiatiyely as large as during The preceding wears
strot t6is year Va t 3o 3 N me northern
IL the district OF the Trails $500 006 pools - IS: o
pools per cent There was 6eoFesss' SSss'oo9 ~
iron was less than IN 1889 so thai TIE to-.f u @ Pls
sumption 10 estimated at 100000 poods less M.
g 100000 pools and there had been Stea5 I S Nss
before last year There is discomfort among the
panies VII be less this year than has been ~
.n a general cry OF crisis The 'Noyoe Vrsro,Scs
. ne 5Saelas newspaper here gives the earnings Of
e9 per cent annually, and in the first haif az tbe
e,osins aeosse 81 nmetallurgoal companies disbursed
tricts 100 Per cent and the Polish sugar SscTSi
the Polish textile concerns distributed 20 er H5o s5
5y-T Il, - p.sssnt a crisis In the nRphths in
sTises Prices. which have been edmittedly 'lSI sS
ere e good authority for the Statement thst shGSsR tSs
hIs sun unreesonaby high. ~ NiieS
There are Indications OF an equally fresb 49,
Il other than business Affairs The Ministee 1reeze
papers. ordered the estahlsSmeogf 0 TO 70 to-days
soslcal stations al ell important railway stations -
slinistry q Railways and Communicstiions bRs b5s
Tor new roads pr5,rsII ePHg R year 6oOoOoo rubles
same authority has ordered 1000 passengsr csrs as
The movement Of workingTea0 upon "a cass iSs service
a"sgs ~ "a tast yesT amounted 70 three million per-
orsos 9 o PTsPaTSg 70 s oGga3ze , regular
TIE sre95 saPPstOriuEn P, fsr leProsy situated a.