The figures of the last column represent those of the fourth column, after deduction of the outlays which had to be made according to previous estimates. As to the liabilities to the State, they were as follows on January 1, 1898 :

2,403,644,873 paper.

Besides, there are at the Treasury various sums, partly in cash, and partly in debts (famine fund, pensions' funds, military, philanthropic, special agricultural funds, funds for scientific prizes, and so on), which attained on January 1, 1898, a total of 314,994,844 roubles.

The payments of interest and capital for the State and railway debts in the budget estimates for 1899 appear as follows, no distinction being now made between payments in gold and in paper money, but all being expressed in roubles = of the imperial, i.c., in paper roubles :

:

During the year 1895, the Ministry of Finance, in order to put an end to the continual fluctuations in the value of the paper rouble, offered facilities for all payments to the Treasury and railways being made in gold, at a certain ratio between gold and paper currency to be determined from time to time by the Ministry. By the laws of May and November, 1895, the ratio had been established at 1r. 48c. in paper money for 1r. in gold, the golden 'imperial' coin of 10r. thus being taken for 15r. 24c. in paper money, and the new 10r. gold coin (law of December 29, 1885) at 14r. 80c. in paper money. For the year 1896, the value of the old and the new 'imperial' has been established (in December, 1895) at, respectively, 15r. 45c. for the old, and at 15r. for the new coin-the ratio between gold and paper being thus 15 paper

roubles for 10 roubles in gold. This ratio has been confirmed for the year 1897. It is proposed to maintain it further on, and to impose upon the State's bank the duty of accepting paper money at the above ratio in exchange for gold. And finally, in view of the proposed permanent introduction of the above regular ratio between gold and paper currency, it was ordered, by an Imperial decree, dated January 3 (15), 1897, while leaving the gold money of the same contents of pure gold, weight, and dimensions as before, to mark upon it on the 'imperials' 15 roubles (instead of 10), and on the halfimperials' 7r. 50c. (instead of 5 roubles). In 1897 (Nov. 26), a new gold money of the value of 5 paper roubles, i.e., equal in value to of the 'imperial' was introduced.

A regular value of the paper currency having thus been introduced, a law was passed on September 10 (August 29), 1897, to the effect that paper currency may be issued by the State's Bank, when necessity occurs, but on the following conditions: If the amount of paper currency does not exceed 600,000,000 roubles, it must be guaranteed by half that sum (300,000,000 roubles in gold); while every issue above 600,000,000 roubles must be guaranteed to the full amount in gold deposited at the bank. In the memoir which accompanies the budget estimates for 1898, the Minister of Finances shows that the amount of gold accumulated at the Treasury and the State's bank now attains 1,315,000,000 in paper roubles, that is, exceeds the amount of paper money in circulation by 316,000,000 roubles. A considerable part of this amount of gold-that is, 575,000,000 roubles (=862,500,000 roubles in paper money)—is considered as a guarantee fund for the paper currency, which has been reduced, since 1896, by 122,300,000 roubles. The growth of the guarantee fund since 1887 is represented as follows:

In consequence of the just-mentioned law of September 10 (August 29), 1897, the forin of the balance of the State's bank was altered on September 13, 1897. The paper currency, which represented a total of 1,068,778,167 roubles, will now appear in the passive of the bank, while the guarantee fund in gold (750,000,000 roubles), and the liabilities of the State Treasury to cover the paper currency, will appear in active of the bank. The total amount of gold at the bank, considered as a guarantee for paper currency, attained on September 25, 1,131 700,000 roubles. The gold owned by the bank abroad (13,100,000) and the gold owned abroad by the Treasury were not included in that item. (See below, under MONEY AND CREDIT.)

II. LOCAL FINANCE.

The actual annual receipts of the 32 provincial assemblies (the zemstvos), which were 32 million roubles in 1881, reached 44,679,400 in 1894, as against 49,291,500 roubles foreseen in the estimates. Of the 585,300,000 acres

which pay the land tax, 235,000,000 acres belonging to peasants pay an average of 63 copecks per acre, while the 351,000,000 acres belonging to landlords pay an average of 33 copecks per acre. The aggregate expenses of the zemstvos reached the same year 56,638,100 roubles. Of that, 8 per cent. was spent for the administration of the zemstvos, 24 per cent. for hygiene and medical help, 15 per cent. for education, and 37 per cent. for obligatory expenses. Debt of all zemstvos to Government, 37,466,300 roubles.

The aggregate budgets of 684 towns of European Russia and Poland reached in 1893 67,252,370 roubles of income and 68,250,214 roubles expenditure. Only 6 towns have each an income above one million roubles, and 8 more above 500,000. The aggregate debt of all towns reached in 1882 26,842,177 roubles.

The expenses of the village communities have been tabulated for 50 provinces of European Russia proper for 1891; they reached the sum of 45,016,796 roubles; that is an average of 1r. 35c. per male soul of population, varying from 41c. to 3r. 38c. in different provinces.

Defence.

I. FRONTIER.

Russia has an extensive frontier both by sea and land, protected by numerous fortifications of various classes. On the west, Poland is defended by a system of four strongholds, sometimes called the Polish Quadrilateral-Novogeorgievsk on the right bank of the Vistula; the fortifications of Warsaw; Ivangorod on both sides of the Vistula; Brest-Litovski on the Bug. As the Vistula line remained unprotected on the rear from a possible invasion through Eastern Prussia, new fortifications have been raised in the rear of these fortresses. Western Poland, to the west of the Vistula, remained also quite unprotected, but new fortifications are being raised now about Kielce, at the foot of the Lysa-Gora Mountains in south-west Poland. There are numerous other fortified places, mostly neglected, on the Vistula and Bug.

The more important fortresses and forts are divided into three classes as follows :-In the first class are Warsaw, NovoGeorgievsk, and Brest-Litovsk in the Warsaw district, and Kovno in the Vilna district. The second class consists of Kronstadt and Sveaborg in the St. Petersburg district; Ivangorod in the Warsaw district; Kerch in the Odessa district ; Libau in the Vilna district; and Vladivostok in the Pri-Amur district. In the third class are Viborg in the St. Petersburg district; Ossovets and Ust-Dvinsk (Dünamünd) in the Vilna district; Sevastopol and Ochakov in the Odessa district; and

Kars and Batum in the Caucasus district. There are also fortysix places unclassed, many of them being mere fortified posts. The list is as follows:-Zegrj in the Warsaw district; St. Petersburg; Kiev and Dubno; Dvinsk in the Vilna district; Alexandropol, Evdokimov Shatoi, Yevgenievsk, Karadagh, Khunzakh, Khodjal Makhi, Preobrajensk, Veden, Georgievsk, Guvieb, Akhti and Zakatali in the Caucasus district; Kushk Port, Alexandrovsk, Krasnovodsk, Ashkhabad, Merv, Chikishliar, Tashkend, Ura Tiube, Namangan, Kokand, Aulieata, Khodjend, Samarkand, Chinaz, Kliuchevoi, Khust, Makhram, Petro Alexandrovsk, Andijan, Margelan, Chimkend, Perovsk, Djarkend, Bakhti, Karakol, Narin, and Zaisan in the Turkestan district; and Nikolaievsk in the Pri-Amur district.

II. ARMY.

Since January 13, 1874, military service has been rendered obligatory for all men from their 21st year. With the modifications introduced in that law on October 30, 1876, and June 26, 1888, military service is organised as follows:-Out of about 870,000 young men reaching every year their 21st year, about 275,000 are taken into the active army, and the remainder are inscribed partly in the reserve and partly in the 2nd reserve, or ' Zapas.' The period of service is, in European Russia, five years in the active army (in reality reduced by furloughs to 4 years), 13 years in the reserve, and 5 years in the Zapas;' 7 years in active army and 6 years in the reserve in the Asiatic dominions; and 3 years in the active army and 15 years in the reserve in Caucasia. In case of need the Minister of War has the right of keeping the men for another six months under the colours.

Certain privileges are granted on account of education, and clergymen are exempt, as also doctors and teachers.

In 1896, of the 987,917 young men liable to military service (of whom 50,641 Jews and 26,382 Mussulmans), 30,585 (7,736 Jews) did not appear; 77,542 were found too weak for military service; 212,209 inscribed in the first part of the militia, and 275,247 (15,831 Jews) were taken into the army, besides 3,394 Caucasian natives, out of 26,228 liable to service. The contingent for 1896 was 274,650 men, besides 2,750 Caucasians. The men inscribed in the reserve troops are convoked for drill six weeks twice a year.

The Opoltchenie,' formerly a simple militia, was reorganised in 1888 and 1891 (April 27th), and the duration of the service prolonged to 43 years instead of 40, for the soldiers, and from 50 to 55 for the officers. It is divided into two parts. The first part (pervyi razryad) has the character of reserve

troops, and includes all those who have passed through active service, as also those who have not been taken into the active army, though able-bodied. It is intended chiefly to complete the active troops in time of war, and enables Russia to call out, in case of need, 19 classes of drilled conscripts. Cadres' having been formed in the 'Opoltchenie,' the men called out in case of war will find ready battalions, squadrons, &c., wherein to enter, and these parts will be provided with artillery. Drilling of some parts of the militia has been introduced. The second part, or vtoroi razryad (including all able-bodied men who have served in the first division, as also those liberated from service as not fully able-bodied, or being single workers in their families), can be called out only by an Imperial manifesto, and only for organising corps of

militia.

The Cossacks, who constitute 11 separate voiskos (Don, Kuban, Terek, Astrakhan, Orenburg, Ural, Siberia, Semiryetchensk, Transbaikalia, Amur, and Usuri—the latter erected to a separate voisko in 1889), are divided into three classes: the first in active service; the second on furlough with their arms and horses; and the third with arms but without horses. Each voisko is bound to equip, clothe, and arm its soldiers. Part of the Cossack cavalry is incorporated in the field troops, together with regular cavalry. The obligations of each voisko are regulated by separate laws.

The indigenous troops, which number in time of peace 23 squadrons and 2 companies, are organised from Caucasians.

By the law of December 18, 1878, which came into force on January 1, 1881, personal military service is declared obligatory in Finland. The Finnish troops form 9 battalions of riflemen, each with 18 officers and 505 men, and number in all 4,833 and 1 regiment of dragoons. In 1886 obligatory military service was extended to the natives of the Caucasus, but, according to the law of June 9, 1887, the Mussulman population of Caucasia has had a tax imposed of 528,000 roubles, to be paid from January 1, 1890, instead of military service.

By a law, May 15, 1891, a new rank of subaltern officers, nominated in case of war out of sub-officers not entitled by education to the grade of officers (zauryad-praporschiki), as well as of clerks of the same kind in the military administration (zauryad-tchinovniki), has been introduced. They are intended to fill the several thousands of places of both officers and officials which would be vacant in case of mobilisation.

During the year 1892 new measures have been taken for the speedier formation of the militia in case of war; standing 'cadres' are to be formed, and a new (3rd) mortar regiment' has been formed on the western frontier. In the ten governments of Poland, all men of the militia (opolcheniye) who have passed through the army will be ready to be mobilised at the same time as the army itself.

For military purposes the Russian Empire is divided into 13 districts (including one province), and among these are distributed the 24 army corps of which (with the addition of some independent divisions) the army consists. An army corps has in general a staff, 2 infantry divisions, and 1 cavalry division (with attached artillery), a corps of engineers (consisting of 1 company of sappers, 1 telegraph company, 1 section of field engineers, and half a pontoon battalion), 1 battalion of train, and a section of the reserve horse depôt. Its normal strength is about 1,030 officers, 47,653 men, 16,965 horses, and 124 guns. The active army is supplemented by the Reserve troops, Depôt troops, Fortress troops, Local troops, and the Imperial militia, these supplementary forces being distributed among the various arms as shown in the following statement.