SYSTEMS   OF   CULTIVATION  AND  AUXILIARY   PURSUITS.
at the lowest prices of 20 kopeks to 1 rouble the vedro; and in the Crimea only 8000 desiatines, with a production of 1'/a million vedros, which, however is the best south coast wine. Wine is also made in Turkistan, in the Don territory, (the well known Tsimlyansky wine)r and in several southern provinces. Altogether the total extent of all Russian vineyards is calculated at 225,000 desiatines, with an average production of 28 million vedros of wine. Consequently, Russia produces 10 times less wine than Italy, 9 times less than France, 7 times less than Spain, and less even than Portugal and Algeria. At the same time, the area of viniculture in the Caucasus, Crimea and Bessarabia might be 10 times as large;, but progress is very slow, owing to the phyloxera, which. was first discovered in the Crimea in 1880, and afterwards in other localities. The Government has given very serions attention to the means of combatting this-disease of the vine, and for that purpose a special Commission was formed under the direction of Adjutant General Baron Korff, who was subsequently appointed to-the General Governorship of the Amoor territory. That officer succeeded in destroying the infected vineyards;, but unfortunately the phyloxera spread to other localities. During the last few years attempts have been made to cure the vines; but on the whole, this operation, on. which some 135,000 roubles a year have been spent, cannot be considered as complete.
The cultivation of the tobacco plant is carried on in 50 provinces of European Russia, in the Caucasus and Siberia. It is more extensive in Little Russia, where the
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