THE THREATENED WAR.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XII, Issue 95, 24 April 1877, Page 4

THE THREATENED WAR.

la view of the impending war the Auckland btar has compiled from the best modern authorities information which may be considered reliable of a statistical, and military character, showing the strength and resources of Russia aod Turkey, and the probable plan of the-campaign. From this we make the following extracts: — y Statistical. RUSSIA. AREA AND POPULATION. An Empire Said to comprise oneseventh of the territorial surface of tbe globe, stretching over a large portion of its northern regions, and approaching very nearly in extent to the dominion under British rale. In addition to Ra.Bia in Europe (exclusive of the Caucasus), eituate betweea lat. 45 9 — 7o° N. and and I7deg. 40n.ins— 64 deg. 30m ins E. long., and embracing more than half of tbat continent, it comprehends one-third of Asia, and, until lately, included also a large section of North Amerioa; the entire territory extending f.oin"3Bdeg. to77deg.3omin. N. lat., and irom 17deg. 40mins. to 19Qdeg. SOmiue. E. long. The empire comprises:— English Population European Russia:— S<_. Miles, ia 1870, Russia Proper (50 govt?.) . . 1,881,300 65,704,559 Poland . . 49,158 6,026,421 Finland . . 144,228 1,632,138 Asiatic Russia:— s CaucasfaV . . 172,843 4,893,332 Siberia . . 4,826,480 3,428,867 Central Asia (Turkestan, etc.) , 1,251,384 3,800,628 8,325,393 85,685,. 45 The established religion of the empire is the Russo-Greek Church, officially called tbe Orthodox Catholic Faith, but there are about 10,000,000 dissenters. The majority of the Poles, calculated

at 5,750,000, are Roman Catholics (the total number of Catholics being about 8,732,958); there are also 2,581,691 Lutherans, 7,216,583 Mahometans, 2,647,036 Jews, 597,820 Armenians, and 551,237 idolaters. European Russia consists of an immense plain, throughout its vast extent it does not contain a single mountain. The principal rivers are the Volga, Ural, Dnieper, Dniester, Don, Dwina, Duna,Neva. The Volga is the largest river in Europe, and is navigable almost to its

source. In Siberia, the Ob, Yenisei, Lena, and Amur, are each larger than the Volga, with many important tributaries j and the surface is mountainous, rising in many places far above the limit of perpetual snow. FEATURES OF THE COUNTRY. A great portion of Russian territory is totally unfit for cultivation; in the north the barren tundas are almost constantly frozen, producing Only moss; Finland is covered with lakes interspersed with rocks and sandhills; aod in the south, round the head of the Caspian Sea, is an immense sandy desert steppe; whilst all the interior provinces and nearly the whole of Siberia are clothed with forests. The

country between the Baltic and Black

Seas, however, is eminently fertile, , producing abundance of grain. The chief cereals raised are wheat, barley, oats, buckwheat, millet, and especially rye, the staple food of the inhabitants. Hemp and flax are extensively cultivated, and of late years potatoes and tobacco. The forests and woodlands of European Russia are exteneive, occupying an area of 500,000,000 acree. Oak, lime, maple and ash trees predominate. The Ural mountains, forming the boundary between Europe and Asia, which contain nearly all the mineral riches of the country, are the principal seat of mining and metallic industry; producing gold, platinum, copper, iroD, of very superior quality, rock salt, marble, and kaolin, or chinaclay. Silver, gold, aod lead are also obtained in large quantities from the mines iv the Altai mountains. An immense bed of coal, apparently inexhaustible, has been discovered near Xii .rkoff, in the basin of the Doneiz. With metallurgical and engineering factories, Russia presents many .xtf-n---sive manufacturing establishments, for weaving, tanning, furnishing, &c Linen is largely manufactured by hand looms, the chief operations consisting in spinniog and weaving flax and hemp. Woollen and worsted stuffs, floe iMoths, and mixed fabrics are also produced, The chief imports are sugar, coffee, tea, and colonial produce, woollens cottons, ond cotton cloths, silk, dyestuff', wine, fruits, machines, &o. The chief exports are grain, timber, hides, and skins, raw and dressed, flax, hemp, tallow, wool, linseed and hempseed. KUSSIAN ARMY. The nominal strength of the Russian army is about 1,300,000 on tbe war footing, and 765,000 on (be peace footing; tothelatler must be added 190,000 Cossacks on military service. The navy consist, of tbe Baltic fleet, tbat of the Black Sea, and of flotillas on tbe Aral and Caspian Seas, and in Siberiß, comprising about 175 steam vessels (of which 29 are ironclad, carrying 1,530 guns, besides others in construction, and 12 sailing vessels, chiefly transports. £ Public revenue, 1875 . . , 78,0.0,239 Pubiio expenditure, 1875 . . 75,0 0,339 Amount of public debt, 1874 . 2__,548J0. Unfunded do (paper money), '7s 109,67 1^700 Imports from United Kingdom, 1675 11,3.6,395 Exports to United Kingdom, '75 20,908,701 Capital, St. Petersburg ; population 670,000. British Ambassador, Bight Honorn—ble Lord Augustus W. F. S. Loftus, A.C.B. Salary, £7,800. L\ ■

TURKEY (xhb Ottoman Empirb). GEOGRAPHY AND POPULATION. This Empire comprehends all the countries under tbe authority of the Sultan — Turkey in Europe, Turkey in Asia, in Africa (Tripoli), Tributary Provinces in Europe (Roumania, Montenegro, and Servia), and in Africa (Egyptian territory nod Tunis), witb an area variously estimated at from 900,0Q0 to 1,800,000 square miles, the European portion being about 200,000, of which not one half are under the actual government of the Sultan, with a population which may be estimated at 25,000,000 to 48,000,000, according to the degree of allegiance under which they may be classed, coneisting of Turks, Greeks, Armenians, Jews, Sclaves, Roumans, and Albanians, Tartars, Arabs, Druses, Kurds, Turcomans, and Tsiganes; and various religions, as Mussulmans, Greeks, Armenians, Roman Catholics, Jewß,&c. Turkey in Europe and Turkey in Asia are designated " Turkey Proper." TURKEY IN EUROPE. Turkey in Europe, the smaller of the two divisions of Turkey Proper consists of eleven provinces: Roumelia Thessally, Albania, Herzegovinia, Montenegro, Bosnia, Croatia, Bulgaria, Servia, Moldavia, and Wallachia, but tbese divisions are not used for administrative purposes. It is divided into 5 vilayets, or governments, including the island of Crete, or Candia, in the Mediteraneao, but excluding the tributary principalities. Area, 140,560 square miles; population about 8,500,000 A great part of tbe surface is covered wilh mountains of moderate elevation; the Carpathians form a portion of the Northern boundary. Rivers are numerous, tbe principal of which are the Danube audits tributaries; this river ia placed under tbe administration of an international commission, representing seven European Powers, who have complete control o. tbe navigation, and the execution of public improvements. The soil is for the most part fertile, but, owing to various causes, little progress has been made in agriculture. The cultivated products are maize, rice, cotton, rye, barley, millet ; the natural products are the pine, beech, oak, lime, aud ash, with the apple, pear, oherry, and apricot in the basin of the Danube; tbe palm, maple, sycamore, waluot, chestnut carob, box, myrtle, laurel, &c, south of the BalkaD; large forests of pine and fir in the northr weat; the olive, orange, citron, vine, peach, plum, and fruit trees ia Albania; and abundanca of roses in the valley ot Maritza. The mineral products are iron in abundance, lead blended with silver, copper, sulphur, salt, alum, but no coal. Its manufactures are almost entirely domestic, such as woollen and cotton stuffs, shawls, leather, fire-arms; with dyeing and printing worke. Turkey in Asia, the largest of the two divisions, comprises Asia Minor, Syria, including Palestine, the greater part of Armenia and Kurdistan, Mesopotamia, (the valley of the Euphrates and Tigris), aud the western portion of Arabia, bordering tho Red Sea; with the district of El Haaa on tbe eastern side of the Persian Gulf; having a total area of 746,102 square miles and a population of 13,186,000 inhabitants. It is divided into 19 administrative provinces. ABMY AND NAVY. The military force of Turkey is divided into — The regular active army, of about 150,000 men, called "Nizam;" the reserve, or "Redif;" the contingents of auxiliaries, and tbe irregulars. At tbe end of 1876 there were more than 300,000 men actually under arms. The navy in 1875 consisted of about 165 vessels (of which 72 were steamers and 20 ironclads). EEYENUE AND NATIONAL DEBT. £ Estimated revenue, 1875-6 . 21,711565 E.tim.ted expendture, 1775-6 . 26,299,180 Foreign debt . . . , 185.000 <00 Interior consolidated debt, about 33,^)00,000 Floating debt. 1874, about . . 7,600,000 Total debt, 1874, about . . 225,000,000 Imports from G. X.— European Turkey, 1875 . . . . 4„07,500 Asiatic Turkey, 1876 . . 2,339,2a8 Exports to United Kingdom, 1875 2,924,341 ,i Asiatic Turkey, 1875 . 2,(33 1 373 The imports and exports are for Turkey Proper, excluding tha trade with Egypt, Roumania, &c, and the '-arbary States. Capital, Constantinople. Population. 1,075 600. British Ambassador, Right Hon. Sir Henry George Elliott, G.C.8.; salary, £8,000. ROUMANIA (Moldo-Wallachian Provisoes). Wallachia a province in lhe northeast of European Turkey, and the larger of the two Danubian Piiocipalities, comprises au area of 28,276 English square miles, with a population of about 2,700,000. The soil is amongst the richest in Europe, and, but for th 3 fearful surumsr droughts, would be also tho. most productive. Tbe climate is extreme, for summer heat, and winter coble are intense. Tlia agricultuial produce coDsiats of com, maizf, millet, beans and peas. Vines , aud fruiis of various kinds are abundant. The forests are very extensive. The imports are chiefly tho manufactured j goods of Weelern Europe, and the exports consist principally of wheat, ] barley, maize, rock-salt and cattle. I Moldavia, the lesser of the two I Danubian Principalities, situated in the N.E. extremity of European Turkey, comprises, with the new Bessarabian provinces, an area of 18,434 square miles, and a population of about 1,800,000. The soil, like tbat of Wallachia, is fertile in the extreme, but possesses also the same drawbacks together with great lock of cultivation ; nevertheless, it produces large quantities of grain, fruit, and wine. The