attaining to the Syr or the Aral. ' The Nura, for
instance, runs through a closed basin, having for a
central lake a sheet of water of small dimensions,
bearing the name of “ Denghiz,” or Sea, which may
perchance testify to its having covered a larger area
at some former period.
The climate of the province is decidedly cold, as
we were reminded by some officers travelling from
the south, who met us near the Irtish, and who ran
into the post-house to put on underclothing, and
exclaimed that they were approaching Siberia! At
Omsk, in 1879, the ice of the river did not break
up till April 12th,* and froze again on October 28th,
and the I shim at Akmolinsk and Petropavlovsk was
open only from April 6th to October 26th, and April
3rd to October 28th respectively. Again, at Omsk
the temperature ranged in the same year between a
minimum in December of —43'6, and a maximum in
July of +102-20; whilst at Akmolinsk the thermometer
sunk lower in December, namely, to -50-3, and rose
in August only to + 97’7-t
- The province is divided into the uyezds of Akmolinsk,
Atbasarsk, Kokchetovsk, Petropavlovsk, and
Omsk, of which the populations may be grouped into
120,000 settlers, and 340,000 nomads, the former
occupying 1.1,000, and the latter no less than 200,000
square miles, or an area the size of Spain. The
density of population varies considerably in the different
uyezds, as does the proportion of nomads to settlers ,
for whereas in Omsk there are more settlers than
nomads, and in Petropavlovsk they are about equal,
in Kokchetovsk the nomads double in number the
* A ll these dates are O. S.
f For Meteorology of Omsk, 1877, see pp. 48-49.
settlers, and in Akmolinsk and Atbasar for every
settler there are 28 and 47 nomads respectively.
Uyezd.
Area. Population. Density of Popula- dumber
tiontosq. mile. Nomads
Settlers. Nomads. Settlers. Nomads. Settlers.
1- . Lu I
Nomads. Settler.
Akmolinsk
Atbasarsk ' .
Kokchetovsk .
Petropavlovsk.
Omsk
Sq. miles.
206 *2
110*5
2>324 ‘5
4,316-9
4,o72’6
Sq. miles.
87,254
50,534
25,671
22, 47i
*3,974
4,367
1,324
27,129
42.683
44,3 i 2
121,265
61,941
62,984
57;25i
35,562
21*17
10*01
9 3
9 7
io '8
r "3 27-8
1*0 I 46*8
2 2 2*3
2*5 ! 1 *3
2*5 L o*b
11,0307 199,904 119,815 339,003 60'98 ■ 9-5 m
The minerals of the province are coal, copper, gold,
and salt. There is a coal mine in the valley of the
Nura, near the source of the Sokur, and some few
other mines about the sources of the Sari-Su.* With
regard to agriculture, the Russians cultivate rye, wheat,
oats, barley, buckwheat, a few other kinds of corn, and
potatoes. The total quantity of seed sown throughout
the province in 1880 amounted to 31,066 quarters, which
yielded 148,845, being in the proportion of 1 to 4-7, or
nearly a fivefold harvest.! This agricultural produce,
however, would not suffice to supply the Russian
* In 1880 the quantity obtained of coal was 19,772 tons, of copper
2,74° tons, and of gold 62 lbs. (avoirdupois), which, as compared with
the previous year, represented an increase of 3,7x5 tons in coal, and
gold 28 lbs., but the copper a decrease of 1,240 tons.
t A comparison of the preceding 10 years'shows the ratio between
sowing and reaping to have been lowest in 1879, 1 to 2-6; and
highest in 1876, 1 to 7-2 ; the average of the ten years being 4 7 . It
may also be observed that whilst, in 1880, the uyezd of Atbasar yielded
a tenfold, and Akmolinsk nearly a ninefold, Omsk barely attained to a
fourfold harvest. The following shows the number of quarters of various
products sown and reaped throughout the province in 1880 :_
Rye. Wheat. Oats. Barley.
I
Buckwheat, jOcher grain. Potatoes.
Sown .
Reaped
6,985
39,028
11,908
58,351
7,275
32,237
t-3 4 1
5,087
x7 . i 75
' 55' - j ' 653
3,363
11,903