CHAPTER II

ACTIVITIES OF THE ZEMSTVO INSTITUTIONS
ON THE EVE OF THE WAR

Revenue and Expenditure.

In 1918 the territory in which the zemstvo institutions functioned
covered an area of 3,200,000 square versts," with a population of
112,500,000, of whom 98,200,000 were rural. The whole of European
 and Asiatic Russia, excluding Finland, had an area of 18,-B00,000
 square versts, with a population of 170,900,000.
The budget of all the provincial and district zemstvos in the fortythree
 provinces possessing these institutions amounted to 347,512,-000
 rubles in 1914. The zemstvo revenues were derived from the following
 sources?

Revenue in 191).

Taxation:
Land and forests
Urban real estate
Factories and other property outside cities

Total revenues from real estate
Government subventions
Other revenues

Grand Total

In rubles

Percentage

142,543,000
21,353,000
86.224.000

42.4
6.4
10.8

59.6
20.1
20.3
886.373.0000 100.0

We have already had occasion to point out how rapidly the financial
 support of the zemstvos by the Government increased after the
revolution of 1905. Quite insignificant as late as 1908, the government
 subsidies in 1914 already amounted to one-fifth of all the revenues.
 Still, the principal source of revenue remained the same as it
had been at the time the zemstvos were established ; that is, taxation
of land and forests (42.4 per cent).
1 One square mile = 2.7 square versts.
* These figures cover forty out of the forty-three zemstvo provinces.