e north and east, in order,
are the chief seats of the industry. In Normandy the leading city is
Rouen, and Darnetal, Maromme, Sotteville, Havre, Yvetot, Dieppe,
Evreux, Gisors, Falaise and Flers are important places. The north
contains the important towns of Lille, Tourcoing, Roubaix, St
Quentin, Amiens and Hellemmes. The Vosges is the chief district of the
east, and the leading towns are Epinal, St Die, Remiremont, Senones,
Val d'Ajol, Cornimont and La Bresse. The following towns which are not
included in any of the districts mentioned above are also
noteworthy:--Troyes, Nantes, Cholet, Laval, Tarare, Roanne, Thizy and
Villefranche upon the Saone. Cotton arrives at Havre and Marseilles;
at the latter chiefly the product of Egypt and the East. Havre used to
be the most important cotton port in continental Europe, but to-day
more spindles are fed from Bremen than from Havre. France's
consumption of cotton annually in the period 1899-1903 was 215,000
metric tons.

_Russia._--Power-spinning was carried into Russia by Ludwig Knoop, who
had learnt the trade in Manchester, and to his efforts its early
success was due. The growth, largely the result of very heavy
protectionism--according to the Board of Trade report, from 50 to more
than 100% more severe than that of Germany,--has been rapid, as the
following table bears witness:--

_Average yearly Importation of Cotton wool and Yarn into Russia._

+-----------+----------------+----------------+
| | Raw Cotton in | Cotton Yarn in |
| | thousand tons. | thousand tons. |
+-----------+----------------+----------------+
| 1824-1826 | .9 | 5.4 |
| 1836-1838 | 4.6 | 10.1 |
| 1842-1844 | 8.4 | 9.5 |
| 1848-1850 | 21.4 | 4.5 |
| 1889-1891 | 117.4 | 3.4 |
| 1899-1903 | 180.0 | 2.9 |
+-----------+----------------+----------------+

_Table showing approximately the Growth of Spindles and Looms in
Russia._

+---------+---------------+----------------+
| | Spindles. | Looms. |
+---------+---------------+----------------+
| 1857 | 1,000,000 | |
| 1877 | | 55,000 |
| 1887 | 4,000,000 | 85,000 |
| 1900 | 6,000,000 | 146,