1. Study the key vocabulary:

to inspire the new life – вдохнуть новую жизнь

mining industry - горнодобывающая промышленность

to submit an application – подавать заявку

right to prospect – право на исследование

gold-mine - золотой прииск

black coal –каменный уголь

polimetal deposit – месторождение полиметалла

unquestionable advantage – неоспоримое преимущество

insolvable contradiction – неразрешимое противоречие

2. Match the following columns:

to inspire mining industry to submit application to prospect gold-mine black coal deposit unquestionable advantage insolvable contradiction

to develop to resolve to have oil petition fresh air to fill in to mine resources right question

3. Make up sentences with the phrases from exercise 2.

4. Translate into English:

•Время от времени рыбы всплывают на поверхность воды, чтобы вдохнуть свежего воздуха.

•На Дальнем Востоке хорошо развита горнодобывающая промышленность.

•Прежде, чем получить визу, нужно подать заявку и заполнить специальную форму.

•Г.И. Невельской получил право на исследование Амура только после того, как сумел доказать императору важность этой реки для России.

•После продажи Аляски там было обнаружено золото, и массы людей отправились туда на поиски золотых приисков.

•С древних времен люди использовали каменный уголь для обогрева своих жилищ.

•В тайге ученые обнаружили богатые месторождения полиметаллов.

•Россия имела неоспоримое преимущество перед другими странами на владение и развитие Дальнего Востока.

•Итогом этой встречи было подписание договора о разрешении неразрешимых, как казалось, противоречий между двумя странами.

5. Scan the text: Prerequisites for the Rapid Growth and Decay of Some Far Eastern Territories

The turn of the 19^th century was marked by a rapid growth of industry in the Russian Far East. It was caused by the generally favorable political atmosphere as well as by the construction of the Great Trans-Siberian Railway (Transsib) which had inspired the new life in the remote corner of Russia. Minister of Finance Witte wrote about itthe following:”The Siberian mainland opens a new way for us and new horizons for the world trade. …. It would start a new era in the history of mankind and initiate a radical revolution in the stable economic relations between the countries.”

The following figures would be of interest: while a decade before the Transsib construction (1880-1889) some 24,400 people came to these areas, and about 45,500 during the period of construction, 172,500 people came to the southern regions of the Far East in the first decade of the century, mainly by the railway. They were mostly the migrating peasants who wanted to populate that territory.

In these years, the mining industry had been rapidly developing. For instance, in 1894 only ten applications were submitted to the name of the Governor General of Priamurye Territory requesting the right to prospect mineral resources, but the number increased to 43 in 1896.

The gold-mines used to take the leading positions in the mining industry. The annual produce of the Zeya Company amounted to 140 pood of gold in the eightieth. In 1897, the “Amur Gold-Miming Company” was founded at the Amur, which produced 45 pood of gold a year. Primorye Region boasted lots of produced gold as well.

Black coal production was the second by importance in the mining industry, been required by the necessity to supply both the navy and civil national fleet with fuel from independent coal bases.

The first commercial coal fields were discovered in Sakhalin, Suchan basin, Uglovaya and Ussurijsk areas (Primorye Region). Rich oil fields were discovered in the in Sakhalin Island. A polimetal deposit was surveyed in the north of Primorye Region.By the beginning of the twentieth century the southern regions of Priamurye and Primorye had become the center of the Russian life in the Far East.

But the construction of China – East Railway and non-freezing ports of Dalny* and Port-Arthur* in the Liaodun Peninsula leased from China for 25 years, had attracted thousands of Russian traders and entrepreneurs which had laid the foundation for Russian life in this territory in unprecedented short time. The cities of Khabarovsk and Vladivostok had been gradually loosing their positions in the economic activity, being replaced with Harbin and Dalny, which had unquestionable advantages over Khabarovsk and Vladivostok.

The modern city of Harbin originated in 1898 from a small village, with the start of the construction of the Chinese Eastern Railway (KVZhD) by Russia, an extension of the Trans-Siberian Railway, shortcutting substantially the distance to Vladivostok and creating a link

to the port city of Dalny (today’s Dalian) and the Russian Naval Base Port Arthur.

Harbin was located at the crossroads of the most important railway lines, connecting Russia with Primorye, Manchuria, and the Yellow Sea coast. The ports Dalny and Port-Arthur, in contrast to Vladivostok and Khabarovsk, were located at the shore of the non-freezing harbor in the very center of important navigation lines. Thus, the Russian government had to use most of money resources for these cities, which were called the Eastern Paris and Eastern Odessa.

Harbin was located at the crossroads of the most important railway lines, connecting Russia with Primorye, Manchuria, and the Yellow Sea coast. The ports Dalny and Port-Arthur, in contrast to Vladivostok and Khabarovsk, were located at the shore of the non-freezing harbor in the very center of important navigation lines. Due to insolvable contradictions between Russia and Japan, the Manchurian version of the Russian colonization of the Far East had resulted in the Russia- Japan War of 1904 -1905. After that War Russia had lost its positions in Manchuria, almost the whole navy, and the southern part of Sakhalin. So the Russian colonization in the East started with conquering of Siberia by Yermak had terminated after the Russia-Japan War. Russia had come out to the natural borders washed by the Pacific Ocean and continued the development of that territory.