IRBIT, a town of European Russia in the government of Perm, 70 miles north-east of Ekaterinburg, at the confluence of the Irbit with the Nitza, a sub-tributary of the Obi. Though the St Petersburg Calendar for 1878 gives the permanent population as only 4212 (in 1860 the number was 3403), it is one of the most important trade centres of northern Russia, and during its great fair (February 1-13 to March 1-13) it is visited by upwards of 20,000 people. Among its public buildings are a theatre, an exchange, a bank (established in 1849, with a capital of 30,000 roubles), and a district school. Irbit was originally founded by Tartars in 1633, but the discovery of iron ore in the neighborhood soon attracted Russian settlers. The