Page images
PDF
EPUB

British Possessions—The Dominion of Canada.

stalments. More than 84,000 acres on eight of the great colonization roads are set apart for free grants in lots of too acres each. In some parts of the province, again, farm lots are offered at 30 cents per acre.

ONTARIO. Population, 1,973,228. The Government is vested in a Lieut.-Governor and Legisla. tive Assembly composed of 88 members elected for four years (no property qualification being necessary), representing 88 electoral districts into which the province is divided, but which differ from those sending members to the Dominion Legislature. The Executive Council consists of six members, acting as the ministry of the province; the legislature meets every year at Toronto. The principal cities are Toronto, the capital of the province, with great shipping interests on the Lakes, and the chief centre of industrial and commercial activity (population, 125,000); Hamilton, the Birmingham of Canada (35,965); Ottawa, the Federal Capital, with a large lumber trade and woodenware manufactories (30,344); London (19,746), Kingston (14,093), Guelph (9,890), St. Catherine's (9,631), Brantford (9,616), Belleville (9,516), St. Thomas (8,367), and Stratford (8,239). Lieut.-Gov., Hon. John Beverley Robinson £2,000 Priv. Sec. & A.-de-C., Capt. Gamble Geddes Att.-Gen.,Hon. Oliver Mowat, LL.D. (Prem.) 1,000 Minister of Education, Hon. G. W. Ross.. 800 Provincial Sec., Hon. A. S. Hardy Treas, & Comm. Agricult., Hon. A. M. Ross Comm, of Crown Lands, Hon. T. B. Pardee Comm, of Pub. Works, Hon. C. F. Fraser. Chief Justice of Ontario, Hn. J. H. Hagarty Puisne Judges, Court of Appeal, Hons. George William Burton, C. S. Patterson, and J. C. Morrison... each C. J. Queen's Bench, Hon. Adam Wilson .. Puisne Judges, ditto, Hon. J. D. Armour and Hon. John O'Connor ...each C. J. Com. Pleas, Hon. M. C. Cameron.... Paisne Judges, Com. Pleas, Hon. Thomas Galt and F. Osler .each Chancellor, Hon. John A. Boyd.

Hon. W. Proudfoot..

240

800

800

800

800

1,400

1,200
1,404

1,200

1,400

1,200

1,200 1,200

Vice-Chancellors, Hon. Thos. Ferguson 1,000 Emigration Agent in England, P. Byrne, Nottingham Buildings, 19, Brunswick St., Liverpool. QUEBEC. Population, 1,359,027. The Government of this province is vested in a Lt.-Governor and a Legislative Council, consisting of 24 members appointed for life, and a Legislative Assembly of 65 members elected for five years to represent the same number of electoral districts in this province. The principal cities are Quebec, with a large export timber trade (population, 65,000), the capital of the province, and the great seaport town of Canada; and Montreal (population in 1881, 173,000), the commercial metropolis, and the principal centre of the grain export trade north of New York, situate at the confluence of the Ottawa and St. Lawrence rivers. Other important towns are Three Rivers (8,670), Levis (7.597), Hull (6,890), Sherbrooke (7,227). Ocean-going steamers ascend the St. Lawrence as far as Montreal. The tonnage of inland vessels that arrived in port in 1885 was 724,975 tons; that of sea-going vessels has increased from 391,180 tons in 1876 to 683,854 tons in 1885. Lieut.-Gov., Hon. L. R. Masson

£2,000

4.-de-C., Captain Sheppard, c.a. Attorney-Gen., Hon. L. O. Taillon, Q.c... 1,000

[ocr errors]

Treasurer, Hon. J. G. Robertson
Comm. of Agriculture and Public Works,
Hon. J. J. Ross (Premier)..
Com. of Crown Lands, Hu. W.W. Lynch,q.c.
Comm. of Railways & Sol.-Gen., Hon. E. J.
Flynn

403
£800

800 800

800

800

Proc. Secretary, Hon, Jean Blanchet, q.c.
Chief Jus. Queen's Bench, Sir A.Dorion, Knt. 1,200
Puisne Judges, Hons. S. C. Monk, T. K.
Ramsay, U. J. Tessier, A. Cross, and
G. Baby..
each 1,000

Chief Jus. Sup. Court, Hon. Andrew Stuart.
Puisne Judges, F. W. Torrance, F. G. Johnson,
L. V. Sicotte, L. E. N. Casault, A. B. Routhier,
Thos. McCord, M. Doherty, L. Belanger, H.
W. Chagnon, M. A. Plamondon, L. B. Caron,
F. Rainville, J. B. Bourgeois, A. C. Papineau,
L. A. Jetté, H. T. Taschereau, C. Gill, A. R.
Angers, W. McDougall, M. Mathieu, E. Cimon,
J. C. Würtele, E. T. Brooks, J. A. Mousseau,
Fred. A. Andrews...
...each £800

NOVA SCOTIA, the most easterly province of the Dominion, is a peninsula between 43° 30′-46° N. lat. and 61°-66° 15′ W. long., and is connected with New Brunswick by a low fertile isthmus about sixteen miles wide. It comprises an area (with Cape Breton Island) of 21,731 square miles, one-fifth part of which consists of lakes, rivers, and inlets of the sea; of the whole, about 5,000,000 acres are fit for tillage, that is, nearly half the entire area, and the soil in the western half of the province, particularly in the Annapolis Valley and around the Basin of Minas, is unsurpassed for fertility, owing to the rich marine deposits left on the shore-land by the tides of the Bay of Fundy. According to the returns included in the 1881 census, the occupied land amounted to 5,396,382 acres, of which 1,880,644 acres were improved-1,859,020 acres being under crop and pasture, and 21,624 acres devoted to orchards and gardens. The live stock returns at the same date were as follows:-Horses, 46,044; colts, 11,123; working oxen, 33,275; milch cows, 137,639; other horned cattle, 154,689; sheep, 337,801; swine, 47,256. The wool sold in the year amounted to 1,142,440 lbs. The following figures represent, in bushels per acre, the average yield of crops in the western counties: Wheat, 18; barley, 35; oats, 34; rye, 21; maize, 42; buckwheat, 33; beans, 22; turnips, 420; potatoes, 250; mangolds, 500. The average yield of hay was two tons per acre; but as much as 4 tons (1 Canadian ton 2,000 lbs.) of Timothy grass and clover were obtained in some parts, followed by a fairly good aftermath. Fruit cultivation too is making wonderful progress; apples, which were imported into the province thirty years ago, now send to Europe a shipment of nearly 500,000 barrels of three bushels each, worth in the English market about 228. per barrel. In 1885 the total agricultural export of the province, which is expected to largely develop, inclusive of cattle sent to Europe, potatoes to the United States, and apples shipped at Annapolis, was valued at £1,004,540. Population of the whole province (1881), 440.572. Halifax, the capital of the province, has a magnificent harbour covering to square miles. It is the principal winter port of Canada, and is the entrepôt of a large trade with the West Indies and South America. It is the principal naval station of North America, and the British Government have an extensive dockyard_there. The coal deposits are extensive and of good

quality, iron-ores are plentiful, and gold mines have also been worked with profit. The principal fisheries are upon the eastern coast. In 1884 the total value of their produce was 8,736,264 dollars, a considerable increase on previous years, and specially noticeable in cod, mackerel, herring, salmon, and lobsters. The manufacturing interest is also a growing one. In order to give an impetus to farming, efforts are being used to induce the Government to establish an agricultural college and experimental farm. Improved farms of 100 to 150 acres, with house and buildings, may be obtained at from £100 to £500, whilst the government offer uncleared Crown lands at £8 168. per 100 acres, and 18. 10d. per acre for any additional quantity. Hunting, shooting, and fishing abound; among wild animals there are bears, foxes, moose, deer, otter, mink, sable, musquash, hares, racoons, and squirrels, and among the feathered game are the woodcock, plover, snipe, partridges, ducks, geese, curlew. CAPE BRETON ISLAND, formerly a distinct colony, now incorporated with Nova Scotia, contains an area of 3.125 square miles, with a population of 34,262 inhabitants. The chief town is Sydney, on the eastern coast, having valuable collieries in the neighbourhood.

Nova Scotia has a Provincial Government, administered by a Lieutenant-Governor, aided by an Executive Council, a Legislative Council of seventeen members, and a Legislative Assembly of thirty-seven members.

CAPITAL, Halifax. Population, 40,000. Principal towns, Dartmouth, Truro, Windsor, Sydney, and Yarmouth.

Lieut.-Governor, M. H. Richey, Q.c.

Private Sec., Lieut.-Col. H. W. Clerke.. Prov. Sec., Hon. W. S. Fielding (Premier) Com. Mines & Work Hon. Charles E. Church..

£1,800

250

480

400

320

1,000

1,000

800

Attorney-Gen., Hon. J. W. Longley Chief Justice, Hon. James Mc Donald Judge in Equity, Hon. Alexander James.. Puisne Judges, Hons. Hugh McDonald, H. W. Smith, Robt. L. Weatherbe, Samuel G. Rigby, and J. Norman Ritchie.. ea. NEW BRUNSWICK is situated between 45°-48° N. lat. and 63° 47'-69° W. long., and comprises an area of 27,322 square miles, with a population in 1881 of 321,233. It was first colonized by British subjects in 1761, and in 1783 by disbanded troops from New England. The chief industrial pursuits arise from the produce of the forests, the fisheries, and the shipbuilding trade. Coal is found; also antimony, copper, iron, manganese, and other valuable minerals in considerable quantities. With reference to the agriculture of the province, in 1881 there were 1,253,299 acres under cultivation, though the acreage of improved land was barely one-tenth part of the area suitable for agriculture. The total yield for the same year was as follows:-Wheat, 521,956 bushels; barley, 84,183 bushels; oats, 3,297,534 bushels; buckwheat, 1,587,223 bushels; potatoes, 6,961,016 bushels; and hay, 414,046 tons. The total acreage of wheat was 40,381, with an average yield of 13 bushels to the acre; of potatoes, 51,362 acres, with an average yield of 135'5 bush.; and of hay, 389,721 acres-average yield per acre 1'06 tons. The live stock returns were as follow:- Horses, 52,975; working oxen, 8,812;

milch cows, 103,965; other horned cattle, 99,783; sheep, 221,163; and swine, 53,087. Free grants of land are offered, and settlement encouraged. Improved farms are obtainable at reasonable rates. The fisheries include salmon, cod, mackerel, herring, and shad, and were in 1884 of the value of 3,185,675 dollars, ranking (among those of the maritime provinces) second in importance to those of Nova Scotia. ST. JOHN is also a winter port of Canada; and new railway connections are in progress which will add to its importance and increase its trade.

The Provincial Government of New Brunswick is administered by a Lieutenant-Governor, assisted by an Executive Council, a Legislative Council of seventeen members, and a Legislative Assembly of forty-one members elected by the people.

CAPITAL, Fredericton. Pop. (1886), 6,218; chief cities, St. John (30,000), Portland (15,226), and Moncton (5,032).

Lieut.-Governor, Hon. Sir Samuel Leonard
Tilley, K.C.M.G....

£1,800

420

300

420

340

340

Pres. of Council, Hon. T. F. Gillespie.
Attorney-Gen., Hon. A. G. Blair (Premier)
Solicitor-Gen., Hon. R. J. Ritchie..
Provincial Sec., Hon. Daniel McLellan
Comm, Public Works, Hon. P. G. Ryan
Surveyor-Gen., Hon. James Mitchell
Chief Justice, Hon, J. C. Allen
Judge, Vice-Admiralty, Hon. Chas. Watters.
Puisne Judges, A. R. Wetmore, A. L. Palmer, G.
E. King, J. J. Fraser, W. H. Tuck.

1,250

Its

MANITOBA, formerly the Red River Settlement, was formed into a distinct province in 1870, and admitted into the Confederation in the same year. It is situated in about the centre of the continent, between 49°-53° N. lat. and 90-101 W. long. (these parallels and meri. dians forming its boundaries), and the Canadian Pacific Railway connecting the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, entirely through British territory, is sure to give an important impetus to the rapid development of this province. area is computed at 73,720 square miles, and its population is now (1886) reckoned at 130,000. The Red River intersects the province, which appears destined to become a great agricultural country. The soil is fertile and productive, emigration is invited and encouraged, and liberal grants of land are made to settlers. According to the official returns for 1884, there were 232,357 acres ploughed that year in Manitoba. The eastern group had 49,022 tons of prairie hay saved, showing an average yield of 145 tons per acre; the central group had 83,574 tons, average 1'91 tons; the western group had 94,507 tons, average 182 tons. The total amount of prairie hay and culti vated grasses saved was 233.735 tons, being an increase of more than 10,0co tons over the preceding year. The number of acres sown with wheat was 307,020, and the average yield per acre, as deduced from the threshers' returns, was 198 bushels, while the total yield for the entire province was 6,076,122 bushels. acreage of barley was 40,548, the average yield per acre (furnished by the threshers) was 25'5 bushels, and the total yield 1,041,539 bushels. The corresponding figures for other crops were as follow:-Oats, 133,004 acres, total yield 4,048,217 bush., average per acre 30'44 bush.; peas, 5,342 acres, total 95.417 bush., average 18'62 bush.; flax, 5,972 acres, total 86,863 bush.,

The

British Possessions-The Dominion of Canada.

average 14'56 bush.; potatoes, 11,267 acres, total 2,167,820 bush., average 192 bush.; turnips, 2,728 acres, total yield 1,148,756 bush.; beet, 520 acres, total 130,497 bush.; mangolds, 912 acres, total 350,743 bush.; carrots, 653 acres, total 177,221 bush. The breeding of horses is being prosecuted with much success, and in 1884 the total number in the province was 20,071; while the cattle amounted to 64.011, and the hogs to 44,901. The main line of the Canadian Pacific Railway traverses Manitoba, and there are other lines in operation. The Red and Assiniboine rivers are also navigable throughout their entire course in the province.

The Government of the Province is administered by a Lieutenant-Governor, assisted by an Executive Council of 5 members and a Legisla tive Assembly of 20 members.

800

600

CAPITAL, Winnipeg. Population (1886), 30,000.
Principal towns, Portage la Prairie and Brandon.
Lieut-Governor, Hon. James Cox Aikins.. £2,000
Private Secretary, W. T. Kirby.
Treasurer, Hon. John Norquay (Premier)
Public Works, Hon. C. Partlow Brown....
Agric. Statist., &c., Hon. A.A. C. La Rivière
Provincial Sec., Hon. David Hen. Wilson
Att.-General, Hon. Chas. Edwd. Hamilton
Chief Justice, Hon. Lewis Wallbridge....
Puisne Judges, Hons. Joseph Dubuc, T. W.
Wardlaw Taylor, and Albert Clement
Killam...

each

600 600

600

1,000

800

NORTH-WEST TERRITORIES. -This Province comprises nearly the whole of British North America from the boundary of the United States (lat. 49° N.) to the most northerly part of the continent, and from the western shores of Hudson Bay to the Rocky Mountains. The area is calculated at 2,553,337 square miles, but it is very sparsely inhabited, the estimated population being only 56,446, of whom 25,000 are Indians. Out of this vast territory, in 1882, the Dominion Government formed, for the convenience of settlers and for postal purposes, four provisional districts named severally Assiniboia (89,700 sq. miles); Saskatchewan (106,700 square miles), Alberta (106,500 square miles), and Athabasca (105,500 square miles). The whole of this territory is stated to possess varied and great resources, over 150,000 square miles being reported favourable for stock-raising and agriculture, the former being largely followed in Alberta, where the climate is milder, owing to the influence of the winds from the Pacific Ocean. Both Assinibois and Alberta are traversed by the Canadian Pacific Railway, and settlement is rapidly taking place along its route, and generally throughout the territory, where many other railways have been projected. It has large mineral deposits, iron, coal, and gold having been found. Coal is abundant in all districts, especially in Alberta, where mines are now being worked, and are connected by a branch line with the Canadian Pacific Railway. It is watered by some of the finest rivers on the American continent, and it is estimated that there are about 10,000 miles of navigable waters within its boundaries. The fur trade was till recently almost the sole commerIn 1870 it cial occupation of the inhabitants. was included in the Dominion. Free grants of 160 acres of land are given to settlers free of cost, and they can pre-empt a similar quantity in addition at from 8. to ios. per acre.

The Government consists of a Lieut.-Governor and a Council of 19, partly elective and partly

405

appointed by the Privy Council of the Dominion.
As soon as districts of 1,000 square miles contain
a population of 1,000, exclusive of aliens and
Indians, they are to be constituted electoral dis-
tricts, and return a member.

£1,400

CAPITAL, Regina. Population (1883), 1,000.
Lieut.-Gov., Hon. Edgar Dewdney
Private Sec.& Clerk of Council, A.E. Forget.
Stipend. Magistrates, Lt.-Col. Hugh Richard-
son, Lt.-Col. J. F. McLeod, c.M.G., C. B.
Rouleau.

Com. of Police, Lt.-Col. A. G. Irvine
Registrar, W. J. Scott

Sheriff, S. E. St. O. Chapleau

. each 600

520

400

400

PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND, the last admitted province, lies in the southern part of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, between New Brunswick and Cape Breton, that is to say between 46°-47° N. lat. and 62°-64° 30' W. long. It is about 140 breadth; its area is 2,133 square miles (about miles in length, and from 4 to 34 miles in equal to that of the English county of Norfolk), and its population (1881) 108,891. The history of the island is somewhat strange: it was discovered simultaneously with the neighbouring countries, and was first settled by the French, who held it for many years, but only as a fishing station. The English took it from them in 1745, but afterwards restored it; they seized it again, however, during the Seven Years' War (17561763), and compelled the greater part of its French inhabitants to leave. From that time it has remained, without intermission, in the hands of the English. By an Act passed in 1798, which came into operation 1st February, 1799, the island received its present name from Prince Edward, Duke of Kent. The island is divided into three counties (King's, Queen's, and Prince), each of which elects 10 representatives and 4 councillors. The freehold of the island was originally held by a number of absentee landlords, who were finally bought out under the Land Purchase Act of 1875. Its inhabitants are almost exclusively engaged in agriculture, considerable attention, however, being devoted The soil consists for the most to the fisheries and to the breeding of horses and sheep. rich red loam, uniform in chapart of a racter and peculiarly suited to the growth The rivers, too, contain extenof grasses. sive deposits of what is known as mussel mud, which is raised in the winter by a dredging machine worked on the ice, and afterwards used on the land as a fertiliser, where it helps largely in producing excellent crops of hay.

The conditions obtaining on the island are favourable for the rearing of live stock, of which a large number are exported to other parts of the Dominion and the New England States of America. Nearly the whole of the land is now cleared, and improved farms can be bought at about 20 dollars an acre.

The Provincial Government is vested in a Lieut.-Governor and an Executive Council, a Legislative Council of 13 members, and a Legislative Assembly of 33 members, both houses being elected by the people.

CAPITAL, Charlottetown, on the shore of Hills. borough Bay, which forms a good harbour. Population, 11,485.

Georgetown, on the cast coast, is also a port of considerable size, and the centre of a good ship-building trade.

Lieut.-Gov., Hon. A. A. Macdonald
Prem, & Att.-Gen., Hn. W.W.Sullivan,Q.c.
Prov. Sec. & Trea., Hon. Donald Ferguson
Com, for Public Works, Hn. W. Campbell-
Chief Justice and Judge of Vice-Admiralty
Court, Hon. Edward Palmer
Assistant Judge of Superior Court, & Master
of the Rolls, Hon. James H. Peters....
Assist, Judge & V.-C., Hn. Joseph Hensley

822

657

657

.£1,400 development of colonies an extensive railway 267 system is a most important auxiliary, so much 267 so indeed that during the decade 1875-84 the mileage opened for traffic was more than doubled, the increase being from 4,800 miles in 1875 to 10,773 miles in 1885. By far the most important line is the great Canadian Pacific Railway, stretching across the entire continent, not only from Montreal to Port Moody on the coast of British Columbia, but even for a few miles beyond, since its western terminus is at Coal Harbour (to be known in future as Vancouver), a total distance of about 3,000 miles. The main line, starting from Quebec, runs to Montreal, then through Ottawa, Carleton Junc tion, Renfrew, North Bay, Sudbury Junction, Port Arthur, Ignace, Winnipeg, Carberry, Brandon, Moosomin, Qu'Appelle, Regina, Moose Jaw, Swift Current, Maple Creek, Medicine Hat, Crowfoot, Calgary, and Stephen- the lastnamed on the summit of the Rocky Mountains, besides a large number of other places.*-The first through-train for the Rocky Mountains left Montreal at the end of November, 1885; and trains have been running right through from the Atlantic to the Pacific since June, 1886. Fortunately, the constructors of this gigantic work found themselves largely aided by the natural features of the land crossed; the level character of the prairie, for example, rendered cuttings and embankments unnecessary, and, with the exception of the stations, the track is single, without boundary fences, and slightly raised above the ground on either side. In the Rocky Mountains, however, the engineering difficulties were enormous, and more than 300 miles of line were cut through the solid rock; while no fewer than 25,000 men were engaged on the work as it drew near to completion. The various advantages which this line possesses over the Central Pacific Railway may easily be gathered from the following statement of facts:-(1) The highest pass reached by the former is 3,372 feet above sealevel, while the Central Pacific has to attain an clevation of 7,534 feet. (2) From Port Moody to Montreal the distance by rail is 2,895 miles; from San Francisco to New York the distance is 3,363 miles. (3) The distance from China, Japan, and the Pacific coast generally to Liverpool is from 1,000 to 1,200 miles less by the Canadian Pacific Railway than by the Central

BRITISH COLUMBIA is situated on the west coast of North America, in 43° 20' to 57° N. lat., and between it and the Rocky Mountains, and extends from 114° to 143° W. long., including Vancouver Island and Queen Charlotte Islands, incorporated with British Columbia by Act of Parliament in 1860. VANCOUVER ISLAND lies between N. lat. 48° 20-50° 55' and W. long. 123° 10-128° 20'. It is about 290 miles in length, with an average breadth of 50 miles; its area is estimated at 14,000 square miles, the greater part of which is at present unexplored. The country is fertile, well watered, and rich in mineral products; and the coasts have numerous good harbours. In 1859 it became a British colony, and in 1866 was united to British Columbia. QUEEN CHARLOTTE ISLANDS are a group of islands in the North Pacific Ocean, off the coast of British Columbia and North of Vancouver Island; they consist of two larger and several smaller islands, the greatest length of the two larger being about 160 miles, and the greatest breadth about 70 miles. The climate is good, and the whole group is covered with splendid forests. Minerals abound, gold-bearing quartz of a rich quality having been found, also copper and iron ores, and an excellent vein of anthracite coal. The islands were taken possession of, in the name of the British Crown, by Dixon in 1787. The total area of the province is calculated at 390,344 square miles, and contains a population estimated at 60,000. Until 1858 British Columbia formed part of the Hudson Bay Territory; but in that year large discoveries of gold were made, which, attracting a vast immigration of gold-diggers, rendered it necessary for the British Government to take measures for the maintenance of order, and the country was erected into a colony. Besides gold, the country produces magnificent timber, and good coal is present in inexhaustible quantities on the eastern coasts of Vancouver island. The yield of coal from the mines has increased from 81,000 tons in 1874 to about 500,000 in 1885, and of these three-fourths were exported. The fishing industry is also becoming very important. Salmon of excellent quality are found in the rivers. Many thousand tons of salmon are tinned and exported to England every year. The fur trade, also, is a noticeable feature, the skins exported being chiefly those of the mink, marten, sable, silver-fox, bear, beaver, sea and land otter, seal, deer, elk, and others of minor importance. Tracts of not less than 160 acres of unsurveyed or unreserved Crown lands may be purchased for one dollar per acre; and surveyed lands other than town sites and Indian settlements may be obtained at the same rate after they have been offered for sale by public auction. The Northern Pacific naval station of the Imperial Government is at Esquimalt, an extensive and commodious harbour close to Victoria, where also a large graving dock is being completed. Canada has been nie to crasp the undoubted fact that in the

In addition to this great line, the following railway lines within the Dominion are all of great importance both from commercial and strategical points of view :-1,100 miles, and radiating from Montreal, Ottawa (to (1) Branch lines, reaching, in the aggregate, upwards of Toronto and other towns), Winnipeg, Port Arthur, and the various junctions mentioned above. (2) The various branches of the Grand Trunk Railway, extending over nearly 2,600 miles, and forming a complete network of lines between the great lakes, reaching Quebec, Mon-' treal, Lake Champlain, and other places. (3) The Intercolonial Railway, 861 miles long, skirting the right bank of the St. Lawrence and traversing the provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. (4) The Midland, the New Brunswick, the Northern, the North Shore, the South-Eastern, and other systems, extend over many hundreds of miles. On the 30th June, 1885, 812 miles were under process of construction. The survey of a route has also been completed for a line which it is proposed and Hudson's Bay. Some idea of the extent and valu to make, 600 miles long, between the city of Winnipeg of the Canadian railway system may be gleaned from the following statistics for the year ended June 30, 1885:Paid-up capital, 625,754,703 dollars; mileage in operation, 10,773; passengers carried, 9,672,599; tons of freight carried, 14,659,271; earnings, 32,227,469 dollars; working expenses, 24,015,351 dollars.

British Possessions-Newfoundland—British Guiana.

407

Pacific Railway. The Esquimalt and Nanaimo the climate is healthy, the conception of the Railway, usually called the "Island Railway," place as a land of perennial fog being altogether which by a short extension will connect the erroneous. capital of the Province with the valuable coalfields at Nanaimo, is being rapidly constructed, and will be completed by the end of the present year (1886). Lines of steamers in connection with the Canadian Pacific Railway are shortly to run between India, China and Japan, and Australia, shortening the distance to East Japan 14 days and to China 10 days, the overland route across the American continent being entirely through British Territory.

The Government of the Province consists of a Lieut.-Governor and an Executive Council, together with a Legislative Assembly of 25 members, 4 of them being the Executive Council.

600

600

CAPITAL, Victoria. Population (1886), 9,000.
Principal towns, New Westminster (4,000),
Vancouver (1,000), Nanaimo (2,800).
Lt.-Gor., Hon. Clement F. Cornwall......£1,800
Chief Commr, of Lands & Works & President
of Council, Hon. W. Smithe (Premier)..
Provinc. Sec., Hon. John Robson
Finance & Agriculture, Hon. S. Duck
Attorney-Gen., Hon. A. E. B. Davie, Q.c...
Chief Justice, Sir Matthew B. Begbie.... 1,160
Paise Judges, Hons. H. P. P. Crease, £960;
J. Hamilton Gray, J. F. McCreight, and G. A.
Walkem..
each 300
Agent-General in London, Henry C. Beeton, 33,
Finsbury Circus, E.C.

600

600

LABRADOR, a dependency of Newfoundland, forms the most easterly part of America, and extends from Blanc Sablon in the Straits of Belleisle on the south to Cape Chudleigh at the entrance of Hudson's Straits on the north; it possesses valuable cod, herring, trout, and salmon fisheries. There are a few Moravian missionary settlements on the coast, such as Hopedale, Nain, Okak, and Hebron. The coast is mainly frequented for the sake of the seal and cod, and when those fisheries are in progress, the population of the country (normally under 2,000) becomes raised to upwards of

50,000.

The Government of Newfoundland is at present also by a Legislative Council not exceeding 15 administered by a responsible Executive Council, members, nominated by the Crown, and a House of Assembly of 33 members, elected by the people every four years. Justice is administered by the Supreme Court of Judicature, which, originally established in 1792, was reconstituted in 1824, with a Chief Justice and two other judges, having civil and criminal jurisdiction over the whole island. The Church of England, according to the last census, numbered 69,000; the Roman Catholics, 64,000; while the Wesleyans, by far the most numerous of the Nonconforming bodies, are reckoned at 35,000. The aborigines -the famous Bethuk tribe-are now totally extinct, the last being seen alive in 1829.

HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR CANADA IN LONDON, Gross public revenue in 1885
Sir Charles Tupper, G.c.M.G.
Secretary, Joseph G. Colmer.

Assist. Sec. & Account., C. Campbell Chipman.
Offices, 9, Victoria Chambers, London, S.W.

NEWFOUNDLAND.

THIS Island is situated between 46° 37'-51° 39' N. lat. and 52° 35'-59° 25′ W. long., on the northeast side of the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Its area is 40,200 square miles, and in 1884, according to the census taken at the end of that year, it had a population of 193,124. The principal exports, with their respective values, for the year 1884 were: codfish (£689,916); cod and seal oils (£133,125); sealskins (£21,250); pickled herrings (£22,562); pickled salmon (£13,250); preserved lobsters (17,166); and copper ore. The total value of the exports for the same year, which, owing to unsuccessful fishery, were much below the average, amounted to £984,710, excluding those of Labrador, £232,083. The industries of the island, fishing, agricultural, and mining, are altogether confined to the sea coast and the numerous deep bays indenting the island on three of its sides, but a railroad is in course of construction by an American company, which has obtained a charter and large concessions of lands from the local parliament; this, when carried out, will greatly develop the resources of the country. About 100 miles of line are already finished and open for traffic. A further development of the resources of the colony is anticipated as the result of an Agricultural Bill enacted during the recent session of the legislature. This Bill provides government aid for those of the poorer class who desire to commence farming operations. Newfoundland abounds in game of various descriptions, its numerous lakes and rivers teem with fish;

Gross public expenditure, 1885
Gross amount of public debt, 1885 (De-
benture)...

Gross amount of floating debt, 1885
Gross interest on debenture debt, 1885
Balance Halifax Fishery Award to
credit of colony
Total imports, 1885.
Total exports, 1885.

Imports from United Kingdom, 1885..
Exports to United Kingdom, 1885

....

£199,557

274,519

447,833

102,432 20,553

135,248 1,395,520

984,710

455.278

255,554

192

500 500

CAPITAL, St. John's. Population, 11,000.
Governor, Sir Geo. W. Des Voeux, K.C.M.G. £2,500
Private Sec. to ditto., S. W. Bethell
Premier (without portfolio), Hon. R.
Thorburn
Attorney-General, Hon. J. S. Winter, Q.c.
Colonial Sec., (vacant)
Receiver-General, J. L. Noonan
Surveyor-General, Hon. Maurice Fenelon.
Financial Secretary, M. T. Knight
Assistant Collector, J. S. Hayward
Postmaster-General, J. O. Fraser
Chief Justice, Hon. Sir F. Carter, K.C.M.G.
Puisne Judge, Hon. Robt. J. Pinsent, D.C.L.
Hon. J. R. Little

[ocr errors][ocr errors][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small]

BRITISH GUIANA includes the settlements of Demerara, Essequibo, and Berbice, situate on the north coast of South America, and comprising an area estimated at about 76,000 sq. miles, with a seaboard of 280 miles, lying between 8° 40′ and o° 40' N. lat., and between the meridians of 56° 10′61° 15' W. The Essequibo River intersects the country in its entire length; the Corentyn separates it from Dutch Guiana. This territory was first partially settled by the Dutch West India Company in 1580, and was from time to time

« PreviousContinue »