458 



KANSAS. 



KENTUCKY. 



Mexico, and Santa Fe. The troubles incidental 

 to the first settlement of Kansas, the exigencies 

 of the late civil war, and more recently the 

 disturbances caused by the neighboring Indian 

 tribes, have hitherto prevented the execution 

 of any of these projects ; but it is supposed 

 that they will now be prosecuted with a degree 

 of vigor which will insure their completion at 

 no distant day. In aid of these enterprises a 

 bill proposing to divide five hundred thousand 

 acres of land, given to the State by Congress, 

 among three railroad companies, has recently 

 been introduced into the Kansas Legislature. 



An important branch of industry in Kansas 

 promises to be the production and manufacture 

 of wool. A large portion of the State is well 

 adapted to sheep-raising, and so profitable has 

 this already proved that woollen mills are now 

 in process of erection in Atchison. In addi- 

 tion to the stock now in the State, it is esti- 

 niated that during 1866 from 75,000 to 100,000 

 sheep will be imported from various parts of 

 the Eastern and Middle States. 



Besides the great capabilities of Kansas for 

 agricultural purposes, stock-raising, and wool- 

 growing, she has another source of wealth, in 

 relation to which but little is known, in the 

 salt springs, which exist above Fort Eiley, in 

 the valleys of the Eepublican, Solomon, and 

 Saline Forks. So abundant are these surface 

 brines, and of such uncommon strength, as sen- 

 sibly to affect the quality of the large streams 

 ' of water which run through those valleys and 

 empty into the Smoky Hill. These salines, which 

 are of great benefit to the stock-raiser, whose 

 flocks and herds require no salting, as in the 

 Eastern States, have their centre, probably, 

 near the confluence of the Solomon and Smoky 

 Hill. This fact, however, can be determined 

 only by sufficient borings. While the strength 

 of the brines in this section has not as yet 

 been tested from the wells beyond the influence 

 of fresh water, there is little doubt as to their 

 great strength and purity at a limited depth 

 below the surface. This is evident not only 

 from the geological features of the country, but 

 from the great strength of the surface brines, 

 and also from the incrustations of pure salt on 

 the top of the ground, covering hundreds of 

 acres, from three-eighths to half an inch in 

 thickness. These remarkable formations come 

 from brine oozing up from below, and not from 

 surface Sowings. The whole subsoil seems 

 thoroughly impregnated with a constant up- 

 ward tendency, so that crystallization succeeds 

 crystallization on the removal of the salt already 

 formed. Ordinary wells in this region, sunk 

 from 25 to 30 feet below the surface, produce 

 a brine more than three times the strength of 

 sea-water, and from which a salt of remarkable 

 purity is obtained. Chemical analysis proves 

 that the brines of Kansas contain less than four 

 percent, of impure matter, showing in this par- 

 ticular a marked superiority over those of New 

 York, Michigan, and other States. The dry- 

 ness of the climate is also a favorable circum- 



stance in aid of the successful manufacture of 

 salt by what is now considered the cheapest 

 and best method, evaporation. From these 

 facts the conclusion is evident that Kansas is 

 destined to become one of the greatest salt-pro- 

 ducing States of the Union. 



Early in October a convention of colored men 

 met in Leavenworth for the purpose of memo- 

 rializing the Legislature to submit to the people 

 the question of striking the word " white " from 

 the suffrage clause of the constitution. A reso- 

 lution was framed to that effect, and the Con- 

 vention adjourned to meet at Topeka in Jan-, 

 uary, 1866. The Eev. Mr. Twine, a member 

 of the Convention from Atchison, was in favor 

 of asking the Legislature to submit the question 

 in such form as to make intelligence the stand- 

 ard of qualification of suffrage among the col- 

 ored people. He said he was satisfied that the 

 loyal people of the country were ready to do 

 justice to the colored people, but he did not 

 want to admit to the ballot-box men of color 

 who were wholly uneducated, and who were so 

 ignorant as to be unable to comprehend the 

 duties of citizens. He believed it to be not 

 only the duty of the colored people to modify 

 their action on the suffrage question in this 

 form, but it was policy for them to do so ; they 

 would reach the object aimed at far sooner 

 than by asking that all colored men should ha 

 admitted to suffrage without reference to their 

 fitness to exercise that high privilege. 



KENTUCKY. The effect of the war upon 

 the population of the State of Kentucky is 

 shown by a decrease. Official returns from the 

 various counties previous to the war, made the 

 number of the white males above twenty-one 

 years to be 191,391. The number of white males 

 between eighteen, and forty-five years, called 

 the " Enrolled Militia," numbered 137,211. The 

 returns of the population at the beginning of the 

 year 1865 showed the number of males over 

 twenty-one years to be 169,749, and those be- 

 tween the ages of eighteen and forty-five 103,- 

 401 ; being a diminution in the former case of 

 21,642, and in the latter, representing the mili- 

 tary strength, 33,810. This increased diminu- 

 tion of the latter is accounted for in part by 

 the absence of the soldiers in the Federal. ar- 

 mies at the time when the returns were pre- 

 pared, and by the number who joined the 

 Southern armies, which was estimated between 

 fifteen and twenty thousand. 



The enrolment of 1863 by the United States 

 authorities of white males between the ages of 

 20 and 45 years numbered 112,742; and in 

 1864 numbered 113,410. The enrolment of 

 " colored " males between the ages of 20 and 

 45 for 1864 numbered 20,083. Making an ag- 

 gregate within the military age, of white and 

 " colored " males, of 133,493. 



The muster-rolls of the Adjutant-GeneraTa 

 office make the number of men furnished by 

 the State to the Federal armies, most of whom 

 were three years' men, to be 63,975 white sol- 

 diers, on an enrolment of 113,410. The rolla 



