BRITISH COLUMBIA. 



85 



faction. Although the financial depression which 

 has Urn hearing so heavily upon the commerce of 

 the nations continued during the past year, and as 

 a consequence the revenue to .lime :!(> last in this 

 province fell short of the estimate, owing largely to 

 arrears not having lieen paid, I am nevertheless 

 happy to say there are favorable indications of a 

 revival. Arrears are coining into the treasury, and 

 I have confidence in stating that the revenue to 

 June 30 next will be .equal to the estimate. In 

 view of the large imports of dairy produce, and tlfe 

 adaptability of many parts of the province for dairy 

 farming, it is proposed to submit for your consider- 

 ation a measure to assist in the establishment of 

 creameries. The successful efforts to establish col- 

 onies both on the mainland and on the island of 

 Vancouver have induced my Government to con- 

 tinue the work of settlement by providing for a 

 system of small holdings. During the past year the 

 yield of crops was much larger than usual, but I 

 regret that, owing to the low prices of produce 

 coining into competition with that of our own 

 farmers, the season's operations have not been as 

 profitable as I would desire to see. Coal mining is 

 being extensively operated, and arrangements are 

 being made for carrying on coking on a large scale. 

 Sealing and fishing operations have been much 

 more successful than was anticipated. The output 

 of the salmon canneries has been one of the largest 

 on record. I am pleased to state that increased 

 attention has been given to deep-sea fishing, with 

 prospects of that industry becoming a permanent 

 and profitable one. The timber industry continues 

 to be affected by the depression, but there are indi- 

 cations of an improvement in the near future. 

 Shipping, both local and foreign, has increased, 

 and a more general activity is noticeable, and par- 

 ticularly in the trade of the west coast and the 

 islands. You will be pleased to know that my 

 Government has completed a settlement of the rail- 

 way-land question, for some time in dispute be- 

 tween this province and the Dominion of Canada. 

 During the past summer my Minister of Finance 

 issued in London, England, the loan for which your 

 authority was obtained last session in 3-per-cent. 

 inscribed stock at 95, that being an advance of 9 

 per cent, over the loan of 1891. I have much 

 pleasure in calling attention to the very important 

 mining developments of the past year, and the pres- 

 ent promising outlook in Alberni as well as in other 

 parts of the province. The large output of ore and 

 the establishment of smelters in the Kootenay dis- 

 trict affords practical proof of the value of the 

 mining industry. It is the intention of the Gov- 

 ernment to foster this industry as much as possible 

 by opening up the interior communications of the 

 country : and with a view to afford reliable infor- 

 mation on our mining resources, the act of last 

 session providing for the establishment of a Bureau 

 of Mines has been put into operation. During 

 recess I have caused a proclamation to be issued 

 bringing into force the provisions of the health act 

 of 1893. The Provincial Board of Health created 

 thereunder has been constituted. Important ex- 

 ploratory and other surveys have been carried on 

 and have led to the location of large areas of avail- 

 able arable and timber lands. Acting under au- 

 thority of the statute passed by you at your last 

 session, I caused a commission under the Great 

 Seal to issue to the Chief Justice of British Colum- 

 bia for the consolidation and revision of the statute 

 law in force in this province, and the first progress 

 report of the commissioner has been received." 



The Hon. D. W. Higgins remained Speaker, and 

 after considerable legislation, of which the follow- 

 ing list of measures includes the most important, 

 the House adjourned on April 1C: 



To preserve the forests from destruction by fire. 



Respecting co-operative associations. 



Incorporating the Koyal Inland Hospital. 



To amend the homestead act. 



To amend the catt le act. 



To repeal An Act to aid the development of 

 quartz mines. 



To incorporate the Columbia and Western Kail- 

 way Company. 



To incorporate the Ashcroft and Cariboo Kail- 

 way Company. 



To amend the assessment act. 



Relating to gold and other minerals, excepting 

 coal. 



To amend the placer mining act of 1891. 



For the extermination of wild horses. 



To amend the Bureau of Mines act. 



To amend the investment and loan societies act. 



To make further provision respecting the drain- 

 age, diking, and irrigation of lands. 



To authorize the granting of a certain land sub- 

 sidy for and in aid of the Columbia and Western 

 Railway. 



To encourage dairying. 



Mining'. This was the chief topic of interest 

 during the year, and it has attracted the attention 

 of British and American capitalists. The presence 

 of gold in great paying quantities has long been 

 suspected, and on March 14. 1893, Dr. G. M. Daw- 

 son, C. M. G., the well-known Canadian geologist, 

 told an English audience that " the gold thus 

 found in the gravels and river beds is merely that 

 collected in these places by the untiring action of 

 the streams and rivers, and it must in all cases be 

 accepted as an indication of the gold-bearing veins 

 which traverse the rocky substructure of the coun- 

 try, and which await merely the necessary skill and 

 capital to yield to the miner still more abundantly. 

 Since 1850 the province has mined gold to the value 

 of about $50,000,000." 



The two chief mining localities of the province 

 are the Cariboo and Kootenay districts. The for- 

 mer, where much gold has been found in the beds 

 and banks of streams, and in the old channels of 

 rivers, lies between 200 and 300 miles north of 

 the Canadian Pacific Railway, and is served by 

 stagecoaches for passengers and by oxen for goods. 

 The Kootenay district, which is the center of the 

 present operations, lies south of the railroad and 

 extends to the international boundary line. It is 

 reached by train and steamer from' Revelstoke. 

 and here and there are short lines of rail affording 

 access to particular groups of mines. The popula- 

 tion of this district is now about 20,000. The most 

 important are Kaslo (an incorporated city), Xelson, 

 Rossland, Trail. New Denver. Xakusp, and San- 

 dow. Around Trail creek and the rapidly grow- 

 ing Rossland lies the great bulk of the gold discov- 

 eries and mines. Thousands of mining claims have 

 been staked out within a few months, and much 

 machinery has been sent to Rossland. Work is 

 carried on in at least 50 mines, while Rossland it- 

 self has sprung up almost in a night, and now has 

 more than 5,000 people, where a year ago there ^ as 

 nothing but wilderness and the " Red mountain." 

 which is now said to be yellow with gold. 



The Trail creek district began shipping ores in 

 1805. and produced $1,500.000 in gold. This year 

 the production is said to be between $4,000,000 and 

 $5,000.000. The actual production of Rossland itself 

 is given by W. A. Carlyle. the provincial mineralo- 

 gist, as follows: Tons smelted to July 1. 1896. 27.- 

 085 ; ounces of gold. 45.234 : ounces of silver. 67.- 

 7!3 : pounds of copper. 1.265.362: gross value, 

 $1,007.007. Since this report was presented to the 

 local government much development work has been 

 done, and very rich veins of gold discovered. The 



