MICHIGAN. 



501 



the State. The cost of the road and equipment, 

 allowing, where the road is only partly with- 

 in the State, a proportion equal to the length, 

 was $115,391,015.38; operating expenses for 

 the year, $20,361,733.36; which were in- 

 creased hy other items of expense to $21,- 

 959,621.03, or 68 per cent, of the gross earn- 

 ings, which were $31,998,253.61. Of the 

 earnings 28 per cent, were from passengers, 

 and 67 per cent, from freight. The total net 

 earnings of those roads which may he said to 

 have been in successful operation, amounted 

 to about 6.3 per cent, of the total of their paid- 

 up stock and debts. In operating the roads 

 there were 146 persons injured, 64 fatally. Of 

 these, 29 were passengers, only two of whom 

 were fatally injured. The official information 

 shows 333 additional miles of road to have 

 been laid during the year 1873, making a total 

 of 8,309, or one mile for about every 421 inhabit- 

 ants, and every 17.6 square miles of territory. 

 The use of air-brakes is now practically uni- 

 -.il on all regular passenger-trains. The 

 St. Mary's Falls Ship- Canal opened for the 

 -"n May 5th, and closed November 18tb. 

 Passages made by sail-vessels, 1,549; by 

 steam-vessels, 968; tonnage, 1,204,445. The 

 most important shipments downward were 

 copper, mass, 2,816 tons; ingot, 9,104 tons; 

 Itamp-woifc, 4,007 tons; manufactured, 20 

 tons; iron, ore, 504,121 tons; pig, 39,84 tons; 

 silver-ore, 580 tons; fish, half-barrels, 9,228; 

 wheat, bushels, 2,119,997; flour, barrels, 145,- 

 897. The business was considerably in excess 

 of any former year. The manufacture of lum- 

 ber was exceedingly active, and the business 

 prosperous till near the close of the year. The 

 whole production of pine-lumber is estimated 

 at 2,600,000,000 feet. Prices were depressed 

 in the last quarter, and the preparations for 

 the manufacture in 1874 are much behind 

 those of any year for some time. The stock 

 on hand, however, is large, and a season of 

 general prosperity is anticipated. Careful es- 

 timates lead to the conclusion that if the pres- 

 ent destruction of pine continues unchecked 

 for fifteen years, the stock of valuable timber 

 will be substantially exhausted. The panic of 

 S.-ptcmber affected this State but little. The 

 banks and bankers were generally in a sound 

 condition, and no failures occurred, except 

 two or three among the brokers, and in every 

 instance the insolvency was of long standing. 

 The losses by failures in Eastern cities were 

 small. The mercantile community was gen- 

 erally found in sound condition, and the agri- 

 cultural interest was prosperous, so that at 

 the close of the year, unless in exceptional lo- 

 r '.lities, money was easy, and, though trade was 

 dull, there was no unusual distress or anxiety 

 in business circles. 



The reports of schools to the Superintend- 

 ent of Public Instruction were from 70 conn- 

 ti<-. 041 townships and cities, and 5,521 dis- 

 trict *. Number of children between the ages 

 of five and twenty, 421,322; between eight 



and fourteen, 181,604; number that attended 

 school during the year, 307,014; of which 

 5,854 were under five or over twenty ; average 

 number of months school was taught, 7.07; 

 volumes added to district libraries 10434- 

 cost, $13,380.98; number in libraries, 'll5,- 

 331 ; school-houses, stone, 80 ; birch, 641 ; 

 frame, 4,246 ; log, 605 ; seating capacity, 399,- 

 67; value of school-houses and lots, $8,105,- 

 391 ; number of graded schools, 312 ; teach- 

 ers employed, males, 3,010; females, 8,940; 

 average monthly wages, males, $51.94; fe- 

 males, $27.13 ; total wages, males, $685,720,- 

 64; females, $1,079,348.95; volumes in town 

 libraries, 49,291 ; added during year, 4,731 ; 

 cost, $5,454,54; new districts organized, 244; 

 number of private schools, 133; pupils attend- 

 ing same, 6,761 ; district resources for the 

 year, $3,743,352.70; made upas follows: On 

 hand at beginning of year, $530,580.27 ; two- 

 mill tar, $465,912.84; from primary-school 

 fund, $194,479.58; from tuition of non-resident 

 pupils, $31,199.81 ; from district taxes, $2,- 

 095,220.17; from other sources, $412,253.87; 

 paid for buildings and repairs, $597,006.68; 

 for other purposes besides teachers' wages, 

 $788,902.96; on hand at close of school year 

 (September 1st), $594,467.18; indebtedness of 

 districts at close of school year, $1,707,700.16. 

 The county superintendents made 6,377 visits 

 to schools during the year, the town inspect- 

 ors, 13,571 ; and the latter were paid for ser- 

 vices, $5,179,23. The reports of the superin- 

 tendents of the poor for the year show the 

 following facts : Paupers received into poor- 

 houses, 3,798; average number supported, 

 1,482 ; number temporarily assisted outside, 

 13,785 ; cost of supporting ptupers in poor- 

 houses, exclusive of interest on cost of build- 

 ings, etc., and value of pauper labor, $147,- 

 722.53 ; amount expended for temporary re- 

 lief, $158,039.25; whole amount expended 

 from poor fund, $403,096.18; number re- 

 ceived into poor-houses who were insane, 

 412; idiotic, 196; blind, 47; mutes, 12; esti- 

 mated value of county farms, buildings, stock, 

 tools, etc., $698,654.57. 



The State-prison report shows the number of 

 convicts at the beginning of the year, 589 ; 

 received, 287 ; discharged by expiration of 

 sentence, 186; by reversal, 4; by commuta- 

 tion, 4; on pardon, 17; died, 5; escaped, 5 ; 

 remaining, 655 ; receipts from convict-labor, 

 $84,746.19; from other sources, $8,244.12; 

 total, $92,990.31 ; expenditures, $89,722.07 ; 

 net income, $2,572.13 ; average sentences of 

 convicts, received, 3 years 7 months ; besides 

 3 for life, and 1 indeterminate. The crimes 

 punished against persons were 72; of which 

 1 was under second degree, 3 manslaughter, 

 13 rape, 2 seduction, 6 adultery, 13 felonious 

 assaults; crimes against property, 215. Age 

 of convicts, from sixteen to twenty-one, 65 ; 

 twenty-one to thirty, 131 ; thirty to forty, 56 ; 

 forty to fifty, 25; fifty to sixty, 4; sixty to 

 seventy, 5; over seventy, 1; illiterate, 29; 



