542 



NEWFOUNDLAND. 



observed was 89 in July, 1857, and the lowest 

 14 below zero in February, 1863. 



The principal crops that may be successfully 

 cultivated are barley, oats, potatoes, turnips, 

 cabbages, peas, beans, carrots, etc. Wheat will 

 ripen in some places, but cannot in general 

 be profitably cultivated. It has been tried 

 only on the smallest possible scale, and then 

 it succeeded. Hops thrive, and strawberries, 

 currants, gooseberries, cherries, and some other 

 fruits, grow in gardens, while numerous species 

 of berries are found wild. The number of acres 

 under cultivation in 1869 was 41,715. The 

 chief productions were 747 bushels of wheat 

 and barley, 11,050 of oats, 308,357 of potatoes, 

 17,100 of turnips, 8,857 of other root-crops, 

 and 20,458 tons of hay. There were 3,764 

 horses, 13,721 horned cattle, 23,044 sheep, 19,- 

 081 swine, and 6,417 goats. Since that date con- 

 siderable advance has been made in agriculture. 



The fisheries are the chief wealth of the 

 colony, employing directly or indirectly nine- 

 tenths of the inhabitants. The number of 

 fishermen is about 32,000. The principal fish- 

 eries, in the order of importance, are the cod, 

 seal, herring, and salmon. The cod-fishery is 

 pursued around the shores of the island and on 

 the coast of Labrador, from June to October ; 

 the average annual catch is about 1,500,000 

 quintals. The seal-fishery begins about the 

 first of March and terminates in May, and from 

 350,000 to 550,000 seals are taken yearly. The 

 chief seats of the herring-fishery are Labra- 

 dor, Bonne Bay, Bay of Islands, St. George's 

 Bay, and Fortune Bay. In the Bay of Islands 

 it is pursued during the winter. The average 

 annual catch is about 175,000 barrels. The 

 salmon-fishery is prosecuted to some extent in 

 Labrador, but chiefly in the bays on the east 

 coast of the island; the average quantity taken 

 annually is about 6,500 tierces. 



The average number and tonnage of vessels, 

 and the average number of men employed in 

 the seal-fishery, from 1870 to 1875 inclusive, 

 have been as follows : 186 sailing-vessels, with 

 an aggregate tonnage of 18,520 tons and 8,093 

 men ; and 22 steamers, with an aggregate ton- 

 nage of 6,483 tons and 4,214 men : total, 208 

 vessels of 25,003 tons, and 12,307 men. The 

 exports in 1873 were 463,531 skins, worth 

 $602,590.30, and 1,722,420 gallons of oil, worth 

 $874,880; in 1874, 398,366 skins, worth $517,- 

 875.80, and 1,098,216 gallons of oil, worth 

 $610,120. Besides the catch by steamers and 

 sailing-vessels, a large number of seals are 

 taken in nets along the western and northeast- 

 ern coasts of the island, and when the seals 

 are driven upon the coast with the ice a regu- 

 ular battue takes place from the points upon 

 which the ice may be driven ; this but very 

 rarely occurs farther south than Bonavista Bay, 

 upon the eastern coast, but to the north of that 

 bay thousands of seals have been taken, some 

 springs, by the sealing (or whelping) ice having 

 become wedged in upon the land. The num- 

 ber of seal-nets owned in the island is about 



5,300 ; of these 2,018 are owned by perma- 

 nent residents upon what is usually termed the 

 French Shore. 



The following table gives the exports of the 

 principal products of the fisheries for five re- 

 cent years : 



The commerce of Newfoundland is impor- 

 tant. The value of exports and imports for a 

 series of years has been as follows : 



The number of vessels entered at the various 

 ports in 1873 was 1,146, with an aggregate 

 tonnage of 218,122; cleared, 937; tonnage, 

 193,902 ; belonging to the colony, 1,301 ; ton- 

 nage, 68,185. 



Newfoundland was the last of the North 

 American colonies to which responsible gov- 

 ernment was conceded; it was fully estab- 

 lished, however, in 1855. The government is 

 at present administered by a Governor, aided 

 by a responsible Executive Council not to ex- 

 ceed seven members, a Legislative Council not 

 to exceed fifteen members, and a House of 

 Assembly of thirty-one members, elected by 

 householders, who have occupied a dwelling- 

 house as owner or tenant for two years imme- 

 diately preceding the day of election. There 

 are fifteen districts, or subdivisions of districts, 

 of which six return three members ; four re- 

 turn two members, and five return one. The 

 number of registered electors in 1873 was 

 20,759. There is a property qualification for 

 the elected ; viz., property exceeding 500 in 

 amount or value, or a net annual income of 

 100. The ordinary duration of the session 

 is about three months, and it generally meets at 

 the end of January or beginning of February. 



The revenue in 1874 was $889,602.24; ex- 

 penditure, $951,792.49; public debt, $1,149, - 

 100.73. The revenue and expenditure for the 

 ten previous years were as follows : 



