THE DOMINION OF CANADA. 27 



HAMTOBA 



is bounded on the 8. l.y the United States, and on the N. E. and W. by 

 the North-West Territories of the Dominion. Area, 14,340 square n, 

 The name Manitoba is a contraction made by the French Canadian roy- 

 ageurs of the Cree word Manitowaban. Manito signifies a spirit, and 

 Waban means a strait: as the waters of a strait in Lake Manitoba 

 are excited sometimes in an unusual way the India?. . ed that 



some mighty water-sprite moved them, and so they called the lake 

 Manito-waban. The soil is exceeding fertile. The greater part of the pro- 

 vince is one huge sweep of rolling prairie, covered with loni; 

 and wild-tlnwers. and every here and there clumps of poplar, white oak and 

 other trees. Wheat ripens in 110 days and yields from twenty to tweiitv- 

 five busliels to the acre, all kinds of garden vegetables grow luxuriantly. 



does fruit, and all the cereals known to Canada. The climate is se\ 

 in winter, so that the mercury sometimes freezes; but the air is so dry. 

 and the bitterest nights often are so deathly calm, that the intense frost U 

 not felt so keenly. Fierce blizzards sometimes sweep over the bleak pra 



11 unroofing houses and barns. The largest lakes are Winnipeg and 

 Manitoba, the former 280 miles long, and from five to fifty-seven miles 

 wide, the latter 110 miles long and twenty-five miles wide. Winnipeg * U 

 the capital and has a population of 7,985. There are t\\ 

 that of St. Boniface, Roman Catholic, and Rupert's Land, Church of K 

 land. The bishop lives at St. John, near Winnipeg- PuMic ali'.iir> an- in 

 the hands of a lieutenant-governor, an executive of five members, a lr_ 

 lative council of seven and a house of assembly. The provin 

 colleges, St. John's, ( 'hurch of England ; St. Boniface. Roman < 'atli 

 Kildonan, 1'resbyterian: besides a number of OOnvento andacho ' >' v h 



', the Hudson U:iy ( 'ompany surrendered to the Imp. rial ( ;,,vernment 

 their territorial rights and LTovernin -i^ibility in th N>it: 



and on July IGth, 1870, Kngland handed over the ten Canada. It 



then that took place the Red I; and aft. time 



itoba entered the confederation. 1 )evelo].ment has begun in Mani- 

 toba at an astonMm I mini-rants are flock im: in from all j': 



and the ('anada Pacific railway will soon join th. : 

 skirt of the roeky mountains. The ^ivat or.iu La* 'k is scarcity of fu 



and the \vatei-in bntokiah, being dilufc -ilte. 



M figurw of population given f ,.r Wmnipeg, are thoM of the crniu* of 1881. The popu- 

 now is said to be about 2T>,000. 



