350 GEOGRAPHICAL PROGRESS. 



GEORGIA. 



at all. Less than ten miles from this water- 

 shed, or 350 miles from Lake St. John, the 

 party reached Foam Bay, one of the two arms 

 into which a long, narrow peninsula divides 

 the southwestern extremity of the great Lake 

 Mistassini, the very one referred to by M. 

 Comeau. Eighteen miles farther on the lake, 

 they arrived at a Hudson Bay Company's sta- 

 tion, and here provisions were left for the main 

 expedition. From September 10 to 17, Mr. 

 Bignell voyaged on the great lake, making 120 

 miles, without reaching its main body. It 

 seems to stretch toward the northeast, how far 

 could not be ascertained. Probably it is an 

 expansion of Rupert river, as the great west- 

 ern lakes are an expansion of the St. Lawrence. 

 Deep and numerous bays cut into the low- 

 lying shores ; beautiful and often large islands 

 offer places of refuge, when the sea is running 

 high ; and the deep waters of the lake, in many 

 respects so like Lake Superior, swarm with 

 trout, salmon, pike, pickerel, perch, and va- 

 rious other fish. The surrounding region is 

 well wooded; birch, poplar, balsam, and spruce 

 being common, but yielding no merchantable 

 timber. The soil rests on a limestone founda- 

 tion, and is well suited for agricultural pur- 

 poses, while outcropping rocks show promising 

 mineral indications. Potatoes and other roots 

 are raised at the Hudson Bay post ; peas yield 

 a fine crop, and oats will undoubtedly ripen 

 during the short but warm summer. The cli- 

 mate is comparatively mild, the temperature 

 ranging from 20 below to 100 above zero, 

 and the Indians are peaceable, strictly honest, 

 and of fine physique, but dirty and supersti- 

 tious, though nominally Christians. The chase 

 is dangerous, as wolves and black bears of un- 

 usual size and ferocity are common. On his 

 return trip, Mr. Bignell failed to meet the 

 main expedition, but it is believed they have 

 arrived safely at the Hudson Bay Company's 

 post. 



The full reports of Capt. Jacobsen's trav- 

 els in northwestern America (1881-'83) have 

 appeared in print. They give detailed accounts 

 of excursions into Alaska, hitherto chiefly 

 known through Messrs. Stoney's and Schwat- 

 ka's interesting explorations. 



Son th America. A member of the German 

 expedition to South Georgia, Dr. C. von Stei- 

 ner, went, in February, 1884, from Montevideo 

 to Asuncion, with the intention to start in 

 April for Guyana, in the Brazilian province of 

 Matto-Grosso, in order to pass along the river 

 Xingu, still unexplored, as far north as the 

 Amazon. In the company of his brother and 

 Dr. Claus, and with an escort of Brazilian sol- 

 diers, he left Cuyabd on the 26th of May, and 

 arrived a week later at Rosario. On the 28th 

 of June, Aldea dos Bacairis, near Rio Parana- 

 tinga, was reached, and, in spite of troubles 

 caused by the rough soldiers, the observations 

 had proved of great interest, and important 

 corrections of the maps hitherto drawn had 

 been made. The region through which they 



traveled is described as a campo cerrado, and 

 appears much like a neglected orchard. A 

 dispatch of October 31 said that the party had 

 arrived safely at Para. Detailed information 

 has not been received since the 20th of July. 

 At that date the explorers were going down 

 the river Batovy. 



Fears were entertained that Mr. Richard 

 Payer had met with some serious difficulties 

 during his explorations of the region forming 

 the water-shed between the Orinoco and the 

 Amazon, as he had not been heard from in six 

 months. Letters have, however, been received, 

 dated February and August, 1881. He gives 

 no account of the results of his work ; but it 

 seems that his main efforts during travels from 

 1881 to 1884 were concentrated on the explora- 

 tion of the tract between the Urariquera's and 

 the Orinoco's sources, and that he succeeded 

 in gaining a full and detailed knowledge of this 

 hitherto unknown district, which will make 

 publication of accurate maps possible. Mr. 

 Payer gives a vivid description of the un- 

 healthful condition of Manaos, and declares 

 that all ideas of colonizing must be abandoned. 



GEORGIA. State Government. The following 

 were the State officers during the year : Gov- 

 ernor, Henry D. McDaniel, Democrat ; Secre- 

 tary of State, K 0. Barnett ; Treasurer, D. N. 

 Speer, succeeded by R. V. Hardeman ; Comp- 

 troller, William A. Wright; Attorney-General, 

 Clifford Anderson ; State School Commissioner, 

 G. J. Orr. Judiciary, Supreme Court : Chief- 

 Justice, James Jackson ; Associate Justices, 

 Martin J. Crawford and Alexander M. Speer. 



General Condition. The Governor says : 



Our crops have not met the expectations of those 

 dependent upon the rewards of agriculture ; but there 

 has been no disastrous failure in any section of the 

 State. Improved methods of husbandry, increased in- 

 dustry and thrift, and the steady tendency to greater 

 diversity of crops, have kept the farming interest fairly 

 prosperous. There has been a gratifying increase in 

 manufactures. Industrial enterprises are constantly 

 springing up and furnishing more varied means of 

 honest livelihood, and adding to the number of skilled 

 artisans. We have not escaped the depression which 

 has affected manufacturing interests throughout the 

 Union, and the effects of the financial panic of the past 

 spring and summer have been severely felt in our 

 commerce and finances. Yet the strain has been ad- 

 mirably borne, and there has been no such increase in 

 the number and amount of 'failures as to destroy, or se- 

 riously impair, confidence. Crime has not increased, 

 while the laws have been vigorously enforced. There 

 has been a perceptible increase in the number of con- 

 victions and executions of the death-sentence, but this 

 is attributable to increased vigilance on the part of 

 officials of the courts, sustained by an enlightened 

 public opinion. We may not hope to suppress crime 

 altogether. No people have lived under conditions 

 which rendered such a result attainable. But we may 

 hope to render punishment more certain, and protec- 

 tion to life and property more efficient. 



Finances. The balance in the treasury, Octo- 

 ber 1, 1882, was $690,472.15 ; receipts for the 

 ensuing year, $1,327,051.64 ; disbursements, 

 $1,437,384.41 ; balance Oct. 1, 1883, $539,- 

 139.38; receipts for the ensuing year, $1,533,- 

 220.38 ; disbursements, $1,924,259 ; balance 



