MEXICO. 



MICHIGAN. 



557 



& Co., of London, and Mr. W. J. Palmer, presi- 

 dent of the company, providing for the settle- 

 ment of all controversies and the reorganiza- 

 tion of the road, with a view to its completion. 

 In November the work of construction was 

 being pushed at the rate of a mile a day. The 

 gap to be filled in the main line is 582J kilo- 

 metres, or 362 miles, between Saltillo and San 

 Miguel de Allende, which will involve an out- 

 lay of $5,000,000, and there will further be 

 built a branch line to the coal-mines, costing 

 $1,000,000 ; and $2,000,000 additional will have 

 to be spent for completion and equipment. 



In May the Federal Government granted a 

 concession to the Governor of the State of Du- 

 rango for the construction of a railway to unite 

 the city of Durango with the Mexican Central 

 road. In July the reformed concession granted 

 by the Mexican Government to the Sinaloa and 

 Durango Railway Company, a Boston organiza- 

 tion, authorized the company to construct four 

 distinct lines : the first, from Culiacan to Al- 

 tata; the second, from Durango to Mazatlan, 

 Villa Lerdo, and Saltillo ; the third, from Culi- 

 acan to Mazatlan and Alamos ; and the fourth, 

 from Durango to some point on the Rio Grande 

 river, after passing through the State of Coa- 

 huila. Surveys to begin within six months; 

 plans for the first section of 100 kilometres to 

 be submitted within eighteen months, and work 

 to begin within three years. The capital is 

 limited to $20,000 a kilometre, and the subsidy 

 is fixed at $7,000 a kilometre. 



In June the Mexican Government granted a 

 concession to J. A. Verger for the construction 

 of the Mexican Pacific Railroad, which is to 

 connect the capital with the Pacific at a point 

 between Acapulco and Manzanillo, via Cuer- 

 navaca and Puente de Istla ; surveys to be 

 finished within nine months from date of sig- 

 nature of the contract, and the building of the 

 line to begin within a year. The entire line 

 to be in operation at the end of ten years ; ma- 

 terial to be admitted duty free. 



In September a company of English capi- 

 talists secured the old concession for a rail- 

 road from Tuxpan to the capital, to be built 

 at a cost of $25,000,000. During the same 

 month the concession granted to Gen. Grant's 

 Southern Mexican Railway for waste lands in 

 the States of Vera Cruz, Puebla, Oajaca, and 

 Chiapas, was officially declared forfeited. The 

 railway concession had long since been for- 

 feited. 



The Telmantepec Ship-Railroad. Tn his annual 

 message of September 16, President Diaz said 

 that arrangements had been made regarding 

 the rail way across the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, 

 which he hoped would result in pushing on 

 this great work. 



Telegraphs. There are in operation in Mex- 

 ico 21,000 kilometres of Government lines; 

 1,653 kilometres of State lines ; 4,431 kilome- 

 tres of railroad, and 3,301 private lines, to- 

 gether with a cable 703 kilometres in length, 

 constituting a telegraphic system extending 



over 31,088 kilometres. The number of Fed- 

 eral telegraph- offices is 327. 



Steamships. The Mexican Government grant- 

 ed in May a concession for a steamship line 

 between San Diego, California, and San Jose de 

 Guatemala, touching at Mexican Pacific ports, 

 the company to receive a subvention of $8,000 

 for each round trip. 



From the middle of September, the New 

 York and Eastern mail for Yucatan and Mexi- 

 can points was sent by the New York, Ha- 

 vana, and Mexican Steamship line, plying be- 

 tween New York and Vera Cruz, instead of 

 overland, as heretofore. 



Electric Light. In February the city authori- 

 ties of Mexico made a contract with Samuel 

 Knight for the placing of 100 electric street 

 lamps. 



Natural Phenomena. On Dec. 26, 1885, the 

 volcano of Colima went into a state of violent 

 eruption. Loud reports were heard, and these 

 were soon followed by outbursts of lava, which 

 flowed over the sides of the mountain, com- 

 pletely covering them. A cloud of smoke over- 

 hung the mountain, and on it were reflected 

 flames darting up from the crater. On Jan. 

 15, 1886, another eruption of the volcano oc- 

 curred, preceded as before by loud detonations. 

 Enormous stones were thrown to a great height, 

 and were plainly visible from the city of Colima, 

 twenty-five miles distant. Photographs depict- 

 ing the volcano at the moment of its greatest 

 activity were taken by the instantaneous pro- 

 cess. A vast white cloud overhung the crater. 

 On February 17 the crater had diminished in 

 size, but the eruptions continued. 



In February exceptionally cold weather pre- 

 vailed on the Mexican table-land. Snow fell 

 at Zacatecas, a thousand feet higher than Mexi- 

 co ; and at Mexicalcuizo, four miles distant 

 from the latter, it fell to the depth of four 

 inches on February 2, and on February 4 there 

 was a slight snow-squall at Mexico, the snow 

 melting as it fell. This was the first snow that 

 had fallen in the vicinity since 1856. The 

 mercury, during a norther, fell to 52 at Vera 

 Cruz on February 4. 



A shock of earthquake, with oscillations from 

 east to west, was felt in the State of Mexico, 

 between four and five o'clock in the morning 

 of September 3. 



A curious phenomenon occurred at Chimapla, 

 in the same State, on October 2. Tremendous 

 subterranean reports were heard, though at the 

 time the meteorological conditions were per- 

 fect, there being no unusual aspect of the sky, 

 nor the slightest rain. It was found that a 

 high hill in the vicinity had been completely 

 divided into two parts by some powerful 

 force. 



MICHIGAN. State Government. The following 

 were the State officers during the year : Gov- 

 ernor, Russell A. Alger, Republican ; Lieuten- 

 ant-Governor, Archibald Buttars; Secretary of 

 State, Harry A. Conant ; Treasurer, Edward 

 H. Butler; Auditor, William C. Stevens; At- 



