502 



MICHIGAN. 



vanilla. $033.270; of chick peas, $632,051 : of ixtle 

 fiber $000.807. The formation of new companies 

 in various industries, the extension of railroads, 

 and the general prosperity of the country have 

 stimulated the import trade, and the export trade 

 has more than kept pace with it. owing to in- 

 creased production and better transport facili- 

 ties. The establishment of new banks everywhere 

 lias helped to insure a constant circulation and 

 productive employment of money. Of the total 

 value of the imports. 4!) per cent, came from the 

 I'nited States. 18 per cent, from Great Britain, 

 12 |>er cent, from France, 11 per cent, from Ger- 

 inaiiv. and 10 per cent, from other countries. 

 The 'increase in the number of factories calls for 

 larger imports of coal, of which about 50 per 

 cent, comes from the United States and 30 per 

 cent, from England. Notwithstanding the many 

 new cotton mills that have been started, the im- 

 ports of cotton goods are increasing, especially 

 of the finer qualities not made in the country. 

 American capital is constantly finding employ- 

 ment in the mines, railroads, and industries of 

 Mexico, and American trade is growing, and Ger- 

 man trade also, while British trade has declined. 

 The corn and other food crops of Mexico are 

 precarious on account of frequent droughts, which 

 sometimes necessitate importations to supply a 

 deficiency. The cultivation of coffee and tropical 

 products is increasing. Attempts have been made 

 to introduce the cultivation of the rubber tree 

 on a large scale, but the capital raised for the 

 purpose in financial centers has not all been hon- 

 estly applied. There are about 15,000,000 sheep 

 in the country, and probably more than 8,000,000 

 horned cattle. The chief wealth of Mexico, how- 

 ever, lies in her mines. Silver, gold, lead, anti- 

 mony, zinc, and magnesia constitute two thirds 

 in value of the exports. Gold mining is increas- 

 ing in importance, because most of the ores are 

 of low grade, such as can only be profitably 

 worked by the modern cyanide process. Silver 

 has been 'mined since the" first advent of Euro- 

 I>eans, and the Mexican silver dollar is accepted 

 as currency in China and other Asiatic countries. 



Navigation. The number of vessels entered 

 at Mexican ports during 1898 was 10,527, of 4,085,- 

 200 tons: cleared, 10,452, of 3,880,940 tons. These 

 included 5,112 steamers entered, of 3,731,323 tons, 

 and 4,953 cleared, of 3,535,898 tons. 



The merchant navy in 1898 comprised 17 steam- 

 ers, of 4,081 tons, and 51 sailing vessels, of 9,317 

 tons. 



Communications. Out of a total length in 

 1898 of 7,750 miles of railroads, 5,617 miles had 

 been built by foreign capital. The receipts in 1896 

 were $30.231.000. from 26,081,000 passengers and 

 5.084,000 tons of freight. There are 42,150 miles 

 of telegraph and 7,459 miles of telephone. Two 

 thirds of the telegraph lines belong to the Fed- 

 eral Government, and the rest to the states, rail- 

 roads, and telegraph companies. 



MICHIGAN, a Western State, admitted to 

 the Union Jan. 26, 1837; area, 58,915 square miles. 

 The population was 212,267 in 1840; 397,654 in 

 1850; 749,113 in 1860; 1,184,059 in 1870; 1,636,937 

 in 1880: and 2.093,889 in 1890. By the State 

 census of 1894 it was 2,241,454. Capital, Lansing. 



Government. The following were the State 



_ ix; Attorney- 



Horace M. Oren; Superintendent of In- 

 struction, Jason E. Hammond; Insurance Com- 

 missioner, Milo D, Campbell, who accepted the 

 office of Tax Commissioner and was succeeded 



by Harry H. Stevens as acting commissioner; 

 Land Commissioner, William A. French; Labor 

 Commissioner, Joseph L. Cox; Food Commis- 

 sioner, E. O. Grosvenor; Adjutant General, F. H. 

 Case ; Railroad Commissioner, Sybrant Wesselius, 

 succeeded in March by C. S. Osborn; Bank Com- 

 missioner, George L. Maltz; Game Warden, Grant 

 M. Morse: Analyst, R. E. Doolittle; State Tax 

 Commission, Milo D. Campbell, A. F. Freeman, 

 and Robert Oakman; Forestry Commission, Ar- 

 thur Hill, C. W. Garfield, and the Land Commis- 

 sioner ex officio; Library Commission, D. D. 

 Aitkin, T. P. Hall, Cyrus G. Luce, and Charles 

 H. Hackley; Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, 

 Claudius B. Grant; Associate Justices, Robert 

 M. Montgomery, Frank A. Hooker, Joseph B. 

 Moore, Charles D. Long; Clerk, Charles C. Hop- 

 kins all are Republicans. 



' Finances. The Treasurer's report, published 

 in August, shows that the cash balance on hand 

 June 30, 1898, was $1,216,212.61. The receipts 

 of the year were $4,576,874.98 and the disburse- 

 ments $4,391,031.71, leaving a balance of $1,402,- 

 055.88 at the close of July, the fiscal year hav- 

 ing closed the business June 30, 1899, and the 

 balance having increased $174,819.10 during the 

 year. 



During the year the general fund was credited 

 with $284,052.54 received through the Auditor 

 General's office for redemptions, delinquent taxes, 

 State tax lands, tax histories, etc. The sum of 

 $2,322,845.75 was received from county treasurers; 

 from the United States Government in aid of 

 the Soldiers' Home, $95,336.05; from the United 

 States in aid of the State Agricultural College, 

 $24,000. 



The receipts from specific taxes aggregated 

 $1,415,210.22, of which $999,185 was from railroad 

 companies, $134,816 from fire insurance com- 

 panies, $95,345 from life insurance companies, 

 $29,916 from telephone, $18,375 from telegraph, 

 and $13,681 from express companies. 



The disbursements from the general fund in- 

 cluded: Soldiers' Home, $113,666.66; Eastern 

 Asylum, $10,335; Kalamazoo Asylum, $9,800.79; 

 Northern Asylum, $10,141.31; Newberry Asylum, 

 $42,627.81; Asylum for Insane Criminals, $8,650; 

 Home for the Feeble-minded, $59,116.16; Fish 

 Commissioners, $20,175.18; University of Michi- 

 gan, $244,711.07; military account, $50,000; fac- 

 tory inspection, $12,005; Dairy and Food Com- 

 mission, $17,556.34; soldiers' aid, $6,048.82; Board 

 of Pardons, $4,518.97. 



The specific tax fund was credited to the sev- 

 eral trust funds, as follows: Agricultural College 

 interest fund, $46,315.76; general fund, $48,015.55; 

 normal school, $3,969.92; primary school interest 

 fund, $962,325.02; university interest fund, $37,- 

 303.08; balance June 30, 1899, $317,380.89; total, 

 $1,415,210.22. 



The indebtedness of the State is summarized 

 as follows: War loan, 1898, 3^-per-cent. bonds, 

 $208,700; war-loan bonds, 1898, 3 per cent., $291,- 

 300; noninterest-bearing bonds, $10,992.83. The 

 trust fund debt has now reached $6,120,003.56, 

 of which amount $4,793,010.63 belongs to the pri- 

 mary school fund, $725,843.81 to the Agricultural 

 College fund, $66,245.12 to the normal school 

 fund, and $533,904 to the university fund. 



The State tax levy for 1899 amounts to $3,- 

 725,835. 



Education. The latest school report at hand 

 is for the school year ending Sept. 5, 1898. In 

 that year there were 672 graded and 6,485 un- 

 graded districts, and 111 township-unit school 

 districts. The school population was 703,730, an 

 increase of 2,486 over that of the year next pre- 



