YUKON DISTRICT, THE CANADIAN. 



865 



men's Association, $1,000; for sufferers by forest 

 fires in Barron County in 1898, $10,000; for im- 

 provements at the Veterans' Home, $35,000; ad- 

 ditional for use of Fish Commissioners, $6,000 an- 

 nually; to normal schools, for buildings, $75,000; 

 to the reformatory at Green Bay, $100,000 for 

 maintenace for two years and $150,000 for build- 

 ings; to the Girls' Industrial School, $16,000 for 

 buildings and repairs; for the Institution for 

 Feeble-minded at Chippewa Falls, $158,000; for 

 exhibit at the Pan-American Exposition, $25,000; 

 to the Wisconsin Battle Ship Comission, to buy 

 a silver service and a bronze badger for the ship, 

 $10,000. 



WYOMING, a Northwestern State, admitted 

 to the Union July 10, 1890; area, 97,890 square 

 miles. Population in 1890, 60,705. Capital, 

 Cheyenne. 



Government. The following were the State 

 officers during the year: Governor, De Forest 

 Richards; Secretary of State, F. Chatterton; 

 Treasurer, G. E. Abbott; Auditor, Leroy Grant; 

 Adjutant General, Frank A. Stitzer; Attorney- 

 General, J. A. Van Orsdel; Superintendent of 

 Education, T. T. Tynan; Supreme Court: Chief 

 Justice, C. N. Potter, Republican; Associate Jus- 

 tices, Samuel T. Corn, Democrat, and Jesse 

 Knight, Republican; Clerk, R. C. Morris. 



Finances. The report of the State Board of 

 Equalization shows an assessed valuation of $35,- 

 578,806.32, an increase of $4,789,514.58 over that 

 of 1898. The year 1899 shows a gain of $107,- 

 322.97 in the value of railroad property over 1898, 

 a gain of $1,050,909 in the \alue of cattle, a gain 

 of $1,467,516.70 in the value of sheep, and a gain 

 of $230,197 in the value of horses. 



The report of the State Board of Charities and 

 Reform for the year ending Sept 30, 1899, in- 

 cluded the following items: Expense of State pris- 

 oners, $22,303.96; juvenile delinquents, $1,769.11; 



deaf and blind, $1,612.45; insane, $14,235.39; Sol- 

 diers' and Sailors' Home, $5,523.23; Wyoming 

 General Hospital, $16,281.10. 



The earnings of State institutions as paid into 

 the treasury during the year were an follow: 

 Penitentiary, care of United States prisoners, $1,- 

 817.80; Hospital for Insane, care of private pa- 

 tients, $714; General Hospital, care and treatment 

 of patients, $13,766.97; Soldiers' arid Sailors' 

 Home (national aid, $1,898.12; pensions retained 

 $409), $2,307.12; total, $18,605.89. 



Taxation. The tax levies for State purposes 

 were placed at the following rates upon each dol- 

 lar of assessed valuation: For general fund, 3J 

 mills; university income fund, } mill; fund for 

 insane, ^ mill; State bond tax fund, mill; Capi- 

 tal tax fund, | mill; State Hospital maintenance 

 fund, mill; university building fund, -fa mill; 

 Big Horn Hot Springs fund, -fa mill ; Hospital for 

 Insane building fund, -fa mill; General Hospital 

 building fund, -fa mill; total, 6 mills. 



Sheep. The sheep industry assumed gigantic 

 proportions in 1899. In 1898 Wyoming ranked 

 third among the wool-producing States, with a 

 total clip of 17,000,000 pounds, Montana and 

 Oregon occupying first and second places respec- 

 tively. It is estimated that the wool clip for 1899 

 will aggregate 20,000,000 pounds. 



Mining-. In 1898 the coal mines of the State 

 produced 3,046,846 tons more than in the pre- 

 vious year. During the fiscal year ending Sept. 

 30, 1899, the output was 3,727,325 tons, an in- 

 crease over 1898 of 680,479 tons. 



There are now 20 coal mines, employing 5 

 men or more, in active operation in Wyoming. 



Political. The Legislature, 1899, consisted of 

 6 Democrats in the Senate and 3 in the House, 

 13 Republicans in the Senate and 35 in the House. 

 On Jan. 25 Clarence D. Clark, Republican, was re- 

 elected United States Senator. 



YUKON DISTRICT, THE CANADIAN. 



Government. This great gold-bearing region 

 was the subject of a very wide political discussion 

 in 1899, as well as of continued interest because 

 of its mineral wealth. In 1898 the central topic 

 of controversy had been the question of a railway 

 from the coast; in 1899 it was one of general 

 administration. On March 20 Sir Hibbert Tupper 

 introduced into Parliament a long resolution pre- 

 ceded by an elaborate speech denouncing the Do- 

 minion Government for maladministration, and 

 even corruption, in the Yukon territory. He was 

 replied to by the Hon. Charles Sifton, and after a 

 heated and prolonged debate the motion of cen- 

 sure was thrown out by a strict party vote 82 

 to 32 with the exception of 3 western Liberal 

 members, who supported Sir Hibbert. 



The political point of the whole controversy 

 was Sir Hibbert Tupper's demand for a royal 

 commission of inquiry to take evidence under 

 oath and to be composed of impartial men. This 

 was refused by the Government, although Sir 

 Hibbert offered to retire from public life if he 

 could not prove his principal charges. The exact 

 truth will perhaps never be known. There is no 

 doubt that the administration oi the region is 

 now on a perfectly fair and honest basis. On 

 July 7 Mr. Ogilvie's report on the personal in- 

 quiry made by him as commissioner concluded 

 ' with the following words: "How did these ru- 

 mors get started and become so generally cred- 

 VOL. xxxix. 55 A 



ited? In reply, I may state that there is a large 

 percentage of population here who are watching 

 for the chance to make something. If they are 

 forestalled by some one else, they immediately 

 jump to the conclusion that there has been some- 

 thing crooked between that some one else and 

 the officials by whom the transaction was con- 

 summated. It has not been necessary to do more 

 than insinuate that some official or officials have 

 been guilty of corrupt acts to have it within a few 

 hours generally so reported, and, I regret to say, 

 generally so believed, notwithstanding that there 

 may not be a tittle of evidence in support of the 

 charge. Transactions that have been actuated by 

 the purest and highest motives have been attrib- 

 uted to the very worst. Of this I have personal 

 knowledge and experience. In concluding, I may 

 say that with such a class there can not exist (in 

 their minds at least) any honest government at 

 all, for reasons that are obvious enough not to 

 need mention." 



In September, 1899, A. B. Perry, superintendent 

 of the Northwest mounted police, and E. C. Steele, 

 Gold Commissioner, were placed upon the Yukon 

 Executive Council. 



Mines. On April 8, 1899, the Klondike Nug- 

 get declared that the output for the coming sea- 

 son would be more than double that of the last, 

 and royalty would be paid on more than $8,000,- 

 000, while evasions and exemptions would bring 

 up the total production to twice that figure. 



