88 



CANADA. DOMINION OP. 



Washington, with the executive departments of 

 those governments, and is required to furnish 

 such information as it may possess, or can ob- 

 tain, to any of the republics requesting it. Each 

 of the republics agrees to facilitate the gathering 

 of information by the bureau; to send to it 

 promptly two copies of each of its official publi- 

 cations for preservation in its library, and to 

 supply such information as may be requested by 

 the director. Provision is made for the con- 

 tinuation of the publication of the Monthly Bul- 

 l.-tin in KiiL'li-li. Spanish. Portuguese, and French; 

 and for the publication of such maps, topograph- 

 iral and geographical charts, and other publica- 

 tions as the gov- 

 erning board may 

 direct. All the 

 publications of 

 the bureau are to 

 be kept free from 

 advertising as 

 soon as the exist- 

 ing contracts ex- 

 pire, and said 

 publications are 

 to be considered 

 public documents 

 and are to be car- 

 ried free in the 

 mails of all the 

 republics. The bu- 

 reau is made cus- 

 todian of the ar- 

 chives of the In- 

 ternational Amer- 

 ican Conferences, 



and is especially charged with the performance 

 of the duties imposed upon it by the conference. 

 The specific duties thus imposed upon the bureau 

 at the last conference were: 



The carrying out of the provisions of the reso- 

 lution looking to the collection, compilation, and 

 dissemination of more complete statistical data 

 and information regarding the resources of the 

 several republics; the fixing of the date for, and 

 the performance of the general executive work 

 of the sanitary convention to be called in ac- 

 cordance with the resolution adopted on the sub- 

 ject of quarantine and sanitation; the perform- 

 ance of the general executive work of the Cus- 

 toms Congress to meet in the city of New York, 

 and also the Coffee Congress, which met in New 

 York Oct. 1, 1902, and adjourned on the 29th 

 (see COFFEE), and the keeping of the accounts of 

 the American International Archeological Com- 

 mi-sion. In addition to these duties specifically 

 prescribed by the conference, it was recommended 

 that the bureau should collect, compile, and keep 



W. W. ROCKHILL. 



on file, and should publish to such extent as 

 may be practicable, information regarding com- 

 mercial laws; the banks of the American repub- 

 lics, their capital stock and deposits; the patent 

 laws of the several countries, changes in said 

 laws, patents granted, and decisions of the courts 

 of the several countries in patent litigation; com- 

 plete monthly reports of exports and imports 

 of the several countries; the arrival and depar- 

 ture of vessels from the ports of the American 

 republics, with their tonnage; the length, stated 

 in miles and kilometers, of railways, street-rail- 

 ways, and telegraph and telephone lines in the 

 several countries, and complete data as to the 

 new lines projected or being built; information 

 regarding new private enterprises, so far as can 

 be obtained; information regarding new public 

 works of all kinds; the most complete vital sta- 

 tistics of each of the republics and of its impor- 

 tant cities that can be obtained; and such other 

 information as the director, with the approval of 

 the governing board, may determine. It is stipu- 

 lated that the library established by the bureau 

 be known as the Columbus Memorial Library. 

 This last provision was made at the suggestion 

 of Mr. Calvo, delegate to the conference from 

 Costa Rica, who said that at the previous con- 

 ference a recommendation to that effect had been 

 unanimously approved, but no practical steps 

 had been taken to carry out the idea. He further 

 said that the chief aim in establishing the library, 

 which was to be practically only an amplifica- 

 tion of the existing one in the bureau, was to 

 create a valuable collection of Latin-American 

 books of commercial and statistical information. 

 In the director's report for the fiscal year 1901 

 it was stated that the existing library consisted 

 of 8,948 volumes. In the year 1,456 books and 

 pamphlets were received, of which 991 were gifts. 

 About 2,000 periodicals were received, including 

 daily and weekly newspapers. 



The reorganization of the bureau was imme- 

 diately taken up after the adjournment of the 

 International Conference at Mexico in the early 

 part of the year, in conformity with the resolu- 

 tions adopted. Mr. W. W. Rockhill continues in 

 office as the director, and Mr. Nicolas Veloz Goi- 

 ticoa was elected by the governing board to fill 

 the place of secretary, vacated by the death of 

 Dr. Guzman ; Dr. Jos6 Ignacio Rodriguez, long 

 connected with the bureau as chief translator, 

 was confirmed in his office, and received the 

 additional honor of librarian of the Columbus 

 Memorial Library; and Mr. W. C. Fox, who rep- 

 resented the bureau as acting director at the 

 conference in the city of Mexico, was confirmed 

 in his office of chief clerk, and was made editor 

 of the Monthly Bulletin. 



C 



CALIFORNIA. (See under UNITED STATES.) 



CANADA, DOMINION OF, a federal union 



of British provinces in North America; area, not 



including the far Northern Franklin Territory, 



3,653,946 square miles; population, 5,369,262. 



Government and Politics. At the beginning 

 of 1902 the Dominion Government was composed 

 of Sir Wilfrid Laurier, Premier and President of 

 the King's Privy Council for Canada; Sir R. J. 

 Cart wright. Minister of Trade and Commerce; 

 R. W. Soott, Secretary of State; David Mills, 

 Minister of Justice; Frederick William Borden, 

 Minister of Militia and Defense: William Mulock, 

 Portmaster-General ; Sydney Arthur Fisher, Min- 



ister of Agriculture; Joseph Israel Tarte. Minis- 

 ter of Public Works; William Stevens Fielding, 

 Minister of Finance; Andrew George Blair. Min- 

 ister of Railways and Canals: Clifford Sift on, 

 Minister of the Interior and Superintendent-gen- 

 eral of Indian Affairs; William Paterson. Minis- 

 ter of Customs; Michel Esdras Bernier, Minister 

 of Inland Revenue: Richard Reid Dobell. without 

 portfolio; and James Sutherland, without port- 

 folio. 



Early in the year several changes occurred in 

 the Government. On Feb. 8 it was announced 

 that the Hon. Mr. Mills had been appointed to 

 the Supreme Court of Canada; that the Hon. 



