This Territory received, at the second session of the 37th Congress (1861-2), an addition of a strip of land one degree of longitude in width, viz., from the 38th to the 39th degree west from Washington, which was taken from Utah. This addition in creases its area nearly one fourth. The whole Territory is rich in mineral wealth. Of its nine organized counties, seven have already numerous mines of either gold or silver; and the richest silver-mines in the United States are found in Storey county. That county sent, in October, 1862, a contribution of $20,226 22 to the Sanitary Commission, in eight massive silver bars, five of which weighed 111 pounds each. Quicksilver, lead, and antimony are also found in great abundance. The Ophir mines, in Washoe county, were the first silver mines which attracted attention. They are in the western part of the county, and are to be connected by a railroad with Virginia City, the capital of Storey county. The principal towns of the Territory are Virginia City, having in October, 1862, an estimated population of 3000, and the place of most business in the Territory; Carson City, the Territorial capital, and county seat Sheriff. Geo. W. Brubaker... School Sup't. C. D. Daggett. of Ormsby county, 2500 inhabitants; Silver City, in Lyon county, 1000 inhabitants; Gold Hill, Storey county, 1500 inhabitants; Washoe City and Ophir, Washoe county; Humboldt, Humboldt county; Dayton, county seat of Lyon county; and Genoa, county seat of Douglas county. The flood of January, 1860, which proved so destructive in California and Oregon, extended also to Nevada, and destroyed property variously estimated from $200,000 to $1,000,000; and before the new Territory had had time to rally from so severe a blow to its development, the extraordinary reports which were brought thither of the marvellous richness of the Salmon River gold-mines, in Oregon and Washington, led to an emigration in that direction which threatened to depopulate Nevada; but its mines possessed too much value to be long neglected, and the autumn of 1862 found the population more rapidly increasing than at any former period, and the stocks of its great mining companies enhanced to a value fully double the price at which they were held at the beginning of the year. XXXVIII. UTAH TERRITORY. Organized September 9, 1850. Capital, Great Salt Lake City. Area, 120,000 square miles. Population, 1860, 60,699; of these, 20,426 were Indians. Estimated population, 1862, including Indians, 79,193. The Probate Judge and Notary Public of each | joint session. The Assessor is, ex officio, collector county are elected by the Legislative Assembly in of taxes. FINANCES. The receipts from all sources for the year ending Nov. 1, 1862, were... Leaving a balance in the Territorial treasury of... EDUCATION.-The "University of Deseret," consisting, as yet, only of a Chancellor and Board of Regents, has the supervision of education in the Territory. There are public schools in every ward of Salt Lake City, and schools and academies in most of the towns. SOIL, &c.-The greater part of the Territory is barren, much of it mountainous and scantily watered, and having soil strongly charged with alkalies, which permit no vegetation except the worthless artemisia or wild sage. The lakes, except Utah Lake, are generally saline, the Great Salt Lake being the largest body of salt water, unconnected with the ocean, on this continent. Beaver, Cache, Davis, and portions of Salt Lake, San Pete, Washington, Wasatch, and Weber counties have some arable land. RELIGION. The greater part of the white inhabitants of Utah-probably not less than 50,000 -are adherents to the Mormon faith, or, as they denominate themselves, the "Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints." Their church organization is composed of a series of hierarchies, the highest being the First Presidency, consisting of their chief prophet Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, and Daniel H. Wells; next the Twelve Apostles; then the quorums of Seventies, of which there are said to be 62 organized in the Territories, each having 7 presidents and 63 members; then follow quorums of High-Priests, Elders, Priests, Teachers, and Deacons. A somewhat anomalous office is that of patriarch, which has been conferred on John Smith (son of Hyrum and nephew ..$50,612 10 40,199 31 ..$10,412 79 of their first prophet, Joseph Smith) and on a few others. There is also in each settlement a HighCouncil, composed of 12 members, and a bishop for each ward, the wards containing from 500 to 1000 persons. STATE ORGANIZATION.-In February or March, 1862, in accordance with a joint resolution of the Territorial Legislature, the people elected delegates to form a Constitution for the State of Deseret, and after the formation of the Constitution it was adopted, and State officers and a Legislature elected, the Governor elected being Brigham Young, the Lieutenant-Governor, Heber C. Kimball, and the President of the Convention, Daniel H. Wells. The Legislature elected two Senators and one Representative to Congress, and one of the Senators elected proceeded to Washington to urge the admission of the new State into the Union. The application was, as usual, referred to a committee, and no action was taken upon it during the session. Congress, however, passed a law "to punish and prevent the practice of polygamy in the Territories of the United States and in other places, and disapproving and annulling certain acts of the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Utah" (see Abstract of the Laws, p. 257), and annexed to the new Territory of Nebraska a strip, one degree of longitude in width, of the Territory of Utah. The elected officers of the proposed new State were very much dissatisfied with these measures, and they have manifested their dissatisfaction in very decided terms. Utah has furnished no volunteers for the army of the Union; but a body of California mounted volunteers-three or four companies—and a regiment of infantry were directed to winter there. Organized March 2, 1861. 42,538, of whom 6000 are 1862, 70,000. XXXIX, COLORADO TERRITORY, Capital, Denver City. Area, 100,000 square miles. Population, 1860, tribal Indians, principally Arapahoes and Utes. Estimated population in PRINCIPAL TOWNS.-Denver City, the capital of the Territory, is situated on the South Fork of Platte River, near the border of the Great American Desert, in the northern central portion of the Territory; Central City, near the base of Pike's Peak, is a thriving, busy town of over ten thousand inhabitants; Colorado City, on an affluent of the Arkansas, and Nevada City, are also in the vicinity of Pike's Peak. There are also several considerable settlements on the western slope of the Snowy Mountains, in the region of the silvermines. MINES AND MINING.-The Territory unquestionably possesses vast mineral wealth. Discoveries of gold were reported in 1858 as having been made by two companies of explorers, one from Georgia, the other from Lawrence, Kansas, but the locations named by them have not furnished any remunerative diggings; but on the 6th of May, 1859, discoveries of rich placers were made on the head-waters of Clear Creek, an affluent of the South Fork of Platte, near the site of what is now Denver City, and an immense emigration to that point commenced the ensuing summer, accompanied with great suffering from the want of proper supplies of food, &c. The first gold was obtained from placer diggings, but these after a time gave out, and the quartz lodes were found charged with sulphuret of iron (iron pyrites, or fool's gold), and it was thought that quartzmining would prove unprofitable. In 1861, however, it was discovered that this sulphuret was very rich in gold, and the quartz-mills, which had been thrown aside as worthless, came again into demand. It is now found that these quartz lodes grow richer as they are opened to a greater depth; and the mining in 1862 in the Territory yielded very rich returns. The Gregory Diggings, Governor Evans found, by careful inquiry, would yield in 1862 over $5,000,000, and the other goldfields certainly as much more; and their productiveness was only limited by the number of miners employed. On the western slope of the Snowy Mountains extensive silver-mines have been discovered, and also gold in considerable quantities. Deposits of lead and quicksilver ores have also been found in the Territory. Near Denver City, at the base of the mountains, immense beds of coal have recently been discovered, of a character analogous to the coal formations of Illinois. This discovery is highly important, not only as furnishing a needed supply of fuel to the Territory, which is scantily timbered, but also for the supply of the great Pacific Railway, which will probably pass through this region, its route being as near as practicable to the fortieth parallel of latitude, just below which Denver City is situated. A tunnel will be required through the Snowy Mountains, at this point, of some three miles, but the remainder of the route is far more feasible than any other, as a long level valley extends from the western slope of the mountains to Great Salt Lake City. The granite of the mountains is not so solid as that of the mountains in the Eastern States, having numerous veins and being, much of it, easily broken down. The climate of Dakota is mild and healthful. The principal settlements are Sioux Falls, on the Big Sioux River, near the Minnesota line, Elk Point, Bruley Creek, Vermillion, Yankton (the Territorial capital, on the Missouri, sixty miles from the Iowa line, and about due west of Chicago); Bonhomme, Greenwood, and Fort Randall, also on the Missouri; and Pembina, in the northeast of the Territory. The Yankton and Ponka Indians, who ceded their lands (nearly 14,000,000 of acres) to the Government, have an extensive reservation on the Missouri River, sixty-five miles above Yankton, and have become domiciled and are giving atten tion to agriculture. They number about 3000. The Territory yields large amounts of furs and peltries. The gold-bearing rocks of the Rocky Mountain slope are said by geologists to extend into Dakota: and in the summer of 1862 a gold-field, apparently of considerable extent, and yielding in the placerdiggings large quantities of scale-gold, was discovered on Grasshopper Creek, a tributary of the Missouri, near the line of Nebraska, and a settlement was organized there on the 27th of August, 1862, called the Northwestern District. |