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Note:  Do not rely on this information. It is very old.

Manitoba

Manitoba, a province of the Dominion of Canada, situated between Ontario, Saskatchewan, and Assiniboia, having the district of Keewatin as its eastern and the United States as its southern boundary. In area it is little smaller than the United Kingdom. The germ of the present colony was the Red River Settlement formed by Lord Selkirk in 1812. In 1868 the governmental rights of the Hudson's Bay Company were purchased, and two years later Manitoba was constituted into a province of Canada. In the same year Riel's rebellion was put down, and since that time the relations with the Federal Government have been comparatively smooth. The province is under a Lieutenant-Governor, with an Executive Council of five and a single elective Assembly of 40 members. It is represented in the Dominion Senate by three, and in the House of Commons by five members. The winter in Manitoba is very severe, but the atmosphere is dry. The soil is very fertile, and the wheat grown on it is considered the finest in the western hemisphere. Dairy- and cattle-farming are also carried on with success; root crops are very prolific, and manufactures are growing. Some coal is found in the south, and the smaller fruits are indigenous. In the three great lakes, Winnipeg, Winnipegosis, and Manitoba, as well as in the rivers, there is an abundance of fish. The chief streams are the Red River, the Assiniboine, the Souris, and the Winnipeg. Except in the region of the Riding Mountains, between Lake Manitoba and the Assiniboine, the land is very level and comparatively treeless. The first railway was opened in 1879, and since 1885 Manitoba has had the benefit of the Canadian Pacific. Free grants of land are offered to suitable settlers by the Government, and there is still room for agricultural development. Large game is beginning toget scarce; but the chief wild animals and birds. are protected by close times. [Canada]