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CHAPTER XXXII.

NEVADA.

Acquisition of-Area-Population-Geography-Mountains-Val

leys-Lakes-Rivers- Forests-Soil-Seasons-Climate-Mines -Mining-Minerals-- Counties-Cities-Progress-SchoolsNewspapers-Libraries-Future prospects.

NEVADA, known as the Silver State on account of its extensive silver-mines, lies directly east of the State of California, from which it is separated in its division line by the crest of the Sierra Nevada mountains. The area now forming this State was originally a part of the Territory of California, and more recently of a portion of the district embraced within the Territory of Utah, and was acquired by the United States from the Republic of Mexico, by the acquisition of California, in 1846. In 1861, a territorial government was established by act of Congress, and, in 1864, it was admitted a State in the Union, with a very small population.

The area of Nevada is 81,531 square miles, and its population, according to the federal census of 1870, was 42,491, of whom 38,959 were white, 357 colored, and 3,152 Chinese. Of the whole population, almost one-half were of foreign birth, there being 23,690 native born and 18,801 foreigners.

Nevada is bounded on its extreme southeastern corner by the river Colorado, which separates it from the Territory of Arizona. Utah forms the eastern line and Oregon the northern. On the west, the crest of the Sierras forms the line between this State and the State of California. The beautiful Lake Tahoe, seven thou

sand feet high, in the top of the Sierras, is partly in Nevada and partly in California; and in this region, as in many other parts of the State, the scenery is magnificent, abounding in rugged mountain peaks capped with snow, dense forests, and beautiful lakes.

East of the Sierras the climate is entirely different from that of California, immediately west of them. The climate of Nevada is colder in winter and generally with less rainfall than the former. Snow covers all the high mountain ranges and hills, and even for a brief period reaches the valleys; but generally throughout the rolling hills, pasture ranges, and agricultural sections snow falls but little, and cattle and horses graze at large throughout the entire winter, and in many of the valleys snow is never seen. The climate of the State is much milder than that of either of the States of Virginia or Tennessee. The surface of the country is a succession of rugged mountains, broad alkaline flats, rolling, gravelly ridges, and sandy deserts, interspersed with small fertile valleys, rich river bottoms, and ravines.

From the mountain ridges pour down dashing streams, soon, however, lost in the flats below, where they bury themselves in the earth, thus leaving many rich valleys entirely destitute of running streams, and lending an aspect of desolation and barrenness to large areas of productive land. In this State is presented the singular phenomenon of the creeks and rivers pouring into caverns in the earth, running many miles under ground, and rising to the surface again; but only to again dip into the ground, where their course is lost sight of for

ever.

The principal rivers of Nevada are the Humboldt, Truckee, Carson, and Walker. Humboldt river after

eastern side of the

passing for three hundred and fifty miles from east to west, empties into Lake Humboldt, in a deep valley in the western portion of the State. Carson and Walker rivers, having their source in the Sierras, pour their floods into Carson and Walker lakes, and, like the Humboldt, are lost to view forever. Truckee river has its source in the waters of the beautiful Lake Tahoe, situated upon the crest of the Sierras. Tahoe is twenty-one miles in length, twelve miles in width, and elevated 6,250 feet above the sea level, and forms a part of the boundary between California and Nevada. From this lake the Truckee pours in a mighty torrent, for the first few miles passing through deep cañons, gulches, and ravines, forming rapids and cascades of great power and beauty. The river in its course runs from Lake Tahoe in a northeasterly direction for a distance of more than eighty miles, and until it reaches Pyramid lake, on the eastern slope of the Sierras. This charming lake is thirty-five miles in length, ten miles in width, and elevated 3,940 feet above the waters of the Pacific ocean. Thus the waters of Lake Tahoe empty into Pyramid lake, but Pyramid lake, like Humboldt, Carso 1, Walker, and all the other lakes in the State, has no visible outlet, but pours the mighty tide of the Truckee, together with its own waters, into the bowels of the earth, which, with the waters of all the rivers and lakes of the State of Nevada, must pass under the Sierras, or to the Colorado river-hundreds of milesbefore a final outlet is found in the Pacific ocean.

On the eastern slope of the Sierras, and some other mountain ranges in Nevada, there are heavy growths of timber, but generally the State is but poorly wooded;

and the plains and valleys are destitute of trees, except where fringes of cotton-wood or willows skirt the rivers and streams.

In the mountains wild game is abundant, and the Truckee and other rivers abound with trout. The native tribes of Indians are of a very low order, and, although treacherous and cruel, are not warlike, and generally give but little trouble to the whites.

Agriculture is carried on to considerable extent, and there are large areas of tillable land which might be brought into a high state of cultivation by carrying water in ditches from the mountains. There are wide pasture-ranges in the State well adapted to cattle and sheep; and large herds of horned cattle graze at large during the whole winter.

The material growth of Nevada has been very great during the past ten years; and the State may be considered as in a prosperous and progressive condition.

At the end of 1870, the population of Nevada was 42,491; and her taxable property, independent of mines, was $32,524,600, and her working mines were valued at $30,000,000-an aggregate of more than $62,000,000, or about $1,500 for each inhabitant in the State. Nevada stands the highest of all the States in the Union in the average production of wheat; and equal with California and Oregon, the highest average producing States in the Union, in barley, oats, rye, and potatoes. California and Oregon yield nineteen bushels of wheat to the acre; while Nevada produces twentythree. Illinois yields twelve bushels, Indiana eleven, and Tennessee and Virginia each but eight bushels to the acre, on an average.

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