River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1880-12-23
THE FALKLAND ISLANDS.

Stld llleH lilSLlb SoAiSIit1aAtt0S tilSiAi-
selves that they had not come to blows.
- e----
THE FALKLAND ISLANDS.
Engiands Nest Progressive Colony
London Times.
The Falkland Islands have an area of
5000 900 acres, mostly devoted to sheep
farming, which has proved very profit
able to the present settlers, wool being
exported from islands that few wears
ago produced nothing but penguins and
sea lions. 1t is only thirteen years
(1S67) since the first settlers, under
Gov Robinson, landed on West Falk-
land, and already there are many flour
ishing stations" of sheep and cattle
thereon. Some of the smaller islands
have since been taken up by men with
a few hundred pounds of capital, and,
as the climate is the healthiest in the
world, the only wonder is that more
Englishmen do not cast their fortunes
in dependency of Britain where there
is no income tax and where sheep and
land may be obtained on easy terms.
Sublunary happiness, however is
seldom without some drawback. and it
must be confessed that the climate is by
no means as genial as that Of the Cana
~ island or Madeira. 1t blows so hard
during the eleven months Of the year
that Admiral b. used to require two
sailors to keep his hat on, and when
ever the governors term Of office eX-
pires he invariably solicits the colonial
secretary to remove him to some ether
settlement less windy, though less sa-
lubrious. Another drawback Is the
want Of society or of immediate con-
tact with Europe. There is no line Of
steamers that touches at Stanley, the
only regular communication with the
outer world being through the schoon-
er Foam, which carries the mails
and passengers monthly to and from
Montevideo, a thousand miles distant.
There are no roads or coaches for in
ternal traffic, most of the country
around Stanley being u morass, which
compels the principal farmers to keep
| their own yachts or schooners for re-
pairing to the capital OF sending their
wool thither. The city of Stanley con-
sists of the government house, the bish-
| ops residence, the custom house, fort,
and II few houses, with some 500 in
| habitants.
For some years after Great Britain
annexed these islands, III 1888, they
served merely as refuge for whaiers
and an cntrep0t for the seal of fishery,
under the auspices of Samuel Lafone,
of Montevidio, founder of the Falkland
Islands company. This company sub
sequeutly embarked in sheep farming,
importing some hocks from Patagonia,
and refining the breed by q cross with
the Chcviots. They now possess 100,-
900 sheep, which produce 100000
worth of wool annually, the fleece av-
eraging six pounds and selling at lid
per pound at Bradford, where it is
used for combing purposes. The
company's headquarters are at Port
Darwin, seventy miles from Stanley,
their farms extending along the sea-
board, by Mount Pleasant and Port
Fitzroy, to within fifteen miles of the
capital So well suited is the pasture
to the sheep that they yield from sew
enty pounds to one Hundred pounds of
meat, and the fleece is double the av-
erage of what is obtained in the ad-
cent country of Buenos Ayres, out of
eoarser quality owing to the climate.
| The company have also $4,000 horned
cattle, which are, however, of little use
unless for their hides, as there is no
| population to consume the beef nor any
means for exporting it.
There is, meantime, no other colony
in the British empire that has rela-
lively made such progress as this in the
| last ten years Its population has
doubled, its products have quadrupled
as shown by the returns in the colonial
abstract, recently published.
East Falkland may be said to con
sist of eight large farms, the company
already mentioned holding a million
acres, and the rest belonging to Capt.
Packe, Messrs. Bonner, Pittaluga,
Sharp, Greenshields, Robson and Eel
ton, whose farms range from "a 900 to
100000 acres. West Falkland com
prises eight estates, averaging 100000
acres, owned by Messrs. Waldron,
Dean, Packe, Bertrand, Stickney,
Holmested, Williams, Binney, Ballion,
and McClymont OF the smaller is
lands, the Speedwell belongs to Mr..
Williams, the Lively to Messrs. Cobb,
the Pebble to Messrs. Dean, the KEEP
pei to Bishop Strings mission, and
New Island to Mr.. Littlejohn, besides
ninety others not yet occupied, some,
perhaps, of no value.
The large island of Georgia, which is
forty times the size of Jersey, is unin-
habited, probably on account of its re-
mote situation, being 800 miles east of
the principal group. All these islands
lie between 50 and 50 degrees of south
latitude, and resemble the Orkneys in
climate, soil and vegetation. Thethcr-
mometer ranges from rs to so degrees
in winter, and so to IS degrees in sum
mer. Snow sometimes remains on the
mountains for weeks together, but ice
never exceeds an inch in thickness.
Mount Adam is the Hottest peak
2,315 feet-all the northern part of
East and West Falkland being noun
famous, and the southern part sloping
away in plains from five to fifteen
miles in width. There are no trees per
haps on account Of the strong winds,
but shrubs and frlnO trees thrive in shell
tered spots. Fuel is abundant in the
form of peat, and the soil, where bog
does not prevail, consists of n vegetable
mold six inches thick, which produces
excellent potatoes, cabbages, three feet
high, and all kinds of anti-scorbutic veg
pta hlps