WILNA, a government of the division called West Russia, of the Russian empire in Europe. It was formerly a portion of Lithuania, till the first division of Poland. In its present state, it extends in north latitude from 53° 32' to 56° 24', and in east longitude from 20° 54' to 26° 33'. It is bounded on the north by Courland, on the north-east by Witebsk, on the east by Minsk, on the south by Grodno, on the south-west by the kingdom of Poland, on the west by Prussia, and on the north-west by the Baltic Sea. It comprehends 23,782 square miles, divided into thirteen circles, in which are eleven large cities, 156 smaller cities or market-towns, and 1536 villages, with 1,357,400 inhabitants. These being of Polish origin, for the most part adhere to the Romish faith; but there are a few Protestant churches both of the Lutheran and Calvinist confession. Jews are numerous, and constitute the greater part of the middle classes in all the cities and towns. They are estimated to form one seventh part of the whole population.

The face of the country is generally level, with but few undulations, none of the hills rising to the height of 300 feet above the level of the sea. The lower portions are for the most part swamps and morasses, and the higher portions chiefly covered with forests. The Baltic Sea has no ports within this government, and the sand-banks on the shore nearly render it inaccessible to ships. The river Duna touches one part, by which there is a communication with the sea, as well as by the Niemen. These two rivers receive the waters of the several small streams with which the province abounds. All these rivers have a slow course, and some of them in their progress form extensive morasses, [7:21:889] especially on the east and south-east part of the province. In some cases they form lakes, such as the lake of Norosetz near the city of Wilna, and those of Drissewatty and of Braslau. The climate is not the mildest; the winters, though short, are severely cold, the spring and autumn moist and foggy, and even the summer, though warm, is by no means unclouded. It is however tolerably healthy, with no peculiar diseases, unless the Plica Polonica can be called peculiar, a complaint to be found in all parts of Poland, though everywhere now diminishing in frequency of occurrence.

The chief occupation is agriculture, and from it the inhabitants obtain rather more grain than they consume, and increase the quantity yearly by clearing the woods and converting them into arable land. The chief corn is rye, the next in quantity are wheat and barley, besides which oats, buck-wheat, and pulse are grown. Hemp and flax succeed well, and hops are cultivated sifficient for the breweries. The implements of agriculture are of the rudest kind. Manure is but little applied, but when the land becomes exhausted it is suffered to rest for a few years, and new land is broken up. The horses are a small and weak race, and the horned cattle, the goats, the sheep, and the swine are equally bad. The forests supply much timber for commerce, and yield pitch, tar, and charcoal, and the furs of wolves, bears, martens, and other wild animals. There are no mines, or at least there is none worked, but there are valuable quarries, yielding granite, limestone, agates, flints, chalcedony, and some marble.

The manufactures are almost exclusively of the domestic kind; but the distilleries are numerous and on a large scale, and some of the spirits which they yield is smuggled over the Prussian frontier. The commerce is merely the export of a small portion of the product of the soil, and the import of a few foreign luxuries.

The capital is the city of Wilna, in the circle of its name. It stands on the river Wilia, where that stream falls into the Wileija. It is surrounded with walls, is the seat of the governor, of a catholic bishop, and of the Lutheran consistory and superintendent. It has also a university, which had the power of granting degrees in the four faculties of divinity, law, philosophy, and medicine, but, since the late insurrection, has been restricted to the last of these branches. It was before that period frequented by 400 students. Wilna is built in the ancient fashion, with narrow and crooked streets; but has still some magnificent palaces of the noble families of the province, who usually passed the winters there. It contains thirty-five Catholic churches, including an old cathedral, and the palace chapel, a most expensive building, and highly admired for one altar in it, dedicated to St Kasimir. It has also three churches for the Greeks, and one each for Lutherans and Calvinists, besides a mosque and Jews’ synagogue. It contained, before the calamitous events of 1831 and 1832, nearly 30,000 inhabitants. A very large proportion of them were and still are Jews. The trade and manufactures are inconsiderable, although the river Wileija is navigable to the Baltic Sea. It is 624 miles from St Petersburg. Long. 25. 11. 22. E. Lat. 54. 41. 2. N.