"CONTENTdm"@en . "http://resolve.library.ubc.ca/cgi-bin/catsearch?bid=1187443"@en . "Wallace B. Chung and Madeline H. Chung Collection"@en . "British Columbia"@en . "2015-09"@en . "1884"@en . "https://open.library.ubc.ca/collections/chungpub/items/1.0056027/source.json"@en . "application/pdf"@en . " SECOND ANNUAL REPORT\nOF\nIMMIGRATION AGENTS\nBRITISHfCOLUMBIA\nFOB THE\nYEAR ENDING 31st DECEMBER,\n1884.\nVICTORIA: Printed by Richard Wolfenden, Government Printer,\nat the Government Printing Office, James' Bay.\n1885. i\nSECOND ANNUAL REPORT\nOF\nIMMIGRATION AGENTS\nBRITISHfCOLUMBIA\nFOB THE\nYEAR ENDING 31st DECEMBER,\n1884.\nVICTORIA: Printed by Riohaed Wo_i_ndbn, Government Printer,\nat the Government Printing Office, James' Bay.\n1886. 48 Vic.\nImmigration Reports.\n295\nREPORTS\nOF\nIMMIGRATION AGENTS\nBRITISH COLUMBIA,\nFOE THE\nYear 1884.\nTo the Honourable Clement Francis Cornwall,\nLieutenant- Governor of the Province of British Columbia:\nMay it please Your Honour:\nThe undersigned has the honour to present the Second Annual Reports of the\nImmigration Agents, British Columbia, for the year 1884.\nJNO. ROBSON,\nMinister of Agriculture.\nVictoria, 23rd* January, 1885. 48 Vic. Immigration Reports. 297\nREPORT\nProvincial Government Immigration Office,\nNew Westminster, B. C, 10th December, 1884.\nSir:\nI have the honour to submit the following report, with tabular statements\nannexed, for the period of eleven months, ending November the 30th, 1884.\nThe total number arriving at this agency during the above period was 2,697\nsouls. There were, as is always the case, a large number of arrivals on the mainland who entered without coming under my notice; and this is more especially the\ncase with those possessed of considerable means. A great number also find their\nway through the many channels of communication from the American side, and I\nhave no doubt that fully 50 per cent, more than those reported enter in these ways.\nThe immigrants arrived in good health and are generally well fitted for settlers,\nthe greater portion of them being farmers and mechanics, and as a general rule just\nthe class adapted for a new country, strong active men and women. It is a truisim\nthat only the most energetic and self-reliant men have pluck enough to leave their\nhomes and seek to better their condition in an unknown and distant land. The very\nfact that they have the courage to face the trials and difficulties necessary to be encountered in a new land is sufficient evidence of their strength of character, and to\nsuch we should give all the inducements and encouragement possible.\nBy the able assistance of the local Agents, there has been no difficulty in locating immigrants on arrival, and those in quest of labor obtained ready employment\nat good wages on the.Canadian Pacific Railway and Provincial public works at present under construction.\nIt will be seen from the accompanying tabulated statement, that the immigration\nfor 1884 came from the mother country, the Eastern Provinces of the Dominion\n(Ontario standing at the head of the list with 542) and from the Western States of\nAmerica\u00E2\u0080\u0094Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa and Washington Territory. This influx in a\nlarge measure is due to the efforts made by the Department of Agriculture, in having\nthe wealth and resources of the Province made better known abroad\u00E2\u0080\u0094no effort has\nbeen spared in sending pamphlets and hand-books all over Europe, America and\nAustralia, thus spreading the knowledge of the fertility and the many other natural\nadvantages enjoyed by this favoured Province.\nThe efforts which American transportation companies are making to advertise\nthe lands through which their roads run should be an incentive to our own Government not to spare any expense in spreading abroad a true and thorough account of\nthe fertile country to which we invite immigration.\nI would here suggest the vital importance of old settlers welcoming immigrants\non their arrival and helping them in every way possible. A great deal depends upon\nthe first impression which the new comer receives of his location and surroundings,\nand the treatment from those who are to be his future neighbours. In Manitoba,\nMinnesota and Dakota, those who have already secured a home are always anxious\nto help beginners. They show them the best locations, help to build their houses, to\nbreak and clear land, to sow the seed, and in a hundred ways aid the new settler.\nThese new settlers will then become active immmigration agents themselves.\nf They will write to old friends and induce them to come out and settle along side of\nthem. It would be well if our own settlers would imitate this example.\nThe fertile valleys of Kamloops, Nicola, Spallumcheen, Similkameen, Kootenay,\nand Okanagan are rapidly settling up. Railway construction and Provincial public\nworks are creating a boom of prosperity such as has not been known since the golden\ndays of '62.\nAnother and very important move is the active measures taken by the Government in opening roads for the settlers, thus affording ready means to reach a market\nwith their produce. Nothing so much encourages the American immigrant as our\nliberal system of road-making.\n^\u00C2\u00A39\u00C2\u00BB 298 . Immigration Reports. 1884\nThe present road policy should be continued as long as the resources of the\ncountry will permit. The increase of settlers in this District is so rapid that new\nclaims for roads are constantly springing up in quarters where they were not looked for.\nThe accommpanying map not only shows the roads constructed, but it shows\nas well the quarter sections taken up during the present year, amounting to 1;086\nclaims, or 173,761 acres of land. This must of necessity involve large additional\nexpenditure for new roads.\nThe Chilliwhack Exhibition, held in October last, was largely attended, and the\nexhibits showed a marked improvement on' previous ones. The samples of grain,\nfruit and dairy produce, were the best ever exhibited here.\nI am also pleased to state that during the past eleven months, 1C5 have taken\nthe aliens' declaration oath\u00E2\u0080\u0094seventy-seven of this number being Americans\u00E2\u0080\u0094 a\nsuperior class of settlers and bringing with them considerable means.\nThe final location of the Canadian Pacific Railway terminus, will involve a large\nexpenditure of money in the construction of works and buildings required to accommodate the traffic on the completion of the railway from ocean to ocean, in November, 1885, affording employment to hundreds of artizans and laborers.\nThe immigration we have received this year, in consequence of the efforts to\nmake known the advantages of the Province, is only an earnest of what may be expected in coming years, and this is foreshadowed by the great number of letters\nreceived at this agency by every mail from almost all quarters of the globe.\nIt is desirable for all intending emigrants to leave early in the spring, for by so\ndoing they will be able to take advantage of the most favourable season to explore\nfor locations.\nDuring the past year there has been a great improvement throughout the\nmainland, in all branches of business. Real estate has advanced both in city and\ncountry, far beyond the expectations of the most sanguine, and there has been developed a general feeling of confidence and activity in all branches of industry. New\nmanufactories have been established, and old ones enlarged ; new houses have been\"\nstarted in various branches of trade, to meet the growing demands; and failures have\nbeen very few.\nIn this city, more buildings have been erected than in any previous year, and\nstill the population is so rapidly increasing that there is not an empty house or room\nin the city. A great many of the new comers are purchasing property and building\nvery comfortable houses.\nI have the honour to be,\nSir,\nYour obedient servent,\nWILLIAM ROSS,\nTo the Hon. John Robson, Minister of Agriculture,\nVictoria B. C.\nNew Westminster, B. C,\n13th January, 1884.\nSir:\nI have the honour to forward statement C showing the actual locations or quarter sections taken up by each individual settler in this District during the year 1884.\nAnd since closing my Report on the 30th November, for the year 1884, I beg\nto report that up to date, not less than sixty-two have registered at this office, and\nnearly all have located on land.\nA Mr. McDonald and family arrived the other day per steamer \" Idaho,\" from\nCanada, and has, en route per Northern Pacific Railway, several car loads of live\nstock, machinery and farming implements. He has purchased two very fine farms\nin this District, one for hims.lf and one for his son. Mr. McDonald is a gentleman 48 Vic.\nImmigration Reports.\n299\npossessed of considerable means, and he informs me that several friends are to follow\nhim as soon as spring opens up. Mr. McDonald was here last spring, and made a\ncareful examination of all lands on the Lower Fraser, and the result is that he is\nback with us, and many will follow him.\nI have the honour to be,\nYour obedient servant,\nWILLIAM ROSS.>\nTo the. Hon. John Robson, Minister of Agriculture,\nVictoria, B. 0.\nRETURN shewing number, occupation, sex, etc., of immigrants recorded at the\nProvincial Immigration Office, New Westminster, during the eleven months ending\nNovember 30th, 1884, and their ultimate destination.\nSexes.\nOi B\nNationalities.\nTbades and\nOccupations\nGeneral Destination.\na 3 i _i\n\u00E2\u0080\u00A2T-J f\u00E2\u0080\u0094I Cv\n\"=\u00C2\u00BB .S1\n\"> El\n02 ._\nS5P4\n_' Ej\n-_\u00C2\u00A3_ i b I\n*i>i\nCO qj |\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\nt3\n-3 _\n\u00E2\u0080\u00A2\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\u00C2\u00A7 _\nCD\nES\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0El\n, o\nO\ns a\nr.\nife!_ I\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0SL-Us!\n1 s as\nE-.O f*t ,_( _j O fe R\n\u00E2\u0080\u00A2^4\n\u00C2\u00A9\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0Sob\n_n _\n. I c H\n\u00E2\u0080\u00A2'8 ill\nill - P\n1751676 270 2697'207 176 66-542>49 142 88 37 811152 25|14!26;64:1020 54 84 315891 1321 _8_l51,7l|ll 42 112\n'\"S\nSJ fl\n_is\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0a a\n791|18|75|25,_1\n3090\nAliens who have taken the Declaration Oath.\nUnited States 77\nGermany .' 10\nDenmark 1\nSweden 5\nPrance \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nItaly 5\nNorway 4\nHolland :.... \u00E2\u0080\u0094\nAustria 2\nChina 1\nTotal 105\n^SP\" 300\nImmigration Reports.\n1884\nC\nSTATEMENT showing the actual number of locations taken up and settled upon\nin the several Townships, Groups, Blocks and Ranges and unsurveyed lands in\nthe New Westminster District.\nNo. of % Sections.\n 32\n< 2\n' 3....\n 38\n 5\n4\n 27\nQ\n 6\n 2\n( *7\n 67\n8..\n 39\n9\n 48\n' 10\n11\n 40\n 18\n' 12..\n 32\n' 13\n< 14\t\n 63\n 15\n' 15\t\n 26\n16\t\n 37\n' 17\n' 18..\n 42\n 49\n19\n 37\n' 23....\n 8\n' 26....\n 22\n' 27...\n10\n( 40....\n 16\n' 41\n< 42....\n 19\n 17\nGr\nBlc\nTin\nDUp 1\t\n 38\n2...\n 20\n>cks and Ranges\t\nsurveved Lands\t\n 65\n 261\nj\u00C2\u00A3\nTotal\t\n 1086=\n173,760 acres\nWilliam Ross,\nImmigration Agent, New Westminster, B. C.\nLangley Prairie, 19th November, 1884.\nHon. John Robson,\nProvincial Secretary.\nSir,\u00E2\u0080\u0094As Immigration Agent for the Municipality of Langley and adjoining districts, I beg to report that no less than eighty settlers have taken up quarter sections\nof land in this and the adjacent townships during the past year. These persons have\nall made more or less improvements, and appear to be well satisfied with their locations. I may also state that there is plenty of land in this vicinity fit for settlement\nand still unoccupied.\nI have, etc.,\nW. H. Vanetta. 48 Vic. Immigration Reports. 301\nYictoria, December 31st, 1884.\nSir,\u00E2\u0080\u0094I have the honour to submit herewith my report as Immigrant Guide for\nVancouver Island since May 1st, eight months.\nDuring the month of April I accompanied two parties to Salt Spring, Hornby\nand Denman Islands. Some of those men afterwards settled in Alberni.\nMay 1st, Cowichan.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Party consisting of E. Dawson, J. Hunter and H. Oalwell.\nNone of those, however, located.\nMay 14th, \" A. A. Brownell, J. and A. Camp, J. Camp, sen'r, H. O.\nWellburn, J. Nicholson, D. Christie, A. Brant, J. A. Lawrence. These took up locations.\nMay 20th, \" H. and D. Farnworth,- R. Guest, J. Black, James Black,\nA. Young, R. D. Wilson and P. Henderson. Five selected pre-emption claims.\nMay 28th, Nanaimo.\u00E2\u0080\u0094J. F. Bott, J. C. McLaren, J. McKenow, A. S. Lackie, D.\nSunderland and C. Bott. Five located on Englishman's\nRiver and French Creek.\nDuring the month nine other settlers, not belonging to the above parties, located\nin Cowichan District, and two above Nanaimo.\nJune 5th, Cowichan.\u00E2\u0080\u0094J. Knox, \u00E2\u0080\u0094Dunning, J. Bitton, H. Ratfish and S. Holmes.\nNone of those located.\nJune 13th, \" S. Holmes. Located.\nJune 20th, 1 T. Kenon, J. McFarlane and A. Christie. None selected\nclaims.\nJuly 2nd, Alberni.\u00E2\u0080\u0094S. Beddis and R. Purdy. Neither took up land.\nJuly 18th, \" Kenneth McKenzie, who settled on the Sumas River with\na large family.\nAugust 4th, .\" W. Sterling and F. Pierce. Both took up claims.\nAugust 26th, | H. O. Troup, \u00E2\u0080\u0094 Pike and H. C. Halpenny. No pre\nemptions.\nSeptember 12th, Salmon River.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Morgan and Poat. No locations selected.\nOctober 1st, Alberni.\u00E2\u0080\u0094T. Lewis, J. Hurlbert, B. McPherson. All located.\nOctober 22nd, \" H. McKenzie, N. Quigley and P. Cummerford. All\nselected claims.\nDecember 1st, \" A. Munroe, G. Boyle and G. Curtis. No pre-emptions.\nNine other settlers also located in Alberni during the fall.\nNot counting the number of miles of walking in actual search of land, I have\ntravelled, by steamer, 2,117 miles ; by land, 519, and by canoe, 181. Total, 2,817.\nI beg to state that a special report on the capabilities of Salmon River District\nhas-been forwarded to the Hon. the Chief Commissioner of Lands and Works.\nIn conclusion, I may just remark that there is a great deal of land yet available\nin all of the above mentioned districts, as well as in other parts of Vancouver and\nadjacent islands.\nI have the honour to be, Sir,\nYours obediently,\nWm. M. Halpenny,\nTo the Honourable Government Immigrant Guide.\nThe Minister qf Agriculture.\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\u00E2\u0096\u00A0CSV 302 Immigration Reports. 1884\nThe following Report on Salmon River is herewith published as being of interest\nto intending settlers.\nVictoria, B. C, 19th January, 1885.\nTo the Hon. Wm. Smithe,\nChief Commissioner of Lands and Works:\nSir:\u00E2\u0080\u0094I beg to submit a report on Salmon River, Vancouver Island. I left Victoria the 12th September last on board the steamer \"Barbara Boscowitz,\" and\narrived at the mouth of the river at noon on the 15th.\nThere were two gentlemen on board, in search of farming land, who had brought\na small boat from Victoria. In this we proceeded up the river for a distance of about\nfour miles, when we had to abandon the boat and get a canoe, the river becoming\nshallow with many swift rapids. On the second day, at noon, after much hard work,\nwe had made about eight miles from the mouth, and here we camped. At this point\nthe valley seemed to be quite wide, I should say from five to six miles in breadth,\nlevel, and most of it not too heavily timbered. On the left hand side going up\nstream, the valley is divided into two parts by a ridge of rock over 1,000 feet high,\nwhich comes out in a bold bluff to the bank of the river, and continues for about a\nmile. From where it commences on the lower side of this ridge, there is a fertile valley about five by four miles in extent. We travelled for one day in this valley, and\nfound it very suitable for farming, though rather heavily timbered with alder, crab-\napple and quite a number of other small bushes and shrubs, and with a solitary fir\ntree here and there.\nAbout three miles of a wagon road up from the mouth on the left hand side\nwould open the way quite into this valley, but not so far as the ridge above mentioned, which is about seven and a half miles from the mouth.\nOn the right hand side of the river going up, there is quite a flat valley for about\nseven or eight miles; the upper five miles is very heavily timbered with fir and\nspruce, and shows marks of having been taken up by some lumbermen. Above the\nmile of bluff, a larger valley comes in sight, it must be from ten to twelve miles in\nlength up the river, and will average four and a half in width. This valley is not\nover heavily timbered, and has a rich, heavy black soil, but I feel confident that under the present conditions, it could not be successfully cultivated, from the fact that\nthe river is so much diverted from its natural channel by large piles of drift-wood\nwhich seem to have been accumulating for ages. Nearly the whole water in the\nriver is turned off over this upper valley, and I should say that over two-thirds of it\nis submerged during the period of freshet. On the right hand side, for the same\ndistance up, the valley is not'so wide nor so level, and is more heavily timbered with\nfir and spruce.\nTo myself and others it seems quite obvious that if these jams of timber were\ncut out, the large upper left hand valley, and quite a number of thousands of acres\non the other side of the river would be reclaimed. If the river were cleared of logs,\nat a probable cost of about $1,500, and about $2,000 spent on a road and landing at\nits mouth, I am of opinion that immigrants might, with confidence, be invited to settle in the valley of the Salmon River.\nYour obedient servant,\nWM. M. HALPENNY,\nGovernment Guide. \u00E2\u0080\u0094\n48 Vic. Immigration Reports. 303\nThe Report of the Dominion Immigration Agent at Victoria, to the Department\nof Agriculture, Ottawa, is herewith appended as being of much interest, and containing valuable statistical information respecting the Province.\nREPORT\nImmigration Office, Victoria, B. C.\n24th December, 1884.\nSir:\nI have the honour of submitting herewith, the Annual Report of this Agency for\nthe year 1884.\nOfesce Work.\nDuring the year nearly closed, the calls of new arrivals seeking information with\nregard to land in various parts of the Province, or inquiring about work and other\nmatters, averaged eighty-five per month; the maximum number in May being 188,\nand the minimum, in Sepember, 44. A majority of those were from the Eastern\nProvinces, but the States and United Kingdom were pretty largely represented.\nSeveral were from Germany, with a few Scandinavians, Greeks, and Italians. A\nlarge number of these callers were farmers or farm labourers inquiring for land; the\nratio of mechanics being smaller than in 1883. The correspondence is a heavy item\nof work. Letters, inward and outward, are, as a matter of course, about equal\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nsomething over 800 each way. Communications arrive from nearly all parts of northern Europe, United Kingdom, South Africa, Eastern Provinces and United States,\nAustralia and New Zealand, West Indies, Hong Kong and Japan. Nearly all are\ninquiries about the country and its prospects in many lines of life. More than 1,200\nparcels of printed matter have been dispatched through the Post Office, to different\n' parts of the world. About two-thirds of these parcels were accompanied by letters\ncontaining answers to special questions not dealt with in pamphlets and papers.\nAfter the edition of local Handbook of 1883 (5,000 copies), was exhausted, a\nsmaller and more concise one was issued from the Local Government Printing Office.\nOut of this edition of 6,000, over 4,000 have been distributed to Agents, and. parties\nwriting direct for information Five thousand copies of a Portland, Oregon, illustrated\nmonthly, called West Shore, and devoted exclusively to British Columbia, were purchased by the Local Government for distribution abroad among those seeking information about the \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 Province\u00E2\u0080\u0094of these, 2,000 are still on hand. Nearly a thousand\ncopies of Kootenay Report were also sent out, together with some hundreds of\nDominion pamphlets and other papers.\nWith but few exceptions, the daily mail steamer connecting the Northern Pacific\nRailroad with this city has been met on landing, and immigrants' families and others,\nsupplied with such advice and instruction as they required. The Immigrant Home,\nalso, has been visited at least once a week.\nThe office has not been so much of a Labour Exchange during the year as it was\nin 1883, in consequence of labour being more easily obtained, so that employers were\nat no loss for hands. Unfortunately there were but few avenues of employment open\ntill the Island Railroad was commenced in the fall; and numbers of men were |thus\ndisappointed in their expectations during the spring and summer months. Many of\nthese called, over and over again, seeking .work, and though willing to take Chinaman's wages, at almost any kind of labour these undesirable people are doing, yet\nthey found it impossible to obtain employment.\nImmigration.\nEarly in the year immigration to B. C. received considerable impetus by the\nperfecting of arrangements for transit on the then newly opened N. P. Railway, and\n*\u00C2\u00BB*\u00E2\u0096\u00A0 304 Immigration Reports. 1884\nthe running of a daily steamer from Tacoma, the Sound terminus, to this city. During the spring months, from 50 to 100 persons over and above transient travellers\narrived here weekly. This number was increased in April and May to between 200\nand 300 per week. A majority of the new arrivals in these months wore labouring\nmen with a good sprinkling of mechanics who were led to believe that employment\nwould be plentiful in early summer, on the Esquimalt Graving Dock, and the Island\nRailway. Unfortunately the dock remained in statu quo all the year, and the railway\nwas not commenced till September. In consequence of these public works not being\nready to take on men, a large number of these possessing more or less means went\naway anathematizing the Province generally, and declaring that it was \"Chinese and\nnot British Columbia.\" These men, I have no doubt, after their return home, deterred many of their friends and acquaintances from coming to this coast. Many of\nthem, could they have been kept in the Province, would have made good settlers, as\nthey belonged to the better class of farm and other labourers. They came with the\nview of obtaining land, after spending a season or two on public works; and, as a\nmatter of course, had circumstances been more favorable, would have proved a valuable addition to our agricultural population With this drawback, however, a steady\nflow of immigrants, in the main well suited to the wants of the Province, continued\nthrough the summer and autumn months; and with some diminution in numbers'Jtill the\nclose of the year.\nOne noticeable feature among the new arrivals during the past three or four\nmonths is the numerous families from the Eastern Provinces and old country, en\nroute to various parts of the Province where homes had been provided for their reception by the head or some other member of each household.\nThe tourist element to this city and various points of interest within easy reach,\nincreases from season to season. A trip to Portland and the Sound over the N. P.\nRailway, is not considered complete without including Victoria, which, with a daily\nsteamer, is looked upon as the actual terminus of that important trans-continental\nline.\nPassengers Arriving in Port of Victoria, B. O, from Jan. 1st to Dec. 21st, 1884.\nPuget Sound, whites 13,110\u00E2\u0080\u0094Chinese.. ,1 1,297\nSan Francisco and Portland.. 3,084\u00E2\u0080\u0094 \" 1,157\nChinese Ports and Hong Kong \" 729\n16,194 3,183\nTotal whites and Chinese, 19,377. Direct arrivals at New Westminster and Nanaimo\nwill make the grand total fully 20,600.\nSteamers \"Starr\" and \"Anderson\" passengers from Puget Sound 3,770, 15 per\ncent of whom may be taken as immigrants 566\nMail fine, 9,340, 40 per cent 3,736\nSan Francisco, 3,084, 40 per cent 1,234\nTotal immigrants approximate 5,536\nIt may safely be presumed that 1,000 immigrants came in by way of New Westminster, Nanaimo, Kootenay and across the gap in the C. P. Railway on the Selkirk\nMountains, to the interior and down to the coast. In the months of September,\nOctober and early in November, severel of these \" overlanders\" reported themselves\nat this office and stated that a number of men had distributed themselves through\nthe country East of the Cascades.\nOf those, as near as can be ascertained, nearly 10 per cent., or about 500, left\nduring the spring and early summer months, on account of not being able to get employment on public works, thus leaving 6,000 approximately as the increase to white\npopulation from 1st January to 21st December, 1884.\nAdditions to the Chinese population number more than half as many, as several\nChinese from San Francisco were reported as steerage passengers and counted with 48 Vic.\nImmigration Reports.\n305\nthe whites, during the first part of the year. Nearly 200 of these people left this city\na few days ago on the S. S. \"Sardonyx\" for Hong Kong. A few of them may return,\nbut a large majority went home to reside permanently.\nIt will be observed that nothing has been said with regard to the several thousand C. P. Railway men who have come into B. C. from the East and are now working on the line west of the Rockies. Many of these will, no doubt, become settlers\nin this Province after railway works are completed. Indeed it is well known that\nsome have already done so, but as the number cannot be ascertained at present, no\nattempt has been made to enumerate them. With this element added, the immigration of 1884 is considerably in excess of that of 1883.\nThe following are the number of settlers who have passed their effects at the\nCustom House in this city from January 1st to December 21st, 1884.\nWHERE FROM.\nMALES (ADULT).\nFEMALES,\n(adults.)\nCHTLDBEN.\nEFFECTS valued at\nEngland\t\n51\n174\n72\n5\n42\n164\n52\n4\n27\n221\n87\n7\n$21,776 00\n31,693 00\nUnited States\t\n32,085 00\n5,450 00\nOther Places\t\n302\n262\n342\n$91,004 00\nFifty-nine bonus certificates of $10 each have been presented and paid to immigrants over 16 years of age, from the mother country, during the year.\nAgriculture. \u00C2\u00A3^\nDuring the sum er and autumn of 1883 an effort was made under instructions\nfrom the Minister of Agriculture for the Province, to collect statistics as to the condition of agriculture with a view of ascertaining the number of bona fide farmers and\nstock raisers, and constituting a basis from which further progress might be deduced.\nThe result of this appeal for valuable information was so meagre, only about two per\ncent, of farmers and stockmen responding to the call, that the project, for the time\nbeing, had to be abandoned. Should it be considered advisable, I would make\nanother attempt next summer, under instructions from the Department of Agriculture\nfor the Dominion, to furnish statistical information on this all-important branch of\nindustry.\nThat the Province has made substantial progress in this direction, is apparent in\nevery part of it. In New Westminster District alone, nearly 1,100 new settlers have\nselected locations since the Settlement Act became law,- and most of these are busily\nengaged improving their holdings. Various sections of Vancouver Island have also\nreceived many accessions to the farming population. A few years ago the importation of farming implements and machinery was almost nil. In Victoria alone, for\neleven months of the year just expiring, it has amounted to $48,088.\nThe following table shows the annual increase of the imports since 1882 :\n1882.\n1883.\n1884.\nValue.\nDuties.\nValue.\nDuties.\nValue.\nDuties.\n$23,192 00\n18,461 00\n$6,656 67\n$30,230 00\n25,881 00\n$9,081 95\n$18,614 00\n29,474 00\n$5,842 90\n$41,653 00\n$56,111 00\n$48,088 00\nThe above exhibit for 1884 only shows the imports entered in this Custom House\nfor eleven months. As New Westminster and Nanaimo are now independent ports\n\u00C2\u00AB\u00E2\u0080\u00A2\u00C2\u00AB\u00E2\u0080\u00A2*-*-\u00E2\u0096\u00A0 -I..\u00E2\u0080\u0094\u00E2\u0080\u0094 Pi UII.I.HUU i - j___\n308 Immigration Reports. 1884\nwomen, the latter with six or seven exceptions, being wives of the former. The certificates were distributed among the old country agencis as follows: London, thirteen\nmen, and ten women ; Liverpool, twelve and nine respectively ; Glasgow, seven and\nsix respectively ; Belfast, one male, and Bristol one female. In one instance, duplicate certificates were presented, one from London and the other from Bristol; the\nLondon certificate was paid. Only two of the six or seven unmarried women went\nout as domestic servants. The holders of six certificates issued to men from the\nHigh Commissioners Office in London, from August 1883, to close of 1884, have not\nye*' presented them for payment. Two certificates to a man and his wife from Bristol, dated October 6th, are likewise unpaid. Presumably some of these people found\nemployment or suitable locations before reaching this Province, while the others\nmay report themselves at an early date.\nDomestic Servants.\nThe scarcity of domestic servants has been quite as marked during the past\nyear as at any previous time. It was expected that among the immigrant families,\nthere would have been a number of girls willing to go out to service, but in consequence of so many of these families being made up of small children, such has not\nbeen the case. With the exception of one family of ten, from Wellington County,\nOntario, settled at Comox, from among whom four girls remained here at service ;\nthe supply from this source has been almost nil. Possibly the incoming season's\nimmigration may be more satisfactory in this respect. It may safely be asserted\nthat one hundred or more female servants' could procure comfortable homes with\ngood wages, say from $12 to $25 per month, in this city, New Westminster and\nNanaimo, in less than a week's time. Nine-tenths of the Chinamen now employed\nin domestic work would be summarily discharged if their places could be filled with\npermanent and reliable female servants. However much the Mongolians may be disliked, their employment is at present a stern necessity, for the very simple and sufficient reason that female help is unobtainable.\nScarcity of Dwelling Houses..\nI had occasion in last year's Report to touch upon the pressing want for medium\nsized dwellings in this city. It can hardly be said that this stringency is as apparent now as it was twelve months ago, but still it is no easy matter to find suitable\nhouses. Probably more than 300 residences of \"various descriptions have been erected\nduring the year and occupaied as soon as they were ready, and had this number\nbeen largely increased, the \" To Let or to Lease,\" in windows would still have been\nof rare occurrence. A noticable feature in last year's improvements is the great\nnumber of houses built by mechanics md other working men for their own occupation, many of the owners being comparatively new arrivals. Excellent returns for\ncapital invested still await those who may embark in house building in this city.\nThe above remarks are also applicable to New Westminster and Nanaimo, where\nhouses are difficult to obtain.\nWith Graving Dock work again in operation at Esquimalt, and the impetus\nwhich the Island Railway construction must give to almost all branches of industry,\nthere is every indication of a greater influx of families next spring and summer, than\nhas yet taken place, and unless this is met by a corresponding activity in building operations, Victoria will not secure a fair share of the expected immigration.\nCost of Agency.\nIn consequence of the Local Government assuming the somewhat heavy Postage Account, supplying an office in the Departmect Buildings, and for a portion of\nthe year providing stationery, &c, the charge of this Agency on the Dominion Exchequer has been less than $50 for the twelve months ending 31st December.\nI have the honour to be, Sir,\nTour obedient servant,\nJOHN JESSOP,\nTo the Honourable Bom. Immigration Agent.\nThe Minister of Agriculture, Ottaxoa.\n3 n iM^S, -T> "@en . "Books"@en . "FC3808_1_B7_A55_1884_c2"@en . "10.14288/1.0056027"@en . "English"@en . "Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library"@en . "Victoria : Printed by Richard Wolfenden, Government Printing"@en . "Rare Books and Special Collections"@en . "These images are provided for research and reference use only. Written permission to publish, copy or otherwise use these images must be obtained from Rare Books & Special Collections http://www.library.ubc.ca/spcoll/"@en . "University of British Columbia. Library. Rare Books and Special Collections. FC3808.1.B7 A55"@en . "Immigration"@en . "British Columbia"@en . "Second annual report of Immigration Agents, British Columbia"@en . "Text"@en . ""@en .