Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XV.djvu/606

 578 TASMANIA most every variety of scenery, are indented by numerous bays and inlets, and good an- chorage is to be found almost everywhere. The principal harbors are: on the W. coast, Port Uavey, which is much frequented by whaling vessels, and Macquarie harbor; on the N. coast, Stanley at Circular Head, Emu bay, Port Frederick, Port Dalrymple, and Wa- terhouse roads, between Anderson and Ringa- rooma bays; on the E. coast, George, Oyster, Spring, and Fortescue bays; and on the S. E. coast, Port Arthur, Storm bay, Norfolk bay, D'Entrecasteaux channel, Port Esperance, Muscle bay or Southport, and Recherche bay. There are 55 islands off the coast, all of which belong to Tasmania. The Furneaux group, N. E. of the main island, includes Flinders isl- and (801 sq. m.), Cape Barren island (172 sq. m.), Clarke island (30 sq. m.), Chappell, Hum- mock, and several smaller islands. Their in- habitants, 242 in number in 1870, many of whom are half-breeds, live mostly by seal fishing. Off the N. W. end of Tasmania are King's island (425 sq. m.), Robbins' island (37 sq. m.), Hunter, Three Hummock, and smaller islands. Off the S. E. coast are Bruny island (140 sq. m.), divided into North and South Bruny, which are connected by a narrow isth- mus, Maria island (37 sq. m.), Schouten island (10 sq. m.), and many smaller, Tasmania is traversed by high mountain chains, full of glens and ravines, and separated by fertile and well watered plains. There are two prin- cipal chains, one running parallel with the E. coast, the highest peak of which is Ben Lo- mond, 5,010 ft., and the other forming an ele- vated table land in the middle of the island, reaching, an elevation of 5,096 ft. in Cradle mountain; from the latter diverge numerous smaller ranges, north, west, and south. In the middle of the table land are several lakes, the largest of which are the Great lake (28,000 acres), Sorell (17,000), St. Clair (10,000), and Arthur, Crescent, and Echo (8,000 to 12,000). The chief rivers on the S. E. coast are the Huon, which flows into D'Entrecasteaux chan- nel ; the Derwent, which rises in Lake St. Clair, receives numerous tributaries, and flows into Storm bay ; and the Coal, which flows into Pitt water. On the S. W. and W. coast are the Spring, the Davey, the Gordon and King's falling into Macquarie harbor, the Pieman, and the Arthur, all with large tributaries ; and on the north the Montague, Duck, Detention, In- glis, Cam, Ernu, Blythe, Leven, Gawler, Forth, Mersey, Rubicon, Tamar, Piper, Forrester, Trent, and Ringarooma. The Tamar is a tidal river formed by the junction of the -North and South Esk. The central mountain chain, which is of volcanic formation, is of trap upheaved through sandstone, clay, limestone, and slate. The rocks of the E. and S. W. coasts are basalt, granite, gneiss, and quartz. It is conjectured that the island was once connected with Aus- tralia, and that the smaller islands in Bass strait are the peaks of a disrupted mountain chain. Tasmania is rich in minerals. Iron abounds near Hobart Town and on the banks of the Tamar river. Large deposits of tin ore were discovered in 1872 at Mt. Bischoff, and small lodes of copper, lead, and bismuth have been found. Coal abounds at Mt. Nicholas and Douglas river in the northeast, on the Mersey river in the north, at Jerusalem N. of Hobart Town, and at Hamilton in the middle of the island. None of these deposits are worked, but mines of bituminous coal are worked near Port Seymour, and of anthracite coal at Port Arthur, New Town, and Port Serrell. The principal gold mines are at Nine Mile Springs, Mathinna, and Hellyer river. Limestone is abundant, and a fine quality of white freestone is largely exported to Melbourne. The climate is remarkable for mildness, being subject to extremes neither of heat nor cold. The aver- age temperature of the summer months, De- cember, January, and February, is about 62 ; of the autumn months, March, April, and May, 55 ; of the winter months, June, July, and August, 47 ; and of the spring months, Sep- tember, October, and November, 54. The mean annual temperature, as ascertained by 30 years' observation, is about 54. The mean annual rainfall is 22*71 inches. The atmosphere is remarkably pure, and zymotic diseases are rare. Thunder storms are not common and are seldom violent. Many per- sons, enervated by the hotter climate of Aus- tralia, annually visit Hobart Town for health. Although much of the interior is mountain- ous and rugged, there are large tracts of pas- ture land, and extensive forests, chiefly of the eucalyptus and acacia, affording excellent tim- ber for both cabinet work and ship building. The soil is very fertile, and produces abun- dantly all the cereals, vegetables, and fruits of temperate climates. Among the fruits cul- tivated are the peach, plum, apricot, cherry, quince, fig, mulberry, gooseberry, strawberry, raspberry, currant, and grape; also the wal- nut, filbert, and almond. Large quantities of green and preserved fruits are exported. The live stock in 1873 amounted to 22,334 horses, 106,308 horned cattle, 1,490,738 sheep, 59,628 swine, and 2,201 goats. The indigenous "ani- mals are mostly marsupials, like those in Aus- tralia, and they exist in such numbers that kangaroo leather and opossum furs are articles of export. There is one unique animal, called the thylacine, Tasmanian wolf, or native tiger, the largest carnivorous animal in Australasia, though no larger than a wolf. Whales, both black and spermaceti, are numerous off the coasts, particularly in Bass strait, and the fish- ery is prosecuted with much vigor ; and seals frequent the shores and the islands in their vicinity. Excellent fish are found in all the bays and rivers, and oysters are very abun- dant. Salmon have been introduced from England, and are now caught in the Derwcnt. The industries of Tasmania are not extensive. There are several breweries in Hobart Town,