from the left bank of the Iowa River, about 80 miles from its mouth, 33 miles north-west of the Mississippi River at Muscatine, and about 760 miles in a straight line west by north of Washington-latitude 41° 39′ north, longitude 91° 39' west. When the place was selected as the seat of government for the Territory, in May, 1839, it was entirely in a state of nature, and within a year from that time it contained from 500 to 700 inhabitants. The town is embowered among groves of trees, and surrounded by fertile prairies. The principal streets are Capitol Street and Iowa Avenue, which are about 100 feet in width. At the intersection of these, on a commanding eminence, stands a fine edifice of the Doric order, 120 feet long by 60 wide. The material was quarried in this vicinity, and is marked with spots and rings, which give it the name of "bird's-eye marble." The cost is estimated at $100,000. This building was originally designed for the State Capitol, but on the removal of the seat of government to Des Moines, in 1854, the edifice was appropriated to the State University, which was founded in 1855, and has a medical department and branches at Fairfield and Dubuque. Iowa City is also the seat of asylums for the blind and the deaf and dumb, and of a female collegiate institution, founded in 1853 by the Order of Odd-fellows. The Iowa River is navigable for steamboats to this point, and the town is connected with Chicago by the Chicago and Rock Island Railroad.

Burlington, a flourishing commercial city, seat of justice of Des Moines County, and formerly the capital of Iowa, is situated on the Mississippi River, 45 miles above Keokuk, 250 miles above St. Louis, and 88 miles south-east of Iowa city. In respect to population this town is quite as large as any in the State, excepting Dubuque, which is much larger in extent. It continues to maintain a steady and healthy growth, notwithstanding the removal of the seat of government, in 1839, to Iowa City. The river in this part of its course is a broad and beautiful stream of clear water, and the town, situated partly on the top of the bluffs, overlooks a section of country abounding in rich and delightful scenery. Burlington is regularly laid out, and the greater part of the houses are of brick or stone. It had, by the census of 1850, a population of 6,706.

Dubuque, a flourishing city, and seat of justice of Dubuque County,. is situated on the right bank of the Mississippi River, about 200 miles above Burlington, 450 above St. Louis, and 24 miles by water from Galena. The situation of Dubuque is regarded by some persons as more beautiful than that of any other city in Iowa. It stands on a broad plateau or terrace, which extends along the river for several miles. The city is regularly laid out, and contains a number of handsome buildings. Dubuque is the central depot of the mining region of Iowa, and is a place of active trade. Large quantities of lead are taken from this vicinity, and sent down the river by steamboats; stonecoal and limestone are also abundant. It is entered by the northern brauch of the Illinois Central, and by the Dubuque and Sioux City Railroad. It is the oldest town in the State, having been settled by French Canadians about 1786. By the census of 1850, its population was

1,308; in 1860 it had increased the number of its inhabitants to 13,000.

Davenport, the capital of Scott County, is finely situated on the Mississippi River, at the foot of the Upper Rapids, opposite the town of Rock Island, 230 miles above St. Louis, and 60 miles east of Iowa city. It has advantages which indicate that it will continue to grow in extent and importance. The prosperity of Davenport is increased by its connection with the East by means of the Chicago and Rock Island Railroad. The Davenport and Iowa Railroad connects with Iowa City and Des Moines. During low water the navigation is obstructed by the rapids, which extend 20 miles above this place. Several newspapers are published here. Iowa College was established in Davenport in 1846 or 1847, and is a flourishing institution. Stone-coal is so abundant and cheap in the vicinity, that steam-power is chiefly used for manufacturing purposes. Davenport is built at the foot of a bluff, which rises gradually from the river, with a chain of rounded hills in the background. The scenery around the town is scarcely surpassed by any on the river. It was first settled in 1837, and is incorporated as a city. Its population in 1850 was 1,848, and in 1860, 11,267.

Keokuk is situated at the foot of the "Lower Rapids" of the Mississippi River, 205 miles above St. Louis, and 125 miles south of Iowa City. It is at the natural head of navigation for the large class of steamers, and is the natural outlet of the fertile valley of the Des Moines River, in which is the most populous part of the State. A line of splendid steam-packets communicates daily between Keokuk and St. Louis. The Lower Rapids are 11 miles in extent, in the course of which the river has a fall of 24 feet. Keokuk stands on a basis of fine limestone, affording an excellent material for building. It contains the medical department of the State University. The Mississippi River at this point flows over a bed of limestone, and is bordered by the bluffs, which rise abruptly nearly 150 feet high. Between these bluffs is an island 1,700 feet wide. The population of Keokuk in 1850 was 2,478; in 1860, 8,156. It has a public school edifice, built at a cost of $13,500, and said to be the handsomest building of the kind in the State. There are 15 or 20 churches in the city, and a large number of brick and lumber-yards, mills, foundries, etc. The manufacturing establishments are numerous, extensive, and flourishing. Its trade and commerce are active and rapidly increasing. Keokuk is the terminus of two railroads-the Keokuk, Fort Desmoines and Minnesota, and the Keokuk, Mount Pleasant and Muscatine.

Muscatine, formerly Bloomington, capital of Muscatine County, is situated on the right bank of the Mississippi, 100 miles above Keokuk, and 32 miles south-east of Iowa City. Commencing at the head of the Upper Rapids of the Mississippi, the river may be traced in a direction almost due west for more than 40 miles, until it strikes a series of bold rocky bluffs, by which its course is suddenly turned toward the south. At the apex of this bend, on the summit of these bluffs, is situated the city of Muscatine. The place was first settled by the whites in 1836, previous to which time it had been an Indian trading

post, known by the name of Manatheka. It is now one of the most populous and commercial towns of the State, and is the shipping point for an extensive and fertile territory. In consequence of the bend in the river, Muscatine is nearer the center of the State than the other ports on the Mississippi, and it naturally commands the trade of two great fluvial divisions of Iowa; namely, the valleys of the Red Cedar and Iowa Rivers. There is a good river landing, with space for improvement in levees. A large amount of capital is invested in flourmills, saw and planing-mills, in manufactories, and in a large variety of stores. The annual sale of lumber at this point is immense. Muscatine is the center of an extensive trade. Its population in 1850 was 2,540; in 1860, it was 5,324.

Council Bluffs City, formerly Kanesville, is the capital of Potawatomie County, near the Missouri River, 250 miles west of Iowa City. It was first settled by the Mormons. Many emigrants to Utah get their outfit here.

Des Moines, late Fort Des Moines, (de-moin',) is situated at the junction of the Des Moines and Raccoon Rivers, 120 miles west of Iowa City. The seat of the State Government was established here in 1855. The Des Moines is susceptible of steam navigation to this point, which is the terminus of the slackwater improvement prosecuted by the State. Mines of stone-coal have been opened in the vicinity, and timber is abundant. The river furnishes extensive water-power, which is partially employed in flouring-mills and saw-mills. Several newspapers are published here. The old Fort Des Moines was evacuated by the troops of the United States in 1846. The city had 986 inhabitants in 1850, and 3,965 in 1860.

Fort Madison, capital of Lee County, on the Mississippi River, 12 miles above the head of the Lower Rapids, 22 miles above Keokuk, and 22 miles below Burlington. The situation is beautiful and healthful, the ground rising gradually from the water to the west part of the town. The latter is well built, with a large proportion of brick houses. It contains the State-prison, a handsome brick court-house, and churches of the same material. Two or three ferry-boats ply constantly across the river, which is nearly a mile wide. Fort Madison is a place of much activity in trade and manufactures, in the latter of which it appears to have made more progress than any other town in the State. Large quantities of grain, pork, etc., are shipped at this place, which is also an extensive depot for pine lumber. Population in 1850, 2,300 ; in 1853, about3,000.

Oskaloosa, the county town of Mahaska County, is situated between the Des Moines and Skunk Rivers, about six miles from the former, and 63 miles south-west from Iowa City. It was laid out in 1844, and is in the midst of a healthful and fertile country, abounding in fine timber. The State Normal School is located here.

THE LEAD REGION.-Within the limits of Iowa is in part located the most important lead region of the country, excepting the Missouri lead mines. This region embraces a district about 600 miles in diameter, of which about one-half is in Wisconsin, and the remainder equally distributed in Iowa and Illinois. The Missouri runs through the south.

west portion of this region. The Dubuque district in Iowa is about sixty miles in length, by seven or ten in breadth. The richest deposits are within the corporate limits of Dubuque, and they decrease in value toward the boundary of the district. In 1833 the Indian title to lowa was extinguished, and mining subsequently began. From the surface to the top of the bluffs there are four distinct strata. On the surface is a clay soil, varying in depth from eight to twenty feet. Below the clay is shale, of which the thickness is from five to twenty feet; next, galena limestone, the lead-bearing rock, and the blue and Trenton limestone. The amount of lead produced from the extensive region in the three States in 1860 was in value as follows: Illinois, $72,953; Iowa, $160,500, and Wisconsin, $325,368. The annual yield of the Dubuque region ranges from four to ten million pounds.

WISCONSIN.

THIS State is bounded on the north by Lake Superior and the northern peninsula of Michigan, (from which it is separated in part by the Menomonee and Montreal Rivers,) on the east by Lake Michigan, south by Illinois, and west by Iowa and Minnesota, from the former of which it is separated by the Mississippi, and from the latter (in part) by the St. Croix River. It lies between 42° 30′ and 46° 55' north latitude, (if we exclude some small islands belonging to the State in Lake Superior,) and between 87° and 92° 50' west longitude, being about 285 miles in extreme length from north to south, and about 255 in its greatest breadth from east to west, including an area of about 53,924 square miles, or 34,511,360 acres, of which 1,045,499 were improved in 1850, and 3,746,036 in 1860.

FACE OF THE COUNTRY.-Wisconsin may be described generally as an elevated rolling prairie, from 600 to 1,200 feet above the level of the sea. The highest portion of this plateau is on the north, and forms. the dividing ridge between the waters flowing south-west into the Mississippi, and those flowing north into Lake Superior. The southern slope is again interrupted about the middle of the State by another ridge, giving origin to a second slope, drained by Rock River and its branches. This State has no mountains, properly so called. The de scent toward Lake Superior is very abrupt, and the rivers full of rapids and falls, which interrupt navigation but afford valuable mill-sites There is a third ridge or elevation in the south-east, dividing the water-courses of Lake Michigan from those of Green Bay. Just below the second ridge, a depression crosses the State, forming the bed of the Neenah or Fox River, and the Lower Wisconsin. When the rivers are unusually full, these actually communicate, though running in opposite directions, the one to the Mississippi, and the other to Lake Michigan.

GEOLOGY.-Limestone underlies most of the southern part of the State, the cliff limestone in the mineral districts, and the blue elsewhere. The northern part seems to be composed of primitive rocks, for the most part of granite, slate, and sandstone. Commencing a little south of the Wisconsin, and along the Mississippi, as far back as the falls of its tributaries, sandstone, between layers of limestone, is the prevailing rocks, and forms the cliffs on the Mississippi, below St. Anthony's Falls, for thirty-five miles. The rivers in this region are much obstructed by shifting beds of this sand. From Lake Michigan westward to the other sections named, is a limestone region, in many parts well timbered, while in others a considerable portion is prairie. Underlying the blue limestone is a brown sandstone, which crops out on the sides of the hills, but no lead has ever been found in it. A section through the Blue Mound would give the following result, descending vertically: Hornstone, 410 feet; magnesian lime, or lead-bearing rock, 159 feet; saccharoid sandstone, 40 feet; sandstone, 3 feet; lower limestone, (at the level of the Wisconsin,) 190 feet. The elevation of different parts of the southern sections of the State are given by Chancellor Lathrop, at Blue Mounds, 1,170; head waters of the Rock River, 316; egress of the same river from the State, 128, and the portage between the Fox and Wisconsin Rivers, at 223 feet above the level of Lake Michigan and the Wisconsin River.

Following the map accompanying the geological work of Professor Owen, on the States of Iowa and Wisconsin, and the State of Minnesota, we should say that about half the northern part of the State of Wisconsin, resting on Lake Superior, and having its apex near the 44th degree of north latitude, and about the middle of the State, (taken in an east and west direction,) is covered by drift, overlaying the Potsdam sandstone of New York, and metamorphic strata, with occasional protrusions of granite and other igneous rocks. Beyond this triangle, on the south-east and south-west, the sandstone comes to the surface in a broad belt, having between it and the Mississippi, (from the St. Croix to the Wisconsin River,) a second belt of lower magnesian limestone, with the sandstone occasionally laid bare in the valleys of the streams. This same formation is continued on the south, (following the Wisconsin River on both sides,) and on the east, coasting the sandstone belt to its full extent. The limestone is followed in turn by another zone of white sandstone, containing beds of shells. Next succeeds the leadbearing group of upper magnesian limestone, extending into Illinois. and Iowa on the south and west, and on the east running up into the peninsula formed by Great Bay and Lake Michigan, having a triangle of the Niagara limestone between it and Lake Michigan on the southeast. On the shores of Lake Superior are two beds of red clay and marl, separated by ridges of drift from 300 to 600 feet high. East of this, and just where the northern boundary leaves the lake, parallel groups of conglomerate red sandstone and slates, trap, and metamorphic slates, with beds of magnetic iron ore, granite, and quartzose rocks come to the surface.

MINERALS.-Part of the great lead region extending from Illinois