e hundred thousand acres, which two funds have been
consolidated, and together they have accumulated to the sum of
$1,159,790.73, all of which is securely invested.

The state has also been endowed with five hundred thousand acres of land
for internal improvements, and all its lands falling within the
designation of swamp lands. An act of congress, of Feb. 26, 1857, also
gave it ten sections of land for the purpose of completing public
buildings at the seat of government, and all the salt springs, not to
exceed twelve, in the state, with six sections of land to each spring,
in all seventy-two sections. The twelve salt springs have all been
discovered and located, and the lands selected. The salt spring lands
have been transferred to the regents of the university, to be held in
trust to pay the cost of a geological and natural history survey of the
state. It is estimated that the salt spring lands will produce, on the
same valuation as the school lands, the sum of $300,000. Large sums will
also be gained by the state from the sale of timber stumpage, and the
products of its mineral lands. Some idea of the magnitude of the fund to
be derived from the mineral lands of the state may be learned from the
report of the state auditor for the year 1896, in which he says that
during the years 1895-96 there was received from and under all mineral
leases, contracts and royalties, $170,128.83.

It will be seen from this statement that the educational interests of
Minnesota are largely provided for without resort to direct taxation,
although up to the present time that means of revenue has to some extent
been utilized to meet the expenses of the grand system prevailing
throughout the state.

THE FIRST TERRITORIAL GOVERNMENT.

The organization of the territory was completed by the appointment of
Alexander Ramsey of Pennsylvania as governor, Aaron Goodrich as chief
justice, and David Cooper and Bradley B. Meeker as associate justices,
C. K. Smith as secretary, Joshua L. Taylor as marshal, and Henry L. Moss
as district attorney.

On the 27th of May, 1849, the governor and his family arrived in St.
Paul; but there being no suitable accommodations for them, they became
the guests of Hon. Henry H. Sibley, at Mendota, whose hospitality, as
usual, was never failing, and for several weeks there resided the four
men who have been perhaps more prominent in the development of the state
than any others,--Henry H. Sibley, Alexander Ra