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within the time specified in said notice, to sell said estray to the highest bidder, after giving public notice of said sale ten days previous thereto, the proceeds, after paying reasonable charges, to be paid to the county.

THE GAME LAW.

Section 1. Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois represented in the General Assembly, That it shall be unlawful for any person to kill, ensnare, or trap, any deer, fawn, wild turkey, grouse, prairie hens or chickens, or quail, between the fifteenth day of January and the first of August of each and every year.

Sec. 2. That it shall be unlawful for any person to buy, sell, or have in possession, any of the above-mentioned animals or birds, which shall have been killed, ensnared, trapped, or taken, between the first day of January and the first day of August of each and every year, as aforesaid; and that having or being in possession of any of the above-mentioned animals or birds aforesaid by any person or persons between the said first day of January and the first day of August aforesaid, shall be deemed and taken as prima facie evidence that the same was ensnared, trapped, or killed, by the person having possession of the same, in violation of the provisions of this act.

Sec. 3. Any person who shall go upon the premises of any person or persons, or corporation, whether the same be enclosed or not, with intention to hunt, or to be found hunting, entrapping, or ensnaring any of the abovementioned animals or birds, at or within the time aforesaid shall be deemed guilty of trespass, and may be prosecuted before any justice of the peace in the county wherein the said premises may lie, by the owner or person in possession of the same, in action of trespass, and fined in any sum not less than five nor more than twenty dollars, to go to the owner or occupant of said premises: Provided, however, that a judgment obtained against any person for a violation of this act, under the fourth section thereof, shall be a bar to any suit under the third section of this act.

Sec. 4. Any person who shall wilfully violate any of the provisions of this act, shall forfeit and pay a fine of fifteen dollars for each deer or fawn thus killed, ensnared, entrapped, bought, sold, or held in possession; and for any other wild game, animals, or birds enumerated, either killed, ensnared, entrapped, bought, sold, or held in possession, as aforesaid, the sum of five dollars shall be paid; to be sued for and recovered before any justice of the peace of the county in which the act shall have been violated, in an action of debt, or before any court having jurisdiction thereof; one-half of said penalty shall go to the complainant, and the other half to the school trustees of the township in which the act shall have been violated, to be added to the school fund of said township; the action to be brought in the name of said county.

Sec. 5. Provided that nothing in this act shall apply to the counties of

White, Wabash, Clay, Richland, Jasper, Lawrence, Crawford, Clark, Edgar, Coles, Moultrie, Effingham, Fayette, Bond, Cass, Menard, Pike, Schuyler, Brown, Scott, Washington, Jefferson, Marion, Hamilton, Clinton, Jackson, Franklin, Wayne, Edwards, McDonough, Alexander, Pulaski, Union, Hardin, Massac, Warren, Henderson, Monroe, Perry, Shelby, Cumberland, Jersey, Calhoun, Randolph, Pope, McLean, Knox, Fulton, Hancock, Adams, Stark, Vermilion, Montgomery, and Christian.

Sec. 6. This act shall be in force from and after its passage.

Approved, February 15, 1855.

SITUATED in the centre of the United States, the state of Illinois extends from 37° to 42° 30′ latitude North, and from 87° 49′ to 91° 28' longitude West of Greenwich, or from 10° 47' to 14° 26' longitude West of Washington. Illinois is bounded on the Northeast by Lake Michigan; on the East by Indiana, from a part of which it is separated by the Wabash river; on the South by Kentucky and Missouri, being separated from Kentucky by the Ohio, and from Missouri by the Mississippi; on the West by Missouri, from which it is also separated by the Mississippi; on the North-west by Iowa, the Mississippi constituting the common boundary of both states, and on the North by Wisconsin.

The whole length of the Illinoisian frontier amounts to 1160 miles, 855 of which are formed by navigable waters, as Lake Michigan, the Wabash, Ohio, and Mississippi. The greatest length of the state, from South to North, from Cairo to Wisconsin, amounts to 378 miles; its greatest breadth to 212 miles. The area of the state is computed at 55,405 square miles, or 35,459,200 acres,-1,833,412 of which are so-called swamp-lands; the residue, 33,625,788 acres, being tillable, and the most part of them having a soil of unsurpassed fertility.

Illinois communicates by means of the St. Lawrence with the Atlantic ocean, and by the Mississippi with the Gulf of Mexico.

The state of Illinois forms the lower part of that slope in which is embraced the greater part of the state of Indiana, and of which Lake Michigan, with its shores, constitutes the upper part. The lowest point of this slope and of the state is the city of Cairo, situated about 350 feet above the level of the Gulf of Mexico, at the conflux of the Ohio and Mississippi, in the extreme southern portion of the state; hence, the highest place in Illinois being situated only 800 feet above the level of the sea, it will appear, that the whole state, though con

taining several hilly sections, is a very level plain; being, with the sole exception of Delaware and Louisiana, the flattest country in the Union.

Illinois is more than forty times as great as the state of Rhode Island in its area, containing but 10,720 square miles less than the entire New England states. None but the following states possess a greater area Virginia having 61,852, Georgia 58,000, Florida 59,268, Missouri 67,380, Michigan 56,243, California 188,981, and Texas 237,321 square miles; but if California shall yet be divided into Upper and Lower California, Michigan into the state of Superior and Michigan proper, and Texas, as at the time of its annexation was provided for, into five different states, then Illinois, as far as regards its area, will rank fifth among the states of the Union. Illinois seems to be destined, within a short time, to play a great role in the United States, being entitled to this not only by the vastness of its area and its excellent geographical position, but also by the fertility of its easily culivated soil, the multitude of its rivers and fine railroads, and the rapid increase of its population, together with the enterprise and intelligence of its citizens.

The principal rivers of the state of Illinois are

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The Illinois river, which, formed by the. conflux of the Kankakee and Des Moines about fifty miles south-west of Chicago, during a course of 500 miles, receives several other rivers, as the Fox river, the Spoon river, the Crooked Creek, Mackinaw, Sangamon, and the Vermilion, from the south, besides several others. The Illinois river is deep and broad, extending at several places, as at Peoria, where it forms a basin called then Peoria Lake, to such a breadth as to present the appearance of a sea. It was first navigated in the year 1828 by a steamboat.

Rock River, rising in Wisconsin, pursues a course of 300 miles, being navigable to some extent; there are, however, several rapids in the upper part of its course. A great part of the country through which Rock River runs is an undulating prairie, with a rich soil, though with but few forests.

The Kaskaskia, a navigable river, rising in Champaign county, after a run to the south-west of more than 300 miles, empties its waters into the Mississippi, about 120 miles above the mouth of the

Ohio. Kaskaskia River was already, in the year 1837, navigated by steamboats as far as Carlisle. Its banks, for an extent varying from two to ten miles, are richly garnished with woods and forests of oaks, hickory, ash, maple, elm, and acacia trees. The country through which the river winds its course is undulating and fertile.

The Big Muddy river, in the south-western portion of the state, has various sources, constituting at their conflux the river above named, which, after a run to the south-west, discharges its waters into the Mississippi. The country through which it runs is undulating and wooded, offering great advantages to agriculture and the breeding of cattle,

Embarras River, in the eastern part of the state, takes its rise near the source of the Kaskaskia, and runs southerly, discharging its waters into the Wabash about six miles below Vincennes. The land along Embarras River is not everywhere of the same good quality, consisting at the origin of the river chiefly of prairie lands, and further north of Charleston, of forests garlanding the banks of the river at a breadth varying between two and six miles, extending even to ten miles below that place.

Little Wabash River, rising also near the source of the Kaskaskia, runs south, emptying its waters into the Great Wabash, in Gallatin county. Its banks, for an extent of several miles, are garnished with good and heavy timber; at intervals poplars can be found. The country adjacent to this river is fertile, exposed however to inundations from the river.

Sangamon River, rising in McLean county, runs south-west, constituting during the latter part of its course the boundary line between Monroe and Cass counties, and emptying its waters into Illinois River. The country watered by the Sangamon is one of the richest, being quite level, and having excellent soil.

Apple River, rising in Jo Daviess county, near the Wisconsin frontier, has a rocky bed, and is very rapid, running south-west, and flowing into the Mississippi about twenty miles below Galena. The adjacent bottom-lands have excellent soil; the more elevated country in its vicinity being hilly, its banks woody, and the country around its springs undulating.

Chicago River, consisting of two branches, the more considerable

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