New volumes of the Encyclopædia Britannica > Volume 30, K-MOR

LABUAN — LACE
109
and the consequent liability of counting the same family
several times if the returns are computed from the books
of the various posts, the only available data for an exact
•enumeration. The following estimate is arrived at in this
manner: Indians—west coast, 1200; Ungava Bay, 200;
east coast, 200 ; south coast, 1900. Eskimo—Atlantic
coast, 1000; south shore of Hudson Strait, 800 ; east
coast of Hudson Bay, 500. The Indians roam over the
southern interior in small bands, their northern limit
being determined by that of the trees, on which they
depend for fuel. They live wholly by the chase, and
their numbers are dependent upon the deer and other
animals; as a consequence there is a constant struggle
between the Indian and the lower animals for existence,
with great slaughter of the latter, followed by periodic
famines among the natives, which greatly reduce their
numbers and maintain an equilibrium. These famines
have occurred several times since the Hudson Bay Com¬
pany has been established, with the result that the native
population has remained about stationary for the last two
centuries. The Indians belong to the Algonquin family,
and speak dialects of the Cree language. By contact
with missionaries and fur-traders they are more or less
civilized, and the great majority of them are Christians.
Those living north of the St Lawrence are Roman Catholic,
while the Indians of the western watershed have been
converted by the missionaries of the Church Mission
Society; the eastern and northern bands have not yet
been reached by the missionaries, and are still pagans.
The Eskimo of the Atlantic coast have long been under
the guidance of the Moravian missionaries, and are
well advanced in civilization; those of Hudson Bay
have been taught by the Church Mission Society,
and promise well; while the Eskimo of Hudson Strait
alone remain without teachers, and are pagans. The
Eskimo live along the coasts, only going inland for
short periods to hunt the barren-ground caribou for their
winter clothing; the rest of the year they remain on
the shore or the ice, hunting seals and porpoises, which
afford them food, clothing, and fuel. The Christianized
Indians and Eskimo read and write in their own lan¬
guage ; those under the teaching of the Church Mission
Society use a syllabic character, the others make use of
the ordinary alphabet.
Political Review.—The Labrador peninsula is divided
politically between the Governments of Canada, New¬
foundland, and the Province of Quebec. The Govern¬
ment of Newfoundland, under Letters Patent 28th March
1876, exercises jurisdiction along the Atlantic coast; the
boundary between its territory and that of Canada is
marked by a line running due north and south from Anse
Sablon, on the north shore of the Strait of Belle Isle,
to 52° N., the remainder of the boundary being as yet
undetermined. The northern boundary of the Province
of Quebec, as declared by the statutes of Canada, 61 Vic¬
toria, cap. 3, follows the East Main river to its source in
Patamisk lake, thence by a line due east to the Ashuanipi
branch of the Hamilton river; it then follows that river
and Hamilton Inlet to the coast area under the jurisdic¬
tion of Newfoundland. The remainder of the peninsula,
north of the Province of Quebec, by Order in Council
18th December 1897 was constituted Ungava District,
an unorganized territory under the jurisdiction of the
Government of the Dominion of Canada.
‘ ‘ Report on an Exploration of the East Coast of Hudson Bay, ”
1877-78 ; “ Observations on the Coast of Labrador and on Hudson
Strait and Bay,” 1882-84.—A. P. Low. “Report on the Mistassini
Expedition,” 1885 ; “Report on James Bay and the Country East
of Hudson Bay,” 1887-88 ; “Report on Explorations in the
Labrador Peninsula, 1892-95.” 1896 ; “Report on a Traverse of
the Northern Part of the Labrador Peninsula,” 1898 ; “Report on
the South Shore of Hudson Strait,” 1899. (a. P. Lo.)
Labuan (more correctly written Labuh-an, its mean¬
ing in the Malayan vernacular being “ anchorage ”), an
| island of the East Indian or Malayan Archipelago, which
has been a British possession since 1848. On 1st January
1890 it was transferred for administrative purposes to the
Chartered Company of British North Borneo, the governor
of the Company’s territories being from that time forward
the governor of Labuan also. As governor of Labuan he
! holds a commission from the Crown. After its transfer to
the Chartered Company the colony still retained its own
; local laws. The island lies about six miles off the north¬
western coast of Borneo, opposite the northern end of the
great bay of Brunei. Of the total area of 19,347 acres
only some 1500 acres are sown with rice, but small tracts
of land are covered by cocoanut and sago palms, and about
fifty Chinese own vegetable gardens planted on Govern¬
ment ground. The neighbouring island of Pulau Dat is
| the site of a thriving cocoanut plantation, whence copra
and nuts are exported in bulk. The African oil palms
have not proved a success. At the time of its occupation
a brilliant future was predicted for Labuan : its harbour
was to make a second Singapore, and its coal deposits were
to prove an unfailing source of wealth. The anticipations
made of the wealth of the coal-fields have not been realized ;
after a succession of companies had liquidated or transferred
their leases, the Labuan Borneo Company was formed
in 1898, but it has since passed into liquidation. From
the coal-mines near the village of Lubok Termiang, some
ten miles of metre-gauge railway lead to Victoria Harbour.
In 1898 the coal exported amounted to 36,901 tons. The
population of Labuan numbered 5731 in 1881, but had
decreased to 3361 in 1891. The mainland of Borneo,
since its pacification by the Chartered Company, offered
greater scope than formerly to native enterprise, and
emigration from Labuan consequently ensued. There are
about fifty European settlers living in the island, about
10 per cent, of whom are women. The native population
includes Malay fishermen, Chinese, Tamils, and Kadayans,
Tutongs and other natives from the mainland of Borneo.
! Victoria Harbour is a naval saluting station, and possesses
a good rifle-range. The harbour is commodious and well
sheltered. The Eastern Extension Telegraph Company
have a central station at Labuan, with cables to Singapore,
Hong Kong, and British North Borneo. The colony
joined the Imperial Penny Postal Union in 1899. There is
one hotel, a Roman Catholic church with a resident priest,
a Church of England church which is visited periodically
by a clergyman from the mainland, two native and Chinese
schools, and a sailors’ club built by the R.C. Mission and
supported by voluntary contributions. The bishop of
Singapore and Sarawak is also bishop of Labuan.
See Keppel. Visit to Indian Archipelago, London, 1853.—
Mundy. Narrative of Events in Borneo. London, 1848.—Burbage.
Gardens of the Sun. London, 1880.—Hatton. The New Ceylon ;
North Borneo.—Fryer. A Decade in Borneo.—Posewitz. Borneo.
—Roth. Borneo. (h. Cl.)
Authorities. — R. F. Holmes. “A Journey in the Interior
ot Labrador,” Proc. R.G.S. vol. x. pp. 189-205. 1887.—A. S.
ackard. The Labrador Coast. Hodges, New York, 1891.—
Austen Cary. “Exploration on Grand River, Labrador,” Bui.
Am. Geo. Soc. vol. xxiv. 1892.—R. Bell. “The Labrador
enmsula,” Scottish Geo. Mag., July 1895. Also the following
reports published by the Geological Survey of Canada :—R. Bell.
Lace.—The chief incidents in connexion with making
lace by hand and by machinery during the years which
have elapsed since the article on Lace was written for the
earlier volumes (ninth edition) of this work may be said
to be (1) increased production, (2) developed ingenuity in
the weaving by machinery of a greater variety of lace-like