Tasmania
2 of the 7 encyclopedias on this shelf carry an entry for Tasmania. Both are reproduced below, so you can see where they agree and where they differ.
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
formerly Van Diemen's Land, an island in the Southern Ocean, 100 miles S. of Australia, from which it is separated by Bass Strait; greatest length, 186 miles; mean breadth, 165 E. M. Newman PORT SAID, SHOWING THE STATUE OF DE LESSEPS AT THE ENTRANCE TO THE SUEZ CANAL Enc. Vol. 9-p. 260 E. M. Newman XH CONTRASTING TYPES OF VESSELS AT PORT SAID, SUEZ CANAL Publishers' Photo Service Publishers, Photo Service A VESSEL PASSING THROUGH THE SUEZ CANAL, AS SEEN FROM THE DESERT Keystone View Company ENTRANCE TO SIMPLON TUNNEL, SWITZERLAND Publishers' Photo Service ST. MORITZ, FAMOUS FOR WINTER SPORTS Publishers' Photo Service THE GOTTHARD EXPRESS, SWITZERLAND Underwood & Underwood COG RAILROAD ON MT. PILATUS, SWITZERLAND miles; area, 26,215 square miles; pop. (est. 1919), 270,881. The capital is Hobart on the S. coast; pop. with suburbs (1919), 40,352. Topography. - The island may be roughly described as heart-shaped. The coasts, which are all much broken and indented, have some excellent harbors. The islands belonging to Tasmania are numerous, the principal being the Furneaux group, on the N. E. extremity. Tasmania is traversed by numerous mountain ranges, the chief summits of which are Mount Humboldt, 5,520 feet; Mount Wellington, 4,195 feet; and Ben Lomond, 5,002 002 feet. The prevailing rocks are crystalline, consisting of basalt, granite, gneiss, quartz, etc. The chief rivers are the Derwent the Huon, the Arthur, and the Tamar. The chief lake is Lake Westmoreland, which covers an area of 28,000 acres; Lake Sorell, 17,000 acres; Lake St. Clair, 10,000 acres. Climate. The climate is very mild. Mount Wellington is frequently covered with snow in the summer months; but at Hobart, in its immediate vicinity, snow never falls. In December, January hs, dur- , and Februar February, the summer months ing which there is little rain, the average temperature is 62°, extreme 100° to 110°. The mean temperature throughout the year is about 55°.4. The average rainfall is about 24.05 inches. Agriculture. Much of the soil of Tasmania is well adapted for cultivation. Wheat, oats, barley, y, po potatoes, peas, beans and hops are largely cultivated, and the fruit includes grapes, cherries, plums, quinces, mulberries, p peaches, apricots, walnuts, filberts, almonds, etc. Fruitpreserving forms an important industry. Zoology. Kangaroos and other herbivorous animals of the pouched kind are numerous. There are two marsupial carnivorous animals called the Tasmanian wolf and the Tasmanian devil, both of which are destructive to sheep. The natural forests are chiefly of the eucalyptus or gum tree, pine, and acacia tribe. Mineralogy. Among the minerals are gold, silver, copper, iron, tin, coal, freestone, limestone, and roofing slate. Smelting works have been erected at Ho bart for the iron which abounds in that district. Commerce. The staple export from Tasmania is wool, and the other articles include gold, tin, timber, grain, fruit, hides and bark. In jam, hops, hides and skins, 1917-1918 the exports were valued at £1,459,748. Principal minerals produced in 1918: Gold, 10,529 ounces; silver-lead, 7,241 tons; copper, about 6,000 tons; coal, 60,163 tons. Revenue, 1917-1918, £1,503,047; expenditures, £1,- 459,748. Government.-The colony is divided into 18 counties, which are again subdivided into parishes. Another division is into electoral districts for returning members to the legislative council and house of assembly. The constitution is settled by the Act 18 Victoria (1854), supplemented by acts passed in 1871 and 1885, by which are constituted a legislative council and house of assembly, called the Parliament of Tasmania. The legislative council is composed of 18 members, and the house of assembly of 36 members, the latter being elected for five years. The governor is appointed by the crown, and he has a responsible cabinet of four official members, the colonial secretary, treasurer, attorney-general, and minister of land and works. Religion. The majority of the colonists belong to the Church of England, Roman Catholics, Methodists and Presbyterians ranking next in the order named. Education is compulsory, and the higher education is under a council, who hold examinations and grant degrees. In 1918 there were 486 elementary and 16 high schools. History. Tasmania was discovered in 1642 by Abel Janszoon Tasman, who named it after Van Diemen, the governor of the Dutch East Indies. It was visited by Cook in 1769, and during the next 20 years by various navigators. In 1797 Bass discovered the strait which has been called after him. The first settlement was made in 1803 by a guard with a body of convicts, who settled at Restdown, but afterward removed to the site now occupied by Hobart. The development of the country made slow progress till the land was divided into small ments and farming stock and government pensions reckoned as capital. Convict labor was supplied, and at a very moderate expense farms were cleared for cultivation. Sheep, cattle, and horses were introduced, and the raising of stock has always been carried on with great suc- Till 1824 Tasmania was a depencess. dency of New South Wales, but in that year it was made an independent colony. For a series of years the prosperity the colony was retarded by the hostility of the natives and the depredations of escaped convicts, known by the name of bush-rangers. The aborigines have ceased to exist, in 1853 transportation was abolished, and about the same time the name of Tasmania was officially adopted on the petition of the colonists. When gold was discovered in Australia in 1851, a rapid emigration from Tasmania to Australia began to take place. TASMANNIA This naturally gave a great check to its prosperity, but for years it has now been fairly prosperous and progressing with moderate rapidity.
Aiton's Encyclopedia (1910)
taz-ma'ni-a, an island 140 miles south of Australia. It constitutes a state of that commonwealth. It was discovered by Tasman, a Dutch navigator, in 1642. He called the island Van diemen's Land, but the name was changed subsequently in his honor. Area, 24,339 square miles. It is as large as the mainland of Scotland. Tasmania is noted for mineral wealth. Wheat is the principal crop. Minerals, wool, timber, fruit, and grain are the chief exports. A million dollars' worth of apples are shipped yearly to the London market. The plants and animals resemble those of southern Australia. An animal not found elsewhere is the Tasmanian wolf . In 1804 England began to banish criminals to Tasmania, a policy which was followed until 1853. It is a mountainous land, called sometimes the "Switzerland of the south." Lofty plateaus, mountain peaks, glens, waterfalls, alpine lakes and forests combine to form the grandest of scenery. As the island lies farther to the south, the climate is colder and the air more invigorating than that of Australia, to which it serves as a summer resort. Over a hundred thousand tourists visit the island each summer. There are excellent macadamized roads. Automobile trips are popular. The capital and principal port is Hobart, of which a distinguished traveler says: "It is surrounded by hills and mountains, from which views may be had that would make the fortune of any district in Europe, and the air of Hobart is perfect here." The population of the island is 180,000. The original inhabitants, the Tasmanians, are extinct. See Australia