The Indian name of the State of Michigan, is Michi-sawg-ye-gan, the meaning of which in the Algonquin tongue is the Lake country. Surrounded as it is almost entirely by water, it possesses all the advantages of an island. It has numerous streams which are clear and beautiful, abounding in fish. The surface of the western half (we allude now to the lower or southern peninsula) is destitute of rocks, and undulating. In the language of Lanman in his "Summer in the Wilderness," "It is here that the loveliest of lakes and streams and prairies are to be found. No one who has never witnessed them can form any idea of the exquisite beauty of the thousand lakes which gem the western part of Michigan. They are the brightest and purest mirrors the virgin sky has ever used to adorn herself. On the banks of these lakes, grow in rich profusion, the rose, the violet, the lily and the sweet brier. "A great proportion of Michigan is covered with white-oak openings. Standing on a gentle hill, the eye wanders away for miles over an undulating surface, obstructed only by the trunks of lofty trees,--above you a green canopy, and beneath, a carpet of velvet grass, sprinkled with flowers of every hue and form. "The prairies are another interesting feature of Michigan scenery. They meet the traveler at every point, and of many sizes, seeming often like so many lakes, being often studded with wooded islands, and surrounded by shores of forests. This soil is a deep black sand. Grass is their natural production, although corn, oats and potatoes flourish upon them. Never can I forget the first time I entered White Pigeon Prairie. Sleeping beneath the shadows of sunset, as it was, the effect upon me was like that which is felt on first beholding the ocean,--overpowering awe. All that the poet has said about these gardens of the desert is true. "Burr Oak Plains. The only difference between these and the oak openings, is the character of the trees and the evenness of their surface. The soil is a mixture of sand and black loam. They have the appearance of cultivated orchards, or English parks; and on places where the foot of the white man has never trod, a carriage and four could easily pass through. They produce both wheat and corn. "The wet prairies have the appearance of submerged land. In them the grass is often six or seven feet high. They are the resort of water-fowl, muskrats, and otters. "But the best and most fertile soil in Michigan is that designated by the title of timbered land. It costs more to prepare it for the plough, but when once the soil is sown it yields a thousand-fold. And with regard to their beauty and magnificence, the innumerable forests of this State are not surpassed by any in the world, whether we consider the variety or grandeur of their production. This timber is needed for prairie States, Lake cities, and exports.