IMAGE EVALUATION
TEST TARGET (MT-S)
1,^ |iO •■■ ill
I.I
•" — i
2.5
2.2
m
:: lis iiiio
m
1.25 |U
III'-*
<
6" —
»•
nont fiimAs en commenpant par la
premiere pays qui comporte une empreinte
d'Impresslon ou d'illustration et en termlnant par
ia dernlAre page qui comporte une telle
empreinte.
The last recorded frame on each microfiche
shall contain the symbol —<► (meaning "CON-
TINUED"), or the symbol V (meaning "END"),
whichever applies.
Un des symboles suivsnts apparaltra sur la
dernlAre image de cheque microfiche, selon le
cas: le symbols — »> signlfie "A SUIVRE", le
symbols V signlfie "FIN".
Maps, plates, charts, etc., may be filmed at
different reduction ratios. Those too large to be
entirely included In one exposure are filmed
beginning In the upper left hand corner, left to
right and top to bottom, as many frames as
required. The following diagrams Illustrate the
method:
Les cartes, planches, tableaux, etc., peuvent 6tre
filmis A des taux de reduction diff fronts.
Lorsque le document est trop grand pour Atre
reproduit en un seul cliche, II est fllm6 i partir
de Tangle sup^irieur gauche, de gauche A drolte,
et de haut en bas. en prenant le nombre
d'images nAcessaire. Les diagrammes sulvants
lliustrent la mAthode.
rrata
o
jelure.
1
2
3
2
□
32X
6
I i«i«, umuiu
c.
B
ON
CAiNADIAN PACIFIC RAILWAY.
DESCRIPTION
OK THK OI'N'TUV
Between Lake Superior
AN1> TIIK
PACIFIC OCEAN,
ON THE LINE OF THE CANADIAN PACIFIC RAILWAY.
Cominlt'd from the he$t Authorilies, and Published by Order of th*
Canadian Government.
OTTAWA, NOVEMBER. 1876.
'II i -i
1 I
n'
I0l\\'\
INTRODUCTION.
The following pages arc designed to furnish a concise and, as far as can be com-
piled from independent sources, complete description of the jillysical features of the
country lying in the Territory of the Dominion of Canada between Thunder Bay, at
the head of Lake Superior, and the Pacific Ocean, through which it is proposed to
continue the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway, ah-cady partially built
between Lake Superior and Red River.
The compilation is principally meant to be a supplement to the more exact and
technical reports of the Engineer, for the information of intending contractors who
may desire a knowledge of the geneial features of the country.
Papers laid before the Imperial and Canadian Parliaments, reports of Govern-
ment Engineers, observations made by residents, and accounts published by trust-
worthy travellers form the substance of the compilation.
Authorities are given in every instance, and copious Indices furnish a ready
means of access to the facts. The Government do not guarantee the absolute nccnrary
of any statement, but there is no reason to behove that the extracts contnin u'vvfhing
that is not reliable.
^
CLASSIFICATION.
• TAGK.
1. INTRODUCTION iii
2. CONTENTS OF CHAPTERS vii
a GENERAL INDEX : xi
1. UST OF AUTHORS QUOTED xxxi
.'5. IJST OF WORKS QUOTED xxxv
. CHAPTER I.— FROM THUNDER BAY TO RED RIVER 1
10. CHAPTER II.— FROM RED RIVER TO SOUTH SASKATCHEWAN
RIVER ir,
11. CHAPTER III— SOIL, CLIMATE AND PRODUCTIONS OF LAKE
WINNIPEG BASIN :i:{
12. CHAPTER IV.— FROM THE SOUTH SASKATCHEWAN CROSSING
TO THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS 17
V). CHAPTER v.— THE BRITISH COLUMBIA SECTION fio
n. APPENDIX TO CHAPTER V.-REPORTS BY MARCUS SMiTH, K^y.,
OF SURVEYS IN BRITISH COLUMBIA DURING THE YEARS
1874-.'; m
15. CHAPTER VL -MISCELLANEOUS 12(5
•t. '.*:>.!,
-T*.
i I.
COn^TEZsTTS
CHAPTER I. -
FROM TIIUNDEU BAY TO RED RIVER.
Elevation of Lake Superior — Thunder Bay — Kamiuistiquia Valley — Geological Struc-
ture — Terraces of Lake Superior Basin — Kakabeka Falls — Mouth of Eamini-
stiquia River — Magnetic Iron Ores — McKay's Mountain — Alluvial Valleys —
Geology of Dog Lake — Drainage of Countiy — Elevations — Divide at Rat
Portage — Water Communication — Height of Land — From Keewatiu to Sel-
kirk — Gold — Copper — Iron — Prairie Steppes — Vicinity of Red River — Lake
of the Woods — Swamps — Lake Winnipeg — Direction of Rivers — Fort Garry
— Roads — Winnipeg River — Islington Mission — Soil — Vegetation — Timber —
Mines of Lake Superior — Climate — Temperatures — Capabilities for Settlement
— Building Material — Thunder Bay Mines — Altitude of Watershed — Gra-
dients pages 1-14.
CHAPTER 11.
inxOli RED RIVER TO SOCTII SASKATCHEWAN RIVl^l.
t'hysical Characteristics — Elevation of Prairie Steppes — Composition of the Plains- -
River Valleys — The Northern Forest — Prairie Fires — Direction of Rivers —
Superficial Deposits — Huronian Boulders — Geology of the Plains — Lakes and
Rivers — Hills and Mountains — W^oods — Prairie Openings — Slope of the Plains
— Geology of Lake Winnipeg — Touchwood Hills — Strata on Swan Ilivor —
Yellow Ochre Springs — Sulphate of Soda — Coal Fields of the Saskatchewan —
Maple Sugar — Forests of Riding and Duck Mountains — The Treeless Region —
Fort Pelly — Fertility of the Land — Area of available Land — Physical Geography
— Rise from Fort Garry to Edmonton — A Noble River — Banks of the Saskat-
chewan — Beauties of Touchwood Hills — The Great Salt Plain — Prairie Lakes —
Waterfowl — Breadth and Depth of the Saskatchewan — Red River — Area of
Lak^B Winnipeg, Wimiipegoosis and Manitoba — Soil — Navigation — Coal Plenti-
ful — Area drained by the Sooth Saskatchewan pages 15-32.
vUi
CHAPTER III.
SOIL, CLIMATE AND PKODrCTIONS OF LAKE WlNNIPEd UASIN.
Division:; of the Seasous — Buffalo Wintering Grounds — Average Fall of Snow —
Blodget on Wheat Production — Average Yield per Acre — Extent of Farming
Country — Pasture Lands — Fresh and Saline Lakes — Settlements — Churcli
Missions — Forest Region — Muskegs — FertiUty of Peace River Section — Agri-
cultural Area — Favorahle Disposition of Soil and Climate — Value of Natural
I'fsourccs — Timber —Lignite — Coal — Iron Ore — Navigable Rivers — Hudson
Day Company's Steamer — Imperial Reports — Favorable Route for a Railroad —
Cost of Transport — Isothermal Lines — Blodget' s Climatology — Prairie Country
compared witli Europe — Rainfall — Lord Selkirk — Grass of the Plains — Immen-
sity of Cultivable Land — The Finest Pasture Country in the World — Uealthy
Climate — Richness of Soil — Crops at Battle River — Frosts — Barley — Opening:
of Spring — Temperature — A Good Stock Raising Country — Fitness for Settle-
ment — Character of Soil — Divisions of the Territories — The Future Granary of
the Dominion — Snowfall — Boring Operations — Desert Lands — Water Supply —
Ironstones — Peat — Salt pages 83-40.
CHAPTER IV.
FROM THE SOUTH SASKATCHEWAN CROSSING TO THE
ROCKY MOUNTAINS.
Width of the Soutli Branch — Extent of the Valley — Distance to North Branch —
Country between the Two Rivera — Confluence of the Two Branches — Woods —
Grasses — Contour of the Land — Fertile Soil — Fires — Coal at Edmonton —
Character of River Valleys — Topography of the Prairies — Beauty and Ferti-
lity — Coal on Pembina River — Wooded Country — Ascent of McLeod River —
Cliffs on tlie Athabasca — Terraced Valleys — Jasper Valley— Miette River-
Caledonia Valley — Yellow Head Pass — Country between Thickwood Hills and
Jaukfish Lake — Tracts of excellent Soil — Rich Land between Victoria and
Edmonton — Plenty of Timber and Water — Coal on Battle River — Fire Bound-
aries — Course of the North Saskatchewan — Line of Hills — Rich Pasturage —
Eligible Agriciiltural Lauds — Brick Earth and Potter's Clay — Climate — Future
of the Saskatchewan — Soap-Clay — Coal on Brazeau River — Geological Forma-
tion — ^Vastness of Coal Fields — Gold — Iron Ore — Coal at Termini of C. P.
Railway — Approach to the Roeky Mountains — Country between Rocky Moun-
tain House and Edmonton — Beaver Hills — Battle River Country — From South
Elbow of the Saskatchewan to Battle River Junction .pages 47-G4«
!-■
IX
CHAPTER V.
TTTE nrJTISII COLU^miA SKCTION.
Formation of the Rocky ?iIouutains — Descent into British Cohiinbia - Elevation of
Yellow Head Pass — Favorable Line for Railway — Gradients -Dri(lj,'injj; of
Rivers— The Waddington Route — Limit of British Col umbiii— Valley of the
Fraser — Water Communication — Gold Di<»gings — Peace River —Beauty of the
Uocky Mountains— "Winter on the Athabasca — The Throe Rocky Ran<,'C's —
^^oose Lake — Grand Forks of the Fraser— Tete .Tninio ('■>che — Course of the
Fraser — Character of Rivers— Engineering Difliculli —Pusses through the
Rocky Mountains — Longitudinal "Valleys — Fort St, Goorge — Mackenzie Pkiver —
Columbia River — Sir Alexander Mackenzie — F it Alotandrin Divisions ol'
Mainland of British Columbia — Climate — Mhiuig Di.^tric; -Forests- Valleys
in Bri't^V. Columbia — Nature of Soil — Roadi — Resourct ; of British Columbia —
Cascade Mountains- -Report of Lieut. Palmer — Siowarfs Lake — The Central
i-Iateau — Bute Inlet Route — Coast of British Columbia — Harbors — Islands oa
Coast — Vancouver and Queen Charlotte Islands - -Coal — Timber— Lead —
Iron — Fisheries — Navigation — Desolation Sound —Soil — CHniate — Produc-
tions puji'i^^ r»t-8H
APPENDIX TO CHAPTER V.
REPORTS BY MARCUS SMITH, Esq., OF SURVEYS IN BP.fTISII
COLUMBIA DURING THE YEARS 1874-5.
Gardner Channel Route — Examination of Passes through (.'ascade Mountains from
Fraser River to Similkameen— Journey from Fort Hope to Valleys in South of
British Columbia — Allison's Pass — Cattle Farms — R. C. Mission -Exploratory
Journal on the Central Plateau— Result of Observations during Journey —
Character of the Country — Surveying Operations — Operations during 1875-
Homathco River — The Waddington Trail — The Cascade Mountains — Central
Plateau — Journey from Dean Inlet across the Cascades by Salmon River Pass —
Examination of Channels between the Islands at the Entrance to Bute Inlet —
Gradients to the Cascade Mountains — Homatnco River and Valley — Table of
Gradients — Survey from Dean Inlet to Junction in the Blackwatcr Valley, with
Line from Bute Inlet to Yellow Head Pass — From Kemano Bay, on the
Gardner Channel, to First Lake on the Eastern Slope of the Cascade
Mountains— Survey of Kitlope Valley pages 89- 1 25
CHAPTER VI.
, MISCELLANEOUS. ,
Indian Tribes and Treaties— Boundaries— Management of Tribes— Canadian Indian
Policy— United States Indian Policy— Probable Eflfects of the Canadian Pacific
Railway— Indian Population— The Mounted Police— White Population— Areas
—Productions and Extent of the North-West Territories— Chmate— British
Columbia described— The Oregon Treaty— Advantages of the Canadian Eoute
—The Peace River Country— Sir Alexander Mackenzie— Richness, Beauty and
Extent of the Peace River Country— Iron, Coal, Salt, Petroleum, Ac-
Navigation through the Rocky Mountains— Botanical Report by Prof. Macoun—
Climate of Peace River pages 12G-143
l!i!
GENERAL INDEX.
Aboriginal Population
Abram's Gates
Agassiz, Tour of
A La Corne Fort, situation of
Alexandria Fort, situation of
Alexis Lakes
Allison's Pass, summit of
Ambush Coulee
American Desert, The
Areas of North-West Territories
Arrow Lakes, The
Arran Eapids
Arrow River, banks of
Assiniboino Eiver, building stone on
" " banks of
" " country adjacent to
" " •' fertile area
" " boring operations on
" " sources of
Athabasca River, country drained by
'* " wheat raised on
" " cattle winter, etc
** " terrace structure on
** ' climate
" " described
'• " coul on,
" '* source of
" Lake, elevation of
** • •' route by
" Pass elevation of
PlOE.
181
1
21
68
114
»y
60
41
182
71
115
17
12
17
18, 40
21
48
01
84, nr,
8.1
40
02
40, OH
48, 08
C8, 60
57
41
70
70
3di
B.
M
«(
m
Babinc Lake, Salmon of
Blackwatcr llivcr
" Valley, gradients in
Black Bay, situation of
Blackberry River, plains on
Baptiste River, mouth of
Barkervillc, situation of
Basquia Hills, country near
Basalt Lake, altitude of
Battle River, Indian com raised on...
" " country described
'* coal on
*' prairies of
•• " scenery at mouth of
»♦ " curious strata on
«» " coulees south of
Bear River, mouth of
•« " magnitude of
Beaver, consequence of their work . . .
Beaver Hills, country near
«' " timber on
Bell River, salt on
Bella Coola Indians
Bella-Houla Bay
Bella Bella
Belly River, source of
Bcntiuck Arm Route
" " North
Big Hill, descrii>tion of
Birch GiiUy, banks of
Birch Hills, coimtry near
Birdstail Creek, cretaceous shales on.
Blodget, climatology of, quoted ,
Bloody Hills, description of
Boring Oi)crations
Bow Fort, situation of.
Broken Head River, situation of. ...
Brazcau River, coal near
•• " gold on
•• " pousrces of
Page.
79
06, 120
128
1
97
57
74
18
122
88
49, 52, CO, 64
49, 56, 60
49
59
60
61
67
72
57
51
58
46
90
76
89
59
76
92
27, 28
62
27, 28
26
80, 87
27
48
60
T
52,64
62
68
XIU
Page.
Buffalo Cart Plain, The 28
Buialocs, wintering ground of 88
British Columbia, cUmate and soil of 43, 7-1, 80
" " coalin 64,80
" " information concerning 65
" " gold-bearing rocks of 71
'* " principal rivers of -. 71
" " divisions of 72,73
*' " mining district of 73
•' " valleys of 73
*• *' coast of 77
*' " harbors of 77,79
" " fisheries and timber of 78,79
" " Indians of 131
*' " aren of 184
Burrard Inlet, survey to 93
Bute Inlet, route to 69, 76, 77, 80, 121
" islands at mouth of ! 115
•• navigation of 115
0.
Caledonia Valley, route through 48
Calling River, banks of I7
Campbell Island , 89
Canadian Pacific Railway, route between Manitoba an^ Lake Superior 14
** '* " coimtry on line of 40
" '* " coal at termini of 55
" '* " coal along route of * 55
" '• " route between Yellow Head Piia.s and Ed-
monton 60
. •• '•' " route to Bute Inlet 69
" " *' bridging over Prairie Rivers 47
" " " favorable line from Yellow Head Pass to
Edmonton 60
" •* '* bridging rivers west of Edmonton 60
'* " *' gradients 00,08,122
•* " " the Waddinj;tou Route 60
'• *• " ballasting for 25
'* *' " ' iron and coal fur rails on line 54
" •' " effect of. 130
XIV
I
Page.
Canada Pacific Bailway, advantages of 186
Canoe Biver G8
Carrot Biver, country near 24
Cariboo Mountains 67
" " goldmines 72
Carleton Fort, country near 22, 49
" " temperature at 89
•• " crops raised at 42
Cascade Mountains, altitude of 48
" «« Passes in 67, 68, 92, 109
" " described 77, 90, 104, 109
" " lead found in 78
" " timber 104
** " journey across 112
•• " gradients in 117,121,122
Cedar Lake, situation of.... 82
Central Plateau ofB. Columbia 85, 36, 67
" " " «« " climate 48,70
" " " " '* described 75,76
•« «• " '• " routes across 75
«• " " " " railway facilities on 77
♦« •» «' " " journey on 96
«« «« " " <' information concerning 104,114
Chimsaiiis, Indian Tribe of : '. . 90
CbUacoh Biver 96, 106, 120
" Valley gradients 119
Chisicut Lake, line to 96
«• " altitude of 118
Choshce Biver described 117
Chilancoh Valley 118
Ohilcoatcn Plain 67
•• Valley 75,96
" Biver, country near 76
(!liipwoyan Fort, land near 80
«' " temperature at 89
Clinton, B. C. climate at 74
Coal, deposits of. - 51, 62
•« «« character and extent of 55, 56
Cole's Falls • 81
Cochin Lake 108
Columbia Biver : 68, 71, 141
XY
Connolly Fort, situation of
Cowlitz liiver, coal on . .
Cow-dung Lake, situation of
Coquiballa Valley, character of
Coldstream Valley, rich soil in
Coulees, character of ,
Cranberry Kiver
Cree Inf^ians, treaties with ,
Cross Bapid, the
Cumberland House, wheat yi-own at
" " temperature at ,
Page.
71
78
66
98
90
17,61
68
126, 130
81
84
89
D.
Dauphin Lake, salt springs at
" " prairies near
" Eiver, situation of
Deadman's Bapid
Dean Channel, mountains crossing
" " described
" Inlet, line to
Demi-Charge, the rapid
Desert Lands, the
" " boundaries of
" " true character of
Desolation Sound, described ..,
Dirt Hills, country near
Discovery Passage
Dog Lake, country around
" " geological formation at
Douglas Fir, uses for
Duck Biver, situation of*
" Mountain, situation of
*' " elevation of
" " surface deposits
•' " character of soil, forests. . ,
" , " streams issiiing from
" " farming country near ... .
Dunvegan Fort, temperature at
'* " thermometrical register at
" elevation of
••
18
20, 30
19
64
89
91
121
81
44
45
45
80
16
115
2.9
4,5
109
19
19
21
22
23
24
28
89,42
42
7
XVI
I3lr
l<<
E.
Page.
Eagle Hills, situation of 64
" ' •' elevation of ft9
•• " limit of 61
" Pass 70
" Lake, described •" 108
Ear Hills, coulees near 61
Edmonton Fort, country near 84, 47, 40, 55
*• " temperature 39
" coal at 47,58,03
" " rich mineral deposits at 55
Elbow, S. Saskatchewan 28
EUice Fort, country near 18, 34
«« •• " towards Touchwood Hills 25
" " boring operations at • 43
" " situation of 63
Eliguck Lake, position of 98
" «• gradients on 123
Eueuchu Valley, described 101
English Kiver, country near...! 5,49
Enz Lake, position of 103
Estero Basin, survey of 115
Euchinico Lake, line on 128
Evans Mount .... 116
... p.
Fanny's Mountain, described 102
Fertile Belt, agricultural capadty of 85
" " natural resources of 86
" '« extent of 41
" " basis of settlement 45
" " boundaries of ' 51
File Hill, country near... 24
'• •• fertile area of 24
Finlayson Channel 89
Fishing Lakes, banks of 17
Fitzhugh Sound, entrance to 92
Floating Ice River . 19
Foot Hills CO
Francois Lake, journey to 96
" altitude of 103
i
xvil
Page.
Fraser River, source of GO
" " grand fork of 67,08
" •' course of 07,08,70
♦* " road down valley of 07
" " navigation of 07
f " " described 09,71,100
coalon 107
" Fort, position of '. 104
Fraser Lake, agiiculturc ou 73
•« " view of 104,105
" Reaches 8{»
French Mission, crops raised at 39
Frederic Arm, position of. 115
Fuca, Straits of 77
" " navigation of .. , 78
'* " lighthouses on... 78
a.
Gardner Channel, route l)y 89, 124
•• " described 90,91
Garry Fort, road from 7
" climateat 88
Georgia, Straits of 115
Georgia, Gulf of 09, 70
George Fort, situation of 08
" sectiouat 121
Giscome Portage, country neai* * . - 100
Gold Mountains, direction of 07
Grand Canyon .,. Ill, 110
Grand Coteau, eastern limit of 01
*' Prairie, beauty of 95
Grand Rapid of the Saskatchewan i 18
Graham Reaches .... 89
Grant Trail, nature of the 93
Great Slave Lake 40
Green Lake, country near. 84
" •' road, crops raised on 84
Guuboat Channel... 89
I'}
xviii
H.
Page.
Heart Hill, altitude of 22
High Hills 60
Hope, on the Fraser G9, 92
Hickish Narrows 89
Homathco Pass 96
" •' portals of 108
'• River, east branch of '. 108
" " junction 109
Valley, nature of 109, 111, 116
Howse Pass, altitude of 70
Howe Sound 80
Hudson's Bay Basin, climate of 41, 42
Hudson's Hope 141
. I. ■- . '
Indian Tribes, and treaties 120, 127, 128
" •• population 131
«' " treatment of 130
Is-cul-taes-li River, direction of 97, 123, 124
Islington M'ision, wheat sown at 9
•' " seasons at .', 9
Isothermal lines .. 30, 38, 41
• ■■ : J.;,.
Jasper House, cultivable land west of 86
situation of '. 57,00
" Valley, ingress to 4H
Jackfish Lake, coimtry near 49, 52
" River 52
Jervis Inlet 80
Johnstone Strait, width of 77
■ K.
Kakabeka Falls, country neighboring , 8
" " agi'icultural area below 4
Kaministiquia, River Valley, capabilities for settlement, geology &c 2, 4, 6, 11
" terrace structure on 8
" harbour at mouth of 2
" navigation of 2, 11
XIX
Kaministiquia, mineral deposits on
•' Laurentian and Huroniau rocks on
" soil on banks of'
** vegetation on
*• climate on
Kamloops Fort, line from, to New "Westminster
" " road to
Kamsquot River,
Kemano River, month of
" Valley, described
" Bay, survey from
Kereness, land near
Keewatiu, geological formation at
" mineral deposits near
Kitlope River described
Kitlope Valley, surveys in
Kootanie Plain, prairies of
Ivluskus Lake, abandoned post at .•
KtlJuthsly Lake, position of
L.
Lac La Biclio, soil near
Lake of the Woods, country near
" " '« " timber
" " " " islands in and climate of
Lakes Saline
" " fresh water
" •' description of
" " between the two Saskatchewans
Laird Fort, wheat raised at
Land, ratio of fertile
Laura Passage
Larimie Plains, the
Laura Passage, route by
Lonely Lake, outfall of.
Lesser Slave Lake
Lignite, deposits of
Lilloet, road to
Liquor TraflRc prohibited
Little Boggy Creek, banks of
Pack.
4
4
8, 9, 10
9, 10
11
67
74
91, 112
89
90
121
94
5,6
6
90
125
62
97
lOi}
84
6, 7, 12
9
11
25
26.
27
84
85
26
89
44
92
5
167
61,56
74
181
17
XX
Little Touclnvootl Hills Fort
*' Red River, crops raised at
" Slave Lake, wheat raised at
Loredo Sound, entrance to
Lumpy Hill of the Woods, country near
Lytton, situation of
M.
Mackenzie River ,
" " coal on
•• " source of
Mackenzie Sir Alexander, route followed by .
McKay's Mountain, arable lands near
McLeod's River, ascent of
*' " coal on... ,
" Lake, temperature at
McLaughlin Bay
Maligne River, forests on
'Manitoba Lake, building stone on
'♦ •' description of
•* •' area of
Manitoba Province, wells sunk in
♦• " soil of
** ♦' chmate
'* *♦ snowfall in .*....
'• ♦' Indians of ,
Mattawin River, situation of
Mexico, Great Table-land of
Miette River, route along
Milieu Riviere du
Milk River, desert near ;
Millbank Sound
Mission Valley, Indians of
Mississippi River, country west of
Moose Woods
" " timber at
" " islands at
•• '• description of
•' River, situation of
" Lake, " "
Page.
26
89
85
9S
27
72
189
56
71
1)7, 08
1,8
48,57
56
74
89
10
12
16
19
17
17, 84, 88
83, 38
48
131
11
59
48
188
44
89,92
95
45
24
26
28
29
66
66,68
ni
AOE.
26
89
85
92
27
72
Moose Lake, gradients at
Mossy Portage
Mount Carmel description of
Mount St. Elias, position of
Mount Brown, elevafion of
MoTint Hooker, " "
Mountain House, strata at
" " country between and Edmontoi
Miul River (Cliilacoli)
Mudge Cape ,
N.
Naeoontlooii Lake, ruute by <
Nakosla or Stewart River
Navigation of Thunder Bay
" " Kaministiquia River
" " "Water courses west of Thunder Bay
" " Lakes Winnipeg, Winnipegoosis, and Manitoba
•' * Lakes and rivers in North-West
" by Steam
" of Fraser River
«« " Fuca Straits
'* " British CoUimbia coast
♦• " Thompson River
" north of Vancouver Island
of Bute Inlet
" through the Rocky Movmtains
Nazco River, direction of
" Valley 114,
Nechaco River, and valley of 70, l»0,
Nelson River, situation of
Nettacoh River, situatiofi of
Nepean Sound, entrance to
Nepowewin Mission, situation of
timberat
Neshaw, north of
Nestacho Lake, gradients on
N'ghaco Lake, extent of
Nicola Valley, trail in
Nicolaume Valley
Paok.
120
82
27
77
65
65
62
54
lOG
115
98
6J)
1
2
6
16
81
85
07
79
79
96
115
115
141
97
119, 123
102, 106
16
104
92
21
26
76
48
99
74, 96
92
xxu
Nimpoli Lake, trail along
Nine Mile Creek, position of
Nodallos Channel, title in
Northcoto, the steamer
North-West TciTitories, climate of *. . .
•' " " capacity to support population
" " •« area of
«♦ " " healthy climate of
«' •« " division of
•* •* " adajitabiiity for raih'oadH
" " , " desert lands of
«• ♦« " beauty of
" •• •• northern slope of
" " '• park -like country in
♦• " " Indians of
•' •* " population of
'• " " productions of
Nose Hills, forest land on
" Creek, character of
Okinaguu lliver ^ . . < .
Lake
" Valley
Oil Regions, extent of
Ossoyas Lake, position of..!
P. '
Pacitic Ocean, route to
" " warm current in
" " Canada on
Parsnip River, country near .*.....
Peace River, country drained by
•* " source of
" " spring opens at
" " cattle winter at
'• " wheat raised on
" " climate of
" " working railroads at
'• " country described
Page.
08
\m
1L5
81
86, 87
87
38, 182
41
41
43
44
48
59
09
131
132
138
(!0
GO
72
94
95
18
94
86
41
137
100
85, 130
69
39
40
42
42, 142
48
48, 186
■■
xxm
Peace River, coal ou
" " gold discoveries on
" " Pass, air currents in
*• altitude of
" " Indians
Peak Mountains '.
Pelly Fort, situation of
" " boring operations at
Pembina River, coal on
" " described
Pembina Mountain, country near
" prairies near
Pheasant Mouu* i •, fertile area of
Phillip Arm, heaa of
Pie Island, situation of
Pine River Pass, elevation of f
Pine Point, terraces at
Pine River, described
Pine Island Lake
Pine Creek, situation of
Pitt Fort, country near
Plat Lake
Police, Mounted
Pootzeaks, Valley of. , ,
Plumper Channel ;
Porcupine Hills, situation of. • • • •
" " altitude, country near, timber, kc
•' " siu'face deposits ;
'• " clay-ironstones at
Princess Royal Islands
Princeton, situation of
Prairie Portage, River valleys west of
Prairie Country, seasons in .*
" " character of 17, 40, 50, 00,
" " nutritious grasses of
Prince Albert Mission
Priest's Rock
Puget Sound
" " coal near
Puntzee Lake, country ueer
Page.
oU, 40
67
48
05, 70
181
69
24
48
48, 50
66
18
19.
24
116
1
70
02
188
18
24
:M, 47, 4!)
8
181
75
89
19
22
22
46
77
93,94
47
41
01, 03, 05, 76
60
84
57
77
78
108
XXIV
h
m
i . '-" . ■ ■ ..".',
Qnalcho Lake, position of
Qu' Appelle River, desert near
" " sources of
Queen Charlotte Islands, situation of
Quesnel mouth, position of
" River
Quokolt Indians, villapje of
Rainy Lake, superhcial deposits
" " forests near
" River, diniate, &c ;
" Hills, description of
Rat Portage, divide near
" '• geological formation at
" " boring operations at
Rat Creek, boring operations at
Rascals Village, situation of
Red Deer River, situation of
" " coal on
" " climate at
" " Lake crops raised at
Red Ochre Hills, country near
Ked River, country east of
«• " banks of
" " country west of
'• " prairies of
" " " fertile area
•' " tiiuber on
" ' soil and fertility of ,
'* " source and direction ,
*• " Yvater supidy on
Ritlmg Mountains, rocks on flanks of
" " elevation of
" •' timber on
" " delightful country near
Rivers, direction ol
River Valleys, depth of 17,
Robson's Peak i
Page .
100
61
77
67
72
89
8
10
12
10
12
27
6
6
48
48
76
19
58,
56
86
42
16
7
17
29
18
19
20
21
24
29
29
80
46
18
81
U
M
41
20, 47
,01
68
Pf
XXV
i'AGK.
Roche Miette -„ ,,„
o7, bo
" Percee, situation of ir
• XO
Roches Rouges a*
Rocky Mountain Portage jgy
Rocky Mountains, navigation through j41
" " base of , yg
country east of 45,48,02
approachto 5(}(.(5
elevation of 59^(55
" " valleys near eastern base of (j2
" ' route to China through (55
, beauty of (.7
'* " passes through 08 70
" " valleys in 7I
Rupert's Land, Indians of •_ _ igj
s.
Sageninaga River, extensive forests on 10
Salmon Rivor, valley of j^jj jjg 221
" " siuvey on 221
" " Pass *...!!1'.!.'.V.V.V.'!! 112
Salmon, immense quantities of gO
Salt Plain, great 07
Salt River, examination of I40
Salteaux, treaty mih the 220 180
Sand Hills Lake, banks of «. 27
Saskatchewan Country, geological formation IH
" " area of... . __ 24
'* *• grazmg lands , 24
" *• character of 25
** " climate and i)roductions of 42
" " iron dejoosits in 94
" " beauty of 55
•« River, forests at Grand Forks on 24
** " North Branch, timber, coal and lignite. [85, 49, 51, 52, 55, 57, 03
" " " coimtry described 47,49,50,58,02
" !' " " sources of 50,51
" " " " cliraatoof 51
" " " " golden .r,i,5G
• bendaof 57
XXVI
Saskatchewan Eiver, North Branch, geological formation on
" " " " sandstone cliffs and caves on .
" " " *' description of
" '* " depth of valley
" Eiver, South Branch, forests on
Pagk.
58, 62, 64
62
25
24, 29, 47
(1
description of
character of soil at
elbow breadth and depth . ,
chai-acter at Moose Woods
area drained by
desert south of
crossing at.
Star Mission, wheat raised at
Stelacoh Eiver, described , . .
Steppes, three prairie
" altitude, boundaries, geology of
" couaposition, fertility, rivers, vegetation &c.
Stick Indians
Stewart Island
" Eiver, gradients on
•* " journey to
" " to Bute Inlet
Lake
Sturgeon, fisheries
Sturgeon Lake, position of
St. Albert Mission, wheat raised at
St. Ann's Lake, country about
" " settlement ,
" " track to
St. George Fort, situation of
St. James Fort, climate at
St. John Fort, situation of
St. Joseph, country near
St. Paul Mission, country near
Sumallow Valley
Superior Lake, elevation, fluctuations, Indian name ,
" " mines on
Savanno Eiver, timber on ; . .
Savonna's Ferry, navigation at
Scott Capo, situation of
Soaforth Channel ,
26,47
28
29
82
44
47-
84
104
6, l.'i
16,61,70
. 15, 10, 17, 10, 21, 23, 25, 5!)
113
115
121
90
IIG
90,105
80
8
84
66
66
68
69,71
70
188
68
OS
1
10
9
m
, w
89
XXVll
Seine River, timber on.
Selkirk, Lord, eJorts at colonization by
Selkirk Mountains, the
" " passes through the
Seven Portages, situation of
Seymour Narrows
Shell Eiver, banks of
" " fertile lands...:
Shoal Lake, extent of
Sliuswap Eiver, character of
Similkameen, district of
" River
Simpson Fort, temperature at
Sioux Indians, number of
Skagit River, altitude of
Skeena River, country extending to
Snowfall
Smokcy River Pass, elevation of
■' " " report on
" " view of
Soda Creek, B.C., temperature at
" " " junction with Fraser River,
Sourios River, sources of
Summit Lake, country near
Swan River, situation of
" " salt springs on
•• " country near
•• " surface deposits on
•• " character of soil
'• " climate
*' " boring operations on
•• " minerals on .... ,
T.
Tilda Lake described
Tanyabunket Lake described
Tatlayaco Lake described
" " gradients on
Tatla Lflko survey
Tcluits(iuot River, character of
Page.
10
88
68
70
lU
17
24
1!)
!)5
75, 92. 91
oa
80, 39
131
92
30
38, 41, 43
70
112
137
74
114
01
75, 92
19
20, 40
20, 22
22
20
iUP
43
40
09
113
108
117
108
9i
!!'!
XXVIH
Tchestatta Lake, Trail along
Tcliutaaely Lake described
Tea River
Tolm-sin-il-til Lake, gradients on
Temperatwreg, Table of
«• of British Columbia
Tetachuck Lake, situation of
Tete Jaune Cache , position of
" " navigation at
Thick wood Hills, ooimtry near
Thle-et-leh, situation of
Thoburn, the Rapid
Thompson Route, the
" River
Thousand Lakes, Lake of
" " " arable land near .
•« «« " timber on
«« «« " climate
Thunder Bay, area, depth, &c
" " alluvial country near
♦' " climate
I '* " mines at
" Capo
" Hill, situation of
" " yellow ochre springs on
Thrncha Lake, position of
Tiedeman's River and Glacier
Couch wood Iliiis, country near
" character of
" fertile area
" Lakes at
" devastations liy fire ni...
" scenery at
" snowfall on
•• " climate at
Transport, compnrativo cost of
Trembleur Lake described
Tschick Lake, altitude and situation of... .
Tnlameen River, valley of
II
It
(I
II
it
Page.
103
102
94
118
89
74
101
68
72
49,51
72
81
07
08,95
8
9
12
1,2
10, 12
12
14
1
19
22
98
110
17
22, 24
24, 20
25
25
20
4;{
43
80
09
100
93
f
XXIX
- . , Page.
Unjiga Eiver > 143
Ursula Channel , 8'J, 92
Vancouver Island, coal on 66
♦• " situation of 77
«« " explorations by Captain Vancouver at 77
** " navigation north of 115
Valclez Island 115
Vegetation, luxuriance of 41
Vermillion, Fort, wheat and barley raised at 35, SB, 89
Victoria Mission, land near 49
Victoria City, temperature at... 74
" " situation of 77
w.
Waddington, Mr., place where his men were murdered m
Water supply 40
Waterhen Kiver, channel of Qg
Watershed, elevation of, between Lakes Superior and Winnipeg 4
" altitude of ditto 14
" between Assiniboinc and S. Saskatchewan 25
•« " Beaver and Athabasca Rivers g4
" " Saskatchewan and Peace Rivers g4
«• " Pacific Ocean and Fraser River 70
•« " Blackwater and Cliilacoh Rivers jjG, ICO
" " Chilacoh and Chilcotin 1C8
•• " Stewart and Frasor Valleys 121
W(.lcome Islands, situation of 1
Westroad River, position of 07
White Earth Fort, beautiful country near 68
White ^lud River, fertile soil on 26, 80
" " " position of 80
White ^louth River, situation of f
Whipsaw Valley, the 0B
Wignatinon, Valley of 60
" " fine timber in 00
»• " general description of 6U, Gl
William Fort, progress of.scasons at .«'. . 11
" "- temperature at 80
XXX
Wiunipcg City ■^*°^-
** '• tcmj)Gratui'o at
" health of ^
A*
Winnipeg River, country near
, ... ^ ■■ 7,8,20
" description of
" Lake, building-stone on *tt
" mineral wealth of 7^
" climateat , ' ^^
„ .. ., ^. , ,. 18,33,42
situation and altitude of
" " boundaries and extent of i .. -, n' or.
character of country near
Winnipegoosis Lake, building- stone on , '
" " description of
:; ™=-«'™» ■■'■•.■■■■■■.■'.■.".■.■.■.■..■.■.■.';:■.:.•. 23, 9'
" area
" minerals
Woody Mountain, country near
Wooded Country, the .'. ." " " ^^' f^
Woodhalk or Bella Coola Eivcr ^^
92
^ Y.
Yale, Ilapids above
Yoita Heacu-a.., cwt„ of.:;. ;.:;;;;;;;;.:.:;;.:.:;;:; ■,,;;^
" gradients la
' elevation of ^^
7Q
" " Lake gradients on
Yeltessc, Salmon River at. .
jjg
" gradients at
122
;> ^ z.
Zazatce Lake, gradients on
• • 118
LIST OF AUTHORS QUOTED.
A.
Agassiz, Professor, Geology of Lake Superior.
Anilcrson, A. C, The Dominion at the We.st.
B.
Barrett-Leimanl, Capt., C. E., Travels hi British Columhia.
Barnston, Lieut., Report of.
Bayfield, Captain.
Bell, Robert, Geological Survey of Canada, 1872-3-1-").
Borron, E. B., Mining Inspector, in B-port of C.)nunIssiuiior of Crown Lands,
Ontario, 1870.
BuUer, Captain W. F., The Great Lone Land.
" The Wild North Land.
0.
Choadle, Dr., North- West Passage by Land.
ConiwalJis, K., The New El Dorado.
D.
Dawson, G. M., Geology of the 49tli Parallel.
Dawson, S. J., Report on Lino of Route botweon Lake Superior and Rod River
Settlement, 1808.
Evidence before Select Committee on Lnmigration and Colonization, House
of Commons, Canada, 1800,
Downie, Wm., Report of, to Governor Douglas.
Douglas, Governor, Report of.
F.
l^leming, Sandford, Report of Progress C. P. R., 1871,
Foster and Whitney, Messrs., Geology of Lake Superior Land District.
Q,
Grant, Rev. George M., Ocean to Ocean.
Hall Professor, Geology of Fourth District, N.Y.
Hector, Dr., Geological Report in Palliser's Exploration in B.N. A.
^^mm
xxxu
Hind, Professor H. Y., Canadian Exploring Expedition.
" " " Assiniboine and Saskatchewan Exploring Expedition.
Horetzky, Clias., Canada on the Pacific,
Keefer, ^fr., Map prepared by.
Laird, Hon. David, Reports of.
Logan, Sir Wm., Geology of Canada.
It.
14,.
M.
Mackenzie, Su- A., Voyages by. , , ,
Macoun, Professor J., Eeport of Progress C. P. E., 1874
" " Evidence before Select Committee on Immigration and Coloni-
zation, House of Commons, Canada, 187G.
It
Martin, R. M., the Hudson's Bay Territories. '
Marshall, Chas., The Canadian Dominion.
Mayne, Commander R. C, Four Years in British Columbia and Vancouver Island.
McLeod, H., Evidence before the Select Committee on Immigration and Colonization,
House of Commons, Canada, 187G.
McLeod, Malcom, Evidence before the Select Committee on Immigration and Coloniza-
tion, House of Commons, Canada, 1876.
Milton, Viscoimt, The North-West Passage by Land. vi
Palliser, Captain, Exploration in B. N. A.
Palmer, Lieut. H. S., Report on Bentinck Arm.
Pembcrton, J. D., Facts and Figures relating to Vancouver's Island and British
Columbia.
R.
Richardson, Sir John, Ai'ctic Exploring Expedition i
Richardson, James, Geological Survey of Canada, 187'4-5.
Rowan, J. H., Report of Progress, C. P. R*
Russell, A. J., The Red River Country, Hudson's Buy and N. W. Territories.
s. --■':
Selwyn, A. R. C, Geological Survey of Canada.
Simpson, Sir George, Overland Journey Round the World. '
Smith, Hon. D. A., Letter on Navigation in N. W. Territories.
XTXlll
Smith Marcus, Report of Progress, Canadian Pacific Railway.
Smytli, Report of Major-General Selby.
Spence, Thomas, Manitoba and the North-West of the Dominion.
Spenser, J. W., Geological Survey of Canada, 1874-.'>.
■_ iu A*
Taclie, Mgr., Sketch of the North-West of America.
Vavasour, Lieut., Report of.
%
w.
Wells, A. W., Report by in Journals Legislative Assembly, Canada, 1859.
Waddington, Alfred, Overland Railway through B. N. America.
m
INDEX OF WORKS QUOTED.
Arctic Exploring Expedition, by Sir John Richardson.
Assiniboine and Saskatchewan Exploring Expedition, by Prof. H. Y. Hind.
Canada on the Pacific, by Charles Iloretzky.
Canadian Exploring Expedition, by Prof. H. Y. Hind.
•' Dominion The, by Charles Marshall.
Census of Canada, 1871.
D.
Dominion at the West, The, by A. C. Anderson, .J. P.
Exploration in B. N. America, by Capt. Palliser.
F.
Facts and Figm*es relating to Vancouver Island and British Columbia, by J. D. Pem-
berton. -
Four Years in British Colninlda, by Commander Pi. C. Mayne, R.N.
a.
Geological Survey of Canada.
Geology of Canada.
" 49th parallel, by G. M. Dawson.
" Lake Superior Land District, by Messrs. Foster and Whitney.
" the Fourth District N. Y., by Prof. Hall.
Great Lone Land, Tlio, by Capt. W. F. Butler.
Hudson's Bay Territories, The, by R. M. Martin.
^ J*
Journals, Legislative Assembly, Canada, 1858. •
.. « «< i< ig5})_
XXiVl
L.
Letter, from Hon. D. A. Smith, M.P., ou Navigation.
M.
Manitoba and the North-West of the Dominion, by T. Spencc.
N.
North-West Passage by Land, The, by Milton and Clieadlo.
New El Dorado, The, by Kinahau Cornwallis.
o.
Ocean to Ocean, by Rev. G. M. Grant.
. Overland Jom-ney Round the World, by Sir George Simpson.
" Railway through B. N. America, by Alfred Waddington.
R.
Report of Progrcs.s, Canadian Paciiic Railway, 1874.5.
" " " Route between Lake Superior and Red River Settlement, 1868.
" " Select Committee on Immigration and Colonization, House of Commons,
Canada, 18G9.
" " Select Committee on Immigration and Colonization, House of Commons,
Canada, 1870.
Couimissioner of Crown Lands, Ontario, 1870.
Lieut. H. S. Palmer to Governor Douglas. ' ■
" Vavasour on Navigation.
" " Wm. Downie to Governor Douglas.
" " Major-General Smyth.
" " Hon. D. Lakd. 1876.
" Marcus Smith, Esq., for 187o.
Red Rivor Country, Hudson's Bay, and North- West Tcrritori<\s, by A. J. Russell.
a it
Sketch of the North-West of America, by Mgr. Tache.
T.
Travels .n British Columbia, by Capt. Bavrett-Lemiard.
V.
Voyages of Sir A. Mackenzie.
WUd North Land, The, by Capt. W. F. Butler.
ALTITUDES,
Un tub Line of the Canada Pacific Railway fkum Thunder Day
TO THK Pacific Ocean.
1 1
I
At Fort William.. "O'^-OO feet
" Linkoping : I ,->^i-^^^ "
" English River 1,515.00 "
" Wabigoon Lake 1,204.00 "
" Vermillion Lake 1,170.00 "
" Keewatin 1,081.00 "
"Darwin 'J39.00 "
" Selkirk 720.00 "
" Cartier ^27.00 "
" Poutraincoiirt '^=^0.00 "
" Northcotc 1,158.00 "
" Livingstone 1,190.00 "
" Thackeray 1,781.00 "
" Saskatchewan 1,(;23.00 "
" Caerlaverock 1,520.00 •'
" Battleford 1,593.00 "
" Four Blackfoot Hills 2.113.00 "
"Edmonton 2,391.00 "
" Poinbiua River 2,385.00 "
" McLeod's River 2,797.00 "
" Jasper Honse 3,350.00 "
" Summit Yellow Head Pass 3,7-10.00 "
" Teto Jaxmo Cache 2,100.00 "
" Fort George 1,900.00 "
" Valleys in Central Plateau, D.C 3,000.00 "
" Yeltesse, above Salmon River 1,000.00 "
Note.— Sec pages 117 and 122 for tables of gradients of the lines surveyed through
the Cascade Mountains, where they are fully given mile by mile.
ELEVATIONS AT PROMINENT POINTS.
CojiriLEU FKOM Authors Quoted in the Foiiegoixu Pages.
above the oceau
GOO feet
1,500
•)02
000
J)00
1,000
2,700
500
1,000
700
800
Lake Superior
Height of Land between Lake Superior and Winnipeg.. . " "
Watershed above Lake Superior
Lake Winnipeg above the ocean
First Prairie Steppe " "
Second " " " "
Third " " "
Sources of Qu'Appollc River above lied Itiver
Summit altitude of Riding and Duck Mountains above the ocean
Heart Hill. above the i^lains
Porcupine Mountain above Swan Lake
Rise from Fort Garry to Edmonton, by trail l,-400
" from Edmonton to base of Mountains 900
Mount Carmel, (Big Hill) above the plains 100
Lumpy Hill " " 100
Height of the banks of Red River above the stream 30 to 50
Jasper House above the sea 3,372
Highest point of Plateau in British Territory at base of Rocky Mountains,
on lOth parallel above the ocean 1,300
Great Table-land of Mexico 7,000
Bow River, at foot of Moinitains 3,000
Athabasca River, at foot of Mountains 3,300
Rocky Mountains , •. .above eastern plahi 2,000 to 3,000
Terraces east of Rocky Mountain above the ocean 3,500 to 4,000
Mounts J]rown and Hooker above the plains 10,000
Roche Miette, from its base 0,000
^Mountains south of !Moose Lake above tho liik(> 2,000
Average height of Rocky ^Mountain:-; 11,000
Lake Stuart above tho oclhu 1,800
llowsc Pass " " 4,500
Athabasca Pass " •' 0,025
Yellow Head Pass " " 8,740
Pine River " " " 2,000
Peace " " under " 2,000
XXXIX
Cascade Mountains at Kemano Kivcr above the sea 8,000 feet
« " at Skagit " " " •'5,«00 "
SkagitRiver " " 1-900 "
Allison's Pass above the sea (Cascades) 4 ,400 ' '
Princeton " " " ^-i-iOO "
TeaEivor " " " 1,500"
Okanigan Mountain above the lake 8,000 "
Lake " «ea 1,120 "
Valleys in Central Plateau, B.O " " 3,000"
Hillj^ " <> above the sea 4,000 to 5,000 "
Blackwater Bridge, B.C above the sea 2,110 "
Crown of Table-land, B.C., " " =^.500 "
Blackwater River (camp 8) B.C " " 3,145"
Kluskus Lake, B.C " " 3,500 "
Thracha Lake, B.C., " " 3,310 "
Eliguck Lake, B.C., " " :^.«10 "
Divide on Central Plateau, B.C., " " -1,050 "
Lake N'ghaco, B.C., " " «.^'00 "
'• Qualcho, " " " ^.«20 "
•' Tschick, " " " 3,100"
" Tetachuck, B.C., " " 2,770"
" Tcliutazely, " " " '-^'fi^" "
" Enz.B.C " " ^'0^^ "
" Tchestatta, B.C., " " '-^'^"O "
" Kthluthsly, " " " '-^''^OO "
Head of Lake Fraser, B.C, " " 2,400"
Hills on Central Plateau, B.C., " ' 1,000"
Foot of Lake Francois, " " " '^'^^^ "
Chilacoh Valley, (above Canyon) above the sea 2,000 to 2,800 "
Salmon House above river 100 "
Yeltesse.... " " l'<«><' "
ChisicutLake •'''•^'^'^
Chilacoh Valley above the sea 2,225 "
Stewart Valley " " '■^-<^^^ "
T.. " " 1 050 "
River '•"""
Jiasalt Lake, divide near " " ^,^0^^^
Euchinico Lake crossing " " ^'^^^
Summit between Blackwater and Nazco " " ■' •'-^'^'^
Lake Francois, North shore " " ^''''
r» .. " 1,000 "
Duuvcgan... V
DEPTH OF RIVER VALLEYS.
On First Priiiric Steppe 30 feet
"Second " " 150 to 200
"Third " " 150 to 400
South Saskatchewan below prairie, third level . . . . , 800
*« " at the crossing 170
North " below prairie level. 100 to 800 "
Battle River, bolow prairie level 150 to 270 "
liodEiver " " " 30 to 50
Wiguatinou River, below prairie level 200
Valleys iu Central Plateau, B.C 110
CHAPTER I.
FROM THUNDER BAY TO RED RIVER.
Elevation of Lake Superior.
Canadian Exploring Expedition, by Uenry Tule Hind. Vol. I, p. 17.
" The elevation of Lake Superior above the Ocean has been variously estimated by
different observers. Captain Bayfield considered it to be 627 feet above the level of the
sea, which altitude is adopted by the narrators of Agassiz's tour in that region, and by
.Messi's. Foster and Whitney, in their report on the geology of the Lake Superior Land
District. Sir \Vm. Logan, in his Geological Report for 1846-7, states that its surface is
597 feet above the Ocean ; in Professor Hall's Geology ef the Fourth Disti'ict, N. Y., 596
feet is its assigned elevation. Sir John Richardson assumed its level to be 641 feet
above the Ocean. Tlie altitude deduced by Mr. Keefer for the map prepared for the
Canadian Commissioners at the Paris Exhibition in 1855, with the advantages and in-
formation derived from the levels obtained in the construction of various railways and
canals from the Ocean to Lake Superior, established a difference of only three feet in
excess of that obtained by Sir Wm. Logan in 1847. The occasional fluctuations in the
level of the waters of Lake Superior certainly exceed three feet, so that an elevation of
600 feet is probably a correct estimate of the mean height of the waters of this ' Kitchi-
gum-mi,' or Great Lake of the Ojibways above the Ocean,"
Thunder Bay.
Canadian Pacific Railway. Report of Progress, 1874, pp. 208-209.
" This Bay is on the north-west shore of Lake Superior, and has an area of about
200 square miles. It lies in a direct .un generally from north-east to south-west, and is
bound on the west and north by the mainland ; on the east by the ])romontory of Thunder
Cape, which divides it from Black Bay ; and on the south it is divided from Lake Supe-
rior by a number of islands, of which Pie Island is the principal. * * *
With the exception of a small group, (the Welcome Islands,) which lie about four miles
east from the mouth of the Kuministiquia River, there are not many islands in Thunder
Bay.
" The principal entrance to Tliunder Bay, and the one gonerally used, lies between
Thunder Cape and Pie Island ; it is a})out five miles wide and has a depth of water rang-
ing from lUO feet to 237 feet. The general depth of the Bay is given on the chart as 60
feet. * * * The navigation is good for either steamboats or sailing vessels ;
the opening and closing of the Bay is about the 8th May and 30th December."
Report on Line of Route between Lake Superior and Red River Settlement, by S. J.
Dawson, C.E., 1808, ^>. 12.
" Thunder Bay is itself a harbour, although of somewhat largo dimensions, completely
land-locked and sheltered from every wind ; any swell, therefore, which can be felt must
arise within the bay itself. The huge surges of Lake Superior do not roll into it at all,
t
and it may be regarded, to all practical purposes, as an inland lake. ■■' '■'■'■ '■^'■
It is safe from winds blowing west, south-west, noi-th and north-west, and, I may add,
that a wind blowing from a direction fifteen or twenty points to the east of T.orth would
not affect it. East or south-easterly winds alone would blow in upon the harbour, but
the extent of their sweep would be limited to the width of Thunder Bay, and the surge
which could arise in that distance may easily be guarded against."
(It may be observed that the railway terminus is fixed on the Kaministiquia River,
which flows into the Bay and is itself a good harbour, and into which a deep outer passage
is dredged through the Bar.)
Kaministiquia Valley.
., Ap2)endix No. 3 to XVI Vol. Journals of Legislative Assembly of Canada, 1858.
" The Kaministiquia for the first ten miles or so is smooth, and the navigation is
unimpeded. * '■' '•' In regard to its general features, the country is
varied. The valley of the lower part of the Kaministiquia is well adapted for settle-
ment. On ascending, however, the land becomes very rough and broken, although the
hills are of no very great elevation. Dog Lake is a large sheet of water. The land rises to
a considerable elevation around it, but the hills ai'e not steep or in continuous ridges, but
swell up gradually as it were in isolated mounds. At the Lake of the Thousand Lakes,
although the country appears to be considerably elevated, there are, properly speaking, no
hills. The land rises gradually from the Lake presenting a smoothly-swelling outline
against the distant horizon.
"No part of the country is more than 1000 feet above the lake level, or 1600 feet
above sea level, which height is reached about 50 miles inland."
Captain Palliscr's Exploration in B. N. America, folio, p. 237. Dr. Hector's
Geological Report,
^' ■'■ " The whole of this district is occupied by a primitive axis, the
intermediate primitive bolt of Sir J. Richardson, which is composed of gneiss, mica,
schist, limestones and other metamorphic rocks, with intrusions of granite, probably o(
very diffei-ent ages, the whole formation being the Laurentian of Logan, corresponding,
it is thought, to the fundamental gneiss recently described by Sir R. Murchison, as under-
lying the most ancient rocks in Scotland. '■' ''' '•'
' " On the River Kaministiquia, above the fall at Friai's' Portage, the strata have an
almost vertical position, and a little further on, at Lower Island Portage, are found to be
dip[)ing at an angle of 40° to south-south-east, and to be changed in character, having
mica developed in them, and also a great abundance of quartz veins. Immediately
afterwards, in the course of the ascent, true granite occui's ; and after scvei'al alterations,
schistose flags re-ajjpcar at Up],)or Island Portage, but now dipping at a high angle to the
north-west.
" From the Falls to tho Dog Lake, the ascent of the river pursues a northerly
course, crossing tho beds oblitjuely by a succession of minor falls, giving rise to scenery
of unequalled beatity. # * * The ascent which is made after leaving tho
ui)i)er end of Dog Lake, is through a swam])y country covered with drift. In fact, after
leaving Dog Lake, until a considerable descent lias been made to the west, no rock is
exposed, tho whole summit level being covered with a thick deposit of drift. *
i n
" From the Lake of the Thousand Isles, where the rocky flooring of the country is again
uncovered, until Sturgeon Lake is readied, the descent is very slight. * * *
In miuiy cases the lakes are at exactly the same level at each end of the portage ; and the
greatest diflerence between the two ends of any of tlioso portages is only about ;]■") feet, so that
the total descent in this part of the route cannot amount to very much. * * *
" Between Rainy Lake and Lake of the Woo Is tlie su])er(ioial deposits again cover
all rocks from \ iew, and when the north end of the latter 4ake is reached, and they are again
exposed, their general strike is now changed to almost north and south, agreeing with
the greater axis of the lake, just as liainy Lake agrees with the strike of the eastern
District,"
Geolo'jlcal Survey of Canada, 1S72-73, ;:». lOG. i
" In going north-westward from Thunder Bay to Lake Winnipeg, six apparently
distinct belts of Huronian rocks are crossed. They appear to occupy long V shaped
basins in the folds of the Laurentian strata, and their aggregate breadth is about half that
of the Laurentian bands between them. The lirst, or Tlmnder Bay band, has a breadth
of about \i) miles l)e]iind Thuniler Bay, bwt appears to sj)read out to a greater width west
of the Kanuuistlcpiia lUver."
Geology of Canqda, p. 74.
" In addition to dykes, a great many mineral veins intersect these rocks. A very
largo number of these contain a greater or smaller amount of vai'ious metalliferous ores ;
and the indications which they present are such as to render it certain that many parta
the country characterized by them, will, sooner or later, rise into imi)ortance as a mining
region. The metals whoso ores are mot with are copper, lead, zinc and silver, with more
rarely nickel, cobalt, arsenic, uranium and molybdenum."
Teuuaces of Lake Superior Basin.
Captain PaJlixer's Exploration in B. X, America, /alio, p. 211).
" In ascending the Kaministitiuia for a considerable distance above the Kakabeka
Falls, the country is covered liy a deposit of red marl earth, which forms the high ter-
races of the river. Thus, opposite the mouth of White Fish Jliver, there are three dis-
tinst teri'ace levels of 20, 00 and 'JO feet. At some distance l>ack from the i-iver still
higher terraces occur, belonging to this class of deposits, which must bo considered as of
more recent ago than the true drift. Sir William Ijogan d(!scribes one at the height of
331 feet above Lake Sui)orior. The great deposits of sand ami gravel which rest on the
highest levels of the axis and are (irst met with at Dog i'ortago, lielong, I think, to tho
period of the drift."
llml,
P-
:i .
"The country in tiio iu>igId)()rhood of the Kakaboka Falls at a little distance from
the river rises to an elevation of lOO feet, a steett bank on eiUier aide of tho stream
forming an additional terrace."
lOiJ, p. L'L
'■'■'• * '" " Terrace structure commences about 20 miles from the mouth of
Kaministiquia llivor, rising to the height of from (iO to SO foot above the level of tho broad
Alluvial flat. These terraced banks are composed of a red, sandy mai-1, from the summit
of which the country is level, with little or no swamp. * ■■^■• *
The country presents great irregularities in every direction, and, as a rule, is densely
wooded."
Geological Survey of Canada, 18G6 to 1869, 7;. 330.
"In the hills on the left side of the Kaministiquia River, a finely banded rock made
up of jasper and magnetic iron, occurs. * * * These strata are considerably
contoi'ted, and dip at high angles, but their general course appears to be north-west-
ward. On higher ground, overlooking the river at this locality, are thick beds of finely
grained greenish-gray diorite coarsely porphyritic from the presence of numerous crystals
of greenish feldspar. The beds vary from one foot in thickness up to 15 or 20 feet and
strike N. 65° W. (mag.)"
Canadiem Exploring Expedition, by IJ. Y. Hind. Vol. 1, pp. 34-38.
"Opposite this magnificent exposure c rap • oKay's Mountain), the clay banks of
this river are about 14 feet high, and continue to lise on one side or the other until they
attain an elevation of nearly 60 feet, often, however, retiring from the present bed of the
river, and giving place to an alluvial terrace, some ^ or 1-^ ' t*^ in altitude, and clothed with
the richest profusion of grasses and twining flovvrering plants. * * ♦
The alluvial valley of the river from about 3 miles below the mountain portage to Fort
William, varies in breadth from a few hundred yards to one mile ; the breadth occupied by
land of a quality which might fit it for agricultural purjjoses extends to near the summit
of the flank of a low table land which marks the true limit of the river valley, and the average
breadth of this may be double that of the strictly alluvial portion. * * *
Occasionally the flanks of the low table land approach the river, contract the valley, and
give an unfavorable aspect of the country. * * * xhe area available for
agricultural purposes below the Grand Falls, jjrobably exceeds 20,000 acres, but if the
flanks of McKay's Mountain be included in the estimate, a large addition may with
propriety be assumed. The Grand Falls mark the limits of a tract of country differing in
many important phy.sical aspects from the valley of the river lower down. From black
argillaceous slates of Huronian (Cambi-ian) age we pass to a region in which granite,
gneiss and chloritic schist prevail, and where the vegetation is often scanty and poor."
Geological Survey of Canada, 1866-9,^, 320. Report of Mr. IL Bell.
* * * " Between the Grand Falls of the Kaministiquia and the head of
Thunder Bay, the country is occupied partly by Lauren tian and partly by Huronian
rocks, to a distance of about eight miles from the former, and about sixteen from the latter.
The distribution of the two formations is represented as accurately as possible according
to present data. North of this area is the country around Dog Lake, which is all Lau-
rentian so far as known."
Height of Land.
: Mr. Sandford Fleming in Report of Progress^ Canadian Pacific Railway, 1874, p. 8.
* * * " Between the Province of Manitoba and Lake Superior, the
drainage of the countiy is mainly westward, passing into Lake Winnipeg. The water-
shed between the two lakes is quite close to Lake Superior, and maintains a nearly uni-
form elevation of from 1400 to 1500 feet above the sea. The descent from the watershed
westward is very gradual, and the country for the whole distance is remarkable for the
innumerable streams and lakes with which it is intersected. These consist of long wind-
ing sheets of water, separated by rocky ridges ; and so numerous are they, that an Indian
in his canoe can travel in almost any required direction V>y making an occasional portage."
Canadian PaciJiG Railway, Ileport of Progress, 1874, pp. 201-202. Appendix I.
Jus. II. Rowan, C. E.
" There is a peculiarity which has an important bearing on the location of a railway;
it is that about 30 miles ea.st of Bat Portage a "divide" is crossed, which has a couree
generally easterly until it strikes the height of land. This "divide" which has at some
points a greater elevation than the height of land throws some of the waters, which flow
through the Winnipeg River, to the south ; forming the line of water communication
known as the Dawson Route. From the northern sloi)e of the " divide " the waters flow
into English River, the outfall of Lonely Lake or Lac Seul, and enter the Winnipeg fifty
miles Below Rat Portage. The country diftt-is gi'eatly on either side of this "divide,"
that on the south being extremely rocky and ruggeil, wliile that on the north is more
level with extensive tracts of light sandy soil."
Captain Pallisers Exploration in B. N. AinKrica,fvUo, p. 6.
* * * " Around Thimder Bay, nnd extending for some distance up the
valley of the Kaministiquia, there is a considerable extent of rich alluvial land, heavily
timbered. * * *
" The country which succeeds to the west and noi-th is wild and rocky, but with
no hill more than 300 feet above the general level, so that it cannot be called a mountain-
ous region. It is intersected by long, narrow lakes and innumerable watercourses broken
by ridges of rock. The extent of the continuous water communication improves consider-
ably as we descend to the west, and there are some large lakes which would be available
for steam navigation in the event of the country ever becoming settled."
Appendix No. 36 to the XVII Vol. of the Journals^ Legislative Aisemhhj, Province of
Canada, 1869. Report of S. J. Dnitson on the Country between Lake Superior
and Red River Settlement.
" The regions through which the explorations have extended embraces two sections
of country widely different in physical character. The first extending from Lake
Superior to Lake Winnipeg is of the primitive or crj'stalline formation. In its general
aspect it is a hilly and broken country, intersected by rapid rivers and wide-spread lakes.
The mountains, however, do not rise to any great elevation, except on the immediate
borders of Lake Superior, and there are several tine alluvial valleys."
From Keewatin to Selkirk.
Geological Survey. Report of Progress, 1872-3, Alfred R. C. Selwyn, pp. 13-14.
* * * "The most important and interesting point which has been
ascertained is the occurrence of a series of great parallel bands of Bchisto.se and slaty ntrata
traversing this region, which hitherto was supposed to be almost exclusively occupi ;d by
Laurentian gneiss, * * * * Wliatever the rather under than over the
general average of such works."
Jieport of Progress, C. P. Eailway, 1874, p. 201.
* * * <« Pqj. gQ niiles immediately east of Red River, the general charac-
teristics are, a level and in some parts swampy country, with ridges of sand and gravel
more or less thickly covered with timber ; the next 70 miles are rough, broken and rocky,
especially in the neighborhood of Winnipeg River, whicli at the outlet of Lake of th(5
Woods (Rat Portage) where we cross it, is a stream of considerable magnitude, draining
an area of country of about 10,000 square miles ; an area which is largely increased below
the point where, we cross it. * * * Rat Portage, or the Dalles (Keewatin)
a few miles further down are the two most favorable jjoints for a railway crossing.
* * * The country from this point to the Height of Land or eastern boundary
of this (the Winnipeg) subdivision, has a gradual ascent, the total rise being b(!twecn 400
and 500 feet in a distance of 230 miles. * * * There is a great extent of
water surface, consisting of lakes and lacustrine streams of every conceivable shape and
size ; the former lying, for the most part, in the direction of the strike of the rocks ; the
latter occasionally cutting across it. Tlie hills which almost universally follow a general
dii'ection from N.E. to S. W., consist for the most part of rock of the Laurentian formation."
Appendix No. 30 to Journals Legishitive Assemblif, Canada, 18.59. Report hy
a. J. Dawson on the Country betioeen Lake Superioi' and Red River.
" The tongue of land immediately to the eastward of Rod River, within the boun-
-dary line, and between it and the Lake of the Woods, on the River Winnipeg, is remark-
able, inasmuch as it divides the wooded from the prairie region, partaking to some extent
of the character of both. The eastern border, on the Lake of the Woods and the Win-
nipeg, is of the crystalline formation, of an uneven surface and densely wooded. Its
western, on the Red River, presents wide prairie openings, and for a distance of about 30
miles back is of an alluvial soil. Immediately to the westward of Lake of the Woods,
and but slightly elevated above it, there is a marshy plateau, scantily wooded, from which
the Roseau River flows westward to Red River, the White Mouth River northward to
the Winnii»eg, and several inconsiderable streams eastward to Lac Plat, and the Lake of
the Woods itself. Westward of this plateau the land descends evenly to the praiiie
bordering on Red River, and to the northward it declines very gently to Lake Winnipeg ;
another river, the Broken Head, taking its rise on the slope between White Mouth River
and Red River, about six miles to the eastward of which latter it flows into Lake Winni-
peg in a reedy marsh."
Winnipeg River.
Red River Exploring Expedition, H. Y. Hind, Vol. 1, p. 106.
" Issuing from the Lake of the Woods through several gaps in the noi'them rim of
the lake, the River Winnipeg flows through numerous tortuous channels for many miles
of its course in a north-easterly direction. Some of the channels unite with the main
stream ten to fifteen miles below Rat Portage, and one pursues nearly a straight course
for a distance of 65 miles, and joins ihe Winnipeg below the Barriere Falls. The
windings of this immense river ai*e very abrupt and opposite, suddenly changing from
north-west to south-west, and fi'om south-west to north-west for distances exceeding 20
miles. In its course of 163 miles, it descends 349 feet by a succession of magnificent
cataracts. Some of the falls and rapids present the wildest and most pictiu'esque
scenery, displaying every variety of tumultuous cascade, with foaming rapids, treacherous
eddies, and huge swelling waves, rising massive and green over hidden rocks. * *
The river frequently expands into large deep lakes full of islands, bounded by precipitous
cliffs or rounded hills of granite. The fort at Rat Poi-tage is beautifully situated on an
island at one outlet of the Lake of the Woods. It is surrounded Avith hills about 200
feet high, and near it some tall white and red pine, the remains of an ancient forest, are
standing amidst a vigorous second growth. The rock about Rat Portage is a chloritic
slate, which soon gives place to granite, without any covering of drift, so that no area
capable of cultivation was seen until we arrived at Islington Mission."
17ie Great Lone Land, by Capt. W. F. Butler, F.R.GS., p. lU.
* * * " A man may journey veiy far through the lone spaces of the earth
without meeting with another Winnipeg River. In it nature has contrived to place her
two great units of earth and water in strange and wild combinations. To say that the
Winnipeg River has an immense volume of water, that it descends 360 feet in a distance
of 160 miles, that it is full of eddies and whirlpools, of every variation of waterfall from
chutes to cataracts, that it expands into lonely pine-cliffed lakes and far-reaching island-
studded bays, that its bed is cumbered with immense wave polished rocks, that its vast
solitudes are silent and its cascades ceaselessly active — to say all this is but to tell in bare
items of fact the narrative of its beauty."
Soil and Vegetation, Timber, (fee.
Appendix No. 3 to Journals of t/ie Legislative Assembli/, Canada, 1858.
* * * "Opposite McKay's Mountain the clay banks of the River
(Kaministiquia) '«ere about 15 feet high, and continued to rise on one side or the other
until they attained an elevation of nearly 60 feet, often, however, retiring from the
present bed of the river, and giving place to an alluvial terrace, some eight or ten feet
in altitude.
" The low table land is thinly wooded with small pine and the soil is pooi- and dry ;
the alluvial valley sustains elm, as{)en, Vjalsam, poplar, ash, butternut, and a very
luxuriant profusion of grasses, vetches, and climbing plants ; among which the wild hop,
honeysuckle and convolvulus, are the most conspicuous. The rear portion of the valley,
with an admixture of the trees just nametl, contains birch, balsam, white and black spruce
and some heavy aspens. The underbrush embraces hazelnut, cherries of two varieties, &c.
* * * (1) The banks of Dog lliver are altogether alluvial, for some distance
up the valley, with the occasional exception of the abrupt sand clitfs, noticed, which come
upon the river and seem to form the termination of ridges, which traverse the valley at
nearly riglit angles to the course of the stream. The banks of
Havunno River are altogether alluvial, and diminish gradually from ten feet in altitude,
iiear its source, to the level of Mille Lacs, at its entrance into that extensive and beautiful
sheet of water. The immediate banks of Savanne River are clothed with alder, willow,
and dogwood ; behind these are seen tamarac, pine, spruce and aspen. Near its mouth
much marshy land prevails, and, at its confluence with Mille Lacs, is characterized by a
large expanse of rushes and other plants common in such situations."
Iicd River Exploring Expedition, hj II. Y. Iliad. Vol. \, p. 05.
"■• ■'■ "'• " If, in the course of time, mineral wealth should lie found to exist
in profitable distribution about Mille Lacs, there would be no scarcity of arable soil
between the low hill ranges of that beautiful but desolate lake to supply the wants of a
mining population. * * * Among the trees remarkable for tlieir size,
cedar, ash, \.-}ute and red pine, with birch of two kinds may be mentioned."
Ibid, p. lOi.
" Much good pine timber was seen on the Islands, near the northern part of Lake
of the Woods, and, if conclusions may be drawn, from the accounts which Indians gave
us of their gardens, it is very pi-obable that extensive areas of excellent land exist."
Ibid, 2). no.
" Wheat sown (at Islington Mission) on the 20th May was reaped on the 2Gth
August ; in general it requires but 93 days to mature. Potatoes have not been attacked
by spring or fall frosts during a period of five years ; Indian corn ripens well, and may
become a valuable crop on the Lower Winnipeg. Spi'ing opens and vegetation commences
at Islington about the 10th May, and winter sets in generally about the lot November.
These facts are noticed, in connection with the small cultivable tract at the Mission, on
account of the occurrence of other available areaf, varying from 50 to 300 acres in extent
between the Mission and Silver Falls, about 18 miles from the mouth of t'vt river. From
Silver Falls to where the river Hows into Lake Winnipeg, poor and rooL y land is the
exception, alluvial and feftile tracts, bearing groves of heavy aspens and otlier trees,
prevailing."
Ibid, p. C2.
''The hills surrounding Mille Lacs here and there bear pine of fair dimensions, while
in the narrow and shallow valleys between them there is every indication of hardwood
over large areas,"
(1) The wonls la these extracts are exactly the same as in Mr. Hind's Exploratioa, vide Red River
Exploring Expedition, pp. 47-8, &c.
19
Appendix JVb. 36 to Journals Legislative Aasemhhj, 1859. lieport by S. J. Dawson oh
the Country between Lake Superior and Red P.iver.
" Dense forests cover the whole of this region, and the most valuable kinds of wood
are seen in various places and in considerable quantities. Elm is to be found on Rainy
River, and white pine of a fair size and good quality, abounds on the eastern slope to
Lak* Superior ; but it is still more abundant on the western slope, on the watera which
flow towards Rainy Lake. On the Sageinaga River, and on the Seine and the Maligno,
there are extensive forests of red and white pine."
I
• " Ocean to Ocean, " by the Rev. Geo. Grant, pp. 28-31.
* # •-!« « Drove in three hours (from Thunder Bay) to ' 15 mile shanty,'
through a rolling country with a steady upward incline, lightly wooded for the first half
and more heavily for the latter half of the distance. The flora is much the same as in
our eastern provinces ; the soil light, with a surface covering of peaty or sandy loam, and
a subsoil of clay, fairly fertile and capable of being easily cleared. The vegetation is
varied, wild fruits being especially abundant, raspbeiTies, currants, gooseberries, and
tomatoes ; flowers like the convolvulus, roses, a great profusion of asters, wild kallas,
waterlilies on the ponds, wild chives on the rocks in the streams, and generally a rich
vegetation. It is a good country for emigrants of the farmer class. The road, too, is
first-rate, a great point for the settler ; and a market is near. Whatever a settler
raises he can easily transport to the ready market that there always is near mines. *
* * Pbr the next three or four miles the soil became richer, the timber heavier,
and the whole vegetation more luxuriant. * * * The valley of the river
(Kaministiquia) is acknowledged to be a splendid farming country. * * *
Timothy grass was growing, to the height of four feet, on every vacant spot, from
chance seeds. A bushel and a half of barley, which was all a squatter had sown, was
looking as if it could take the prize at an Ontario Exhibition. ''■ * "•= Everything
about this part of the country astonished us. Our former ideas concerning it had been
that it was a barren desert ; that there was only a horse trail, and not always that, to
travel by ; that the mosquitoes were as big as grasshoppers and bit through everything,
whereas, it is a fair and fertile land, undulating from the intervals of the rivers up to
hills and rocks 800 feet high. The road through it is good enough for a King's highway,
and the mosquitoes are not more vicious than in the woods and by the streams of the
lower provinces."
I
Overland Journey Round tJie World, by Sir Geo. Simpson, 1841-2. Vol. 1, jyp. 36-37.
"The River, (Kaministiquia) during the day's march, passed through forests of elm,
oak, pine, birch, (fee, being studded with isles not less fertile and lovely than its banks ;
and many spots reminded us of the rich and quiet scenery of England. The paths of the
portages were spangled with violets, roses and many other wild flowers, while the currant,
the gooseberry, raspberry, the plum, the cherry, and even the vine, were abundant. All
this bounty of nature was imbued, as it were with life by the cheerful notes of a variety
of birds. Compared with the adamantine deserts of Lake Superior, the Kaministiquia
presented a perfect paradise. * t- *
" The mines ef Lake Superior, besides establishing a continuity of route between the
east and the west, will find their nearest and cheapest supply of agricultural produce in
the vailej of the Kaministiquia."
■■I
11
Appendix Xo. 36 to Journnln Legislative Assemhly, Canada, 1859. Report by S. J.
Dawson on the Country between Luke ^Superior and lied liiver.
" Lake of tlie Woods, like all the other lakes on the line of route, is intersperseJ in middle of the day.
" April 2 The sap of the sugar maple began to run.
" " 9 First wild ducks seen. •
" " 10 Butterflies, blue flies and gulls noticed.
" " 20 General thaw commences. Ground frozen to a depth of 3 ft. 9 inches.
" " 30 River (Kaministiquia) partially open.
"Mtty 2 Eiver free of itiB. , , ,, ,
12
"May
" June
10
15
« July
15
31
« Aug.
8
(( i<
19
K (<
21)
« «
31
«' Sept.
7
13
" Oct.
7
" Nov.
3
« «
9
" Dec.
1
« «
17
The birch tree and maple budding.
' Swallows building.
Barley just coming into ear. Potatoes in flower.
Raspberries ripening.
Red currants and blueberries perfectly ripe.
Bai'ley ripening.
Peas quite ripe.
Swallows have disappeared.
Leaves of birch and aspen change color. '
Potatoes, cabbage, turnips and cauliflowers nipped by frost.
Leaves of the birch and aspen falling.
Small lakes frozen over.
River (Kaministiquia) covered by sheet of ice which broke up again.
Ice driving about lay wind.
Thunder Bay frozen across to Welcome Islands."
.i.i
Capabilities foe Settlement. .'
Appendix yo. 3 to Journals Legislative Assembly, Gatrnda, 1858. lieport by Mr. Dawson.
* * * " The country about Thunder Bay, and the lower part of the Kami-
liirmost point of Kngland, through the
" environs of Paris, through the SoutlaM-n Provinces of (Jcnnany, and hss than a dt^gnse
" north of Vienna, there is therefore no reason, as regards climate, why the lower coirse
" of the Fraser River, (U' the upper course of tli<' (!oluml>ia, in British territory and in
" tho Bfimo latitudeB, should not rival the brinks of the Kliine, tlio Mduro or the MobcIIo,
14
! <.
" There is no such reason why the valleys of the Nujiga, the Elk, the Saskatchewan, the
" Red River and the Assiniboine, should not yield their golden harvests as rich as those
" of the Weser, the Elbe, the Oder or the Vistula.
*' The geographical difficulties between these localities, in relation to those influences
" by which climate is affected, are indeed such that it would require some very strong
" facts, sustained by a concurrence of all the most credible testimony to prove that the
" above comparison h too favorable to the places I have named on this continent. The
" facts established, however, by all disinterested authorities, prove the reverse."
Thunder Bay Mines.
Report of the Commissioner of Crown Lands, Ontario, 1870. Appendix 2fo, 22, iy
£i. B. Borron, Mining Inspector, pp. 31-2.
"Silver bearing veins have been discovered in ten or twelve different localities
between Thunder Cape and Pigeon River, indicating a field sufficiently extensive to con-
stitute a very important silver mining region, should the lodes or veins turn out well in
depth. -None of the veins have been sunk upon to a greater depth than sixty feet or ten
fathoms, a depth very inconsiderable in a mining point of view. We have beyond doubt
veins containing very rich bunches or pockets of silver at or near the surface. That neur
Silver lalet, Thunder Caj)*, has produced this fall, a quantity of ore which if nearly so
rich as reported, places it in the meantime in the foremost rank of silver producing mines,
and although the depth yet attained does not exceed ten or twelve feet, it is said to be as
rich if not richer in the bottom of the slope than it was at the surface. Whether any
considerable number of these silver veins will sustain profitable mining operations carried
on by a large force of miners and extended over a long term of years, like many such in
Europe, remains to bo seen."
Altitude of Watershed.
Captain Palliser's Exploration of B. N. America, p. 1^.
** Extrenie observed altitude of watershed ab»ve Lakr Superior 902 feet."
Gradients.
Mr. Sandford Fleming in Report of Progress C. P. R. Stirvei/, 1874, ;>. .32.
" In passing through to Lake Superior from the west, a rise of 8 1 7 feet has to be
overcome in 300 miles, and a descent of 976 feet in about IIG miles. The Grand Trunk
Railway, between Montreal and Portland, running easterly from Montreal, makes an
ascent of 1,360 feet in 144 miles, and a cori-esponding descent in 153 miles. Compaiisons
of this nature do not take into account intermediate undulations in either case ; they ai"e
presented simply for the purpose of bringing out the salient features of the route found
for the Canadian Pacific Railway. They suggest that the works of construction for this
line will not be heavy, and that it will be quite possible to secure remarkably easy
ascending gradients, in the direction of the heavy traffic. # * #
The information obtained suggests that it will bo possible to secure maximum easterly
ascending gradients, between Alanitoba and Lake Superior, within the limit of 26 feet to
the mile, a maximum not half so great as that which obtains on the majority of the
railways of the Continent."
15
ral other sheets of water, of which Manitoba and
Winnipegoosis Lakes are the most considerable. None of these lakes are deep, and many
I)arts of them are extremely shallow, but still they present fine stretches for future steam
navigation, and from the facility of access which they give to tlie timbered districts, tliL'y
will doubtless prove of great value in opening up and settling the country."
SuPERFiciAii Geology.
11 5
'I
ill!
Geological Survey of Canada, 1874-75. Report of Mr. R. Bell, pp. 40 io 55.
" In the prairie regions of the North- West territory, loose deposits of Post-Tertiary
age cover the surfixce of the country almost univeraally, and they are usually of consider-
able depth. Tliere are immense areas having the same general elevation, or without very
great or sudden changes of level, yet, with the exception of the first prairie steppe, there
is a remarkable scarcity, or perhaps absence, of extensive stratified deposits of sands and
clays, such as occur in the I'rovinces of Ontario and Quebec. The bulk of the superficial
deposits is of the nature of boulder clay or unmodified drift, which is spread alike over
the older rocks from the lowest to the highest levels. In those portions of the territory
which have come under my own observation, the materials of the drift appear to be made
up of the debris of the rocks existing ia situ immediately beneath or a short distance to
the north eastward, together with a greater or less proportion derived from those lying
further ofi' in the same direction. As a rule the softer or mox'e clayey part has coine from
the underlying strata, while the harder pebbles and bouklers are the fui-therest transported,
still, in washing out the finer ingredients it Ls always found that much of the incoi"]iorated
sand and gi'avel is of foreign oi'igiu. * * * In reference to the composition
of the drift, more than half of its bulk, on an average, consists of local material. On the
first and second prairie steppes, the most abundant constituent of the transi)orted portion
is Laurentian gneiss, while the remainder is made up of light-colored unfossiliferoiis lime-
stones, supjioscd to be Silurian and Devonian, together with a proportion of lluronian
schists, which varies in ditt'erent localities. On the third ste2)pe, however, smooth pebbles
of finely granular quartzite predominate. '■'■ ■'•' "'' There are also pebbles of
dark fine-grained diorite, light-colored limestone, and some of dark fine-grained mica
schist, and of white translucent quartz. * * '•• While the conq;osition of
the boulder clay of the first and second prairie steppes, and also to some extent, that of
the third stei)pe, as well as the course of the glacial strite on the hard rocks on the east
side of the prairies, would indicate that the drift had been mainly from tlie north-eastward,
the above evidence allows that a large proportion of the transported material on the
highest levels has come from the north or west. A part of what now is found in some
localities may have beenmoved first in one directionand afterwards inauother, wliilstthe bulk
of the older drift, including, perhaps, even that on the tliird ste])pe, has probably come
from points lietwoeu north and east. The quartzite pebbles of the third steppe were all
thoiouglily waterworn and ap[)eared to bo most abundant on aiad near the surface. The
upj)('r 200 feet, or thereabouts, of the south bank of the South Saskatcliewau at the Red
Ochre Hills, consist of clayey drift, in which boulders of Laurentian gneiss occur, while
the surfaces of these hills are strewn with smooth quartzite graved and cobble stones. At
the distance of 150 miles to the south eastward, between the Dirt Hills and Woody
Mountain, tlie proportion of quartzite gravel on the third steppe has diminislu'd consider-
ably, and Laurentian bouldei>i have become very numerous on the surface.
" Between Fort Gariy and Fort EUice, Huronian boulders are scarce. * * '''
Both bouldoi-s and pebbles from rocks of this formation are, however, consjiicuoua for
17
their abundance in the drift in the banks of the Assiniboine for some miles above and
below the junction of the Shell River, and in the banks of the Calling River, in the
neighborhood of the Fishing Lakes. They are also noticeable on the surface all the way
from these lakes to the Touchwood Hills. * * * In the three prairie
steppes there is a marked difference in the general aspect of the surface of the country
and in the character of the river-valleys. On the first steppe, the surface is usually level
or undulating in long gentle sweeps, and the beds of the principal streams do not probably
average more than thirty feet below the level of the surroimding country. On the
second steppe the surface is rolling, and the river valleys are usually from 150 to 200
feet in depth, while on the third, the hills are on a larger scale, and either closely crowded
together, or they rise here and there to considerable heights overlooking less rugged
tracts. The principal river-valleys on this steppe are from 200 to 500 feet deep. The
' Coulees,' as they are termed, form a curious feature of the third steppe. These are
ravines or valleys with steep sides, often 100 feet or more in depth, which terminate or
close in rather abruptly, often at both ends, forming a long trough-like depression ; or one
of the extremities of the 'Coiilee' may open into the valley of a regular watercourse.
The Coulees sometimes run for miles, and are either quite dry or hold ponds of bitter
water, which evaporate in the summer and leave thin incrustations of snow-white
alkaline salts.
" The average depth of the river- valleys of the first and second prairie steppes is not
affected by the general descent of the country through which they run. From Little
Boggy Creek to the Arrow River the Assiniboine must fall four or five hundred feet, yet
the banks of the valley maintain the same general height and the same character through-
out the whole distance. Similarly, the fall in the Calling River from the Sand Hills
Lake to its junction with the Assiniboine, cannot be far from 600 feet, and still its
valley banks have the same average height throughout. The fall in the Red River from
Moorhead to Fort Garry, is upwards of 200 feet ; but in the whole distance the banks of
the river have a nearly uniform height of 20 or 30 feet. * *
" The great valleys of the third steppe cut entirely through the drift and far down
into the underlying Tertiary and Cretaceous rocks ; tliose of the second steppe appear to
correspond in a general way with the depth of the drift, while on the lowest steppe, th?
streams have merely cut through the modified deposits resting on the drift, which latter
is occasionally exposed at low water at the foot of the banks, or in the bed of the stream
at swift places and rapids.
♦ # # «( ipijg stratified clay, silt, sand and gravel of the Red River and the
lower Assiniboine vary in thickness from almost nothing to 80 or 90 feet so far as known ;
and a variable thickness of boulder-clay is interposed between these deposits and the
older rocks, which lie beneath them all. * * During the past summer a
number of new wells have been dug or bored through these deposits in various parts of
Manitoba. After passing through the black loam at the surface, which varies from 1 to
6 feet in depth, light grey, drab, and more frequently yellowish, somewhat sandy clays
were passed through, when hai-d pebbly and bouldery clay, or, in some cases, probably
solid rock was reached. # # # Some of the superficial clays around the City
of Winnipeg have been found, within the last two years, to make, under propor skill,
' white ' brick of an excellent quality, resembling those of Toronto. The principal
buildings in the city are now being constructed of these bricks. In other places around
Winnipeg, red bricks have been made from clay dug near the surface. In the district
between the south end of Manitoba Lake and the Assiniboine River (east of a line drawn
from Prairie Portage to Westbourne,) all the wells have passed through sand ; none of
them required to bo dug to a greater depth than about 20 feet to find good water." ^' '"
8
18
Geological Swrvey of Canada, 1873-4. Observations by Mr. Selwyn, p. 21.
"Extensive exposures of palaeozoic rocks, which are supposed to underlie the super-
ficial deposits of the first prairie steppe, occur on many of the islands and along the whole
of the western shore of Lake Winnipeg. They form the Grand Rapid of the Saskatchewan,
and crop out at intervals along the river as far up as Cumberland or Pine Island Lake.
* * * In the comparatively few localities where the rocks composing it have
been examined they appear to bo characterized, like the formations of the same age in
Western Canada, by deposits of salt and petroleum giving rise to copious springs of these
valuable materials. And there seems but little doubt that Canada has her salt and oil
bearing regions, surpassing in extent and productive capacity any hitherto developed on
the American Continent. # * #
!li
"Westward from the summit of the ascent to the second prairie steppe, which is
marked by the long range of low Jiills already mentioned extending north westerly from
Pembina Mountain to Basquia Hills, and which attains an average elevation of 1,600
feet, the country, on the route which we travelled, especially after crossing the Assini-
boine River at Fort EUice,. is generally undulating or rolling and often hilly. Some of
the hills rise to from 200 to 300 feet and occasionally to as much as 400 feet above the
general level of the prairie, and afford from their summits extensive views of the
surrounding country, which everywhere presents a park-like aspect ; belts, patches and
clumps of woodland with intervening richly grassed meadows or wide stretches of oi^en
undulating prairie, inters^jersed with countless lakes and pools are seen on all sides, while
the wonderful variety and beauty of the flowering plants, roses, lilies, gentians, sun-
flowers, larkspur, a beautiful purjile aromatic mint-like plant, and a host of others lend
an additiomil charm to the beauties of this picturesquely lovely landscape."
Asdniboine and Saskatchewan Exploi-ing Expedition, by II. Y. Hind.
Journals Legislative Assembly, Canada, 1859.
Ajipendix No. 36,
" Tlie most striking peculiarity in the arrangement of the different formations, from
Red River to the South Branch, and from the 49th parallel to the main (north) Saskat-
chewan, is their undisturbed and horizontal condition. With two or three exceptions, no
appearance of local disturbance was observed throughout the whole region traversed.
The rocks dip, generally, with a very gentle inclination from the north-east to the south-
west. Sometimes it is not only impossible to detect any dip by the eye, but the level
fails to show the smallest deviation from perfect horizontality. # # #
From the Saskatchewan at Grand Rapids to Red River, exposures of Silurian rocks are
everywhere numerous on the west shores of the great lake. * '■' *
Salts springs occur on the east flank of Dauphin Lake, within ten miles of the outcrop
of the cretaceous rocks on the flanks of the Riding Mountain, which leads to the inference
that the carboniferous group is totally wanting in the region where it might be supposed
to exist, between Lakes Manitoba and Winnipegoosis and the range of high land forming
the eastern watershed of the Assiniboine."
Appendix No. 36, Journals Legislative Assembly, Canada. Bpport of Mr. S. J.
Dawson, 1859.
" The country westward of Red River, as far as we have explored it, presents three
divisions, which, although presenting many features in common, are yet of a character in
some respects distinctly different.
" Of these the great alluvial flat, extending from the 49th parallel to the Ssvskatchewan,
founded to the eastward and north-eastward by Lake Winnipeg and the wooded region
19
between Red River and the Lake of the Woods, and on the west by the high lands which
extend from the boundary line to the Basquia Mountain, on the Saskatchewan, may be
regarded as tiie first. It has a length of 340 miles and an average width of 60 or 70,
and may embrace an area of 20,400 square miles. About one-third of this extent is
chiefly open prairie land, and the remaining two-third? mostly wooded. From Pembina
to Lake Winnipeg the prairie land vastly predominates, but, from thence north-westward
to the Saskatchewan, the forests gradually become more dense luitil they cover the entire
face of the country. The whole of this region in very level, and, if exception is made of
the lands immediately bordering on Lake Winnii)eg and the SaskatcheAvan, the soil is of
an alluvial description, and so rich, that, as experience has shown, wheat may be grown
for 20 successive years without exhausting it. A considerable portion of the area is
occupied by swamps and lakes, but the swamps, so far as I had an opportunity of observing
them, are mere marshes with a bottom of alluvial soil, similar to that of the dry prairie,
and so firm that hoi-ses and cuttle can wade through them in almost any direction. They
seem to owe their existence solely to the extreme tlatness of the country, and as they are
at a much higher level than the streams, which all run in deep channels, they might be
very easily drained ; indeed, with a proper system of drainage, the whole of this great
alluvial flat, might be brought under cultivation, except, of course, where it is periodically
overflowed, and the extent to which it is subject to be so is quite insignificant as com-
pared to the whole area. Of the lakes, the Manitoba, the Wiunipegoosis and Shoal Lake
are the principal, and these uuiv occupy an area of about 2,700 square miles.
" The streams which flow through the prairie are all bordered more or less by forests,
in which oak and elm of fair sizo are to be met with, altliough not in very great
quantities. In the wooded, of which, however, less is known, poplar predominates, but
on the bordei-s of the lakes and streams, larch, spruce, birch and oak are to be found, of a
size and quality available for economic purposes.
" The second natural division embraces the hilly region which forms the south-
western boundary or embankment of the great alluvial flat which hiis just been described ;
it extends from the 4'Jth parallel to the Saskatchewan, a distance in a north-westerly
direction of 360 miles, and may have an average width of 40 miles.
" This region is of a character more varied, and, perhaps, on that account more in-
teresting than any other part of the country. High rolling banks and elevated plateaux,
covered with dense forests, alternate with wide spread valleys of unsurpassed fertility.
Numerous streams, taking their rise among the hills, run with a rapid course towards the
Assiniboino on the one side, and to the Manitoba and Wiunipegoosis Lakes on the other.
Of these the principal are the Dauphin River, Duck River, Swan River, Red Deer River, and
the Wauketsequapawoo, or Floating Ice River, which flow into the Wiunipegoosis Lake ;
and Shell River, Birdtail Creek, Arrow River, Rapid River and Oak River which run into
the Assiniboine. The hills are known as the Riding Mountain, Duck Mountain, Porcirpine
Hill, Thunder Mountain, . 233.
" The prairies of Red River at Fort Garry are about 80 feet above the level of Lake
"Winnipeg. They form the southern portion of a v;ist region of lake, swamp and marsh,
which is bounded in a very well defined mtmner by the Pembina Mountain and its
continuation to the Saskatchewan, which river it crosses a few miles below the Nepowewin
Mission, opposite Fort a la Come. Pembina Mountain forms the western limit of an ancient
sea or lake coast ; its direction is partly shown on ti.osed edges of the unfoasiliferous rim of the great basin in which
they lie. # * #
" Besides the imposing Hiding and Duck Mountains tlie Touchwood Hills may be
enumented as very im[)ortant antl striking in a region whose marked chara iteristic is
that of a gently sloping plain. These hills lie between the head waters of the Assiniboino
and the South Branch ; the elevation of the highest [jeak, the Heart Hill, pro'iably does
not exceed 700 feet above the geneml ler-^l of the great plain. The courae of this range
is from north-east to south-west, and it forms the most prominent of several ranges which
lie parallel to one another."
T/ie Great Lone Land, by Capt. W. F. Butler, F.R.G.S., p. 217.
" About midway between Fort EUice and Carlton a sudden and well-defined change
occurs in the character of the country ; the light soil disappears, and its place is succeeded
by a rich dark loam covered deep in grass and vetches. Beautiful hills swell in slopes
more or less abrupt on all sides, whUe lakes fringed with thickets and clumps of good
sized poplar balsam lie lap|>ed in their fertile hollows.
" This region bears the name of the Touchwood Hills. Around it, far into endless
space, fitretch immense plains of bare and scanty vegetation, plains seareil with the tracks
of countless buffalo which, until a few years ago, were wont to roam in vast herds
l)etween the Assiniboine and Saskatchewan. * * # There is something
unspeakably melancholy in the aspect of this portion of the North-west. Fiom one of
the westward jutting spurs of the Touchwood Hills the eye sees far away over an immense
plain ; the sun goes down, and as he sinks u])on the earth the straight lino of the horizon
becomes visible for a moment across his blood-red disc, but so distant, so far away, that it
seems dream-like in its immensity." 7 . .. ;,;»•
Geological Survey of Cartada, 1874-5. Jieport of Mr. J. W. S2ienser,p. 60.
" Porcupine Mountain forms as a continuation of the chain of high ground which
marks the eastern limit of the second of the three great prairie steppes of the North-west
Territory. It rises to the height of about 800 feet above Swan Lake. Between the base
of the mountain and the lake is a belt of about 12 miles of low ground, consisting of open
marshes, or * muskegs,' tamarac swamps, (fee, while the remainder of the interval is
densely wooded with aspen, balsam-poplar, spruce and willow. On the slope of the
mountain I saw balsam-poplar six leet in diameter, while, in some cases, the spinxces
reached a thickness of nearly four feet.
* * * "In many exposures along Swan River there, is but a thin covering
of drift over the underlying cretaceous i-ocks. IJetween the foot of the eastern slopes of
the Duck and Porcupine Mountains and the lakes, the Devonian limestones are cevered
by only a few feet of drift. The following is a section, in descending order, of these deposi -3,
as they occur in Swan River, opposite Thunder Hill : —
ft. in.
" Surface soil 3
"Bed of Laurentian bouldei-s and pebbles 2
" Stratified coarse sand 6
'* Bed of Laurentian bouldera and pebbles 2
"Stratified coarse sand , 6
" Laminated clay , 1
" Homogeiuious clav with pebbles.... !«.« t 3
' 13
t
s
r
t(
s
28
" Near this section, below Thunder Hilla, are springs depositing yellow ocln-e. A
little further down I observed other springs at which tlie [jrocesis of petrifying wood, moss
and leaves was going on. Here there were blocks of calcareous tufa, sometimes measur-
ing several cubic yards, which had been formed, at the place where they are found.
The thickest vertical section of limestone beds on the river amounted to about 15 feot."
Sketch of the NortJirwest of America, hy Archblsliop Tache, p. 13.
" The great expanse of the prairies tells plainly that their geological formations must
vary. The prairie, which touches the desert, includes, like the neighboring country,
secondary formation, while towards its extremity it has transition rocks, for example, the
calcareous strata of Red River and coal fields of the Saskatchewan. The Silurian system
occurs in its neighborhood and sometimes runs into old red sandstone. Extensive deposits
of sulphate of soda are found in the neighborhood of the calcareous strata and elsewhere.
The valleys of rivers and the drying up in the forests, everywhere multiply recent
formations. There are thick alluvial beds there, and these become covered with vegetable
deposit, sometimes also of great depth."
Appenlic N'o. 36 to Journctls of the Legislative Asaemblu, Cannda, 1859. Report hj
Mr. A. W. Wells.
" The western shores of Lake Winnipegoosis, in common with the other lakea through
which I passed, is much better adapted for settlement th m the eastern one, inasmuch as
the land is higher, and the climate, if anything, a little batter. In crossing Like
Winnipegoosis from east to west, a distance of only about 12 miles, I found vegetation
somewhat further advanced than on the side I had just left, the soil is also better, inas-
much as that it is higher. Timber, such as maple, elm, oak and poplar covers the country
to the water's edge. I visited several places where sugar had baen made and saw
specimens of that article equal to any that I had ever seen in Eastern Canada.
" The Duck Mountain, which occupies almost the entire background, commences to
rise not far from the lake shore, keeping a gentle ascent for 1 5 or 20 miles back, where
it attains its greatest elevation, a height of 600 or 700 feet above the level of the lake.
The entire face of the mountain is a succession of gentle slopes and flat table lands, and
.the summit itself is an exten.sive plateau of alluvial soil covered with a fine growth of
timber." # * =:=
' • TOPOGUAPHICAL CHARACTERISTIC'S.
''> ?l
Canadian Exploring Exiyedition, hj II. Y. Hind. Vul. I, p. 244.
•'The western and south-western slopes of Riding and Duck Mountains support
heavy forests of white spruce, birch, aspen and poplar. The trees are of large size and
often exceed IJ to 2 feet in diameter, with an available length of 30 to 50 feet. On the
siimmit plateau of the Riding Mountains the white spnice is the largest tree ; here it
attains vast dimensions, and is found in quantities sufficient to give to this region a great
economic value. The wooded area over which timber of the four kind of trees enumerated,
is found on the Riding and Duck Mountains, has a length of 120 miles, with a breadth
of 30 miles. In the valley of the Assiniboine is an extensive and valuable forest of oak,
elm, ash, maple, poplar and aspen, with an average breadth of four miles ; its length is
about 30 miles. * * All the affluents of the Assmiboine flow through
deep ravines, which they have cut in the great plain they drain ; these narrow valleys are
well clothed with timber, consisting chiefly of aspen and balsam-poplar, but often varied
with bottoms of oak, elm, ash and the osh-leaved maple."
I
24
Ibid, p. 245.
"The Touchwood Hill range, together with small parallel ranges, such as the
Pheasant Mountain and File Hill, averaging twenty miles in length by ten in breadth,
are in great part covered with aspen forests, but the trees ai-e generally small. At the
Moose Woods, on the South Saskatchewan, forests of aspen begin to appear ; they con-
tinue with occasional admixtures of birch ^nd oak, more rarely of oak and elm, as far as
the Grand Forks'; here the spruce becomes common, and with aspen, occupies the
excavated valley of the Saskatchewan for many miles. The hill banks and the plateau on the
south side of the river, for a distance of three or four miles south, sustain the Banksian
pine, which disappears as the soil changes from a light sand to a rich and deep vegetable
mould, supporting detached groves of aspen and clumps of willow. * '■' '•'
The south branch, from the Elbow to the Moose Woods, flows through a treeless region
as far as relates to the prairie on either side ; but in the i-avines leading to the river
detached groves of small timber occur. The boundaiy of the prairie country, properly
so called, may be roughly shown by a line drawn from the great bend of the Little Souris,
or Mouse River, to Qu' Apjtelle Mission, and from the Mission to the Moose Woods, on the
South Branch."
/ . • ' ■ '
Ibid, p. 246.
" Issuing from the Duck Mountain are numerous streams which meander through a
beautiful and fertile country. This area may be said to commence at the two creeks, ten
miles from Fort Pelly, thence on to Pine Creek, fifteen miles furthei*. The vegetation is
everywhere luxuriant and beautiful, from the great abundance of rose bushes, vetches, and
gaudy wildflowers of many species. After passing Pine Creek the trail to Shell River
pursues a circutuons route through a country of equal richness and fertility."
Ibid, p. 249.
"Valley of the Stiskatchewan. — 1. The country between the Lumpy Hill of the Woods
and Fort a la Corns, or the Nepowewin Mission, including the valley of Long Creek and
the region west of it, bounded by the south branch of the Main Saskatchewan. This area
may contain 600,000 acres of land of the firat quality. ,
" 2. The valley of Can'ot River and the country included between it and the Main
Saskatchewan bounded on the south side by the Bii'ch Hill range. There is a narrow
strip on the gi-eat river, about 5 miles broad, where the soil is light and of an indifferent
quality. The area of available land probably does not exceed 3,000,000 acres.
" 3. The country about the Moose Woods on the South Saskatchewan.
"4. The Touchwood Hills.
" 5. The Pheasant Hill and the File Hill. The aggregate area of these fertile dlstricis
may be stated to extend over 500,000 acres.
" Assuming that the prairies of Red River, and the Assiniboine east of Prairie Poi-t-
age contain an available area of 1,500,000 acres of fertile soil, the total quantity of arable
land included between Red River and the Moose Woods on the south branch of the
Saskatchewan will be 11,100,000 acres. Of land for gi*azing purposes, the area is much
more considerable, and may be assumed equal in extent to the above estimate of
amble land."
i.^
96
■
Report of Progreaa, Canadian Pacific Railway, 187 -i, p. 37.
" Proceeding towards the Touchwood Hills, we met gentle slopes covered with the
aspen, with occasional small lakett, Ringed by willows, many of them saline.
" Much of the land has been devastai 3d by fire, and it is thought that this cause, repeated
frequently, has, after a series of years, resulted in the entire destruction of the heavy
wood which, it is believed, once covered the surface of these prairies. The aspens,
however, quickly grow up, five or six years' life making them sufficiently large for
fencing purposes.
" About 110 miles to the north-west of Fort Ellice, the Touchwood Hills are met.
These are mere undulating eminences, partly wooded, with remarkably good soil and
apparently well adapted for settlement; they gradually descend on the western side.
Some difficulty was found in this neighborhood in obtaining water. * . * *
" Scarcely any rivers are met; it is observable, however, that several running streams
are found further north.
II
" The route, on which we were travelling, explains this feature of physical geography,
for we were on the watershed between the Assiniboine and the South Saskatchewan.
We found that this part of the route is generally without timber, but it contains spots
where slight wooded knolls are met. Apparently level, in reality there is a considerable
ascent, as the country is travelled westward.
"From Fort Garry to Fort Edmonton, there is a rise of 1,400 feet in a distance of
900 miles by trail, while a farther rise of 900 is experienced before the base of the
mountain chain is met. Thus the total additional elevation of 2,300 is spread over 1,000
miles. ♦ * In some poi'tions of this, heavy rolling ground is found, and
the soil varies in richness. Gravel is present in some of the higher ridges, and it is
confidently believed that there would be ballasting obtainable for railway purposes
without great difficulty.
" Before reaching the south branch of the Saskatchewan, the country is an agreeable
mixture of woodland and prairie with several lakes of moderate dimensions and with a
rolling succession of knolls . The landscape was usually pleasing, the soil excellent, and
we saw abundant wild flowers. Very many of the lakes are brackish, yet they often
adjoin fresh water lakes ; the latter we found invariably at a higher level. At the foot
of a ridge they are more frequently saline ; on mounting the slope they prove to be fresh,"
Assiniboine ami Saskatchewan Exploring Expedition, by Henry Youle Hind. Report of
Progress IV.
" The south branch of the Saskatchewan is a noble river, varying in width from half
a mile to 300 yards, for a distance of 100 miles from the Elbow; it then gradually con-
ti'acts its channel and changes its character from a river full of sandbars and mud-flats
pursuing a comparatively straight course, to a rapid and uniform torrent of water, sweeping
down Jie narrow but deep valley which it has excavated, from one bank to the other in
magnificent curves, until it joins the North Branch. # * ♦ The Main
Saskatchewan is a river of very imposing magnitude. Like the South Branch it occupies
a narrow, deep valley, varying in width from one and a half to three miles, extending a few
miles below the Nepowewin Mission. It flows in grand curves from side to side, and its
gent il level is about 300 feet below the country through which it has excavated ita
channel, after which it enters the low region.
4
26
* * * "In the large expanse of countiy, over whicli our explorations have
extended, the area of land of the firtit quality, namely, oiF black vegetable mould, reposing
on gravel or clay is far more extensive and important than wo anticipated. It is dis-
tributed as follows : —
" 1. On the South Branch of the Saskatchewan, from the Moose Woods to the
Nepowewin Mission, and according to the description of half-breeds familiar with the
country, a soil of equal excellence extends to the valley of the Swan River. The immediate
banks of the Saskatchewan are of a poor, sandy or gravelly soil, but on the prairie plateau
three miles from the river, the rich soil commences, and in the part over which I passed
has a breadth of 60 miles. , , „ . , .
" 2. The Touchwood Hill range, having an area exceeding 1,000,000 acres ; for beauty
of scenery, richness of soil, and adaptation for settlement, this is by far the most attractive
area west of the Assiniboine.
" 3. The soil is of first quality in the valley of Swan River, and over the whole of the
e.ast watershed of the Assiniboine, with the exception of tJie country near its banks.
" 4. The valley of White Miid River is generally fertile and inviting.
* * * " The ratio which land of excellent quality bears to land of
indifferent or worthless quality in tlio regions just refen-ed to, is largely in favor of the
former.
'•' * '■' " Riding Mountain is timbered with heavy aspen. On the level
country drained by the Saskatchewan, from the Moose Woods to the Nepowewin Mission,
the timber is small, but on the Touchwood Hill range there are some fine aspen forests."
Geuloifical Survey oj
Canada, 18734. Observations hij Mr. Sclwyn, p. 28.
''■'• "■" * "The beauties of Touchwood Hills have been so graphically
described by Professor Hind, that I cannot do better than reproduce what he says of this
really lovely tract of country. Professor Hind says, under date 15th August, 1858 : —
' In the afternoon we began the ascent of a gently rolling slope at the foot of the Touch-
wood Hills ; patches of willow appear hero fringing small areas of good pasturage. At
6 p.m. we reached the summit plateau and then passed through a very beautiful undulating
country diversified with many picturesque lakes and aspen groves possessing soil of the
best quality and covered with the most luxuriant herbage. There is no timber visible on
the west side of the Jtingo with the exception of small aspen and burnt willow bushes.
All the wild flowers, so beautiful and numerous in the valley of the Long Creek, ai-e
met with on the summit plateau of the Touchwood Hills, of even larger growth and
greater profusion. Little prairie openings fringed with aspen, occur here and there
through which the trail passes. We then come siuldenly on the V)anks of a romantic
lakelet, on which ducks M'ith their young broods are swimming, and white cranes start
from their secluded haunts at the unexpected intrusion. The breadth of this beautifid
plateau is about four miles, its level above the salt ])rairie to the west may be about 500
feet. The range appears to consist of a series of drift hills, many of which lise in roundtd
dome-shaped forms from the summit plateau.' , , - ,
" The above description is applicable to nearly the whole of the country between the
old post and the Little Touchwood Hills Fort. On the flanks and summits of most of the
ridges and rounded ' "• * " Travelling all day over the ' Great Salt Plain,' (alluded to before
as a projection of the United States baiTcn lauds), a treeless prairie. In the depressions
for the last six miles dwarfed poplars and willow bushes from three to five feet high
prevail. The soil is a blackish loam, rather sandy, on a subsoil of rather white looking
gravel. Limestone and gneiss iu lai'ge and small blocks ai'e pretty thickly distributed
over the surface.
" This district contains some saline lakes and brackish water, described as follows
by Mr. Selwyn : —
" Rapid evaporation duiing summer and probably a considerable amount of percolation
through the sandy drifts removes the remainder, and these causes are quite sufficient to
account for the generally saline character of the numerous lakes and pools. Many of
these salme lakes are as much as three, four and five miles in length, and occasionally
from one to two miles wide. They occur either in isolated irregular basin-shaped hollows
or forming chains of lakes in rather broad valley-like depressions extending manj' miles,
but closed in on all sides by rounded drift-formed lulls with gi'assy slopes. When occurring
this way the lowest lake in the chain receives the drainage of the others, and I observed
in all such cases that while the waters of the uppermost was either quite fresh or only
slightly brackish, that in the lowest lake would be intensely salt and bitter.
■■' ■'• * " Mount Carmcl (Big Hill) risefi about 110 or IGO feet above tho
road at its base, and from its summit an extensive view is obtained of the surrounding
country, csspecially to the westward, in which tliere is a general fall towards the valley of
the South Saskatchewan. Mount Carmel seems t© be entirely composed of drift, and on
its flanks and summit, which are partially covered with aspen and willow copse-wood,
there are numbers of large angular boulders ot buff-colored limestone holding fossils,
garnetiferons gneiss and mica schist and slaty diorite. In some ilircctions as far as the
eye can reach similar hills and ridges follow each other in endless succession, and apparently
without definite arrangement or parallelism. From the lowest depressions to the summit
of the highest ridge is often not less than 300 feet, and from ]\louut Carmel I counted
fifteen distinct lakes and pools, while many more ^\'ere only concealed from view by
intervening ridges. ■•' Rainy Hills arc low drift hills interspersed with
many lakes, pools and clumps and patches of copse-wood, with intervening open grassy
plains." * * ■••'
Canadian Exploring 'Expedition, hij II. Y. Hind. Vol. 1, ;'. -107.
* * " The valley through which tho small tributary of the south branch
flows, separates the Lumpy Hill of the Woods from tho west flank of the Birch Hills ; it
is rich in alluvial meadows, ponds and lakes. A view from Lumpy Hill is very extensi'/e.
The altitude of this eminence is about iOO feet above the general level, and from its
summit an undulating open country, dotted with lakes and flanked by the Bircli Hills is
visible towards the east ; soutli and south-west is a luho region, also north and north-east.
These hikes are numerous and large, often three miles long and two broad. Seventeen
largo lakes can be counted from the Lumpy Hill ; low ranges of hills can also be discerned
in several directions. Tho most important ol" these are the Bloody Hills, tlio Woody
Hills, far in tho prairie west of the South Branch, and tho cliain of tho Birch Hills
running from the Lumpy Hills easterly. The view extends to the border of the wooded
land ; Ijeyond is a ti'oeless prairie. The so-called wooded land now consists of widely
separated groves of small aspens, with willows in tho low places. Much of tho soil on tho
south and oast of Lumpy Hill is sandy and poor. IjOw liills and long ridges running
north-cast by cast, and «outh.west by sou.th, divci-sify tho general level character of the
prairies aa bccu from Lutnuy Hill. * "' *
28
" After traversing a very undulating country, in which are low ranges of hills and
conical mc>unds with limestone boulders on their summits, we arrived at Big Hill, a point
of some interest, for south and south-east of it lies a boundless undulating pi-airie. *
* * The limit of the so-called ' Wooded Country,' is about 70 miles from the
North Branch in an air line, and 30 miles from the South Branch.
" From the summit of the Big Hill the ' Bxiffalo Cart Plain,' and * Lake where the
Moose died,* are visible; both noted localities in the wild history of these regions.
South-east of the Big Hill the trail winds through a dreary labyrinth of dome-shaped
hills, many of them covered with boulders. =>: >i! *
" In journeying from the Lumpy Hill we crossed three ' belts of wood ' before arriving
at the great prairie west of the Touchwood Hills. These belts, which consist of gi-ovea
of small aspen, following a low gravelly ridge about a mile broad, and having a north-east
and south- west dii'ection, are separated by prairie valleys which sustain in their lowest
parts a good soil and fine pasturage. Ea^h belt diminished to a point some ten or fifteen
miles south-west of our track. The points of these belts aro visible from the summit of
mounds on our trail, not more than 50 feet high ; beyond them ia a treeless prairie,
stretching away to the South Branch. The ' belts of woods * become broader in a north-
easterly direction until they merge into the wooded countiy between the Birch Kills and
the Saskatchewan. There are many delightful spots in the belts, the herbage is as clean
as a well-sliaven lawn, the clumps of aspen are neatly rounded as if by art, and, where
little lakes alive with waterfowl abound, the scenei'y is verj- charming, and appears to be
the result of taste and skill, rather than the natural features of a wild and almost
uninhabited country."
Canadian Exploring Expedition, by H. Y. Hind. Vol. 1, p. 435.
* * * " Our route lay on the flanks of the Riding and Duck Mountains,
and through a country admirably adapted for farming purposes. Ponds and lakes are
vary numerous ofi" the flanks of the Riding Mountain, but as far as our opportunities
enabled us to judge, the whole country, with the exception of narrow ridges, possesses a
rich black fertile mould, supporting very luxuriant herbage, and on the mountain an
ample supply of timber, consisting chiefly of aspen of large dimensions. The Riding and
Duok Mountains consist of a succession of slopes and terraces on their south-western
sides, the aucent being almost imperceptible to thick impenetrable forest which covers the
highest plateau. On Birdstail Creek cretaceous shales, identical with those on the
Assiniboine, crop out in different places."
Ibid. Vol. I, pp. 386-393.
" At a point 53 miles from the Elbow (South Saskatchewan) we made a careful
section of the river and found its breadth to be one-third of a mile (28 chains) ; its
greatest depth was ten feet on the east side, but on the west sido there is another
channel with nine feet of water.
" Approaching the Moose Woods we passed for several houra between a series of low
alluvial islands from ten to twelve feet above the water. They sustain some fine elm,
balsam-poplar, ash, ash-leaved maple, and a vast profusion of mesaskatomina. The river
valley ia bounded by low hills leading to a prairie plateau four to eight miles back. The
country here furnishes an excellent district for the establishment of a settlement. The
spot where we camped for the night is an extensive, open, undulating meadow, with long
rich grass, and on the low elevations rose-bushes grow in the greatest profusion. It is
only ten feet from the water, yet it does not appear to be flooded iu the spring j water-
IL
29
marks and ice marks are nowhere to be seen above four feet from the present level of the
broad river.
" The region called the Moose Woods is a dilatation of the Saskatchewan, flowing
through an extensive alluvial flat six miles in breadth, and cut into numerous islands by
the changing course of the stream. This flat is bounded by sand hills, some of w hich are
nothing raoi-e than shifting dunes. The woods are in patches, and in the low land corsist
of balsam-poplar, white wood and aspen. Small a.speu clumps cover the hills. "'■ * *
The river continues to flow through a broad alluvial flat for about 25 miles. Its watfr is
very turbid, like that of the Mississippi, holding much solid matter in mechanical
suspension.
" Beyond the Moose Woods the banks close upon the river, and have an altitude
not exceeding 60 feet. The breadth of the stream contracts to 250 yards, with a cun ent
fully three miles an hour. On the east bank the prairie is occasionally wooded vith
clumps of aspen, on the west side it is treeless, and shows many sand hills. Nothing but
a treeless, slightly undulating prairie was visible ; many large fi-agments of limestone not
much watei worn lie on the hill banks of the river, which are about 100 feet in altitude.
Frequent soundings showed a depth of ten or twelve feet. A little timber displays itself
occasionally on the east bank below the level of the prairie. The banks exposed oocas on-
ally yellow drift clay with numerous bouldei-s ; the soil of the prairie ap{)ears to improve
as we progress northward, and the grass is no longer stunted or withered. Little ra]>id3
occur at thi; bends of the river, but thei'e is always deep water on the other side.
* * * " In many places close to the water's edge and rising from it in a
slope for a space of 25 to 30 feet, the fallen boulders are packed like stones in an
artificial pavement and are often ground down to a uniform leA'el by the action of ice.
This pavement is visible for many miles in aggregate length at the bends of the river.
* * * Seventy-five miles from the Grand Forks the balsam spruce begins to
appear in groves. The river wmds between high wooded banks with low points and
wooded bottoms on one side, high clifia also wooded with aspen and spruce groves on the
opposite bank. The flats are covered with a rich profusion of vetches, grasses and rose
bushes. *■■!.<* \yg passed swiftly through a good country, well fitted for
settlement, as far as we could judge from soil and vegetation. Low islands are numerous
in the river, and extensive alluvial flats sp "ad out in an expansion of the valley."
Red River.
Overland Jouriiey Itouud ihc World, by Sir Gcoryc tSimpson. Vol. 1, p. 55.
" On entering Red River from Luke Wiiini])og, the shores, for the first ton miles,
are low and swampy, abounding in wild fowl of every kind ; but, farther uj), they rise to
a height varying from 30 to 50 feet. On the eastern or right Ijank there is an abundance of
poplar, birch, elm, oak, &c., pines also being i)lentiful a few miles back ; while the
western side, generally speaking, is one vast prairie, with scarcely any timber.
" The soil of Red River settlement is a bluek mould of considerable depth, which,
when fii-st tilled, produces extraordinary crops, as nuich, on some occasions, as forty
returns of wheat ; and even after twepty successive years ol cultivation, without the nlief
of manui-o or of fallow, or of greeu crop, it still yields from from 15 to 25 buHhols to the
acre." '
80
Captain Pallisers Exploration in B. N. America, folio, p. 8.
" Red River has its sources in the same district of marshes and lakes from which
flows also the Mississippi. The course of Red River is slightly west of north to where it
falls into Lake Winuipeg. At 8 or 10 miles from the lake the land on the banks of the
river become sufficiently elevated to be available for agriculture ; it stretches back for
many miles on either hand in tine rich savannahs or lightly timbered country. Indeed,
the valley of Red River being rarely confined by lofty banks in any portion of its course,
is valuable for settlement the whole way up stream and for a considerable distance south
of the international line."
Lake Winnipeg.
Appendix No. 3 to Journals Legislative Assembly, Canada, 1858, Cap. VII.
" The altitude of this extensive sheet of water above the level of the sea is G28 feet.
'•■ ■•' * Lake Winnipeg is 264 miles long, by an average of 35 wide. It cer-
tainly contains an area of exceeding 9,000 square miles, and is jirobably one half as large
again as Lake Ontario. Connected with Lake Winnipeg by navigable channels are two
other large bodies of water, Lakes Manitoba and Winnipegoosis, being together as long as
Lake Winnipeg and having about half its breadth. * * '•' Lake Winnij)eg
once reached, communication with the interior becomes an easy matter. The numerous
rivers which unwater the valley of this great lake, with an area of 400,000 square miles,
are most of them canoe, or boat routes, for many hundreil miles up their streams. Lake
Winnipeg is very shallow at its southern extremity and the marshy shores abound with
fresh water shells."
Lakes Manitoba and Winnipegoosis.
The Bed lliver Countri/, Hudson Bai/ and the North-West, by A. J. liussell, C. E.,
Cap. XI, p. 48.
" These lakes are each 120 miles in length. The greatest breadth of Manitoba is 24
miles, and of Winnipegoosis 27. Taken together they extend 220 miles from north to
south. They enclose between them and Lake Winnipeg a peninsula of 250 miles in
length by 100 miles in greatest breadth, which is cui across by the Little Saskatchewan.
This peninsula, though as largo as the Kingdom of Denmark, counts for little in the
Nor' -West. It is reported to be a low flat country, abounding in lakes and marshes. On
its coast on the north-east shore of Manitoba, Mr. Dawson states that from the mai-sh
which lies behind its high shingle beach, a rich alluvial soil rises gradually to a moderate
height, not subject to be flooded. As it is a limestone country and thickly wooded, the
soil must necessarily bo very fertile, where there is depth enough of it ; which shoidd at
least frequently be the case in a low level country. Round the south end of Lake Mani-
toba, for a circuit of about 50 miles, the soil is that of the richest description of prairie
land. Tiio few settlers consider it even superior to that of Rod River. It is an undu-
lating country of mingled woods and prairie.
"The White Mad River, a stream of about SO miles in length by its coui-se, which
has its sources in the soutliorn skirts of the Riding Mountains, and flows eastward to the
south end of Lake Manitoba, is described as passing through an exceedingly beautiful and
fertile countiy of pi'airies, thickly interspersed with woods, tho soil of which is a rich
sandy loam. This very rich prairio laud stretches southwax-ds to tho Sand Hills on tho
Assiniboine, and eastward to Rod River. Between the uj)por end of Lake Manitoba and
the Riding Mountaiusj and dttiunVl Lako Dtuphin, thtJlD 13 much rich grouttdj dud much
of it Ih tfery mdtthy."
81
." ''' '■ ' ' '\!' Navigation.
In reply to a letter requesting information concerning the capabilities of rivera in
the North-West for navigation, Hon. Donald A. Smith, M.P., wrote as follows : —
".",. • "HuDSOx Bay House, Montreal, 28th July, 187G.
"The information I have received on this subject is to the effect that the
Saskatchewan River is navigable by steamboats drawing 2^ to 3J feet of water, from the
head of the Grand Rapid, some four miles from the point where that river empties into
Lake Winnipeg, to the Rocky Mountain House, a distance of eleven hundred to twelve
hundred miles, from about the 1st of June till the middle of September.
"The ice on the Saskatchewan, at Edmonton, generally breaks up between the ISth
and the 20th of April, and by the 1st of May the river may be said to be clear all the
way down to the Grand Rapid. For three or four yeai-s back the water has been
sufficiently high, as early as the 10th to the 15th of May, for the passage of steamboats ;
but, as already mentioned, this cannot be depended on before the beginning of June ;
and it is very seldom that Lake Winnipeg is sufficiently clear of ice to enable boats to
reacli the mouth of tho Saskatchewan before the 8th to the 10th of the latter month.
" The interruptions to the navigation of the Saskatchewan, with one e.vception, that
of Cole's Falls, are comparatively unimportant. The first occurs about two miles above
the Grand Rapid, at the ' Roches Rouges,' where the current is very strong, the next
being i\t the ' Demi Charge,' about eight miles further ; again at the * Tholturii,' or 'Nepo-
win Rapid,' some thirty miles below Foi-t a la Come, there is a very strong current, but
not such as to require the use of the warp to surmount it. The Coles' Falls immediately
above tho junction with the South Brancli of the Saskatchewan, a chain of fourteen rapids,
extending over about twelve miles, occur. Of these, three are much interrupted by
boulders, which it is believed could readily be removed at little expense, giving a good
channel. After this there is no great strength of current until Cross Rapid is r(>aclied,
about half way between Fort Pitt and Edmonton ; and above the latter jdaco the navi-
gation is easy for fifty miles, after which, throughout the greater part of the distance to
the Rocky Mountain House, the current is very strong, but still such as can be readily
overcome by a boat of good power.
" From Carlton upwanls there are a good many shifting sandbanks, rendering the
channel in some places tortuous. Of these the pi-incipal occur off tho mouth of Battle
River ; but with good pilotage a good chaimel is always to be found between tliem.
" The 'Northcote,' a steamboat of about one hundred and fifty feet in length, last year
proceeded from the Grand Rapid to Edmonton with a full cargo, and she is at ])resent
gone on her second trip this season to the same place.
"The ordinary Hudson's Bay freight boats, tho dimensions of which are about thiity-
two feet keel, or from stem to stern forty-five feet, with a IniMidth of beam of ten feet,
cariying from four to five tons of cargo, and drawing when loadcul about two-and-a-half
feet of water, have navigated tho Saskatchewan for many years. These boats are waqted
up the Grand Rajnds from Lake Winnipeg, the depth of water and breadth of channel
in these rapids being amply sufficient, and tho only difficulty of surmounting them being
the great force of the current. Eight men aro employed in tracking a boat of this
description, in every ciuse the jgreator portion of tho cargo being carried across tho
Portages.
" Between Fort Pitt and Carlton, wood for fuel is scarce, and not'easily obtained ; but
with this exception it can without difficulty be procured along the whole extent of the
river.
" Coal is also found at several points from Fort Victoria (about ninety miles below
Edmonton) upwards, and at eighty miles above Edmonton it crops out in a large mass,
the seam being represented as being upwards of fifty feet in thickness. This coal has
for many years been used by blacksmiths, and found to answer their purpose sufficiently
well.
I :!:
'•i '
" These few remarks are hurriedly thi'own together ; but I shall be glad at any time
to furnish such further information as it may be in my power to give on the subject."
Tlie Bed River Country, Iludaan^a Bay and North- West Territories, by A. J. Russell, C.E.
p. 52.
"As the Little Saskatchewan, the outlet ot Lake Manitoba, is a fine, navigable
stream of 750 feet in breadth, and the Waterhen River or Sangissippi, which connects
Lakes Manitoba and Winnipegoosis, has a broad channel not less than three feet deep at
low water, they present together with these lakes an unbroken line of water communi-
cation from Fort Garry to Mossy Portage, at the head of Lake Winnipegoosis, a distance
of about 500 mUes.
" Mossy Portage, which is only about four miles and a quai'ter in length, through
low ground, connects the head of Lake Winnipegoosis with Cedar Lake on the Saskatche-
wan, above its great rapids. A short canal there would unite the navigation by these
lakes from Fort Garry with that of the River Saskatchewan, (from Cedar Lake upwards)
which for nearly a thousand miles presents no greater obstructions to navigation than are
to be found on the River Ohio. This would form a line of water communication about
1500 miles in length from Fort Garry to the foot of the Rocky Mountains. ■•' * *
The area drained by the South Saskatchewan is gi-eater than that of the Rhine, and the
watershed of the Rocky Mountains drained by it is greater than that of the Alps, drained
by the Rhine, and the excess of its volume would be much greater were it not for the
extent of dry prairie land it passes through."
1 :«
I ^
88
CHAPTER III.
CLIMATE, SOIL AND PRODUCTIONS OF LAKE WINNIPEG BASIN.
. I
Manitoba and the North-West of the Dominion, by Thos, Speuce, pji. 18-22.
" The natural division of the seasons in the valley of Lake Winnipeg is as follows : —
" (S^prin^r.— April and May.
" Summer. — June, July, August, and part of September.
" Autumn. — Part of September and October.
" Winter. — November, December, January, February, and March.
" The peculiarity of spring is strikingly represented by the early and rapid advance-
ment of temperature in May. It is the excessive cold of the long winter season, embracing
five months of the year in this latitude, which reduces the annual mean, being 34° 38',
while that of Montreal is 42^ 03' ; but Blodget claims that the whole Saskatchewan
Valley has a climate very near as mild, in its annual average, as that of Wisconsin,
Northern New York, and Ontario, which would give it a winter mean of 15 degrees.
The mean for the three months, December, January and February, at Fort Garry, in
Manitoba, is 16° 85' ; at Montreal, 16° 83'. In April and May, the mean temperature
rises to 39° 83', and 58"^ 46', being about equal to Toronto. The winter climate grows
rapidly mUder in the same parallel westward, even where there is an increase of elevation,
and in the Saskatchewan Valley, almost represents the climate of Ontario.
" The buffaloes have wintered in myriads on the nutritious grasses of its pi-airies, up
to as high a latitude as Lake Athabaska ; and the Half-breeds and Indians camp out
in the oj^en plains during the whole of the winter, with no shelter but a buffalo skin tent
and robes, and horses of the settlera run at large and grow fat on the gi-asses which they
pick up in the woods and bottoms.
" The average fall of snow is about six inches per month. The snow falls in small
quantities, at different times, and is rarely blown into drifts so as to impede travelling.
With the new year commences the extreme cold of our winter, when, for a few days, the
mercury ranges from 15 to 85 degrees below zero, falling sometimes even below that.
Yet the severity of these days is much softened by the brilliancy of the sun, and the stillness
of the air. Thus, while in lower latitudes, they are being drenched by the cold rain
storms, or buried beneath huge drifts of wintry snow, Manitoba enjoys a dry atmosphere,
with bright cloudless days, and serene i starlight nights ; and when the moon turns her
full orbed face towards the earth, the n ght scene of Manitoba is one of peerless grandeur.
" According to Blodget, Indian corn is restricted as a profitable staple to the middle
regions of the West, between parallels 42° and 43°. Wheat is the leading staple of the
upi^er belt of the temperate zone. Blodget (an American authority) states, ' that the
basin of the Winnipeg is the seat of the greatest average wheat product on this continent,
and probably in the world.' The limestone sub-strata of this region, with its rich deep
6
! I
M
84
calcareous loam and retentive clay subsoil is always associated with a rich wheat develop-
ment, while its hot and humid summers fulfil all the climatological conditions of a first-
rate wheat country. Some fields on the Red River have been known to produce twenty
successive crops of wheat without fallow or manure, and the yield has frequently reached
as high as forty bushels per acre. An important feature in the soil of Manitoba and
the North-west is, that its earthy materials are minutely pulverized, and the soil is every-
where light, mellow and spungy. With these uniform characteristics, the soils are of
different grades of fertility, according to local situations. A general ingredient of the soil
is sand, of which silica is the base, as of all good soils. It jilays an important part in the
economy of growth, and is an essential constituent in the organism of all cereals. We
are told that about 67 per cent of the ash of the stems of wheat, corn, rye, barley, oats,
&c., is pure silica, or flint. It is this which gives the glazed coating to the plants and
gives sti*ength to the stalk. Now this silica is an acid and is insoluble, but readily
combines with lime, soda, magnesia, potash and the other ingredients of our soil, and in
this condition is readily available to the use of the plant, and forms an essential element
in the growth of the cereals ; from this and other causes is attributable the superiority of
our wheat over all other grown east or south."
Beport of Select Committee on Immifjration and Colonization, 1876.
Evidence, p. 20.
Professor Macoun'o
" A continuous farming country extends from Point Du Chien to the Assiniboine at
Fort EUice, a distance of 230 miles, without a break. Beyond this there are 25 miles of
dry gravelly ground of little account for anything except pasture. Then follows a very
extensive tract of country sti'etching westward to the South Saskatchewan, and extending
indefinitely north and south. This wide region contains many fine sections of rich fertile
country, interspersed with poplar groves, rolling treeless prairie, salt lakes, saline and
other marshes, and brackish or fresh water ponds. \ ''hat is not suited for raising cereals
is excellent pasture land. Only a few of the salt lakes would be injurious to cattle or
horses ; and fresh water can be obtained without doubt a little below the siu*face.
" The soil of this whole region is a warm gravelly or sandy loam. The surface soil
to a depth of from one to throe feet, is a brown or black loam. The subsoil being
generally either sand or gravel, consisting principally of limestone pebbles ; many boulders
are found in some sections. The land between the two Saskatchewans is nearly all good.
Prince Albert Mission settlement is situated in this section. At Carlton, I crossed the
North Saskatchewan, and therefore know nothing personally of the immense region ex-
tending thence west and south to the boundary. All accounts, however, agree in saying it
is the garden of the country. Good land, generally speaking, extends northward to Green
Lake, a distance of 170 miles from Carlton. How much further eastward this good land
extends I am unable to state ; but Sir John Richardson says that wheat is raised Mdthout
difficulty at Cumberland House. Tlie good arable land is about 25 miles wide at Edmon-
ton, but possibly not so wide at Fort Pitt, more to the east but further north. This
region is bounded on the south by the North Saskatchewan, and on the north by the
watershed between it and the Beaver and Athabasca Rivers. Within this area there
are five settlements where wheat is raised regularly without difficulty, viz. : the Star
Mission (Church of England), 60 miles north of Carlton on the Green Lake Road ; Lac
La Biche Mission (R. C), 100 miles from Fort Edmonton; Victoria Mission (Wesleyan
Mission), 80 miles east of Edmonton ; and St. Albert Mission (R. C), 9 miles north of
Edmonton, and at Edmonton itself. Edmonton seems to be the coldest point in the
district in question and suffers most from summer frosts.
" Next is a very extensive district forming the watersheds between the Saskatchewan
and Peace Rivers, and through which the Athabasca River flows for its whole course,
85
and froiji wliich it receives its waters. This region is all forest and consists of muskeg
(swamp), spruce and poplar forests. Very little is known of this region, but the soil
where I crossed it is generally good where not swampy. West of Edmonton, where the
railway crosses this section, there is said to be much swamp, but between Fort Pitt and
the Forks of the Athabasca there is scarcely any swamp, although it is nearly all forest.
" Next comes the Peace River section extending along the Rocky Mountains from a
little north of Jasper's House to Fort Liard, lat. 61 north ; and from the former point
to the west end of Little Slave Lake ; thence to the Forks of the Athabasca, and down
that River to Athabasca Lake, and from thence to Fort Liai-d. The upper part of this
immense area is principally praii'ie, extending on both sides of the Peace Rivei'. As we
proceed to the north and east the prairie griidually changes into a continuous poplar
forest with here and there a few spruces, indicating a wetter soil. The geuei'al character
of this section is like that of Manitoba west from Portajje La Prairie to Pine Creek.
ii
" Wheat was raised last year at the Forks of the Athabasca, at the French Mission
(Lake Athabasca), at Fort Liard, and at Fort Vermillion in this section."
Canmlian Exploinng Expedition, by II. Y. Hind. Vol. 2, p. 234:.
" It is a physical reality of the highest importance to the interest of British North
America that this continuous belt can be settled and cultivated from a few miles west of
the Lake of the Woods to the passes of the Rocky Mountains, and any line of communi-
cation, whether by waggon road or railroad, passing through it, will eventually enjoy the
great advantage of being fed by an agricultural population from one end to the other.
" No other part of the American continent possesses .an approach even to this
singularly favorable disposition of soil and climate, which last feature, notwithstanding
its rigour during the winter season, confers, on account of its humidity, inestimable value
on British America, south of the 54th pa)"allel. .
" The natural resources lying within the limits of the fertile belt, or on its eastern
borders, are themselves of great value as local elements of future wealth and prosperity ;
but in view of a communication across the continent tliey acquire paramount importance.
"Timber available for fuel and building purposes ; lignite coal, though not equal to
true coal, nevertheless suitable for many of the different objects to wliich truo coal is
applied ; iron ore Avidely distributed, of groat purity, and in considerable abundance ; salt,
in quantity sufficient for a dense population. All these crude elements of wealth lie
within the limits or on the borders of a region of great fertility, and drained by a river
of the first-class, navigable by steamer, during several months of the year, for 500 miles
of its course, and by batteaux for nearly double that distance."
(The Hudson Bay Company's steamer has, since this was written, in 1875 and 1870,
navigated successfully about a thousand miles of the North Saskatchewan.)
The Eiid River Country, by A. J. RuS'iell, C.E., p. 145.
" On our route by the North Saskatchewan and Yellow H(>ad Pass, wc have a con-
tinually and pre-eminently fertile country for 1,300 miles from the commencement of the
Red River prairies to the base of the Rooky jMountains at Jasper House, and of the
remaining 701 miles to the head of Bute Inlet, nearly one-half apparently is cultivable
land. Mr. Waddingtou's description of the country between the mouth of the Quesnelle
and the coast range agrees with the favourable account of that plateau quoted from Mr.
1, m
86
I
Bamston's report in Commander Mayne's work on British Columbia, and the unusual
favorable character in that very mountainous country, which he gives of the great region
extending northwards to the River Skeena, the boundary of British Columbia, cor-
responds with the description given of it intersected, in reports ot extensive explorations
referred to in the same work and published in Imperial parliamentary papers.
" We see, therefore, that we possess a route to the Pacific through our central pi-airie
country and British Columbia, that besides traversing the Eocky Mountains far more
favorably, at half the elevation of the lines through the United States, is as remarkable
for passing through a gi-eat extent of well watered, fertile country, as they are for the
general aridity and uninhabitable barrenness of a great part of the country they traverse.
*' The superiority of our route across to the Pacific, over any other on the continent,
is still more evident, when we consider that it has in addition to the foregoing the further
advantage consisting chiefly of navigable waters.
" This advantage is, in its nature, a double one. First, the much lower rate of cost
of transport by the navigable waters. * * ''• Secondly, what to us is of
great importance, especially in the commencement, that in the navigable waters we have
the greater part of the route ready, without cost of construction, except on a very small
proportion of it." .
Isothermal.
!
Fcbcts mid Figures relating to Vancouver's Islaml and British Columbia, by J. Despa/rd
Pemberton, Surveyor-General of Vancouver's Island, ?>. 11 7.
* ■-'= * " An isothermal line drawn across the continent would, of course,
be far from stitiight, but the general obliquity of such a line may be judged of in this
way : — If such a line were drawn from New York it would pass through Lake Winnipeg
to Fort Simpson ; in other words, if New York were, with respect to latitude, similarly
placed on the west coast. Fort Simpson, a thousand miles north of it, would enjoy a tem-
perature equally favorable with it."
Appendix No. 36, to Journals Legislative Assembly, Canada, 1859.
Dawson, C.E.
Beport by S. J.
" According to the isothermal charts of Lorin Blodget, the lines of equal temperature
for the summer should have a north-west direction from Bed River. Now, admitting
this theory to be con-ect, the climate of Red Deer River and Swan River, other circum-
stances being the same, should be equal to that of Red River Settlement. But I am of
opinion that it is superior, inasmuch as these rich valleys, while they are at but a very
slight elevation above the valley of Red River, are removed from the influence of the
cold winds from Lake Winnipeg, which prejudicially affect the latter in spring. As an
instance of the change of climate which is produced by the difference of elevation in this
i-egion, I may mention that the vegetation in the middle of June, was much further
advanced in the valley of Swan River than at Fort Pelly, which is some distance further
to the south, but at a greater altitude by some 400 feet.
" While on this subject, I quote from Blodget's climatology some of his remarks on
the climate of the North-west teri-itories, which I am confident will be read with interest.
* " By reference to the illustration of the distribution of heat we see that the cold at
the north 6f the grie&t lakes do* not iiepresent the siame latitude further west, and
87
that beyond them the thermal lines rise as high in latitude, in most cases, as at the west
of Europe. Central Russia, the Baltic district, and the British Islands, are all reproduced
in the general structure, though the exceptions here fall against the advantage, while
there they favor it, through the immediate influence of the Gulf Stream.
' " Climate is indisputably the decisive condition, and when we find the isothermal
of 60° for the summer rising on the interior American plains to the (Jlst parallel, or fully
as high as its average ix)sition for Europe, it is impossible to doubt the existence of
favorable climates over vast areas now unoccupied.
' " This favorable comparison may be ti-aced for the winter also, and in the avenigea
for the year. The exceptional cold of the mountain plateaux and of the coast below the
43rd parallel, marks the advantage more or less to those who approach these areas from
the western parts of the Central States, and from the coast of California, J)ut though the
distinct mountain ranges remain high at the north, the width of their base, or of the
plateau from which they rise, is much less than at the 42nd parallel. The elevated tracts
are of less extent, and the proportion of cultivable surface is far greater.
' " It will be seen that the thermal lines for each season are thrown northward
further on passing Lake Superior westward, in the charts of this work, than in those of
the military report prepared by the author. At the time those were drawn the nurebor
of the obsei*vation3 beyond the limits of the United States were so small that the full
expression was not given to the statistics then used, in the fear that some correction would
ultimately be found to apply to them, reducing the extreme northward curvatures they
indicated. But a further collection and comparison wan-ants the position now given to
the thermal lines, placing them further northward than before, and extending them in a
course due north-west from Lake Superior to the 58th parallel. For the extreme seasons,
winter and summer, this accurate diagonal extension of the thermal lines across the areas
of latitude and longitude is very striking. The buffalo winter in the upper Athabasca, at
least as safely as in the latitude of St. Paul's, Minnesota ; und the spring opens at nearly
the same tims alouj the immense line of ijlains from St. Pauls ten air were fully ripe ; Windsor pole beans and peas were likewise ripe,
August 15th. Fort Chipweyan, at tlie entrance to Lake Athabasca, has very jKtor soil
in its vicinity, being largely composed of sand ; still, here I obtained tine samples of
wheat and barley — the former weighing GH lbs. to the bushel, and the latter bH lbs. The
land here is very low and swampy, being but little elevated above the lake. At the
French Mission, two miles above the »Fort, oats, wheat and l)arley were all cut by tho
26th August. Crop rather light on the ground.
Hi
" Q. What time does the season open so that spring ploughing and seeding can bo
carrietl on ]
" A. About the 20th of April ploughing can commence on Peace River, and from data
in my possession the same may be said of tho Saskatchewan regions geneniliy.
" It is a curious fact that spring seems to advance from noi-th-west to south-east, at a
rate of about 250 miles per day, and that in tho fall winter begins in Manitol)a first and
ffOGS westwai-d at the same rate.
r-
is
lO
g
n
" Q. Have you any knowledge of the temperature and how the thernioineter ranges
during the year 1
" A. The following data selected from various sources will throw consideral>le lighten
this question. It is worthy of note that Halifax, on the sea coast, is nearly as cold in
spring and summer as points more than twelve degi-ees further north.
" Spring, summer and autumn temperature at various points, to which is added the
mean temperature of July and August, the two Hpenimj months.
Latitude Summer. Spring. Autumn. July
north. and August.
"Cumberland House 53-37 62-62 .■53-04 • 32-70 64-25
" Fort Simpson 61-51 51) -48 26-66 27-34 62-31
"Fort Chipweyan 58-42 58-70 22-76 31-89 60-60
" Fort William 48-24 59-!)4 39-67 37-80 60-52
" Montreal • 45-31 67-26 39-03 45-18 68-47
"Toronto 43-40 6443 42-34 46-81 66-51
" Temiscamingue . . ■ 47-19 65-23 37-58 40-07 66-43
" Halifax 44-39 61-00 ..;-67 46-67 6655
" Belleville 44-10 temperature nearly that of Toi-onto.
" Dunvegan, Peace River. . . . 56-08 average summer six months.
••Edmonton 53-31 .... 3970
"Carleton 52-52 3.V70
" Winnipeg 49-52 64-76 30-13 35-29 65-32
" Any unprejudiced person making a careful examination of the above figures will Ije
struck with the high temperature obtained in the interior. Edmonton has a higher
spring temperature than Montreal, and is eight degrees farther north and over 2,000 feet
■■■■■miiiiiit
40
above tlie sea. The temperatures of Carleton and Edmonton are taken from Captain
Palliser's explorations in the Saskatcliewan country, during the years 1857 and 1858. It
will he seen that the temperatures of the months when grain ripens is about nearly equal
tiiruughout the whole Dominion from Montreal to Fort Simpson north of Great Slave
Lake.
" Q. Do you consider the country adapted for stock raising, and how many months in
the year is it necessary to keep stock under shelter 1
" A. The country, in my opinion, is well suited for stock-raising throughout its whole
extent. The winters are certainly cold but the climate is dry, and the winter snows are
light, Ijotli as to depth and weight. All kinds of animals have thicker coats in cold
climates tlian in warm ones, so that the thicker coat counter-balances the greater cold.
Dry snow never injures cattle in Ontario — no other kind ever falls in Manitoba or the
North-West, so that there can be no trouble from this cause. Cattle winter just as well
on the Athabasca and Peace Rivers as they do in Manitoba ; and Mr. Grant, who has
been living on Kat Creek, Manitoba, for a number of years, says that cattle give less
trouble there than they do in Nova Scotia. Horses winter out without feed other than
what they pick up, from Peace River to Manitoba. Sheep, cattle, and horses will require
loss attention and not require to be fed as long as we now feed them in Ontario. Owing
to the light rain fall the uncut grass is almost as good as hay when the winter sets in,
which it does without the heavy rains of the east. This grass remains good all winter as
the dry snow does not rot it. In the spring the snow leaves it almost as good as ever, so
that cattle can eat it until the young grass apjiears. From live to six months is about
the time cattle will require to be fed, and shelter will altogether depend on the farmer."
Ibid. Mr. Henry IIcLeod's Evuhmce, }>, 41.
" Q, What parts of the country have you travelled over in the Northwest, and have
you made particular ol)servations of the soil I
^' A. I have travelled over the country, from TjO miles east of Rat Portage, Lake of
the Woods, to the summit of the Rocky Mountains, about 1,250 miles, and have made
daily records of the quality of the soil travelled over. Taking the coinitry from Winnipeg
to l''ort Polly by the usual ti-ail, and from Fort Polly to Lac Ste. Anne, 50 miles west of
Kdinonton, along the line of the Pacitic Railway, I estimate that the proportion of soil
suitable for settlement is 4.'5 per cent., moderately fair soil 15 per cent., and poor sandy,
day and gravel, 12 per cent. The laud L consider suitable for settlement is very much
suporior to any lands now to be had in (.)ntario ; the luxuriance of the grass and pea vine
to the south and east of Etlmonton, exceeds anything I ever saw. The soil consists of
licli black loam of various depths, overlying clay and gravel. I have boon told by settlers
from Ontario, that they prefer tlie natural grasses for hay to the host timotiiy ; thoy say
that stock thri\es better upon the natural hay. My horses lived entirely upon the grass
found every day, from tlio end of May to the middle of October, and did their daily work
of fiom 15 to .'50 miles. Jiei'uro and after those dates they got a few pounds of oats or
barley — -only thrive liorses were lost, and that on the return trip from the Rocky
iMountains, The clay i'ud sandy soil is suitable for grazing; I saw no jiart of the country
entirely doliciiuit of pasture.
" Q. Do you consider the climate healthy and invigorating ; or is it subject to fever
and epidemics (
41
"A. I consider the climate of the North-west TeiTitories to be most healthy anil far
superior to many parts of Ontario and Quebec. Although very cold in winter, there ai'O
no sudden changes — there is seldom a thiiw from autumn till spring. The sumnvor is
very enjoyable, and the air on the plains very fine. Tliere were some cases of fever in
Winnipeg, but there is no doubt that they Avere caused by want of drainage, through the
compact underlying clay, and from want of proper sanitary regulations."
" The Canadian Dominion,^' by Charles Marshall, p. 17G.
"To assist distinctness of ai)prehension, the old Hudson's Bay and North-west
Territories may Ix; divided into three great sections : — Firat, the barren, frost-bouml,
polar north. Hecond, eastward of Red River, a wide region of lakes, swamps, disjoiiit(^d
streams, dense woods, and wildernesses of rock full of ore, extending beyond [jake
Superior. Third, the fertile region of plains extending west of Red River for 1,00U miles
to the l)ase of the Rocky Mountains ; the country destined to be the granaiy of the
Dominion.
"The countiy contained in this last division is of vast extent. From its eastern
lionndary, tlie Lake of the Woods, to the sources of the Saskatchewan in the west, it
stretches 880 miles. Its breadtli, reckon(M.l from the British boundary line, is TOO mih\s.
It includes an area of 480,000 scpiare miles, an extent of country eipiul to that of (Jreat
Britain, France and Prussia united. The greater proijortion of tli(^ land appears to Ik*
well fitted for cultivation ; many great districts possessing a richness of soil unpai-allcled.
" The soil is a fine alluvial d((]»osit, or fre(juently a black vegetable compost. Roots,
vegetables, melons, and certain fruits, grow with an extraordinary hixuriance. (!oonlf' ('(mtiniiiis,
Canada, 1875. Mr. Malcom McLeod's Evideiirc, (ip. 48-l!>.
" Assuming it to be unnen'ssary to make any specific statement as to the climate of
the Hudson Bay Pasin — no part of which, to any extent large enough for settlement, can
1)0 well considered as fit for agricultural purposes — I shall merely say, tluit though si.'vere
C
^ii
42
it is not unhealthy, and is quite endurable by persons engaged in the Hudson Bay Com-
pany's service — no worse, in fact, than that of Canada, east of the meridian of Quebec.
" The Winnipeg Basin, even at Norway House, at its noith end, and of life at which
I have distinct recollection, is on the whole not more severe than that of Lower Cannda
between Montreal and Quebec.
" In the Saskatchewan Valley — say the Nortlj Saskatchewan — at Fort Carlton 1
know that my grandfather (maternal grandfather). Chief Factor Pruden, who built Fort
Carlton, and for many years held charge of that district, raised easily all ordinary kinds
of garden vegetables raised in old Canada, and all cereals, and, (with some difficulty, liow-
ever, owing to occasional summer frost) even Indian corn.
" As to wheat, it has for many ycais past — about fifty, as T see by letters to my
fixther from an uncle of mine (Chief Trader Harriot), who first took it there, and according
to subsequent reports — been constantly raised, even at Lake Ann, beyond Edmonton,
where there is a considerable settlement of old retired servants of the Company. On the
Athabasca, further north, at Ked Deer Lake, where there is an old and considerable
settlement, it has never failed, and the climate and locality are most favorable for it.
" Still further nortli, on the Peace River, tlu'oe hundred miles nearer the Nortli
Pole, it is raised, and Professor Macoun has just brought us a specimen of it, ' 08 lbs
to the bushel,' which is one pound and three-quarters more than the wheat (fi'om our own
County of Pontiac) which took the second prize for wheat at the World's Exhibition at
Paris in 18G7. The fiict tells its own tale as to climate in those higher latitudes of ours.
" We have moreover an exact and reliable record, in careful and thermometrical
registiy, at a central point, viz., Dunvegan, of the climate of the Peace I{iver region, one
kc[)t by my old friend and client when I practiced at the Bar in Montreal, David Thorn j)-
son, astronomer of the old North-West Company, and to whom the mapi)ing of those far
northern lands from Hudson Bay to the I'acitic is mainly due.
"THE THOMPSON llEUISTER — DUNVKUAN, PEACE HIVER."
Latitude 50' 8' N. Longituck 117° 13' \V.
Month. '— Fahr. Month. " '-Fuhr.
"April Ti-'o November U-(5
" May 51 December — 4
J anuary -\-l
February ^-2
"June C4-5
"July 03
" August 00
" September 55
"October 40
March 22-
"Mean 54-87
" Mean of 3 summer mouths O'J-50
Mean of winter 8-42
Mean of the 5'^ear 35*5 1
"As to the ])eriod of cultivation (from April to October) it is a fact wortli noting
that Dunvegan, Toronto and Qui'bec do not vary more than half a degree in mean tem-
])erature, and tliat as to Halifax, the diiienMict* is only 1" G'J' — not far from two degrees
in iavor of Dunvegan. As to the winter cold of Dunvegan, its steadiness and dryness
are, for botli man and beast, better tlian that of any otiiei' place in the Dominion. I
never saw any jierson from that region but who was improvt^d and stn'ugtliened in
health and body, and I may say mind, by the life; a region of essentially .strong lif(!.
48
"As to the climate of British Cohimbia, it is to be observed that on the whole, it is
moister and warmer than that on the ea ,tern side of the Rocky Mountains in the same
latitudes, but local causes, viz., the special physical features of the country, with its al-
ternate of rugfjed mountain range, and comparative level, vary it much. In its southern
half, the altitude of the cascade or coast i-ango seems to wall off from tlui interior the
vapours of ocean waters, which waters never vary beyond 50" to 52" fahr. tlie whole
year througli, while on the northern half of it, or at least between latitudes 53" and
56", there is a freer play of ocean vapour, with its ever-fertilizing influence over the
whole breadth of the coimtry to the Itocky Mountains, and even beyond, through the
Peace River Pass and other passages in the lowered range in those latitudes.
" Between latitudes 53" and 56", exclusive of mountain heights, it may be called
mildly Canadian, and with a greater force of vegetable gvowtli."
Snow Fall.
Assiniboiiie mid Saskatchewan, Exjilorinij E.i'pr(Utiu)i, by II, Y. IlimJ. Vol. /, /). 16.
* '■'•'■ * " Snow falls on the Touchwood Hills to the depth of two feet and
a-half in the woods, and in the pnvii ie where aspen groves are numerous, it is not unfre-
quently found one foot and r. -half deep. In the great treeless prairies to the south whei-e
the berbasro is short, the snow i,-i drifted off by winds. The climate of the Touchwood
Hi'' is :■> < '. dently very humid. Thunder storms appear to travel in the direction of this
rany. im'-: occasion a copious precipitation as tliey pass over it."
Ri'liort of Select Committee on I mmhjralion a'}}d Colmiization, 1876. Profcmior Macoxii's
Evidence, Houfe of Conimmis, Canada.
" Q. From your knowledge of the country between Manitoba and the Rocky Moun-
tains, by Peace River— as to the winter and the snow fall, — can railroads be operated as
well as in the Province of Ontario 1
" A. T lielieve that tlie snow diflicidty will never be so groat as in Ontario, because
the snow fall is more than one-lialf less throughout tlio wholo region, and tlin evaporation
of the snow caused by tlu! increased dryness of the air more than compensates for tlic
occasional thaws in Ontario."
Ibid. Hon. Mr. Sutherland's Evidohce, p. 30.
"Wo have occasional frosts; goner;illy one frost about the first of .Tunc, but seldom
Hovere enough to ilo any material 'njury to the growin,;.; crops, and showers ar(! freipicnt
during spring and summer. The avenigo dcipth of snow throughout Manitolia is al)Oiit
liO inches, and is quite liglit and loose."
liolilNd ( »l'r.Ii.\TIO.,-9.
Geoluylcal Survey, 1874-5, p. 3. Sumniari/ Ileport by Mr. Sdwyn.
* * * "Tho locnliti( s where these operations were carricil out arc at Rat
Creek, (1) and in the vicinity of Fort Fillice, on the Assiniboinc;, and on Swan River near
Fort Pell}'. ■* " So far as they have gone, they lead to the conclusion that
'i
'; r
(I) Rat ("iTok is Cf) milofi wost of Vnrt (\nrry, rm the firnt or lowest prauie stop.
mm
m
no difficulty will bo found in obtaining a good supply of water on any part of tlic western
plains at a modei-ate depth below the surface. A sufficient depth has not been reached
either at Fort Ellice or at Fort Pelly to prove the coal bearing strata. At Rat Creek,
howevei-, the superficial deposits were jienetrated at 88 feet, and the underlying rock
bored througli to a depth of 122 feet. *
•' Tlxe cream-colored limestone shown in this section is certainly of Devonian or
Silurian age. * * * The dark grey fine-gramed rock beneath the limestone is
unlike any rock that has, so far as I am aware, been observed cropping out in tliis re-
gion. * '■'■' In any case, tlie finding of these rocks at llat Creek, together
with other ascertained facts in connection with the distribution of the different forma-
tions, prove that neither coal nor lignite beds are at all likely to occur beneath any poi'-
tion of the level country which constitutes the first prairie steppe,'
The Desert Lands.
Report of the Select Committee on Immigration and Colonization, House of Commons,
Canada, 187G. Projessor Macoun's Evidence, p. 2G.
" Q, Could, in youi* opinion, the arid jiortion of the Central Prairie region, and par-
ticularly that jiart supposed to be an extension of the ' American Desert,' be utilized for
sheep grazing or any other agricultural purpose ?
" A. Ijaramio Plains, in Wyoming Territory, are spoken of by all American writers
as cmijiently fitted for slieep nnd cattle farming, and our extension of the 'Desert' has,
from all accounts, a better climate — is at least 4,000 feet lower in altitude, and from the
able Keports of IMr. CJeorge Dawson (1874) and Captain Palliser (1858), 1 am led to in-
fer that our ])art of the 'Desert,' besides being first-class ])aKture land, contains many
depressions well suited for raising all kinds of grain. Mr. Dawson specially remarks
that its soil is generally good, but that the rain fall is light. Speaking of the worst jtart,
lie says, ' It scarcely supports a sod,' but this tract is not fifty miles wide. This is the
winter home of the l)uli'alo, and hence cattle and sheep can live on it in the winter with-
out difficulty, I have seen tlie Laramie Plains and the cattle upon them — I have exami-
ju'd the Uora of both r(>gions, and believe ours is warmer in winter and ccrtaiidy not so
dry in siuiuner.
"Mr. Cuiorge Davson, speaking of this region, says: — 'In .July of la,st sumiiicr,
(187.3), 1 saw a band of cattle in the vicinity of the liine, south of Wood Mountain,
which had stniyed from one of the lTnitc.
"It is impossible to examine a correct map of the Xortli American Continent with-
out being impressed with the rc^markable intluence which the (Ireat American Desert
must exercise upon the future of the United States and Ilritish North America. ■■' '•
The important fact has been noticed tliat any railroad eonsti-ucted withiu the limits
of the United States must jjass, for a distance of i,2U0 miles we.st of the Mississippi,
through iincultivable land, or, in other words, a comparative desert. Along the .'i'Jnd
parallel this desert is least, and the detached areas of fertile soil greatest in quantity, but
tl»e aggregate number of square miles of cultivable lands amounts only to 2,500 in a dis-
tance of 1,210 miles. The northern limit of the Great American Desert is an imaginary
line drawn from the Touchwood Hills to the Moose Woods on the South Krancli, then
south of Battle River, as far as long. 112", when turning south it sv/eops along the flanks
of the Ilocky Mountain in long. 11.5'. North of this limit of the Great American Desert
there is a broad strip of fertile country, ricli in water, woods and pasturage, drained by
the North Saskatchewan and nome of its afUuents, and being a continuation of tlie fertile
prairies of Red River, the eastern watershed of the Assiuiboine and Red Deer River,
with the outlying patches called the Touchwood Hills, File Hills, itc."
Ueport of the Geology and Resovrces of the region in the vicinit// of the 4!)]t tf) tlie north must form tlh- liasis fur the si^ttli'mcnt and utili/atii)n
of the western plains. The cactus-covered dcsci't tract di)i>s not seem to stretch fav to the
north of the line ; but there is an extensive regim of tlie third ]irairi(> .ste|ipr soiitli of
the fertile belt which is dcsci'ibed as having a ]»oor soil, with si-anty herbage, and no
wood, exce])t on northern e\|iosun'S."
Watkii ^ri'i'i.v.
n>id, p. 2M.
* ■■'■ ''■ " The (piestion of wat( r supply seemed some years ago a diiriculfc
one in the Red River Valley. Great areas of level and fertil(> prairie, lie far from any
stream, or are only travei-sed by ctndees, wliicii dry up conqilctely iluring summer. Tho
structure of the <'ountry renthur. the existence oC surface springs .ilmost an inqtossibility.
This appan.'ut ditlieulty is, however, lteii\g solved in the most satisfaclory mannei ; as it is
IP*
4G
found that there are few regions where ordinary wells of moderate depth do not succeed
in finding ample supplies of water ; and this not only far removed from the rivei*s, but in
their immediate vicinity, though the water level of the stream may be considerably lower
than that of the bottom of tlio well."
j?7«e JVorlh-Went Passage hj Land, hj Viscount Milton and Dr. Cheadlc, p. 41.
" From Eed River to the Rocky Mountains, along the banks of the Assiniboine and
the fertile belt of the Saskatchewan, at least 00,000,000 of acres of the richest soil lie
ready for tlve farmer when he shall be allowed to enter in and possess it."
Iuon-Stoxes.
Gcoloy'iad ,Sn.rvei/ of Canada, 1874-5. Repwt l»j Mr. J. If. Spenser, p. 68.
* * * " The minerals of economic value which came under my notice
consist of clay, ii'on-stones, lignite, peat and salt. In many places along Swan River and
in tiie Porcupine Mountains, clay iron-stones are abundant. They are of concretionary
character, containing a considerable (piantity of calcareous matter and belong to the
limonite group of iron-stones."
Peat.
Ibid, }>. 69.
'■' '■' '•' " A few miles below the Crossing on Swan River, two beds of peat
are exposed in tlu; ]>aidv, the thickest of which measure 18 inches. Above it is afoot of
clay, and then 1) inches more of peat, the latter being buried by a few feet of surface soil. "
Salt.
Ibid, p. 69.
*' Salt was formerly made from the brine springs near the mouth of ]jell River. The
salt springs at the south end of liake Winnipegoosis have V)een worked for a long time.
At these springs the saline waters percolate through the drift, which in this region covers
but thinly the Devonian limestones and destroys vegetation for some distance around."
47
CHAPTER IV.
FROM THE
SOUTH SASKATCHEWAN CROSSING TO
T H E R O C K Y U O U N T A 1 N S.
lieport of Progress, Canadian Pacific Fiallway, 1874, p. 38,
"The crossing of the Soutli Siiskiitchcwan is al)Out '!')() yards wide, tlio hanks are
ahout 170 feet high ; the eastern bank, however, has the greater elevation ; aspens, bal-
sams, j)oplars, and small white bii-ch are found on its banks ; the valley of the rivei",
however, extends over a mile in widtli. The North Saskatchewan is 18 miles distant,
and it is here that Fort Carlton is established. Retween the two rivers, the country as-
sumes the ajipearance of a level plateau elevated about .300 feet above the streams. The
soil, although light, is of good character ; the north river at this j)oint is somewhat
broader than the south branch. The streams nnite near the 10.")th degree of longitiide
and discharge into Lake Wimiipeg. Only one rapid of any groat importance is met in
this distance. Both these sti'eams seem to form natural arteries of communication
through the country where they have their course.
" The country on the North Saskatchewan is but little wooded, but it abounds in
gi'asses, and the soil appears to be good, in some ])laces somewhat sandy and arid. 'I'lie
contour of the land is irregular, with hills of considerable elevation, at the basct of which
lakes are frequently to be met, generally not of extended area.
" From Fort Pitt contimiing along the North Saskatchewan, the soil improves, and
we met white spruce, tamarac, and pojilars, with thick and luxuriant grasses. Fires had
passed over much of the country. As we came within a hundred miles of Edmonton,
the country became more hilly, and the hillsides were covered with heavy Avood. The
flora continued the same as on the eastern prairies, but it was here somewhat more lux-
uriant; a good deal of low birch and scrub pine, pinns hanksiana, is met in this locality.
At Edmonton the (jucst^on of coal first presents itself; some fragments wt i dug out of
the river bank. Although they l)urned in a blacksmith's forge, evidentl\ they were of
an inferior (puility; better sam]iles were I'cported by the officers of the Hudson's Ray
Fo,vt, as having been found higher up the river.
"All the rivers we crossed between Prairie Portage and Edmonton are marked by
the characteristic of running in wide and dcei) \ alleys; this peculiai-ity woidd appear to
extend generally to the prairie region of the north-west, except, jterhaps, th<^ lower poi--
tions of it around Lake Winnipeg. However small t\w. stream which runs through
them, the valleys have the same characteristics. The circumstance suggests no special
engineering difficulty, but it points to heavy expen.se in construction where rivers are to
be crossed, and the nece.s.sity of care and judgment in laying down the roufe, so as to
keej) the expense within as moderate; limits as possible.
" Looking bai^k over the thousand miles of ])rairie country travelled since lenving
tlie wooded district east of Manitoba, it is woi'thy of note, that absolutely level jd.MiMs
formed no great ]>j-oportion of the vast area which canu! under our obserx j,tion. We
were agreealtly sui-prised to find that by far the larger proportion was undulatinu and in
48
this respect not unlike nmch of tlie Province of Ontai'io, while eminences of considerable
elevation, not greatly inferior to the mountain at Montreal, were occasionally met with.
In niany places small groves and fringes of trees adorned the prairie and gave the land-
scape an agreeable and park-like aj)])earance.
"Before reaching Edmonton we received from gentlemen connected with the Hudson
Bay Company and from others engaged in missionary labors, most favorable accounts of
the country on I'eace River to the north, and still more glowing descriptions of the beauty
of the landscape and fertility of the soil over broad districts stretching away to the south
toAvards the internsitional boundary line.
"A few weeks after avo left Edmonton, Col. Robertson Ross travelled southerly
through the section referred to. He reported the country for about 300 miles in length
along the eastern base of the Rocky Mountains, towards the 49th parallel, and from GO
to SO miles in breadth, to bo of great natural beauty, with soil of surpassing richness.
Here is found the favorite wintering grounds for gi-eat herds of buffalo.
"On leaving Edn\onton we passed through a country inter.spersed with hillocks, and
we likewise occasionally met with swamps, many of wliich were covered with swamp
liay. ({radually the country becomes more wooded, and the undulations assume a more
markfid character. IVIore creeks were crossed, running in most cases through narrow
valleys. The vegetation was ])articularly luxuriant, and the grass through which we
passed was in some places from live to six feet high.
" In crossing the Pembina River some 70 miles west of the River Saskatchewan, wo
found thick outcroj)ping beds of coal. It proved much l)ettcr than the Edmonton speci-
men, and we heard from our guides that abundance of this fuel was ju'esent at other
localities, some of it of still better quality.
" Occasionally the country becomes more open with groves of spruce, aspen, and
])oplar, increasing in size. Nevertheless much of it is densely wooded, while in other
places the timber is thin and of inferior (piality.
" The ascent up the McLcod River was continxied for 70 miles. There was no reg-
\dar trail, and the route of the party was through innumerable Avindfalls. Mu(,'h of the
soil is bog, and the banks of the river are rough and rugged. Pushing across the intc^r-
mediate summit the Athabasca River was reached. This streAm runs through dill's of
sandstone, shale and clay, and the valley widens by a succession of terraces, rising one
above the other. They are very distinctly maiked on both sides of the stream.
=•= ■•■= * The ground alternated in its character. The trail gradually approaches
the river and passes uj) the valley, which is hei'e about live miles Avide. Following the
Avindings of the river, Ave reached tliQ portals of Jasjjcr Valley, entering Avhich Ave were
literally in the heart of the; mountains. iSo easy an ingress could uoAX'r even have been
hoped for.
" Jasjter House is but 3,300 feiit above the sea. After leaving the RiA'er Athabasca
the ])ath of the expiulition lay along the River Miotte. The name of Caledonia Valley
has been given to this locality (at the junetion of the ISIiette Avith the Athabasca). It is
rocky and rough, and the river itself is a series of falls and rapids. The lower ground of
the valley is swampy, Avith an uiulerbrush of scrub and of dwarf Avillows. The trail
crosses the liver seven or eight times in a veiy short distance.
" The immediate ascent to Yellow Head Pass is not diliicult, and the Pass itself is,
as it Avere, an open meadow."
49
Report of Proyr ess, Canadian Pacific Ruilway, 1874. Professor Maooun's Report, p. G5.
"Tho distance from the Soutli Brancli to Carlton on the North Branch is about 18
miles. For the firat few miles after leaving the river the soil is sandy and of poor qual-
ity ; but for the remaining distance it is excellent. Many lakes are scattered at intervals
over the plain, and these together with aspens and willows, give the country a very
picturesque look. ■■'■ '■'• *
" Between Thick wood Hills and Jackfish Lake the country is partly plain and
partly rough and hilly, but the greater part is well fitted for cultivation. The hills and
ridges are either gravel or sand, but always covered with verdure. For 33 miles after
passing Jackfish Lake, the country is beautiful and the soil excellent, being a light brown
sandy loam. From English River to Fort Pitt the surface of the country is much
lu'oken, and ranges of hills with corresponding valleys are commoH. |'" *
Between Fort Pitt and Victoria, the land changes every few miles, and is much broken
by hill and valley. Many tracts have excellent soil, and would bring immense crops of
ail kinds if not injured by summer frosts. * * The laud around Victoria is
very rich, and would i)roduce enormous crops.
" Between Victoria and Edmonton, a distance of 80 miles, the soil is very rich but
there is much wet swampy land, the greater part, however, seems to be exceedingly
fertile and well suited for agriculture. All around Edmonton, the land is of the very
best quality, though the soil in s^ime localities is scarcely as heavy as could be wished.
All kinds of graui, roots and vegetables are raised in abundance here. The country
around Edmonton is much superior to that in the vicinity of Fort Garry, as there are no
marsh or salt lands, and plenty of timber and excellent water."
TJiP. Red River Cowidry, Hudson Bay and the Norlh-West Teiritories, hy A. J. Russell,
C.E., p.Ql.
" The country drained by the North Branch of the Saskatchewan, and its extensive
tributary the Battle Rivei', though incomparably more valuable than the country trav-
ersed by the South Branch, does not require to be described so much at length owing to
its more uniform character.
" The North Branch for the greater part of its coui-se, and the Battle River, lie in
the great belt of country which the Canadian and Imperial exploring parties describe as
generally fertile land of the first cpiality.
" The North Branch, for 520 miles up, from the Forks, and the Battle River, for
its whole course of 450 miles (excejiting a short elbow of it,) traverse a rich prairie
country more or less interspersed with woods.
" The remaining 282 miles of the ui)per coarse of the North Branch lie in the
Thickwood country, which, to the commencement of the mountains, about 200 miles, is
rei)resentod as abounding in marshes with patches of fine land in parts. In this distance
the banks of tlic river display beds of lignite coal. Beyond it the remaining course of
the river lies in the valleys of the mountains, to the glaciers at its source.
" The Battle River enters the North Brancli about 170 miles above the main Forks.
It drains a Lirgo part of the country between the North and South branches. It has its
source about ten niUos from the North Branch, 30 miles above Edmonton, but they are
130 miles apart at the miildlo of its course, and between them the pasturage is described
as very rich. Coal presents itself there in the banks of the .stream, 250 miles from
its mouth.
50
" The rich prairie country, which covers the course of the Battle River and the
northerly part of Red Deer River, and includes the North Branch from the Forks, \ip to
30 miles above Edmonton, has a breadth of about 100 miles. At the Forks, 70 miles at
the mouth of Battle River, 150 miles at its middle course, and about 70 at its source ;
beyond which the belt of fertile prairie countiy becomes gradually narrower, and turning
to the southward, up the coui*se of the Red Deer River, becomes merged in the fertile
region on the skirt of the mountains below Bow Fort on the South Branch. It is
bounded on the north by the line of the Thick Woods, which sweeps northerly parallel to
the course of the North Branch at a distance of 40 to 20 miles beyond it, then curving
to the southward crosses it about 30 miles above Edmonton, and continuing in tliat
direction strikes the mountains near Bow Fort, making a circuit from the Forks of about
700 miles.
" This circuit of the Thick Woods is the present boundary of the 2>rogress of succes-
sive fires which are gradually encroaching on the forests, or partly wooded country, and
converting it into treeless prairie, unless where clumps of young aspens and poplar,
growing up, escape the ravages of succeeding fires."
Captain Palliser'a Exploration in B. N. Amei'ica, /olio, pp. 10-11.
"The North Saskatchewan has its source from glaciers in the Rocky Mountains in
latitude 52° N. and longitude 117|° W., and from the same ice filled valleys also rise
branches of the South Saskatchewan and the Columbia. At first the North Saskatch-
ewan has a north-easterly course until it reaches the Snake Portage in latitude 5-l° and
longitude 111°, half way between Fort Edmonton and Fort Pitt. It then changes to a
south-east direction, which it pursues until it reaches 52° 20' at its 'Elbow,' when it changes
its course again with a sudden bend, and flo ;vs to the north-east.
" From the Rocky Mountain House to Fort a la Corne, the North Saskatchewan
traverses the plains in a valley that varies in depth from 100 to 300 feet, and never
exceeds two miles in width. The alluvial fiats, which form the finest quality of land in
this part of the country, are often well timbered, biit from the manner in which the river
winds from side to side of the valley, the points,' as they are termed, are seldom more
than two or three miles in extent.
"By inspecting the map it will be obsei'ved that the general course of the river Is
bounded by hills which sometimes recede to a considerable distance. These hills rise two
to four hundred feet above the general level, and skirting along their base there is often
to be found areas of land of fine quality, while the whole distance, sometimes equal to 30
miles between the hills and the river, is fine grazing land, and as it all lies within the
limit of the partially wooded belt of country, there are 'blufls' that Avill afford shelter
to stock.
"Ihe richness of the natural pasture in many j)laces on the prairies of the second
level along the North Saskatchewan, and its tributary. Battle River, can hardly be ex-
aggerated. Its value does not consist in its being rank or in great quantity, but from its
fine quality, comprising nutritious species of grasses and carices, along with natural
vetches in great variety, which remain throughout the winter sound, juicy, and fit for the
nourishment of stock.
"Almost everywhere along the course of the North Saskatchewan are to bo found
eligible situations for agricultural settlement, a sufficiency of good soil is eveiywhcre to
be fo\ind, nor are these advantages confined to the neighboihood of the river ; in several
districts, such as N, W., of Carlton, we traversed fine land fit for all purposes, both of
01
jiiisture and tilliif,'o, extciulinf^ towards the Thickwood llills, and also to bo found in tLo
region of the lakes between Forts Titt and Edmonton.
"In almost every direction round Edmonton the land is fine, excepting only the
hilly country at the highefr levels such as the Beaver llills. Even there, however, there
is nothing like sterility, only the surfiicc is too much broken to be occupied while more
level country can be obtained. * * *
"In the upper part of the Saskatchcnvan country coal of foir ijuality occura abund-
antly, and may hereafter be found very useful ; it is quite fit to bo employed in the
smelting of iron from the ores of that met^il, which also occurs in large quantities in the
same strata. Building stone is wholly absent till quite close to the Rocky Mountains,
but brick eai-th and potter's clay may be obtained in many parts of the country. The
climate is more iiTegular than that of Red River. The winter is much the same in its
duration, but the amount of snow that falls decreases rapidly as we approach the
mountains.
"The North Saskatchewan freezes generally about the 12th November, and breaks
up from the 17th to the 20th of April. During the winter season of five months the
moans of travelling and trausjiort are greatly facilitated by tiie snow, tlie ordinary depth
of which is suilicieut for the uhk of sli.'iglis, without at the same time being too great to
imi)edo horses.
" Between Carlton and Ediuoiiton i]un\'- is no valualjle timbor to be fjund south of
the river, the only trees gi-owing there being small aspen pojjlars- To the north, however,
and along the river above and btilow these points, the s))ruce, fir, pine and birch occur
abundantly. There is neither oak, ash, elm, maple, or any of tho hardwood trees that
are found at Red River in any part of the Saskatchewan. Only a few trees of the false
sugar mtiple, from which the Indians make a coarse kind of sugar, being found in certain
places."
The Great Lone Lawl, bj Capt. F. W. Butler, F.R.G.S., Chai>t'ir XV.,;,. 2150.
" Tsvo things strike the new comer at Carlton. First, ho sees evidences on every
sMe of a rich and fertUe country; and, secondly, he sees by many signs that war is the
normal condition of the wild men who havi; pitched their tents in the land of the Sas-
katchewan. '■'•'■ * Its boundaries are of tho simplest description. It has on
the north a huge forest, on tho west a huge mountain, an the south an immense desert,
and on the east an immense marsh. From the forest to tho desert there lies a distancts
varying from -40 to loO miles, and from the mnrsli to the mountain, SOO miles of land lie
spread in every varying phase of undulating fertility. This is tho Fertile Belt, the land
of the Saskatchewan, the winter home of the buHalo, the war country of the Crees and
Blackfect, the future home of millions yet unl)0iii."
Coal and Liuxite Deposits.
Geological Survey, 1873-i. Observations by Mr. Sehcya, p. 33.
"The road travelled through the Thickwood ILills is very rough and stoney, boulders
having beconui numerous, while from tho base of these hills to Carlton very few ai'O seen.
As the name implies the country is fom|)aratively well wooded, and grass is everywhere
abundant. * * There is but little change to note in the general aspect
of the country. * * * The ridges and hills are couqwsed of sand and gravel;
the soil is generally light and poor, grassy margined lakes and pools, many of them salt,
^.
IMAGE EVALUATION
TEST TARGET (MT-3)
1.0
I.I
>s Ki III 2.2
1.25 i 1.4
1.8
Photographic
Sciences
(Corporation
33 WIST MA A STRUT
WIBSTIR.N.Y. 14SS0
(716) •73-4503
\
iV
•N?
N>
A.
6^
6^
58
abound, and the surface is very irregular and broken, presenting a succession of saucer-
shaped depressions with intervening low marmaloid hills and rounded ridges of drift,
with grassy or occasionally partially wooded slopes, and on the surface scattered blocks
and boulders of gneiss and buff-colored, fossiliferous limestones. * * * At
Jackfish Lake the soil for many miles is of the finest quality ; a rich black loam on a
blueish-gray clay. The surface is thrown into large hillocks by the moles, and gophera,
or marmots. From Jackfish jftiver westward, the country is tolerably level and thickly
dotted with patches of copsewood."
Ibid. p. 38.
♦ * # " Examined the left bank of the river (North Saskatchewan) for a
mile and a half below Fort Edmonton. Found two thin seams of coal with a black
earthy shale and layers of gray clay-shalc between them, the former made up of indistinct
plant remains looking like grass and sedgi«<. Immediately above the coal seam is a layer
of brown greasy clay six or eight inches thick. This clay works into a lather-like soap,
and Dr. Hector says it was used by th(^ woi.ien at the Fort for washing blankets. A
sample of it, analysed by Dr. Hoffman in the Survey Laboratory, shows it to be a
hydrous silicate of alumina. ♦ * * The strata are generally horizontal, though
occasionally presenting a slight dip, thi-ee cr four degrees, to S. 29° E. A nodular clay
iron or« occurs in layers associated with shales. * * * Striking nearly due
south in about 12 miles we came to the crossing of White Mud Creek, a small stream
which empties into the Saskatchewan about 2^ miles above Edmonton. The trail we
are now following is much better than that between Victoria and Edmonton. The
general character of the country unchanged. A rich black soil ; numerous swampy
lakes, open richly grassed prairies with belts and patches of copsewood with spnice and
lK)plar trees. =;= ♦ *
" We i-eached Battle River, crossed it. Battle River is hero quite a shallow stream,
20 yards wide, with stoney bed and gravelly banks about ten to fifteen feet high. From
this point to its junction with the North Saskatchewan below Fort Pitt, its general
course is nearly east through five and a half degrees of longitude, and for a great part of
the distance, according to Dr. Hector, it inins in a valley from 150 to 270 feet l)elow the
plain. No change in the character of the country, u drift-covered surface the prevailing
feature."
Oeoloffical SurKey, 1873-4. Ohscrvationn by Mr. Srlvyn, F, li.G.S., p. 49.
" From the Mountain House to Edmonton, and thence to a slioi-t distance below
Victoria, there are fair exposui-es of the strata at comparatively short intervals along the
river ; soft friable green, gray and brown concretionary sandstones, alternating with blue
and gray aronacious and argillacious shales, with layers and beds of lignite, and bright
jet-like bi*own conl, are the prevailing features in their exi)osurcs. In the shales thero
pre layers of noosures and indications aeen in the cliff
sections represent only more or less lenticular shaped and isolated patches, repeated at
different horizons and over large areas. Dr. Hector appeara to incline to the latter idea,
and, in a note referring to the seams at Rocky Mountain House, he states : 'The coal
beds are not continuous for long distances.' Whether this is actually tho^aso or not,
there can be no question that in the region west of Edmonton, bounded on the north by
Athabasca River ami on the south by the Red Deer River, there exists a vast coal field
covering an area of not less than 25,000 square '.niles, find beneath a large portion of
this area we may exiJcct to find workable seams of coal at depths seldom exceeding 300
feet, and often, as in the case of the thick scams above described, very favorably situated
for woiking by levels from the surface.
"Below Victoria the river valley widens considerably, and oftrved, any plant remains.
Whether these marine Cretaceous beds are above or IkjIow tho Kdmontoii coal liearing
bods I am at present unable to say. I am, li()wev»>r, disposed to take tho former view,
notwithstanding that the plimt reinsuns associated with the <'oal Iti'dsare of nuHleru ty|H!S.
t-i
"Dr. Hector divided the Cretaceous strata of tho prairies into an upper, middle and
lower group, and in tho latter he placed the Rf)cky Mountain and Edmonton coal series,
at the same time remarking : 'In my next and lowest group I have (with great hesitation)
classetl the large deposits of coal or lignite of the prairie country, that are sufiiciently
compact to lo of value as fuel, but which have hitherto been generally classed as of
tertiaiy age.'
54
"There is no doubt that in British Columbia, aa shown by Mr. Pichai-dson in his
hist report — (Report of Pi-ogress, 1862-63,) the coal sprtraa belong to the lower part of
the Ci-etaceoua series and are overlaid by more than 4,000 feet of strata holding Inoc-
erami, Amvionitei, JiacuUtea, and other marine Cretaceous fossils.
" Should there prove to Ije a similar arrangement of the formation in the Saskatch-
ewan valley it would very greatly enlarge the area over which workable seams of coal
may be ex})ected to occur. =■'= * * In the vicinity of Fort Pitt and thence,
wherever sections occur, the whole distance to the Elbow, similar Cretaceous clays with
Sejitarian nodules are seen.
"At the Elbow the river leaves the eastern limit of the third or upjiermost prairie
level formed by the Eagle Hills on the south side, and by the Thickwood Hills on the
north side of the valley, and making a sharp bend to the northeast more or less parallel
to the trend of the eastern slopes of the hills named, it flows across the second prairie
level, making for the nearest point of its eastern limit, which it reached about 45 miles
below Fort k la Corne. Between the Elbow and this point, and especially below Carlton,
the immediate banks of the river are either low and flat, or rise in Avell wooded slopes,
broken into more or less rounded hills and ridges, or showing a succession of tciTaces, to
the pi-airie level, some 200 or 300 feet above the river. * * '•'
"Blocks and often enormous rook mass(!S of the buff or cream-colored aalutiar lime-
stone holding chamcteristic fossils are widely and abundantly distributed over the tiret
and second prairie steppes. The ascent to the third praii'io level, which has an average
elevation of from 1,900 to 2,000 feet above the sea, commences at the Thickwood Hills,
20 miles west of Carlton, and on it the limestone boulders do not aj)pear to have reached
further west thdn the longitude of Fort Pitt, and between Foi-t Pitt and Edmonton not a
single boulder of limestone was observed, either along the Saskatchewan Itiver ov on the
jtlains. On the river, above the confluence of the Brazeau — a large tributary coming in
from the west about midway between the Mountain House and Edmonton — there are no
boulders and veiy few pebbles of granite, gneiss or mica schint. At the Moinitain
House, the pebbles and bouldera in the drift, which is there scm in contact with the coal
bearing rocks as well as those seen along the river bed are nearly all of either coal
measure sandstone or conglomerate, or varieties of hard quartzose rocks. * =«= #
The timt gold wa.shing mIiIcii we saw in descending the river were rather more tlian 40
miles IkiIow the n\outli cf the Bni/eau; and thonco to Kdiiumton, and for some miles
further down, more or less gold has been found on the bars and in the i-iver banks, but
always in a very finely divided state, showing evidence of having been tr:\ns]M)rted from
afar. Even as low down as Carlton, gold can I bolicve be found, thotigh not in (pian-
tities sutHcient to pay for working."
Report of ProfrcKx, Cuiindlnii Pacifu- Rnifivdif, 1871,/*. 1-'.
"Captain l'allis«>r reported <1hj (^\istel1('(( of hw^v deposits of iron ore in sevenil
<|Ufirter.s between the two Haskatchewans. The discovery t)f this ore in oonjunetion with
coal at oomo one or more points, which could conveniently bo reached by the railway
without Uiking it much out of the direot course, would render the manufacture of rails
near the middle of the line possible, and thus o'i)viate the iiniuense cost of a long laml
transportation. IStoreover, the establi.shmont of local manufacturing indnsti"i(!s would
bo assured."
Overlntid Journey ftoimd t/if ]\\ir/, hif Sir Oeorrj? Si'mpMun, Vof. 1. p. 101.
"The vicinity (of Edmonton) is rich. in mineral pi'oductions. A seam of coal about
ten feot in depth, can be traced for a very considerable distance along both sides of the
55
river (North Siuskatchewan). This coal resembles slate in appearance ; and though it
requires a stronger draught of air than that of an ordinary chimney, yet it is found to
answer tolerably well for the blacksmith's forge." '
Extent of Coal and Lignite Beds.
The Canadian Dominion, hij Charles MarshiU, p. 200.
" For this Canadian line of railway, nature herself has apparently gone out of her
way to accumulate a variety of favoraV)le conditions. At the Atlantic terminus of tho
rail, vast beds of coal lie exposed, on the very coast, in readiness for the steamer that will
ply between Halifax and Liverpool ; this being the only example of coal so situated along
the whole Atlantic seaboard. Similarly, at the Pacific terminus, great coal mines wait at
Vancouver's Island for the traffic to China and Japan ; this again being the only coal on
the Pacific seaboard. But this is not all. Along tho very line which the railroad must
traverse, coal fields of measureless extent, lie along tho Saskatchewan, obtruding often to
the surface to save the trouble of mining."
Sketch of the North-West of America, by Mgr. Tachc, p. 53.
* '■'• '■''• " Tho coal fields which cross tho different branc';os of tho Saskafc-
chowan are a great source of wealth, and favor the settlement of the valley in which
nature has mult'pliod, picturesque scenery that challenges comparison with tho most
remarkable of its kind in the world. * * * One is surprised to find in tho
extreme west, so extensive and so boautiful a region. Tho author of the universe has
been pleased to spreatl out, beside the grand and wild beauties of tho Rocky Mountains,
the captivating pleasure grounds of tho plains of the Saskatchewan."
Geology of idth Parallel. By Geo. M, Dawson, 1875, p. 180.
# * # "The totiil area of the western part of the prairie region between the
49th and 54th pai-allels, now known by more or less connected lines of observations, to
be underlaid by the lignite and coal-bearing formation, or formations, dons not fall short
of 80,000 square miles; and should fu^^uro investigation result in affixing some of tho
fuels to t)io Lower CreUiceous, it must bo very much greater. Tho importance of tlioso
gi-eat deposits of fuel, in a country naturally so destitutu of wood over groat annis,
cannot bo exaggerated."
Captain Pallisers Exploration in D. N. America, folio, jy. 72.
"Edmonton must be considered as being in the wooded country, but in tho imniodiato
noighborhootl of the Fort there is not much valuable timber. * * Onco back
from the viver banks, which are everywhere high and procipitou.*?, the country is ratlier
flat, and covered with thickets of willow and poplar, and with a much larger proportion
of swampy ground than I havo seen elsewhere in th(5 Saskatclujwan. Seven to ten miles
back on either side of the river are the same high grounds that seem to skirt it every-
wlicre, forming as it wei"o banks to an immensely wide vallt^y. Those of tlie true river
valley are 190 to 250 feet high, and at most places densely wooded. Whenever tho
present water channel sweeps close under tho higher liank, however, sections are tlis-
j)layed which exhibit their structure. They aro composed of horizontal beds of arinacoous
clays, sometimes passing into true sandstone, generally in spherical concretions, and ut
others into clay shale. Many of those beds are highly charged with nodules of clay iron-
stone, which, when broken, nni found to bo full of comminuted fragments of vegetable
matter. Included in those beds aro various seuius cf coul or lignite, which soom to bo of
ij ■
?ftl
06
a very useful quality, as it ia used to the exclusion of all other fuel in the forge at the
Fort * * -
"Under the Fort there are two seams of about 18 inches each, but on the opposite
side of the river, close to the water edge, there is a bed six feet thick, and again another
four ieot a little higher up the bank."
Approach to the Rocky Mountains.
T/te JVort/i-Wcsl Passage by Land, hy Viscount Milton and Dr. C/ieadle, p. 204.
" The road to Lake St. Ann's (from Edmonton) passed through a fertile and park-
like country for about .50 miles, but at St. Ann's the thick forest commences, which
extends far to the north and westward to the mountains. St. Ann's was, doubtle-ss,
chosen as the site for a settlement on account of the immense number of the coregonus, or
white fish, furnished by the lake, fom;ing the staple fo' 1 of the inhabitants ; but it is ill
adapted for farming, on account of the timber, which has been very partially cleared
away for little fields of potatoes and grain. The lake is a pretty sheet of water, seveml
miles in length, its shores dotted on the western side by 40 or 50 houses and a
church. * * #
" When we left St. Ann's the ti'ack led us immediately into the densest forest,
where the ground was boggy and rotten, thickly covered with fallen timber. On the
second day after we left Lake St. Ann's, the road became rather better, there being a few
patches of open country, and the timber smaller, clustering in the swells of the low un-
dulations. At noon we reached a large lake and travelled along its banks for the
remainder of the day. It ap^jcared to be well stocked with wild fowl and fish.
"On the 11th June we struck the Pembina River, a clear, shallow stream flo./ing
to the N. E., over a pebbly bed, between perpendicular banks of some 80 feet high.
These showed the section of a magnificent coal bed, from 1.5 to 20 feet in thickness.
Coal has also been discovered on the McLeod, Athabasca, Peace and Mackenzie Rivera
to the north ; and on the Saskatchewan, Battle and Red Deer Rivera to the south. A
section of it apjieara in the cliff of the river bank at Edmonton, where it is used for the
forge. The lignite strata have been thus observed at numerous points, scattered over
moi-e than ten degrees of latitude, but invariably in nearly the same longitude.
"A line drawn from Mackenzie River to the point where the Red Deer River joins
the South Siiskatchewan would give the line of coal formation observed with tolerable
aecui*acy. These coal fields are of enormous extent, and will doubtless one day form a
large element of wealth in this richly endowed country of the Saskatchewan.
" After investigating the coal, we set to work to wash for gold in the sand bars, and
wei-e rewarded by finding what miners call 'the colour,' /. e., a few specks of the finest
gold dust which i-emain with the black sand left behind when the rest of the dirt is
washed away.
" For the next two or three days the country presented the same slightly undulating
chai*acter, thickly wooded with hardly a single break, and without any eminence from
which a view could be obtained. The only sound ground was on the low narrow ridges
which separated the wider shallow valleys. These latter are occupied by 'muskegs' or
level swamps, the surface of which is covered with a mossy crust five or six inches in
thicknesa, while a thick growth of pines and the fallen timber add to the difficulty of
the road.
67
10
rer
" On the third day after leaving Pembina River, we rested to dine at a marshy
meadow formed by the damming up of the stream by beaver. They were very common
along our track, the grassy mound and bank across showing the old beaver house and
dam in most cases. Nearly every stream between the Pembina and ihe Athabasca — ex-
cept the large river McLeod — appeared to have been destroyed by the agency of these
animals. The whole of this region is little more than a succession of pine swamps,
separated l>y narrow ridges of higher ground, and it is a curious question whether that
enormous tract of country, marked 'swampy' in the maps, has not been brought to this
condition by the work of beavers, who have thus destroyed, by their own labor the
streams necessary to their existence. * ♦ ♦
"The McLeod is a fine sti*eam, about 150 yards broad, flowing over a rocky, pebbly
Inil and clear and shallow like the Pembina. The channel of the latter where wn
1 i-ossed it was clean cut through soft strata, with perpendicular cliffs on either side ; while
the banks of the McLeod are wider apart, rising steeply but not vertically, to a great
height, and richly clothed with pine and aspen. The McLeod is subject to great floods
at certain seasons, as evidenced by the great boulders strewn high along the shore, and
tlie collections of drift wood accumulated at difierent points and turns of the river.
* * * "Following the river valley, we travelled through thick timber,
marshes and boggy ground, pleasantly varied occasionally by beautiful {>ark-like oasis of
an acre or two in extent, and crossed several small streams, swollen into muddy torrents.
* * * Passed on along a well marked trail, wliich ascended abruptly, to avoid a
precipitous cliff overhangiig the river at this point. Higher and higher still it led,
along rocky ledges or up steep, green, slippery slopes, until it reached the point where
vegetation ceased, separated by a rocky precipice from the hight of perpetual snow.
* * * On every side a succession of peaks towered up, of strange fantastic
shnpe. To the west, the Priest's Rock, a pyramid of ice, shone brightly above a dark
pine-clad hill, to the east tiie remarkable Roche Miette ; in front and behind, conical,
pinnacled, and nigged mountains. Hundreds of feet immediately beneath rushed the
torrent of the Athabasca. Emerging from the heart of the mountains through a narrow
gorge into the wider valley, the river expands into a lake ttree or four miles in length ;
then again narrowing, flows in several channels round wooded islands, to open out once
more into a second lake, smaller than the first. On the furthf>r bank of the river, be*
tween the two lakes was Jasper House."
Country Between Rocky Mountain House and Edmonton.
IS
iJOS
or
in
of
Captain Palliser's Exploration of B. N. America, folio, p. 77.
" Starting at 9 o'clock this morning we found the ice smooth and sound. * * *
As the views, or straight portions of the river (Saskatchewan) valley between each benf 9een
worn into holes, ridges and conical mounds by the action of water on tho soft clay strata
of the cretaceous group. Everywhere it is thickly strewn with boulilers, all derived from
the Lain-entine chain to the east, or from Bird's Eye limestone, which rests on tho western
flank of that axis.
in
•'• * '■' " In rising to the sinfiice of tlie third step)>e, we have the plains
composed of the cretaceous strata, with only a very thin coating of drift, which has always
a local mineral composition corresponding witli that of the underlying strata, without
admixture of materials carried from a distance further than a si)rinkling of cn-.itic blocks
that are of small size, and are only to be found crowded in favorable sj)ots. * '■■ *
" No granite was observed on the east flank of tho Rocky Mountains within British
Territory. * ■•' '■'■'■
"The surface of the higher i»liiins are in some localities travci-sod Ity profovniil rents,
resembling tho valleys of groat rivers, but which, after running for several mihw, art)
genemliy found to Ito closed at both ends. They are often occupied by th'ej> lakes of salt
water, depres.sed 200 feet to 300 feet below the plain, and from 500 yards to a mile in
width. The great Coulees in tho neighborhood of tlie ' Ear Hills,' south of Battle Ilivcr,
are the best exanijdes of tht'se, but Ihoy are found in many other localities. * '''' *
*' Before leaving iLc; s>iii«>r(I(iul deposits of the pi airie country, it is ncccssaiy to
notice the great river valleys which traverse it, and which all point to a time when the
rivora were of nnich larger size than they are now ; even small streams such as Battlo
River flow through valleys from 150 to 200 feet deep. Tho sides of these are in general
as formal and as regular iis those of a railway cutting, excepting where the nature of tho
strata causes frequent slides, or hai'der beds give rise to a cliff structure. Tho flat alluvial
bottoms of these valleys are in general four to five times the width of the river which
winds through them, and which is hejumed by secondary banks, often 30 to 40 feet high.
The silt and alluvium is in general regularly stratilieeyond the opening up of a small portion of
the colony ; since, in spite of every effort, no i-eally available line for a railroad between
Fort Kamloops and New Westminster has as yet been discovered through the Cascade
or Coast Range.
" The road down the valley of tho Fraser, on the contrary, though describing a
circuitous roxite, would turn the Cariboo or Gold Mountains, and communicate immediate-
ly, either below Westroad River, or lower down at Quesnel Mouth, with the Chilcoaten
or Great Western Plain of the colony ; Avhilst below the mouth of Bear River, the valley
opens upon a fine tract of rolling country, with a climate considerably milder than that of
(Canada, and ready for immediate settlement ; instetid of the interminable mountains and
forests on the Thompson Route. Tlie Fraser, moi'eover, (whatever may have })eon said
or written to tho contrary), ollei-s a valiiab' water coniuuinication, and one immediately
available, througli the whole of this cultivable district.
"Nor must it be forgotten that the gold diggings, togeth r with tho mining po))ula-
tion, arc! coustantly moving on towards the nortli"rn limit of the colony, and that this is
tho I'.iroct lino of route to Pt>nco River, and all tho latest gold discoveries."
i
Ocffin to Ocean, In/ licr. G. M. Or.nif, p. 233.
" There is a wonderful combination of l)oauty ab'viit these motnitaina. Great masses
of boldly defined bare rock are united to all the brauty that variety of form, color and
vegetation give. A iifible river with many ti-ibutaries eaeh defining a distinct range, and
a beautiful laki^ ton miles long, embosomed three thousand three hundre- 329.
'•' * '■"■ " We may safely state, with the exception of one or two rocky and
precipitous bluffs, there are no engineering difficulties of any importance. From the Red
River settlement to Edmonton, about 800 miles, the road lies through a fertile and park-
like country. From Edmonton to Jas^ter House, a distance of aljout 400 miles, th(i
surface is slightly undulating, the lower ground universally swampy, and everywhere
covered with thick forests. A bettor trail than the one at present used may be found
for this portion of the way, by keeping to the higher ground. From Jasper House to
the Tcte Javne Cache — the pass through the main ridge of the Rocky Mountains, about
100 or 120 miles in length — a wide break in tlie chain, running nearly cast and west,
offers a natural roadway, unob itructod except l)y timber. The rivers, with the exception
of the Athabasca and tlu; L'Vaser, are. small and fordable ; even at tlieir higliest. Tiio
ascent to the height of land is very gradual, and, indeed, hardly i»erceptible ; the level oidy
3,7G0 feet above the sea ; and the descent on tlio western slope, although more rapid, is
neither steep nor difUcult."
it
m
The lied River Country, Iludsoits Bay ami North-Wast Territories.
C./'J. pp. 111-r).
By A. J. Russell,
•ange
* * * "The route, iidvocated by Mr. Waddiugton, through tlie interior,
by the valley of the Siiskatchewan, the River Athabasca, and tiio V'ellow Head Pass to
the upper Fraser River across to Bute Inlet, is uuijuestionably by far the best aA regards
70
this side of the Rocky Mountains, and the passage through them ; and there is no room
to doubt its being so also', to the westward through British Columbia, * * *
The height of this pass is nearly tho same level as the elevated sloping plain, on the east
side, from which the Rocky Mountains rise.
PxdSEs Through the Rocky Mountains.
Rp.poi't of Prof/ress Camidian Pacific Railway, ApiKndix E.
Esq., 2>p. Ul-2. .
Bif Marcus Smith,
* * * " There are several i)asses through the Rocky Mountain Chain,
giving access from the North- West Tenitory to British Columbia ; some of these are
too far south to be eligible for a line of railway to the Pacific coast within the boundaries
of that province.
"Of those which are more favorably situated, I give the following with their
approximate altitudes above the level of the sea, commencing with the most soutlierly
and taking them in consecutive order northward, viz : —
"1
"2
"3
"4
altitude
4,500 feet.
6,025 "
3,746 "
not known
Howse Pass,
Athabasca, "
Yellow Head, "
Smoky River, "
Pine River or Indian Pass" « « <
[Since ascertained to be very easy, and under 2,000 feet.] '•
" 6 Peace River, altitude under 2,000 feet.
" The eastern slope of the Rocky Mountains, from the foot of the main rocky ranges
is a long gently inclined plain or series of steppes, and either of the above passes could
probably be reached from the east with moderate grades. B;it on the western slope the
country is much more difficult. The Athabasca Pass is too high to be considered
eligible for a railway route. The Howse Pass debouches on the Upper Columbia valley,
almost at right angles to it and with a very rapid descent, as shown by the surveys made
of this pass in 1871 ; and as there is little probability of a pass being found across tlio
Selkirk Range between the upper and lower arms of the Columbia River, a line of railway
through the Howse Pass would, on entering the Columbia valley, have to turn at a sharp
angle and follow the course of that river on a north-west course about 100 miles to tho
great bend, at tho Boat Encampment, and there make another sharp ttn-n, and run in an
almost opi)osito direction for about 85 miles to the Eagle Pass, through tlie Columbia or
Gold Range, by which a connection could bo made with tho valleys ot the Thompson and
Eraser.
*' Tlie situation of tho Yellow Head Pass is much more faAorablo. It is entered
from the east by the valley of tho Athabasca to Jasper House ; it thou follows up the
same valley n(!arly duo south to its jimction with the Caledonian valley, thence up the
latter, duo west to tho summit of the ])ass. Beyond this tho valley continues westward
by a gentle descent to Yellow Head and Moose Lakes. These lakes receive the first
tributaries of the Eraser, and from Moose Lake that river issues in a stream 50 to 60
yards wide, which is joined by another branch of greater magnitude from the north before
it reaches the Tete Jaime Cache. Here itencouutci-s the Selkh-k Range, or an apparent
continuation of tho same, sometimes called the Caril)Oo Range, by whicli it is deflected to
a north-west conrso, in .wliich it contiiMics nearly 200 mihsH through a deep valley,
completely Hovoriiig this range from tho main chain. Having turned this at the great
bend, tho river then Hows almost due soutli for nearly 400 miles, thenoo westward till it
enters the Strait of f^«orgia below New "Westminster.
"
71
/
lit
lit
"Standing on an elevated point near Tote Jaune Cache, the deep valley of tho
Fraser is seen stretching away to the north-west as far as the eye can reach ; then, facing
round to the opposite direction, the valley is continued almost in a straight line by tho
Canoe River to the gi-eat bend of the Columbia, at the Boat Encampment ; thence up tho
Columbia in the same direction to its source ; and thus the great chain of tho Rocky
Mountains is cleft longitudinally by a continuous line of deep valleys over 400 miles in
length.
" The portion thus severed from tho main range is scarcely inferior to it in altitude,
and is equally rugged and broken ; it is that terrible snow peaked vaiige seen stretching
away from Tcto Jaune Cache, so graphically described in Milton and Cheadle's 'North-
west Passage by land.'
" On tho westerly flank or foot hills of this range are tho gold bearing rocks,
extending south-easterly to the boundary of British Columbia, and north-weisterly in tho
same line as far at least as the 5 Gth parallel of latitude."
Four Years in British Columbia. Bi/ Commander li. C. Mayne, li.y., F.E.G.S., p. 84.
* * " Fort St. George, a Hudson Bay Post, is situated on the west
bank of the Fraser River at its junction with the Stuart River, which latter flows in a
like direction from Stuart Lake, which is the southern post of a chain of three or four
lakes which stretch north wai'd 100 miles to the head watei-s of the Bear River, at tho foot
of the Peak Mountains. At tho head of the upper of these lakes stands Fort Connolly."
The Dominion at the West. Bi/ Alex. Caidjiild Aiulei'son, J. P., 1872, pp. 2-3-4.
" The three principal streams of British Columbia are, tho Columbia, tho Fraser, and
the Peace. The last-mentioned, i-ising in tlia angle formed by the Peak Range with the
Rocky Mountains and tho Coast Range, after receiving the important gold-bearing
tributary, Findlay's Branch, breaks through the main line of tho Rocky Mountains, and,
passing onwards, joins the great River Mackenzie ; the united flood, after a course of
some two thousand miles, «ventually falling into tho Frozen Ocean.
* " The Columbia, rising in the Rocky Mountains, pursues a southerly course, and
after receiving several important tributaries, and feeding the two extensive sheets of
water called tho Arrow Lakes, entei-s the United States Territory in latitude 49" ; and
after a course of nearly a thousand miles, falls into the Pacitic in latitude 4G" 20'.
" Fraacr River, comparatively the smallest, but in its relation to the Province by far
the most important, flows entirely through British Columbia, entering the Gulf of
Georgia a few miles north of the boundary line of 49", and in about 122" 40' wast
longitude; its course throughout being nearly parallel with that of tho Columbia. The
main, or central, branch takes its rise in the Rocky Mountains in hit. 53" 45' N.,
long. 118" W., there heading with tho Riviere do Miette, a tributary of the Athabasca,
v/hich afterwards unites with Peace River in its course towards tho Frozen Ocean.
Fraser River was first discovered by Sir Alexander Mackenzie of the North-West Com-
pany, who, designating it as tho Td-cout-chi; Tei^se, or River of tho Tuoully nation,
descended it for some distance on his way to tho Western Coast in 1 793. Afterwards,
in 1808, it was navigated to its mouth by Mr. Simon Fraser and Mr. John Stuart of tho
North- West Company ; from the former of whom it has its present name. Fraser Rivei",
a few miles from its source, flows into a lake some miles in length called Cow-dung Lake,
below which, considerably increased by a tributary from the north, it enters Moose Lake,
a beautiful sheet of water somo nine miles in length. Thence the river continues rapidly
to Tdte Jaune Cache, being joined midway by a second feeder, likewise from the north.
78
" T6to Jaune Cache, distant about 70 miles from the sumriit of the Rocky
Mountains and 730 from the sea, is the limit of canoe navigation on the Fraser. About
three miles lower down, the stream is joined by the CranbeiTy Fork, a tributary flowing
from the south, which heads in with the North Branch of the Thomjwon, to be presently
noticed, and the Canoo Fork of the Columbia.
" Between Tete Jaune Cache and Thle-et-leh, where there is a post of the Hudson's
Bay Company called Fort George, the river is augmented )jy many tributaries ; two of
which the Mackenzie Fork and Bear Iliver are of considerable magnitude, this point is
in latitude 53" 53', longitude 122'> 45'. An important branch here falls in from the
westward, proceeding from Lakes Stuart and Fraser. Quesnel River, issuing from the
great lake of the same name, flows in 100 miles lower down ; and 40 miles below this is
Fort Alexandria, seated on the right bank in hit. 52" 33' 40".
" It is in the mountainous region comprised within the gi-eat Iwnd which the Fraser
makes between T6to Jaune Cache and this point, that the rich gold deposits, known as
the Cariboo mines, are situated.
"At Lytton, about 180 miles from the sea, the Fraser is joined by Tliompson's
River, a copious tributaiy flowing from the eastward. This stream watera an extensive
and important section of the country ; its northern branch heading with the Cranberry
Fork, before mentioned."
Ihid, pp. 11-12. ■ ^
♦ ■■!= * " The mainland of British Columbia, apai-t from the seaboard,
may be divided into three sections, each difiering from the other in its attributes. The
fii-st extends from the mouth of the Fraser River to the head of the rapids above Yale :
the second, from that point to Alexandi-ia': the third, thence to the Rocky Mountains.
" llie characteristics of the lower district are a surface thickly wooded in most parts
with trees of enormous growth, chiefly varieties of the fir and pine, and intermixed
with the red cedar (Thuja Occidentalis of Douglas, Giyantea of Nuttall) and the maple-
plane (Platanus Acerifolm). Low alluvial points fringe these thickets. These, as well as
the numerous islets along the river, are co*. sred with aspens, balsam poplars, and alders,
of luxuriant growth. In the lower part are some extensive meadows, yielding, in their
natural state, heavy crops of a coai"se but nutritious grass, and, under cultivation, enor-
mous returns of cereals and other produce. For a certain period of the year mosquitoes
are troubksome along the river, as high, nearly, as Hope : but there has never been
manifested any symptom of fever and ague, or other similar endemic, so often generated
in positions of a like description.
" On the verge of the second, or central, division a marked change commences. The
copious ri'ins which fall in the lower district are gieatly modified after we pass the moun-
tainous: ridge through which the river burets near Yale. Evidences of a drier climate
appear at every step. The character of the vegetation changes. About Lytton the
cactus begins to appear. In ^ i )ots along the Thompson the ai-temisia, and other shrubs
indicative of a dry and hot cUiaate, are found : and in lieu of the thickly-wooded luxuri-
ance of the lower region, a succession of open valleys, covered with fine pasture and
bordered by gi'assy hills in parts more or less wooded, delights the eye of the traveller.
Hei'e and there belts of forest intei-vene ; amid which broad expanses of open land lie
scattered at intervals, This general desci-iption may be regarded as applying to a very
lar^e tract of country, extending from Alexandria on the Fraser, in latitude 52" 33', to
the southern boundary line on the Okinagan River : and thence at intervals towards
the south-eastern angle of the province.
78
" The tliiixl division of Biitish Coluialiia, from Alexautlria to tlio Mountains, varies
materially from the other two. The agricultural region, properly ho calleil, may \m said
to terminate in the vicinity of Alexandria ; though there are many small spots beyond
that point which may bo advantageously cultivated for culinary vcgctahles and the harder
cereals. Generally speaking it is a wooded country, through which many open sjuits of
excellent soil are intersjiersed, with large tracts of luxuriant pasture — esi)ecially in the
direction of Fraser and Stuart I^akes, and in the Chilcotin country. From Fort (Jeorgo,
however, up the main branch of the Fnuser to T6to Jauno Cache, none of tlio.so op(!ii
l)livces a])pear : and though many cultivable patches along the river banks might in parts
be roadily cleared, it is probable that the occun-enco of summer night-frosts would pro-
vent the growth of any save the hardier vegetables. Fraser Ijiiko, however, anil the
neighboring lake of Stuart, have been for many years the scene of agricidtiual operations
on a small scale, at the Posts, formerly of the North-West, anil since the coalition of
1821, of the Hudson's Bay Company. At the former place, especially, these limited
operations were invai'iably successful. Potatoes, turnips, and other vegetables throve
wonderfully. Barley yielded invariably a heavy return ; and thougli wheat wm.s culti-
vated occasionally only, on a very small scale, and rather experimentally than as a crop,
it ripened well in favorable positions. The pasture in these vicinities is of the most
luxui'iant description, consisting of fine natural grasses intermixed with a nutritious kind
of wild iK3a, or vetch. Cattle and hoi-ses of coui-se thrive well ; but the necessity of
providing fodder against the lengthened winter of these elevated parts, discourages tlieir
being raised beyond a limited extent.
" This upper region, however, is to be considered more especially as the mininfj dis-
trict : and any partial cultivation that may be attempted to meet an extended market in
connection with the mines, must be regai'ded only as subsidiixry to the main sujiply, de-
rived from a remoter source." . ; •
The
Geological Survey of Canada, ISTl-S. Report by Mr, Juuies liicluirdson, pp. 74-5.
' ' * * * " Deposits of stratified clay, sand, and gravel are of raio occur-
rence ; but around the shores and on the lower parts of the mountains, the rocks are for
the most part overlaid by a thin layer of black vegetable soil, which supports a tolerably
thick forest, consisting of white spnice, white pine, and cedar, many of the trees mcjisur-
ing from two to three feet at the base, and running up from 40 to 60 feet without a
branch. The great extent of these forests, and their proximity to navigal>le watei-s, are
elements which at no distant date will ])robal)ly make them of very considerable value
and importance."
Report of the Select Committee on Immigration ami Colonization, Ilout^c of Commons,
Canada, Professor Maconns Evidence, 2>p, 34-5.
" Q, How do the volleys in British Columbia compare in extent with o\ir general
views of valleys {
curi-
and
Uler.
lie
irery
to
lards
" A, The British Columbian valleys are more of the nature of ravines (I speak of
those in the dry country) than anything else, but there are many level terraces, ('ber»ches')
which may be termed valleys, scattered all over the country traversed by me. lliver
valleys in British Columbia, except in the third district, have no existence. Every river
seen by me in the middle region ran at the bottom of a gorge, usually called a Canyon,
and had not one foot of a valley; The valley of the Lower Fraser is a true valley of de-
position, and is altogether composed of the alluvium brought down by the river ; one
drawback in connection with it, is the destruction caused every year by the river cutting
into its banks and wasting the land along them. At Sumas this is going on so last that
houses have had to be removed already.
10
'^n
74
t
" Q. What is the nature of the soil in the valleys ? Do you find rich alluvial de-
posits in the valleys, or are they covered with the debris of rocky fragments washed from
the mountains )
" A. The soil in the valleys, whether tliey are narrow or wide, ('benches') or other-
wise, is alwayH good. The valleys are partly alluvium and partly the detritus washed
down from the hills. Apparently there waf a time when the rivers stood much higher
than they do now, and the (' benches') which show along their sides were then about on a
flood level with the river. Since then the river has successively broken through the bar-
riers which confined it, and left these terraces (< benches ') at vaiious heights. The slopes
of all the hills are more or less grassy, and tlie valleys along their base have scarcely any
loose stone upon them in consequence.
" Q. Have you a knowledge of the temperature 1 If so, how does the thermometer
range during the summer and winter monti i both on the coast and inland Y Are summer
frosts prevalent and injurious to crops ?
"A. I was in Victoria from the 12tli to 28th December, 1872, and from the 2nd to
14th May, last year. While I was in Victoria in 1872, a fall of snow and slight frost
took place, and the papers came out next day with an account of the extraordinarily cold
weather, and I was led to infer from that, that such weather was not common in winter.
Jessamine, roses, and violets were in flower, and everything betokened a mild winter.
The summer on the coast is everything that lan be desired, being dry and pleasant.
" In the arid region the spring is about iis early as on the coast ; the winter is com-
paratively cold, with very little snow, and tlie summer is dry and hot. Summer frosts
can do no harm in these regions.
" From Clinton upwards the winter is very cold with a considerable snow-fall and
frosts extending through the month of May, and possibly into June. I heard of no in-
jury from frosts at Quesnelle or any point ou the Fraser, but noticed frost on the grass
on the 27th May, at or near Soda Creek. From this date until the 4th June, the
weather kept cold, but there was no frost. On the 28th June at MacLeod's Lake, lat.
55", there was a severe frost, and many wild flowere were injured, but nothing was hurt
in the garden.
" Q, What are the facilities for reaciiing the cultivable plateaux from the sea-
board t
"A. From Victoria to Westminster and Yale by steamboat ; then by waggon road
along the canyons of the Fraser and Thompson to Spence's Bridge on the latter river.
From here a 'trail' leads up the Nicola Valley for an iinknown distance. Thirty-two
miles beyond this point, at Cache Creek, a road leads to Kamloops and the waggon road
passes on to Barkerville in Cariboo. Except a branch road passing from Clinton to
Lilloet on the Fraser, I know of no other roads in the country."
CEltTRAL PlATBAU.
Four Years in British Columbia. By Commander R. C. Mai/ne, R.N,, F.R.G.S.,pp. 382-3.
**''=" The natural resources of British Columbia, independently of its
mineral wwilth, are such as to make it well worthy of the consideration of agricultural
settlers.
JL
" After the Cascade Range is passed, the country assumes an entirely different aspect
from that of the coast. The dense pine-forests cease, and the land becomes open, clear,
and in the spring and summer time covered with bunch-grass, which affords excellent
grazing for cattle. Although this country may rightly be called open, that word should
not be understood in the sense in which an Australian settler, for instance, would accept
it. Thera are no enormous prairies here, as there, without a hill or wood to break the
monotony of the scene far as the eye can reach. It is rather what the Califomians term
'rolling country' broken up into pleasant valleys and sheltered by mountain ridges of
rarious height. These hills are usually well clothed with timber, but with little, if any,
undergrowth. The valleys are generally clear of wood, except along the banks of the
streams which traverse them. ♦ ?• * The timber upon the hills \a very
light compared with its growth upon the : jast. ■# * *
"Governor Douglas, speaking of this di-trict says : —
'"Tlie district is exceedingly beautiful and picturesque, being composed of a suc-
cession of hills and valleys, lakes and rivers, exhibiting to the traveller accustomed to the
endless forests of the coast districts the unusual and grateful spectacle of miles of green
hills crowning slopes and level meadows, almost without a bush or tree to obstruct the
view, and even to the very hill tops producing an abundant growth of grass. * * ♦
It has certainly never been my good fortune to visit a country more pleasing to the eye,
or possessing a more healthy and agreeable climate." '
Report by Lieut. II. Spencer Palmer^ Royal Jhigimers, on the Noi'th Rentuick Arm
tlie route thence through tfie Cascade cliain oj mountains to the interior
^ 0/ British Columbia.
and
2-3.
its
iral
# # # "Tlie belt of country lying between the Summit Lake and the
Chilcotin River, presents more attractive features than any other portion of the route.
Ranges of rolling hills of as much as 1,000 feet in height enclose broad, open valleys
watered by gentle streams, and embellished -with chains of picturesque lakes. Although
considerable tracts of dense forests are met with on the heights and on the mountain
slopes, this gives way in the lowlands to an open-timbered grassy coimtry, such as is met
with in the Similkameen and other well known districts of British Columbia, and the
valleys also embrace nimierous comparatively level, ©iien praries of various extent, which
afford bunch-gross pasturage in fair abundance and will probably be found to be con-
venient wintering posts. * t- *
"As regards routes from the coast, the impression conveyed by this glimpse at a very
large tract of country is that on emerging from the Cascade Range, the principal
difficulties of travel are passed and that, thence, there is no impracticability in making a
road across the plateau to strike the Fraser at almost any point. * ** The
determination of the best line through so extensive a district would necessarily l)e a labor
involving weeks or even months of exploration, the main object of course being to avoid
as far as possible the lakes and swamps, and, guided by t'le "clative geograi>hical position
of the termini, to lay out as straiirlit a road as the natural features of the country
admit of. * * *
straiglit
"Reclining once more to the route across the plateau, I must notice, as one of its
most pi"ominent features, the almost entire absence of hills between the I'lcoipico and
Alexander, the valleys of the l*o«>tz«ako and the Chilcotin, and the final descent to the
Fraser being the only points where hills worth mention occur. Swamps are very goncral.
7«
probably, in all, tho actual extont of swamps tmveraed, in pieces from 20 to 400 yards in
longtL, does not exceed ten miles.
" Of the climate of the plateau I can not give any reliable data, though it is probable
that owing to its great altitude, which fi-om the slide eastwards nearly everywhere exceeds
2,000 feet, and reaches to more than 4,000 foot al)ovo the the level of the soa. * =•'
" Bentinck Arm roiite is unlikely, for tho present at least, to ac<|uirc importance iw
an arterial highway. * ♦ * Bute Inlet apjiears to possess far gi'eater
advantages of geographical position, and we learn from the admiralty survey that there
is a passHblo anchorage at its head."
Rnixyft of Select Committee, House of Commoiui, Canada, on Iinniltjidtlou and Coloniza-
tion, 1876. Prof. Macoun^s Evidcnee, j>- 33.
"Between Quesnelle and Fort St. James, on Stewart's Lake, is a wide extent of coun-
try (180 miles) with a very diversified asjiect, and a cool, moist climate. The valley of
tho Nechaco Iliver is very wide and perfectly Icjvel. On both sides of the river are
beautiful prairies and poplar copsewood, and at the time we passed (June 15th) through
it, everything looked beautiful and inviting.
"I 'cannot sjieak with certainty of tho al>sencc or occuiTonco of suninior frosts, but if
they should not be severe this would l)o one of tho finest tracts. (Nechaco Valley) in
all British Columbia.
"The whole country above Quesnelle scorns to h.avo a cool, moist climate, and to bo
moro like Quebec in its productions than Ontario. Fort St. James, on Stewart's Lake
— the highest point in the district — has always been known to produce garden vogetabk*,
j)otatoe8, barley and oats, but whether wheat has ever been raised or not I am unable to
say. All this region is an elevated plateau with broken, rocky hills at intervals, but
scarcely anything which could be called a mountain. Should the railway pass as far
north as the Neshaw, many fine settlements would spring up along the river.
Four Tears in British Colnmhia. Sij Commander 7'. C. Mayne, 1\.N., F.U.G.S. p. 140.
* ^' * " When Sir Alexander Macken/ip exjtlored this part of the country,
he appeal's to have ascended the West Itoad River from the Frasor, and then, crossing the
ridge forming the watci-shed, to have de.scended to tlie sea, His route has never been
exactly followed ; but in 18G0 Mr. Colin McKenzie crossed from Alexandria to the same
place on the coast, viz : Rascals' Village or Bella-houla Bay, in thirteen days by way of
Chilcotin Lake. His party travelled the greater portion of the way on horseback. Mr.
McKenzie told me that they might have taken their animals all the way by changing the
route a little. On theii- way back, indeed, they did so. The ascent to the watershed was,
he said, so gradual, that they only knew they had passed the summit by finding that the
streams ran west, instead of east."
Ibid, p. 148.
♦ * * "The trail runs tho whole distaiien from xVii'xaiidria to Coast Rungo
on a kind of tableland, which is studded in every direction with lakes and lucailows.
The streams are numerous but small and shallow, in fact, mere creeks. There are some
swamps. * * * There is plenty of fallen thuber ; but it is light and could easily be
clcai-ed."
direct.on.
way."
77
Proposed Overland Railroad. litj Alfrfxl Waddi nylon, ji. 19.
* " Tho road woiiM cross tlu? licli Cliilcotin pliiin in n south-westerly
'■'■' This sligiitly rolling, IVrtile plain oiloi-a every facility for a niil-
Triiveln in Driti.di Cohnnhin. Tiif Capt. C. E. Jlarrett-f.mnard, p. L'OS.
* '■' ■'■'• " So f)ir as nsaohing tho Frascr from tho coast is concorncd, tho
Buto Inlet route has tho advantage of heing tho shorter M-ay hy 20 miles, which is much
moro accessible from Victoria than Ben tinck Arm."
Coast of BniTiSH Cour.MniA.
Tfie Do7ninlon at the West. Jii/ Alex. C aid ft eld Anderson, J. P., p. ■").
* * * " Tho coast range (/. «. the chain of mountains lying hotwoen tho
interior of i ■ jirovince and the seaboard) comnieiicc^s above New Westminster, and ex
tends piralic, with tho coast, as far as ]\tount St. Elias at the northern extremity. "'•' '••
" A i*eferenco to the map will show that the North-west Coast from San Francisco
u])Wards as far as the Strait of Fuca, ])resents a lino remarkably free from indentation.
Tlience northward, however, the coast is broken up into a perfect iiiiize of inlets, forming
in their ramifications countless islands of greater or less extent. The minute exploration
of this exti-aordinary archipelago by Vancouver, in the years 17i)l-9.'{, has given us maps
the accuracy of which under the circumstances has excited the admimtiou of succeeding
navigators. Outside of the archipelago lie two principiil islands, Vancouver and Queen
(/harlotte, divided from each other by a broad sound, and extending from the Strait of
Fuca on the South to the frontier of Alaska on the North. The southern island, named
by tho exjilorer Quadra and Vancouver's Island, after the Spanish Commander then on
the station and himself, formed originally, with its dependencies, the Colony of Vancouver
Island. It extends in a north-western direction from hit. 48" 20' to lat. 51", in length
nearly 250 geogi-aphical miles ; its greatest breadth, ojiposite to Nootka, being about
seventy. Victoria, the seat of Government and Capital of the Province, is situated near
the south-eastern extremity of the Island, where the adjoining Strait of Fuca is about
seventeen miles in breadth. This strait, extending into the United States Tei-ritory by
the inlet tenninating in Puget Souml on the south, expands northward into the Culf of
Georgia, which extends to lat. 50". This portion of the dividing channel in no part ex-
ceeds 20 miles in -width ; contracting afterwards into Johnstone's Strait, which, at the
narrowest part, does not exceed two miles."
The J/if /.■'>,>'.■< B,ni IWritnrles. Jl;/ R. J/. Marl! n, p. 27. ■= • ' ■
"' * '■''• " The coast abounds with harbors, inlets and islands, of which
latter that called Vancouver, or Quadra is the largest and most important to Great
Britain, from its position at the termination of the United States boundaiy, in the 49th
parallel of latitude, and from its fine harboi-s, there being no haven between the Straits of
Juan de Fuca and San Francisco, iri California.
* * * "Tho islands within l]i(> British dominions arc of various sizes ; tlie
largest, named 'Queen Charlotte's Island,' is somcjwhat of a triangular form, lying nearly
north and south; the south point in the parallel of 52". The superficial area is less than
that of Vancouver Island, it has several go>,-■')■' -
Ibid, 2>' 35. Report of Lieut. Vavasour, R.E.
# * "The Straits of Juan de Fuca, which sep; ate Vancouver Island
from the mainland, may bd safely navigated; tho shores are stuJght and bold ; on the
south composed of perpendicular cliffs that run back in high and rugged peaks, on tlio
north rocky, and in some pbiccs of reddish granite."
Navioatjon.
Facls uiul Fvjurcs relating to Vancouver lalarul ami Britinh Columbia.
Pemberton, p. 9.
Ihj J. Despard
* * * "It appoar.1 far from improbable that this strait (San Juan do
Fucii) win ultimately become the great commercial thorouglifaro fo" the commerce of the
nortli Pacitic, and that Juan de Fiica, when he discovered it 260 years ago, was right in
his conjecture that he had found tho north-west passage. This idea k, strengthened by
an examination oi the ports which lie between San Francisco and the strait. Tliat this
coast line, nearly 600 miles in length, should not possess a single reapoctable harbor is ;i
very roniarkabh? fact."
Ibid, p. 11.
*' " ♦ " Tlie Strait of San Juan de Fuca is, on an average, cloven miles
wide, and is free from sunken rocks or shoals ; its direction is east to west for about 7(*
miles to its junction with the channels, which load by a noitherly coui'se into tho (jl\ilf of
(Jeorgia, which separates Vancouver Island from the Continent. The approach is safe
for all d'jscriptions of vessels, being liable to no other dangers than those incident to gales
from the south-east, which, with considerable intervals of tranouil Wviather, are, in
winter, not uncommon, and to fogs, or rather dense smoke arising from forests on fire in
autumn. Although in the latter case soundings are a safeguard, and good anohornge can
generally be found within a mile of either shore.
iland
1 tlio
tho
79
" The facility for entering ond navigating tliis strait has been greatly increased by
the erection of lighthouses on tlie south shore by the United States Government, and on
the noi*th by the British."
. Ibkl, p. 12.
* * " Once within the strait, on both coasts safe anchorage ami good
harbors are everywhere met with. '■' * ^'hat harbora such as these should occur
at the limit of sailing navigation is a very happy circumstance for these colonies. The
•waters of the Gulf of Georgia are well adapted for steamei-s, but, there, uncertain tides
and variable winds, fogs, currents, hidden dangers and detention, pi-actically exclude sail-
ing vessels."
Ibid, p. 13.
"That these harboi-s are connected with upwards of 100,000 acres of arable land in
the background is a strong recommendation for them.
"•' ''• "If a ship, running from a storm in the Pacific, having entered tho strait,
should be baffled in her endeavours to reach the harbor or anchorages on tho north
shore, the winds preventing must be fair to take her into Neah Bay, Calum Bay, Pert
Angelos, or Port Townsend, on the south shore.
* * '■' " Enough has perhaps been said to ;.aow that the facilitief for navi-
gation in the vicinity of these colonies is uimvalled, and that there is no want of harbour
accommodation.
" Of those deep saltwater inlets, with which the coast abounds, I may here mention
two peculiarities. At the heatl of every one of those that I have ever visited a fresh water
stream is found,
tractions."
The second i)eculiarity is the frequency in them of gorges or coji-
Ihid,pp, 16-17.
* * " The interior of British Columbia is everywhere intci-sected by
natui'al water cominunicatioiLS, in which respect it greatly resembles the Canadas."
de
in
tl
this
is n
70
llf of
safe
rales
in
in
I can
Fisheries.
Jieport of Select CcmmUlei', on Immigration aivd Colonhalion.
Canada, 187G. pp. 36-7.
Itouae of Commons,
" Q. Are there any extensive fisheries on the rivers or coasts I What kind of fish
are caught, are they exported and to what extent ]
" A. From the boundary line to Alaska there is not a bay, ford or river that is
not teeming with fish. Salmon are caught in great numbers, both in spring, summer and
autumn Last spring large quantities of tdh were b«ing caught at New Westminster
for ex{)ort. An establishment for the canning ot salmon has been established there, and
it is to be hoped that this is the beginning cf a very pros{>erous business. Salmon
ascend the Fraser all the way to Stewart's Lake, which they reach about tho month of
August ; they likewise ascend the Skeena into the Babine Lake, and ai-e caught by the
Indians and the Hudson Bay Company's {)eople and dried for winter's use . The salmon
of Babine Lake are both larger and fatter than those caught m Stewart's Lake, and are
therefore brought acrasa to supply Fori St. James with food in winter.
^BB
80
" Sturgeon 700 lbs. weight are often caught in the a])ove-nientioned lakes, anil every
lake ai (1 stream in Uj)per British Columbia teems with trout of dillbreut species, besides
many other varieties of less value. - -- i v >- . ;i
" Of salt water lish I know but little, except one small one — the 'IIouHcau ' — which
I saw in the Fraser in myriads last spring. Many wore lying dead along the ri.-er and
served as food for various animals. Halibut were very plentiful in Victoria, and many
other soafish of wiiich I did not learn the names. I bnliovo the fisheries of British
Columlna, if properly conducted, would eventually bo as profitable as those of the Gulf
of St. Lawienco.
Desolation Souxd.
lieport <>/ Mr. WUliani Dowiiie to Governor Jamas Douglas.
* * * II "W^g anived safe in Desolation Sound, which docs certainly look
somewhat desolate in a snow-storm ; but I am well pleased with the prospect of this
section. This is the first time I have seen pure veins of sulphuret of iron, which looks
very much like silver. I came across a number of scams of tlio same kind. It lies in
the quartz, the same as gold.
# # * <i! « 'piio coal can bo worked at a comparatively small expense over a field
of flucli extent. Some of it has been brought to England, and answered exceedingly
well in forges."
81
Four Years in British Columbia. Hi/ Commander R. C. Mayiic, E.JV., F.R.C.S., p. 390.
■-" * "In the northern part of the colony (Columl)ia), from Alexanemes are found throughout the country. The Oregon grape {Berherls fifjiii/dHidii.
and 'n/irrosa) extends all the way from Vancouver to lat. 5.")" iu the intei-ior, and to
Alaska along the coast.
om
L>ld
" Perhaps there is no better place in the world for raising fruit than Vi(!toria,
Apples and pears of a very large size are produced in such abundance^ that the former
can hardly be sold at any price. The orchards are all in the low wet grouiuls and will
begin to decay in a few years, whereas if they were planted among the I'ocks where the
oak grows, the trees would live longer and probably produce V)etter fruit. I can see no
reason why grapes could not Ije proiluced in abundance on any part of Vancouver, if the
summer temperature is high enough. After the railway is built Vancouver will send
immense quantities of fruit into the interior as it can be raised to any extent and of
every kind."
II
82
Ibid, I). 37.
" Q. Do you know from actual observation whether any intertropical currents and
prevailing winds flowing along the coast of Vancouver and British Columbia have a
tendency to ameliorate the climate in a simi'ar manner as the Gulf Stream afiects the
Maritimp Provinces ?
fact.
"">'!. I know nothing of it from actual observation, but that it is so is a demonstrateil
" About the island of Formosa, on the eastern coast of China, a current analogous to
the Gulf Stream is observed moving to the north-east. It passes Japan, and pi.rt of it
enters Behring's Sea and warms the northern part of Alaska, while the other part is
deflected farther to the east and passes down the West Coast of America, carrying with it
the heat necessaiy to produce the exceptionally warm climate of Vancouver and the West
Coast generally. It is this stream which gives the heat and moisture that are the cause
of the magnificent forests found from Alaska southwards. The forests of Norway and
those of Western America are the product of the two great currents — the ' Gulf Stream '
on the east and 'Kuro Siwo' on the west, and sceptics may rest assured that the value
of the West Coast timber far exceeds that of the Eastern Provinces."
Gold Fields.
Fart^ riiul FujnrfiK relatiiKj to Vancouver Island and Bvitixh ColnmhUt. Ihj ,1 . Des^pard
Pemberton, p. 30.
* ■'' " The wide distribution of gold in British Columbia is very strik-
ing : ti'aversing the country diagonally from north to south, the Fraser River every-
where passes through a gold country. The same may be said of the Thompson River,
and of the Columbia north of 49". '■'■ * As a rule, the gold is found in much
smaller particles, and less in quantity nearer the mouths of these rivers, and both size and
quantity increase as we ascend them."
Travnh in. British Columbia. By Cnpt. (', /•,'. Barrett Leunard, p. 173.
* * ''■ "The gold regions of British Columbia lie l)etwccn these (the
coast) ranges of mountains and the great central chain of the North American Continent,
the Rocky INIountains. In the more level districts between these various mountain
ranges we meet with vast areas of fertile land, destined hereafter to become important
agricultural and pastoral countries."
llepm't «l' Select Committee on Immigrntion and Colonization, House, of Comiiionn,
Canada, 1870. Prof. Macoun's Evi'lencf, p. 'M.
*'(>. What are the mineral interests of Jhitish Columl>ia I Ai-o they developed to
any extent! Wo»ild encoui-agement to mining interests develope agricultural interests
and increase immigration to the Province J , ,
"A. Gold has been found in paying quantities at Okanagan on the American
Boundary, — at Shuswap Lake — at Cariboo — on the Ominica — on the Stickeen — and
latterly at Cassiar, and an examination of the map will show that all this gold is pro-
duced from mountaiiis lying between the Rockies and the Cascades. Copper, iron, and
silver have been found at vaiious points in the Cascades, and coal is abundant on
Vancou\ei' and Queen Chai'lotte's Islands. I just mention these and ask : Are those
83
all, or are they merely indications of what is to come ? After having travelled over 1,000
miles through British Columbia, I can say with safety that there will yet be taken out
of her mines wealth enough to build the Pacific Railway. Consider that gold has been
found in paying quantities, at various points, along a north-west lino for more than ten
degrees of latitude, before you decide that the foregoing statement is that of an
enthusiast.
" Cariboo is really the only point where the gold interest has been developed. Coal
is mined at Nanaimo, and these constitute the developed mining interests of British
Columbia. Gold has been found on Vancouver itself, and there is no reason why it
should not pay for the working."
Export of Gold.
The Dominion at the Went. By Alex. C. Anderson, J, P., Apiien-Ux F.
" Shipment of gold, product of the British Columbia mines from the year 185b to
1871 inclusive, 621,278,!)iG.63.
" The foregoing may be accepted as a correct return as far as the lecords sliow ; but
it does not convey a just impression of the whole gold-produco of the country, owing to
the large amounts taken away in private hands, the aggregate of which it is impossible to
estimate."
Althtdes.
The Dominion at the West, By Alcjc. Cauljidd Aiulenon, J. P., 1872, p. 30, Ai>pciidio\
" Approximate altitudes above the sea of some places in British Columbia, from
observations by ofticei"s of the lloyal Eugineoi's.
" Fort Alexandria, Fraser level, 1,420 feet.
" Frascr lliver at mouth of Quesiiel Biver, 1,4'JO "
do do do Swift do 1,530 "
do at Fort George, 1,600 "
" Lillooet Lake, 620 "
"Summit do (Lillooet route) 1,482
" Summit altitude of trail Chilcotin Plateau, 4,300
" Summit Lake, on do do do 4,020
EC'OXOMIC Ml.VEUALS.
on
lieso
Travels in British Coliunbia. By Capt. C. H. Barrett LeananI, /ip. I."i7.8.
* '•• * " Of the mineral i)roductions of DritLsh Columbia, it is iliiriciilt as
yet to speak with perfect confidence, save as rtsgards the now world-notorious fact of its
auriferous wealth. Both silver and copper are known to exist in considerable (juantities,
and mines of both metals have recently bt«n o])ened. I have frequently seen specimens
of silver ore brought by Indians to Victoria, from districts lying adjacent to tlie sea coast.
"Coal is known to exist in various districts of British Columbia. Stone, suitable for
every purpose of building, only requires to bo quarried. Limestone and sandstone are
everywhere abundant. Marble, of various kinds, is found in the coast range of
mountains. Salt exists in many localities, and is obtained in great quantities from the
salt springs of Nanaimo."
im
T
84
i
Four Yea/rs ia British Columbia. By Commander R. C. Mayne, R.N. d'c, pp. 380-1-2.
*■' * * "All tlie north end of Vancouver Island contains coal measures,
and some (juiiutity has been taken out a little way to the northward of Fort Ruijert. * '^'
It is no exaggeration, indeed, to say, that coal exists all along the shores of both colonies
(B. Columbia and Vancouver Island).
* * ;•' " For economic purposes these beds are very valuable.
* * " It may be remarked that the deeper the workings at Nanaimo
ai'e carried the 1 tetter the quality of the coal becomes."
O'eufo'jical Survey of Canada, 1872-3, pp. 80-1. Appendix lyy Dr. llarrinijton to Mr.
Ric/inrdsou^ s Report.
.--it" ■ ■-
* •,•; * a Tjjg QQ^i itself is bright, tolerably hard, and not unlike some of
the best qualities of English or Welsh coal in appearance. It bums freely with a good
heat, but produces a great amount of ash. It is univei-sally used by all Her Majesty's
ships on the coast, and by all the colonial and other steamers plying on the coast. It is
highly valued as fuel for domestic purposes, both in Victoria, San Francisco and other
towns. Gas is manufactured from it in Victoria of good illuminating quality.
* * * " The Vancouver coals are for the most part true bituminous coals,
and the name of 'lignite' which has been applied to them by a number of writers, is
altogether a misnomer.
* '■' •' " I have recently examined specimens (of Queen Charlotte Islands
coal) collected by Mr. Ilichai'dson and found them to be true anthracites.
Iron Ores.
Gculo'jical Survey i* Canada, 1^73-1. Report by Mr. Rtc/uudson, p. 100.
* * * " These ores could scarcely be mort; favorably situated than they
are, either as regards mining, smelting or shipment. There is deep water close to the
shore, and wharves might be easily and cheaply constructed, at which vessels could always
load in safety. '' * The site of the ore is 18 miles from Comox Harbor,
L' 1 miles from Deep Bay, and about 23 miles from Fanny Bay. These are all good and
safe harbors, and arc only a short distance from the productive coal scams of the Comox
area.
" Iron ore is i-ei)ortcd to occur also in the following l<3calities ;
" 1 . Fifty yards from the Yale and Cariboo waggon road. * * * It is
a magnetic oro, and is stated to occur in a vein eight feet in thickness.
'• :'.. • (ni*> mile up the river at the head of Kuiyht's lulcl.
*' \ • J3 '-vest from Menzie's Bay, V. I., near Seymour Narrows, close to some
oi" ri .. . , ,; ' ■-'■ ■•' the Comox area.
" 4. On the west side of Fitz Hugh Sound, at the entrance to River's Inlot.
•'5. Iron ore is said to occur on the'shoi-es of a bay to the south-cast of Cape
Commfcrc-11, at the north-west end of Vancouver Island."
Attractions for Settlement.
Tlie Daniiiiion at tJie West. By A. C. Anderson, J.P., j>. 87.
"Tho general advantages of British Columbia as a field for iminigiution may be
briefly sinnnicd.
" A temperate climate, remarkably salubrious in its character ; a feitile soil easily
brought into cultivation ; rich and extensive pastures ; abundant natural resources for
procuring food ; land cheaply, if not gratuitously, attainable by the industrious ; good
government nnder a liberal constitution ; security of life and projjcrty under rigidly
executed laws ; facilities for religious worship for every denomination ; a liberal system of
education, free of cost ; ready and cheap |X)stal communication with all parts of the world ;
telegraphic facilities through the United States to Canada and Euroije ; a wide and con-
stantly extending market, soon to be enormously increased by the progress of the
Canadian Pacific Railway and other concomitant enterprises. "
Trade and Commerce.
Travels la British Columbia. By Capt. (J. E. Bairrelt Leniumf, p. 181.
*■ * * a xhe situation of British Columbia and Vancouver Ibiand, on the
Pacific, is admirably adapted for carrying on a trade with China, Japan, India, and
Austi-alia, and it is not too much to suppose that these colonies must become the great
highway for ti-afhc between the above-mentioned countries and England, in the event of
completion of this line of railroad. The distance between London ajad Pekin would by
this means be reduced some ten thousand miles, and the entire journey would probably
not occupy moi'e than a month or five weeks— while Vancouver itself would be brought
some five or six thousand miles nearer to this country (England) than ever by the short
overland route of Panama."
J hid, p. 182.
* # * "What a grand future would the construction of such a line of
railroad open for these remote deijendencies of the British Ci'own on the Pacific ! What
a glorious day would that be for British Columbia, when, vessels sailing from India,
China, and Australia should meet at some point on her coasts, to land their passengers
and discharge their cargoes, returning again laden with articles of our own manufacture !
Numbera of those passengers to India, China, and Australia, who now go by the way of
the Cape of Good Hope, or by Suez, would in preference select the inter-oceanic railway
of Canada, as both cheaper and more expeditious. The saving in the time of transit to
China, especially to the more noithern portions of that empii'e, and to Japan, would be
very great, and the mercantile community, both in England and hx the east, would be
greatly benefited by the establishment of n constant, speedy, and safe moans of communi-
cation passing througli British territory.
"Another great advantage to be derived from the establishment of a line of com-
munication between the Atlantic and Pacific through British temtory, would be the
facilities it would afford for the transport of troo])s, stores, and artilleiy to any point
along the frontier line or on the coast of the Pacific."
Ibid, p. 184.
'» . * ' •
* * ="' "The advantages that would accmo to Great Britain from the
entire service being performed through Britiiih territory are incalculable. The con-
n
86
struction of the milway would not merely open to civilization a large territoiy in British
North America, hithei-to almost unexplored, but it would open up to the cultivators of
the soil, in that temtory and in Canada, a means of trarisit to all the markets of the
Pacific, and an open passage to the China seas, and to our [mssessions in the East Indies ;
in every aspect, whether viewed ix)litically, socially, or commercially, the establishment
of the j)ro]>osed railway would give a progressive impulse to the affaii-s of the world, which
in its results, would eclipse anything that has been witnessed jven amid the extraordinary
achievements of the present century."
Ibid, p. 185.
* " An attempt will be made to can-y out the long ])rojected idea of
an overland communication from Lake Superior by the Red River, Lake Winnipeg,
and the Saskatchewan, to the foot of the Rocky Mountains, and finally across them into
British Columbia. The opening up of this route would not only confer an immense
benefit on the last-mentioned place, but would tend gi'eatly to develope the natural
resources of the country through which it passes, which are evidently very great. The
climate is by no means so severe as might be expected from the latitude, herds of buflalo
>)eing found as far north as parallel 60". Indian corn ripens on the Saskatchewan. The
rivei-s are free from ice on the beginning of May ; wheat sown shortly after in the valley
of the Red River may be gathered in the month of August. In addition to these natui-al
advantages of soil and climate, gold is known to exist in the valley of the Saskatchewan,
as well as in that of the Athabasca."
'fhe Eiuploymcut of the People and the Capital of G reat Britain, a letter from Major Robert
L'armichael Sniyth, to his friend the author of the Cloekinaker, 1849, p. 16.
* * " One view of the map of the world will show that the proposed
terminus of the Atlantic and Pacific P.ailway, taken as a centre, would bring new Zea-
land, New South Wales, in fiict, Australia, New Guinea, Borneo, Canton, Pekin, all
within fifty days sail of that point ; and taking the Sandwich Islands as a centre point,
(where there is a fine harbor, and where a depot of coals might be established), which
would be reached in ten days, all the above-named places would be brought within twenty
ilays for steam navigation, other points, such as the Friendly Islands, &.c., might be
selected for further depots of coal. Again, from the termiims of the proposed railway
the mails from England could be despatched to all the before-mentioned places. '■' *
Last, though not least, of all, this railway route across the continent of North America
would ensure to England at all times a free communication with her East India
possessions. * * * The proposed line across the continent of America
would be within our own dominions, and would not oblige us to interfere or meddle with
any continental wars to enjoy its free use.
mcnt of this national undertaking."
No time ought to be lost in the commence-
Jbid, p. 20.
* * * " It appears to me impossible that such a powerful and wealthy
company as the Hudson's Bay, such magiiiticent colonies as our North American
Provinces, and such a power as Great Britain, can balance for one moment in their minds
whether loss or profit must attend the undertakmg and completion of such a railway."
I'he Dominion at the West. By A. C. Anderson, J. P., }ip. 69-70.
* * * " With refei'ence to the commerce of the East, if it bo not para-
doxical to term that the East which wo are now approaching from the contrary
87
■^
direction — the following consideration may be noted.
Assuming Yokohama,
m
.ipan.
for « starting point, the direct distance to Esquimalt may be taken, in round nuinbei-s, at
about 4,200 geographical miles ; equal to about a month's voyage of a sailing vessel.
Canton is {)robably about a fortnight farther, in point of time. Measured acjoss the
map, San Francisco may l)e regaixled as equidistant. The actual distance necessary to V>e
traversed by a sailing vessel in order to reach that jjort is, howevei', considerably groatei- ;
as will appear from the following remarks which I find quoted from a recognised authority
of the liighest standing — Professor Maury, of Washington. 'Tlie trade winds place
Vancouver Island on the wayside of the road from China and Japan to San Francisco so
completely, that a sailing vessel trading under canvas to the latter place, would take the
same route as if she Avere bound for Vancouver Island. So that all return cargoes would
naturally come there in order to save two or three weeks, l)esides risk and expense.'
Hence it is manifest that the Canadian Pacific Railway, terminating at Esquimalt — and
in a minor degi'ee the projected Northern Pacific Railway, owing to the perversities of
the inland navigation necessary to resich its proposed terminus — would ])ossess a great
advantage over the line, now in operation, from San Francisco to New York. The last-
named port, moreover — about equidistant from Liverpool or London with Montreal — is
considerably farther than Halifax, to which point it would be necessiuy to extend the
transport during the period of closed-navigation of the St. Lawrence. This necessity
would involve a farther land-transport of 482 miles, by the Intercolonial Railway now in
operation : but then the shipping point on the Atlantic would be some five hundred miles
neai'er to England than is New York. Hence it is obvious that the route now under
[U'ocess of survey, if the foregoing estimates be nearly correct, presents the advantage, as
from China to England, of some seven hundred miles over the projected Northern Pacific
Railway ; and, under l.he consideration advanced by Professor Maury, of more than a
thousand over the present route by San Francisco."
Snow Fall.
The Dunilnioii at the ]Vest, By Alex, C. Andernon, J. P., pji. GG-7.
" The Pass by the heads of the Miette and the Eraser is so gi-adual of ascent, with so
few obstacles worthy of consideration, that it may be characterized jvlmost as a natui-al
road. Its shortness and directness with regard to the probable terminus on the Pacific
Coast, give it moreover an advantage over any other line of approach : and although the
depth of snow at the summit, dunng winter, is much greater than I have seen gravely
stated, there is far less than by any other Pass with which I am acquainted, either from
personal observation or report. The snow, too, through the eflects of certain natural
phenomena which he'*e prevail, and for which I do not profess to account, becomes,
more compacted, consequently does not drift in an equal degree, and is therefore in all
respects more manageable than elsewhere. The importance of this considemtion is
material ; bearing in mind that the stopjiages upon the Union I'acific Railway (hiring the
past winter arose chiefly from drift.
" It is a curious fact that, in the valley of the Athabasca, ujjou this line of transit,
for a distance of thirty miles or mbi-e both above and below Jasper House, the snow
never accumulates. There is constant grass : and the large herds of hoi-ses formerly kei)t
there by the Hudson's Bay Company, for transport over the mountains, wintered there,
fat, upon the natural pasture. Crossing by this Pass many yeai-s ago, on his way from
the Saskatchewan, the writer found, in the month of January during a winter of almost
iniexampled severity, that the snow liad entirely disappeared from the immediate banks
of the river, at the mouth of the Cmnberry Fork, near T6te Jaune Cache ; and, for a
distance of some forty miles down the Fra.ser, the ice was perfectly denuded of snow. A
wai'm wind ])revailed, accompanied at intervals by a gentle rain. It could only be
1^'
m
IB
m
m
m
^^^wp*
88
inferred that this warm current, extending through the Pass, exercised a modifying
influence there; and, spreading afterwards through the Jasper's Valley, produced the
eJBTects noted. As these effects, however, are known to be constant in the latter-named
locality, we may infer that the same cause is likewise constant. I may remark,
passingly, that similar effects are also produced in a markod degnn* in oMior parts of
Uritish Columbia."
Building Stone.
N^oti'S ref/ardliiff the Stone quarrij at Xanainio. From the Vicforla,
Colmiint" Newspaper, — August, 1872.
r. /., " RnH^h
" Nanaimo is endowed with greater natural wealth than perhaps, any other jiarfc of
the wide Dominion of Canada. Her coal measures already opened formed the subject of
a recent article. Her coal stores still locked might fill a book. In these practically
inexhaustible stores Nanaimo possesses a power which must compel commerce and manu-
facture to kneel at her feet. But Nanaimo has a mine of wealth of a different kind — tho
Newcastle Stone Quany. This quany has been worked for upwards of two years, and
yet it may be said to be scarcely opened. Here are several square miles of a continuous
formation xjf the best free-stone to be found anywhere on the coast. No more conclusive
evidence of the superiority of this stone need be sought than the fact that the United
States Mint at San Francisco is made of it. The mint cost considerably over a million
and a half, and absorbed eight thousand tons of the Newcastle stone. The introduction
of ^ this stone for so important a purjwse naturally aroused a certain amount of local
jealousy and brought out some international prejudice. The consequence was that the
stone was subjected to a rather more severe test than would otherwise have been the case.
It is gratifying to leaiii tliat the United States Inspector has, in his recent final report, given
the ston« the highest character. To possess a stone quarry so superior in every respect as
to command the patreaage of San Francisco and overcome the prejudices of the Great
Republic is something of which Nanaimo may justly be proud. We have said that the
San Francisco Mint took eight thousand tons of this stone. In addition to this it took a
large quantity of flagging-stone for court-yard, side-walks, and cellar. In the eight
thousand tons were some pieces deserving of specific notice. There were six columns,
twenty-eight feet long, by four feet two inches square. These columns were faultless
throughout. There were two stones for comer pediments fifteen tons each, and two key
stones of fom-teen tons each. One circumstance has tended seriously to lessen the profits
of the quarry. Every stone going to make up the eight thousand tons for the mint has
been of specific dimensions ; and in quarrying to till the order a gi-eat deal of such stone
as would be used for smaller buildings or for rubble masonry has gone to waste owing
to there being no demand for it. Of this waste stone there has been enough to realize
fifty thousand dollars in a market presenting a local demand for it. And yet it has not
yielded fifty cents. Nay, to remove it out oLthe way has cost thousands of dollars. We
have said that the quarry is scarcely fairly oi^ened. The last cargo of stone sent to San
Fi-ancisco has been pronounced of a superior quality to that previously sent. It is well
underetood that the quality of the stone improves as you go in. The quarry has now an
excellent and carefully prepared 'face' on it, from which stone may be taken superior in
point of quality to any yet quarried, and of almost any conceivable dimensions. Columns
fifty feet long (or one himdred if necessjiry) by four and a half feet thick can be supplied,
without flaw or fault."
89
APPENDIX TO nTAPTEP V
[Tlio t'(>rt'i^i)iiii^ extiMCts from iiidopoiidont autlioritit's rt'Iating to tlic P»i'itisli ('oliiiiiltiii
soction <,'ivo but a mojii^ro and somewliut uusatistUctorv description of tlic foimtiy. It
liius been tlicroforo tliouylit l>ottor to print iis an api)endixtlif'prineipal portions of the n'ports
of Marcus Smith, Esq., Chief Engineer in British Columbia, of his oi>erations during tho
years 1874-5. These reports, however, are not conclusive in regard to the country spoken of as
the plateau between Fort George and the Cascade Range, as it will be ol)served that that
country was but partially surveyed during these yeai's. The survey is now
nearly completed, and will no doubt show a very coixsidorablc modification of the grades
and engineering difhculties as developed in 1874-.").]
Ufport iif }[tirrn.-t SmiUi, K.iyond this we rejoined the main river; which here makes a sharp bend across the valley,
a id washes the base of the cliffs on the north-west side for half a mile.
"This point is about four miles up the river, where it is fully five hundred feet wide, and
the valley half to three quarters of a mile. About a mile beyond this the river makes a
sharp l)end to the south-east, round a mountain spur behind which lies the Indian village.
But we had been over three hours in a drenching cold rain — which was snow on the
mountains — and we reluctantly resolved to return ; we however sent our Indian on foot
Nvith a message to the chief a.sking him to visit us on board the steamer.
01
" Tho tide had now risen fully two feet so we made a straight course back and
reaclio»l the steamer in an hour.
" At 8 p.m., a large canoe came down with the chief and alwut a dozen Indians, some
of whom we engaged for the survey. The little information they could give us about the
sources of the Kitlopo wius not very promising for a pa.ssage tlirougli the mouutiiins.
" These Indians are an outlying branch of tho Chimsains and their dialect is so mi.xed
up with that of the Bella Coola's that Mr. Duncan had difficulty in convei-sing with them.
Air. Seymour made tijo chief a present of a shirt with tobacco and pi|K!S for himself and
the othei-s, with which they were well satistiod, and they jtromised to assLst the surveying
])arty all they could.
" The Gardner Channel has great depth of water tln'oughoiit, there are few sheltered
places where a large vessel could anchor and lie in safety, and for long stretches the shoi-es
are rocky cliffs where no lauding could be etfected, and they are genemlly impracticable
for a line of railway.
" Satu7'da>/, June l\th. — At 10.30 a.ni., wo left Bella Bella, the weather thick, with
drizzling rain; within an hour we entered the Gunboat Channel, which is very crooked
and at places so naiTow between rocks and reefs, covered at high tide, that it is not a safe
passage for ocean steamers.
" Soon after noon we entered the Dean Channel, but it mined nearly all day and the
mist hung on the mountains, so that we got only occasional glimpses of their summits
which were more or less covered with snow and increased in altitude as we ascended the
channel ; their rugged slopes terminating in cliffs or steep shelves coming down to tho
water's edge. This Channel is about two miles wide, with very deej) water, and no
sheltered bays or safe anchorage except near its head.
" In tho evening we reached a large flat or tongue of land projecting from the east side-
more than halfway across the channel. This is sLx or seven miles from the head cjf the
channel and has been formed with the detritus brought down by the River Kamsquot
which issues from a canyon through a screen of rocks, 300 to 400 feet high and half a
mile across, connecting the mountains on each side of the valley, and probal)ly at one
time it dammed up the river and form(ul a large lake behiufl it.
"The flat is about a mile across, twenty feet high near the lower end and about 100
feet whore it Joins tho rock ; it is covered with red fir and hondock a foot to eighteen inohc:;
diameter. There is an Indian village, of the Bella Coola tribe, at the mouth of the river.
We anchored on the upper side of tiiis flat which forms a well sheltered bay ; the shores
however shelve down rapidly into deep water, making indiffei-ent anchorage; Imt wliarves
for steamers could be constructed at moderate cost.
" Next day a party of us walked over tliis rocky liarrinr to tiie hi>ad of tlu^ canyon ;'
beyond that, as far as we could see, the rocky slopes of the mountains rise directly from tJie
river. •
" In the ."fternoon steam was got up and we ran to the head of the channel but had
some difficulty in finding anchorage ; for this, like all the other inlets forming the cascade
chain terminates with a low flat shelving abruptly into deep water.
" The Tchatsquot River which comes in at the head of tho channel is about 400 feet
wide at its month. About half a mile up it is divided into two branches and several
7
!)2
sloughs, covering nearly the whole of the valley, which is half to three quarters of a mile
wiile, thickly timbered Avith red lir, hemlock and cedar. Oxir gtiide, Charley, took a party
of us in his canoe about a mile uj) the river to a small Indian village and tishing station.
" Moudcvj, June \T)th. — At four a.m., steam was up and we [)roceeded down the
channel; at breakfast time we were on the cross channel leading to the Bentinck Arm,
and in a few hours more we reached the head of the North Ann. The mountains were
partly shrouded in mist but what we could see of them boi'e a general resemblance to
those surrounding Bute Inlet, though the higher ranges beliind did not look so broken
and woi-e more dome-shaped than ])eaked. The slopes of those abutting on the arm
descend more abruptly to the water than those on the west side of Bute Inlet, and this
is the charficter of all the northern inlets. It would be imiiracticable to construct a
railway on their shores on account of the enormous cost.
" TJie arm is about two miles wide and the River Bella Coola, or Woodhalk, which
enters at its head is about 400 feet wide at its mouth; but a short way up it is divid^nl
into several branches and sloughs.
" A party of us went by canoe about a mile up the river to the Indian Village and
Hudson Bay Company's ti-ading post. In the garden were fine cro])S of turnips, carrots,
potatoes, (fcc, but the soil aj)pear8 rather light and sandy. The valley is covered with tir,
hemlock, cedar and a good deal of underbrush.
" I have reason to l)elieve that the description of tlio pass through the C!ascade
^[ouutains, by Lieutenant Palmei* in his report of sui-vey is iu the main correct, and that
no farther survey is necessaiy.
" Millbank Hound is the best entrance fi-om the Pacitic Occnm, to the (Jaidiier and
Dean Channel; for, though it is open to heavy gales from the south-west, the ot^ing is clear
of rocks and a very short time will suffice to get into sheltered waters. This is not the
case with either the Fitzhugh, Lorodo, or Nepean Sounds; all of which have dangerous
rocks at their entrance, and are scarcely less subject to gales than Millbank Sound.
From Millbank Sound, the coui-se to Gardner Channel is by the Finlayson and Ursula
( 'liannels — all good navigation — on ovu- outward trij) we jiitssed through these in the night
wiuni there was no moonlight.
" From Millbank Sound to the Dean Channel the most direct co\irse is Ity Seaforth
Channel and the Gunboat Passage: but the latter is ciooked and nariow, with many locks
and reefs, barely covered at high tide. The better course is by the Laura Passage farther
south; or, leaving S v'orth Channel on a north-east course there is a good passage north of
that of the Gunboat.
KWMINATIOX OK i\\ssi:s
'lUltOlHiU Till'. CaSCADK INIOLN'TAINS
FltASKK TO THE SlMILKAMKKN.
KHOM THK BlVKI!
" 1 left Victoria on the L'Gth June, 1874, on a journey through the districts in the
southern part of the province; at Fort Hope I met Messrs. Trutch and Cambie, and
receivetl their r(!])ort of an examination of the Passes through the ( 'ascaiU* Mountains,
iK^twecn the Ilivers Fra.sor and Similkameen.
" They commenced at Fort Hope aad followed up to the Nicolaumo Valley, by the
old waggon road, to Summit La,k(» I "J miles; rising in that distance 2,024 feet or Kl!)^ feet
per mile. Tlience they descended by the Sumallow Valley to tlio River Skagit 10^ miles,
falling about -1 feet jnir mile. The height of the last point is 1,90U feet above sea luvcl,
■I
!)3
" Thoy followed lip the main stream of the Skagit seven miles, rising '.)() ft^et per
mile; thence np a tributary of that river to the summit of Allison's Pass 13 miles, rising
111 feet per mile. The summit of the i)ass is 4, -100 feet above sea level. A few hundred
feet beyond this, they struck the south branch of the River Similkameou which flows on
a south-easterly course.
'* This line was considered im]»racticable for a railway ; so the [larty returned to i]\v.
C'oquihalla Valley and carefully examiuod all the principal streams flowing into it on the
ea.stside, with the view of finding a way to the head waters of the Tidameen — sometimes
called the north branch of the 8iuiilkamecn — but without success. All the valleys in that
direction headed into high mountains, covered with deej) snow; this was in the last week
of June.
" The main valley of the Coquihalla was then examined to sec if it were piacticable
to get a uniform gradient throughout from the Summit Lake to the Ri\er Fi'aser, and so
avoid the woret gradients in the suiTcy of 187-*.
" It is probal)le that this can be done giving a gradient of 10(1 feet )>er mile for ."i.")
miles, but at the cost of excessively heavy works, including a grttat length of tuiuielling
and massive snow-sheds, for avalanches of snow roll down the ste(»p sides of the valley,
I (ringing with them masses of timber and loose rock.
" But the pass is so nigged that the magnitude of the works in th(! construction of a
railway through it can only be determined by a careful instrumental survey, which it was
not expedient to make at that time. Therefore 1 instnicted Mr. Tiutch to form u
Division (V) and make an instrumental survey from Fort Hope to Burrard Inlet, ci-oss-
iiig the Fraser at the most favorable place."
JoriiNKV iiio.M Fort Hoi-k to tiik Vaujcvs ok tiik Similkamki:\, Okanaoan, and
OTHKRS IN TIIK SotTIIKK.V I'AIIT Ol' THK rROVINCi:.
• " I had a small pack trai'\ sent to meet me at Fort Hope and with this 1 cinniiifnccd
my journey on the 2ltth of June. Following the waggon road by the Nicolaumt* and
Sumallow Valleys to the Kiver Skagit, 1 took the Grant Trail up the valley of the latter,
the sloi)es of which are in many ]ilaces .steep and rocky, to the summit of the mountain
which the aneroid indicated to lie .").(1()0 feet above sf*M level.
"There were still soiih! [latclies of snow on the trail a^ we crossed the \)ww of the
mountain, but as we began to descend the eastern slope the ground was covered with wild
Howf'rs, and thence the d(^scent was easy. After a pleasant ride down tlin Whipsaw
Valley wo arrived on the (nciiing of the 1st -Inly at the Nine Mile Creek; so called from
its being that distance from I'rincetou at the coiiiluence of the t wo branches of the
Similkanieon.
" Here we had eMitered on the l»unch-gniss coiuitry, and the slo]ies of the
mountains, gently luululating and dotttMl with clumps of firs, presented the uu)st charm-
ing landscape*, As far as the eyo could reach it looked like one immense deei- jtark.
"The valley of the south branch of the Similkanu'en as it issues from the
mountains is narrow and tortuous, so that even if the Allison I'ass had been practicable
there would have Inwn a consideralde quantity of heavy work- in constructing the railway
on the east side of the mountains.
1/
04
" Princeton is now simply the ranclie or farm of Messrs. Allison & Hays, large stock
raisere, but it was once laid out for a large town when gold was found on the tributaries
of the Similkanieen.
"I proceeded down the Siniilkatneen to near tlio boundary lino; thence Civstwaid
by a i)ass through the hills to Ossoyas Lake in the Okauagan Valley.
" The Similkanieen Valley is narrow and bounded by high hills, principally of trap
lock, bare in places, but wherever there is soil it i)roduces a luxuriant giowtli of bunch-
grass. The valley is in soiiio i)laceH a niei-e canyon, in others it widens out from a few
hundied yards to one or two miles, in which there are Hats on both sides of the river fit
for agiicultnre but most of them would require irrigation. The river is a clear iiii»id
stream varying from 100 to 200 feet wide. Altitude at Princeton 2,300 feet.
" About twenty miles below Princeton there is an Indian reservation comi)risiiig
several hundred aci-es, fenced in, some of which is cultivated with potatoes and other
vegetables, and the greater poi-tion of it does not require irrigation.
"Around Kereness, some forty miles below Princeton, lately a Hudson's Cay
Company's post, there is some fine grazing land; and just below it a low wet flat several
miles in length, and one to three miles in breadth, some of which is occnj)ied by white
settlers. There is an Indian village or camp at Kereness.
" Crossing the heights to Cssoyas Lake there is fine bunch-grass. On the margin
of the lake near the boundary line is the farm of Mr. Haynes, who is said to have over
a thousand head of horses and about two thousand head of cattle.
■,
"The valley here is one to three miles wide, including the benches at the foot of the
hills, but there is not much agricultural land as the benches are arid and no water near
for iirigating them ; there is however rich grazing land even to the tops of the hills.
" Wo arrived here on Saturday evening, the 1th of July, rode u}) the trail on the west
side of the lake and river about ten miles, to a lateral stream called Tea River, where we
camped till Monday morning. The weather was very hot and the inoscpiitoes feroci-
ous and irrepressible. Altitude l,.'i00 feet abo^e the sea.
" Bt^twoen Okanngan Lake ami this point the riser, 100 to 150 foot wide and rather
deep, llf)ws through and connects a chain of small lakes, nearly due north and south but
the sides of the valley are very irregular, rocky blulfs sometimes abutting on the Avatcr.
'■ The trail leaves the main valley and traverses a series of parallel valleys and basins,
all cosercd with the richest bunch-grass, till uearing the foot of Okauagan Tiake it
re-entei-s the main vnlloy, hugging tlio steep sides of high sandy bluiVs.
"Towards the end of our day's journey we reached the fooc of the Lake,
where, on the west side of tlu^ river, there is an extensive low flat covered with willows
!uid alders, which I understand is an Indian resorvation, on this there are a number of
neat substantial log houses. Here v.e crossed the river by a bridge lately erected, and
soon after passed tlie residence of Mr. Ellis, an extensive stock raiser. Tills is the only
white seitlement wo had soon since ioaviiig tlio boundary line at Ossoyas Lake. About
three mil'.-s further on we camped by a S[iring half a mile from the lake,
"The slopes of the hills abut on Lake Okanngan in many rocky bjulls, and the trail
following tlic onsteri) shoio was rejiorlctl so rough and miry that wc look the trail leading
'? ?
1)5
over the mountain which at the summit is nearly 3,000 feet above the lake, and we found
it a hard day's travel of 30 miles, to the Mission Valley \7here we camped not far from
the Koman ('atholic mission; most of the Indians were away hunting or fishing, l)ul
Father Crandidier told us those luider his charge numbered about 400 souls.
"This Ls a very fine valley; the bottom, a low Hat of excellent agricultural land,
extends four or five miles along the Okanagan Lake and is partially cultivated by whitt-
settlers for several miles up; we saw excellent ci'ojis of wJKtat, oats, jiotatoes, etc.
Altitude of lake by aneroid 1,120 feet above sea level.
'• The trail follows up the valley which takes a north-easterly direction for a few
miles; it then takes a course nearly due north and parallel to the Okanagan Lake.
A chain of lakes extends through this valley, the largest of which is aV)out 17 miles
long. Portions of the bottom lands are fenced in for agriculture, and tlie slopes produce
the most luxuriant bunch-grass.
'■ There is a divide in the valley, and tlie outlet of these lakes is at the north end of
th(! largest of them where the Coldstream Valley comes in from the east. About four miles
up the latter is the ranche of Mr. Charles Vernon, which comprises a large quantity of fine
agricultural and grazing land, ])artially timbered and a considerable portion of it under
cultivation. Tlie adjoining hills are covered with the richest bunch-grass.
'' Thursdaij, Jid^ 'dlh. — We were now about seventy miles from the foot of Ukauagau
Lake and ten miles from the head of it, which Ave reached by a fin(! open valley of rich
grazing land, so smooth that waggons tmd buggies have been driven o\er the natural sur-
face. Here Mr. F. J. Barnard has a ranche on which a large numl>er of hors(»
are pastured.
*' From the head of Okanagan Lake there is a waggon road to Kamloops, o\(!r sixty
miles distant, following the Salmon River to Grand Prairie, thence by a nairovv valley
to the south branch of the River Thompson and down the left bank of the latter to Kam-
Iooj)s. About twenty miles of this is through timbered lands, the rest is park like rolling
land like that about Kamloops. The road, for miles together, is simply a ti-ack on the
natural surface of the g'-ound and there is no heavy excavations on any part of it.
"The most remarkable feature on the road is Grand I'l-airie; a beautiful low basiu
among the hills containing several thousand acres, a great portion of which is tine agri-
cultural land on which there are several settlers. I was informed that the depth of snow
there mrely exceeds nine inches and that 1,700 head of cattle have; Im-cu pastured in tin*
basin througho.ut the winter and come out fat in the spring.
"There is a low valley running north-easterly from 'the head of Okanagan I.ake coii-
iicctiug with Shuswap or Spillomeechene River. Through this valley there is a chain of
ponds and swamps so little above tlu; level of tlus lake and river at either end that a
canoe luis been taken through from the one to the other. The distance is probably undci'
twenty miles and a canal could bo cut across, at a very moderate cost, which wouM form
a link in a line of navigation for small steamers, over 300 miles in length, through the
most fertile portions of this district; viz: —
"From Savonna's Ferry on the Thompson River at the foot of I^ake Kamloops, up
the latter and the Thompson Riv(^r to Kandooiis, from which there would h^ a bmnch np
the North Thompson to Clearwater 75 miles.
/
5)0
" From Kamloopa »p the south branch of the Thompson, on which there are many
fine farms, to Lake Shuswap. Traversing the latter to any point desired we Avould then
pasa up the Spillcmeechene River and through the canal to Lake Okanagan, thenco to
any point on the same and down its outlet, as far as navigable towards Ossoyas Lake.
" With this the rich district of Nicola Valley could be connected, at small cost, by a
good waggon road to Kamloops, and there is already an excellent trail through a fine ojiou
bunch-grass country from the Nicola Valley to the Similkamoon; thus ti'aversing and
connecting some of the fairest poi-tious of Britisli ( !olumbia, and which comju-iHe tlif
grazing districts ^j(/r eroe//e/tcr'. "
EXPLORATOKY JoURNEY ON THE CENTRAL PlATEAL" BETWEEN THE CoAST ChAIX OK
Mountains and the River Fraser, from the Chilicotin Country north-
wards, TO Lake Francois and the Rivers Nechaco and Stewart.
" We arrived at the mouth Quesnelle on the 29th of August, with my own little
pack train, and a heavy train with supplies for Divisions AE, N and X. Here we found
Mr. Seymour, our interpreter, and the Chilicotin chief Aunahime, whom he had engageil
as guide and mediator in case any difficulty sliould arise with the Indians of the district,
who formerly bore a bad charactei*.
" Our course was north-westerly, by a series of valleys over an undulating country,
covered with tirs, spruce and aspens and seldom exceeding an altitude ;?,()()Ofeet above sea
level. On our left lay a range of hills rising 4,000 to 5,000 feet above sea level and form-
ing a divide between the streams flowing north-easterly into the Fraser above Quesnelle
and south-westerly into the same river below that point; or into some of the inlets of the
Pacific Coast. On the fourth day wo reached the River Blackwater, 4.") miles from
Quesnelle. Our aneroids gave tlie height of the bridge crossing the Blackwater 2,110 feet
iJ>ove sea level.
"The valley is here narrow at the bottom and the slopes, covered with bunch-grass,
wild vetches and pea vine, rise by a series of benches to the level of the jilateau, which on
the southern side is 400 to 500 feet higher, and on the northern 300 to 400 feet ; the latter
l»eing the lowest part of the divide between the Blackwater and Chilacoh Rivei-s. At
the bridge the river enters a rocky canyon through whicl) it flows eastward on its course
to the Frasei'.
" Tlie Blackwater has its sources in a number of lakes on the central plateau, 00 to 1 00
miles westward of tiiis point among the foothills of the Cascade jMountains. It is ])k)ntifuliy
stocked with tine speckled trout, and the groves of aspen and spruce which adorn the softly
undulating grassy slopes of the sunny side of the valley supplied us with abundanc(« of
grouse. We afterwards found that this, the 53rd parallel of north latitude is essentially
the northern limit of the bunch-gmss. From this northward the ((uantity of rain fall
greatly increases, and drainage rather than irrigation is recpiired.
" Moiulay, AiKjust 31n/. — We started from the Telegraph trail on the north side of
the valley of tiie Blackwater, and followed the edge of the valley ni!arly due west for eight
miles, on to a i-ango of hills running in a north-westerly direction where the valley makes
a bend to the south-west.
'' From an elevated position we had a fine view uj) this valley for over 20 miles, on
the direct line to Chisicut Lake and the Homathco Pass. But we afterwards found that
only about twelve miles of this was the Blackwatei- Valley, the rest being that of the
Nazco which entei-s this about twelve miles up and continues in the same line; while the
former makes a sharp l)cnfl almost to a right angle taking a north-westerly couree.
"Our trail did not follow the sinuosities of the valley, hut kept a course nearly due
west. We were now travelling on the same line taken liy Sir Alexander JNIackenzie in
1703. In the evening we camped by a small stn>am ten miles from the Telegraph tiail.
" Tue/«lni/, Sept. Kv/.- Following a course a little south of west, at the thirteenth
mile we entered a tine broad and open valley; crossing this obliquely, in three miles more
we came to a clear stream, 40 feet wide, flowing south-easterly into the Jilackwater, alwut
three miles distant. The stream makes a bend here and takes a course nearly due west
—looking up stream. We followed this on its southern bank for six miles where we
crossed it, as it there takes a north-west coui'se, and the valley expands into a plain of
several miles in breadth. The Indian name of this stream is Is-cul-taes-li, (Blackberry
River.) In the evening we reached Trout Lake, a fine sheet of water over a mile in
length, and half a mile in lireadth, abounding in speckled trout. On a grassy slope on its
eastern margin we camped (No. C) twenty-five miles from the Telegraph line.
" Next day about noon Ave crossed the spur of a hill 2,980 feet above sea level and a
few miles further on, the trail again struck the left bank of the Blackwater which had
made a be;id to the north-west from its jimction with the Nazco. The i-iver from where
we struck it for four miles uj) is expanded into a lake. We camped (No. 7) by a small
stream, estimated . 1 I "i
feet.
it
"Next day Mr. Hunter and myself accompanied by our Klnskus Indian ascended to
the summit of a range of hills, crossing the ri\i'r and liearing in a noi'th-west dii-ection.
Our altitude was about 4,r)()0 feet, from which we had a vt}ry extensive view of the country
all around and coidd trace the valley of the Blackwater twenty-five miles up, nearly due
west. At tin* foot of the range on which we stood, and north of us lay a large, hoi-se-slioe
shajied lake, which the Indians told us flows into the Nechaco. The men were (Migjiged
all day rafting the stores and baggage across the river which was too deep to ford.
" SdturJdy, September iSth. — We got across the river and, following up a valley three
miles, we arrived at Kluskus Lake, where th(^ Hudson's Buy Company formerly had a fort,
but not a vestige of it is now to be found. This is still however a favorite i-esort of the
Indians. Altitude of the lake by aneroid 3,300 feet: it is about three miles long and
half a milo broad, with muddy bottom, a light breeze nmkcs the water tmlit to drink.
l!i
96
"Three miles fartlicr on we camped l>y a sju'ing, near another small lake where we
remained over Sunday. Meanwhile we liatl sent an Indian to find out Mr. Gamsby, and
on Sunday afternoon he arrived from his camp, distant about 20 miles westward.
'^Monday, September 7 th. —Wi> followed the trail Avhich still kei)t ou the same course
a little to the south of west, on a bench parallel to the Black water. Towards evening we
reached Thracha Lake and, following its southern shore, we came upon the camp of Division
X and pitched our tents alongside.
" The positioji of this camp was found from observations of the sun's meridian
altitude and the instrumental surveys of this Division (X) carried from the coast, to
be lat. 53o north long. 124", fio west, and the height of Lake Thracha 3,310 feet above sea
level. Noting the variation of our instruments we took this as a new point of departure
and on the 9th Sept., we continued oiu* journey; our trail keeping the same general course,
a little to the south of west, threading a line of small lakes and ponds and cutting off the
bends of the Black water.
" In about six milos; t'i.e tiU' 'Uvided into two branches, that on our left taking a
south-west course apparently i irf< '^ across a high range of hills capped with snow, but
the (-'hilicotin Chief Aunahime, told us that there is a depression in the range by which
the trail goes to Lake N ic^ontloon wliere his pi'incipal camp is, thence uj) the stream
southerly to Lake Nimpoh V licr- ioin i Bella Coola trail from Alexandria to the
Bentinck Arm. This is the line taken l>y Sir Alexander Mackenzie in 17l>3.
" We took the trail to the right, and at twelve miles crossed the Blackwater 100 feet
wide and less than 2 feet deep; altitude 3,600 feet. We were now in a wide valley almost
an open plain through which the river flows only a few feet above the general level. At
the fourteenth mile we came to a snudl lake, altitutle 3,740 feet, near which we camjted
(.\o. 11).
' TlinrnJajj, Seiit. l(Jyond that.
"Thii^ is Lake Tschick, altitudt? by aneroid, 3,100 feet, and dihtanco from our starting
point on Salmon River, 34 miles. Tho stream flowing out of it in a north-easterly direction
is not over 12 feet wido. On the north side of it on a grassy knoll is an Indian house and
giavo, tho latter fenced in, covered and decked in the usual way with flags, wearing
apparel and implonicntfi of the chase ; and the hou>ic, also, as usual, deserted. Our Indians
101
told us that it luul l)elonged to an Indian chief named ^Mustelle, who (11(^1 a year n'^n. Tho
lioiise is large and in good repair ; in it wo found sevei-al l)oxes of goods, cooking utensils,
a robe made of rabbit skins, two pairs of Ijeautiful niatle snowshoes of dilleront sizes, for
man and woman, a curiously cut wooden buUe, and a finely shaped bark canoe (juite new.
These are always held sacred and never touched by Indians, but left to natural decay.
This part of the country is said to have been once thickly populated with Indians, which
is probable, as it abounds in game and fish ; there is now little trace left of them but their
gi'aves.
"The bottom llat of the valley, from the foot of the hike, widens out to fully half a
mile, covered with good grass, but two or three miles down it becomes marshy, probably
tlu! result of beaver dams. •
" To avoid a high hill that lay directly in our course, we followed ilown tlpo edge of
tin! valley on the north side four nules, where we found an Indian trail, leading round the
flunk of the hill. This we followed and made good progre.ss till we got on thg north side
of the hill, where our diHicidties with fallen timber increased and the country became!
sterile and dreary. After a hard day's struggle we reached the head of the south arm
of Lake Tetachuck an hour after it was dark. This is a trefoil or "P shajKjd lake, si, r-
iDunded by high sterile liills of shaly limestone, rising to a height of nearly 4,0()<) feet
ai)Ove sen level. It took us tlus whole f)f next day cland)ering round on the sttx-p slopes
of these hills to cross the angle between this arm and the outlet of the lake, a distance of
eight miles.
" From these heighls we took a general bearing up the lake anil valley, south 7-"
west, extending up to the Cascade Mountains. At sunset we reached the foot of the
lake, 48 miles from our starting point, and camped, (No. l!l.) Altitude of lake, -,77<)
feet.
''The outlet of this Like is a di-t-p and ra})id river 21)1) feet wide, which we were
unai)le to ford, so we had to make a raft to carry our stores and baggage across tho foot
of the lake, and the animals had to swim nearly a quarter of a mile. Thi.s wasted half a
day, but on the sunnj slopes of the liill, on the other side of the river, we found plenty of
grass, pea vine and service berries in the as})en groves ; and as the animals had had but
little feed for the last two days we were glad to give them half a day to recruit on good
pasture, as well as to rest ourselves, so we (;anined (Xo. -'U) on a suiniy gladi; near the
margin of the lake.
"From this it took us another hanl ilay's tiavelling to get across tho next divide,
nearly a thousand feet above the level of the lake, with nnicii fallen timljcr on the noith
side to the valley of the Eueuclju, which we struck at the head of the lake on a grassy llat a
mile wide. The river llows on the north side of this and was then only ()U feet wide v,hcre
we forded it ; but the channel is l.'iO feet M'ide and tlie driftwood on its l)aidacked in that long narrow
dug-out. We could understand but little of each others speech, but they proved to be
remarkably intelligent, especially the woman, who in a very few minutes understood the
map and our rough sketches and traced the way to Fraser Lake, where their village is ;
we gave tlicm some food and small presents for the children, and the man agi-eed to go
with us two davs and show us the Indian tx-ail.
" We started on a north-west course on the slopes of the hills along the margin of
tlic lake which were coverc^d with very long grass, vetches and pea vine, and gi-oves of
aspens. Tlie vetches and pea vine were in great quantity, reaching to a height of 4 feet
among the long grass, climbing up the trees to S or 9 feet and hanging in ftestoons from
bush to bush ; we had ditticulty in forcing our horses through the tangled mass.
•' From a high jwint we took a bearing u]» the Nechaco Valley, north 53" west.
The river appeared to (low out of a very large lake; 'M) to 40 miles distant, among the
foothills of the Cascades, and beyoml this in the same line rose a snowy peak regularly
shaf)ed like an Egyptian pynimid, estimated to l)c over 8,000 feet high and 50 to 60
miles distant. . .
lua
'.^1
" In about three miles our course changed to noith and we iian-sed through a gap in
the range at an altitude of w, 500 feet above sea level, (lur course was then nearly north-
east, and rapidly descending we soon reached tlus litth; Jiake I'^nz, altitude 3,050 feet,
•lisbance 7H tnilos from Salmon IJiver, where we camped. (No. 21^).
" Wednesdaij, Sept. 2'ird. — We started early and in three miles I'eachetl the house of
an Indian chief named Nehlie, at the head of Lake Tchestatta. Tiie range of iiills north
of as, though high and studded v/ith masses of granite, diil not look inaccessible, the
country looked passJibly open and by Trutch's map the distance; to Lake Francois shouKl
not exceed 20 miles; but our Indian declared it was impossible for horses to go there, as
there were so much rock and fallen tiuibe'r and no feed, and even if we did succeed in
reaching the lake, we could not possibly get along its shores to the outlet. We therefore
reluctantly followed the ti'ail along the north shore of Lake Tchestatta all day till we came
to an Indian fishing station, a little beyond which we camped (No. lit). Lake, one to
two and a-half miles jvide, altitude 2.8U0 feet.
"Here the trail ended and our Nechaco Indian tuined back, first telling us that it
was but a little way to an Indian village, whence we could find a trail leaduig to the foot
of Lake Francois. But we toiled hard, cutting our way through thick brush and fallen
timber on the steep hill side, and it was not till 4 p.m., we came to the Indian village on
{V spit of land, shooting into the lake and nearly cutting it m two; we found only one;
Indian family there, who were much surprised to see horses in such a situation. Wc got
some fish from them and gave them some small presents, then started on the trail, which,
however did not lead northward, but followed the margin of the lake on high blufVs, it
was nearly dai-k when we reached the foot of the lake where we cami)ed (No. '!•)) near an
Indian house, distance 105 miles. Altitude of the lake by aneroid 2,800 feet.
"Friday, Sept. 2,bth. — The Indian, from the last villnge we had passed, came down
early in his canoe with .some fish and oflfered to accompany us one day's journey, which oflei-
was gladly accepted.
" Our course all day was nearly north-east on a passable Indian ti-ail ; the first part
of the day through a hilly country covered with small timber. From one of tliese hills we
got another bearing to Fanny's Mountain south 30" west, which we were now leaviti^i
behind. In the afternoon we travelled by a chain of maj-sh meadows, and ponds or bea\ cr
dams, passing several Indian camping grounds, and had a good deal of britlging and Ijrush-
ing to get the animals across soft ground. Towarils eveiung we crossed sonuj heights of
trap rock, from which we had a view of Lake Kthluthsly lying before us, about 3 miles
long, and 1| miles across its widest part. We travelled on the north shore of this and
camped on a flat near the lower end of it, distance fron S dmon Kiver 118 miles.
Estimated altitude of lake 2,900 feet.
" Saturdaij, Sept. 2(Sth. — From the course we had travelled the last three days I felt
certain that we must be fully as far east as the foot of Lake Francois ; so we left the trail
and made a desperate attempt to cut our way direct north ; but after two hours labor we
had not made half a mile and had to give it up and return to the trail which was hanl to
find among piles of fallen timber and loose rock.
"We were now croasing a range of bold granite hills, a])parently a continuation of
the same range we had seen on our right for more than a week past. About A j).m., we
crossed the summit by a depression in the range, estimated altitude 3,000 feet above sea
level, and Lad a very extended view over a rolling country to the south-east in which we
caught a glimpse of the Nechaco River and several lakes. Wending our way slowly down
the north-eastern slope, over very rough ground strewed with fallen tindjer, we reached
r
104
H small hike just as it was getting
(No. 27).
ilark, altitmle 2,900 feet, near which we caiui>e<), 1
an Indian village. Altitude of hike by barometer, 2,400 feet.
" From observations made on this journey we glean the following :—
" That the central plateau at the eastern base of the Cascade Mountains from th
Siilmon River to Lake Francois is undulating ; the crests of the hills or ranges betwee
the streams rising to about 4,000 feet above sea level ; and that the streams from the fojt
of the Cascade Mountains take a general eoiuse, varying from east to north-east : i
converging on the Nechaco River, which then cuts through a range of hills run r^
generally parallel to the Cascade chain.
'•This range is very irregular and broken, but the line C!in be traced from the L»og.i,-
Hills on the River Quesnelle, crossing the Fraser below the mouth of that river ; thence
on a generally north-west course, crossing the Blackwater below Lake Kluskus ; thence
to Lake Francois and uj) its south margin to the Cascjwle Mountains. The range forms ,1
«lam or weir which checks the fall of the streams from the Cascades and they expand
into tilt! numerous lakes wo Jiave i)assed over in our journey. ^
"The timber throughout is spruce, black fir, and cedar, generally small and of little
value. There is only a little agricultural land in the bottom flats of the valleys, with
good grazing land — grass, vetches and ])ea vine — on the slopes facing the south. We saw
no stratified rock exce])t the shaly limestone on the margin of Lake Tetachuck.
"^ Sf.pt. 2Sth. — A canoe had arrived from Fort Fraser, and we hired another here.
I then gave instructions to the packers to go on and wait for me at the Stewart's Lake
trail, crossing the Nechaco, and IMr. Huntei- and myself started with the canoes up the
River Stelacoh.
"Haifa mile up from the Telegraph line a stream 40 feet wide comes in from the
north, this is the Nettacoh ; on the opposite side of the Stelacoh there is an Indian village.
Above this the Stelacoh is a rapid stream 60 to 100 feet wide where we found the Indians
spearing salmon — 600 miles from the sea — but they were of a jtink color and inferior in
flavor to those nearer the coast. It took us three houre hard piUling, three antl a half
miles to the falls, where we camped for the night.
•' Next morning we made a short portage with our baggage, and hauled the canoes
np tli6 rapid, on which there is a ])erpendicular fall of four or five feet. We had rajiids
10.-.
m'iirly all tlio rest of tlio wny to the toot of Lake Francois, seven miles from the T»'lt'j;;raph
trail, which wc reached at 1 p.m., and camiwd. Altitude 2,.'340. Wo employed the rent
of till? day I'atchinj; tine s|X'ckled trout on the rapids, wliile the Indians trolled the lake fur
whitelish, liy \vlii<*h means we tulded consideral.le to our other scant sn|iplies.
'• Sfjif. ;■>()///. -Leaving Mr. Hunter one of tlui canack with the other and reached the Indian villaj^e at noon. Our
c()ii:s(' then lay down Lake Frasor, of which F made a rough sin-vey from the canoe, land-
ing at several jioints to get better hearings ; we reached Fort Friuser before it was dark.
'• Lake Fras'U* near its lower end is bounded by high lulls of trap and basalt on eadi
side, the .slopes of which at some points come to the watei-'s edge; at others th c are
intei-vals of flat land Ijetween the lake and the hills. The Hudson's Bay Comjmny's Fort
is at the south-east angle of the lake and two miles from this, at the outlet of the \,\ki>,
there is an Indian village.
iw
he
" Thurs(/(ui, Oct. 1st. — When I rose this morning it was raining hard, Imt it cleared
up at noon and we paddled across to the Indian village where my crew lived ; it took
ilieni an hour to prepare for the journey, but at 2 p.m. we started and in a (piarter fif an
hour were in the river Nechaco, not over a (puirter of a mile from Lake Frsuser.
" The Nechaco is liei-e a deep and nij.id stream ."500 to 40U feet wide. In half an
hour we came to bad rapids, where we had to make a short ])ortage ; after this we went
swiftly down the stream, passing over a great many rapids, but none of them very danger
ous. I took bearings, and estimated distances by time, t.leneral conr.se a little south
of east.
"The valley is generally narrow, with high l>anks, .sometimes of rock, at intervals it
•videns ont a little and there are low flats betw« en the river and the high banks. We
cii.. _"id at .sunset.
" Next day Ave were mostly in still water and the valley widened out more. At -."oon
we reached the Stewart Lake trail where we fo\ind our two pack trains ramped.
" There is not mucii to be seen from a canoe on a river with high banks, and so far
as I had seen, very little land fit for cultivation; and certainly the banks of the river arc;
not A*ery favorable for a line of railway: but they get lower near the Stewart's I^ake trail,
and thei'e is a flat country extending away to the south-east. ( )n our way down the river
we saw numerous and large flocks of geese and ducks, they were, however. \ery wary and
difficult to get near.
^'Saturday, Oct. ?ty(K — Dii-ecting the packers to find their way down with the trains,
liy an Indian trail to the mouth of the (Jhilacoh Kiver, I started — ^with anotlier canoe
and crew I had hired — down the Nechaco; we were on still Avater and the valley soon
opened out from half a mile to a mile in breadth, Avitli Ioav flats thiough Avhieh the river
meanders, striking the high banks on either side alternately.
" But as Ave neared the Stewart ItiA'er the valley again contracted and there Avere
high hills on each side of us ; the riA^er striking the base of these has caused heavy land slides
Avhere the material is clay or loam. In some places there are rocky canyons. We campcnl
(No. 34.) at the confluence of the Nechaco and Stewart Rivers. These two rivers
appeared of about er^ual volume.
14
k
106
11
!■ J
■ : I
I' i
" October ith. — It rained all the morning but cleared up at noon, and we started
down the Stewart River; the stream flowing slowly and varying from 250 to 1,000 feet
in breadth.
" In about 10 to 12 miles we appeared to be crossing through a range of high hills;
the highest points estimated fully 1,000 feet above the level of the river. The valley is
here contracted, and very soon we entered a rocky canyon, through which the rapids were
very strong for a mile and a half, and the slopes of the hills are very rough.
" At about 14 miles there is a dangerous rapid, where we had to make a short port-
age. From this the rapids and swift current continue — with the exception of about three
miles of comparatively still water — to the mouth of the Chilacoh River ; near which are
the worst i-apids on the river, where a belt of basalt crosses it, and Ave had to make a
portage of half a mile.
•
" The bottom flat of the valley is from half a mile to a mile wide, and varies from 20
to 50 feet above the level of the river ; and is covered with small timber — spnice, scrub
pine, and aspen. There are some low flats very little above flood level.
'• The Chilucoh, or Mud River as it is popularly called, enters the Stewart River
from th(5 south about 20 miles above the confluence of the latter with the Fiaser near Fort
George.
" The banks of this portion of Stewart River are genei-ally high, varying from 20 to
80 feet to the bottom flat of the valley, the slopes from each side of which rise in a
succession of benches 100 to 300 feet above the level of the river; and there are souw
very large land slips where the river strikes the foot of these.
" On the right there is a high mnge of hills stretching away to the south, parallel
with the Fraser ; and on the north an elevated plain extends to the Giscome Portage, or
divide between the Fraser and Parsnip Rivers; this is densely covered with timber.
"The River Stewart widens out at its confluence with the Fraser, and the channel
is divided by several small islets so that we were not a little puzzled to know when we had
entered the Fraser.
" Fort George is on the west bank of the Fmser, about a mile below the mouth of the
Stewart River, on an extensive flat of apparently good land. There is, as iisual, an
Indian village near the fort. We arrived there at 1 p.m., on the 5th October.
" The lower half of the Chilacoh Valley is from a quarter to half a mile wide, on the
bottom flat, which is a deep loam covered with groves of spruce, pine and asjien,
with open glades of very rich grass, red top and blue joint over four feet high, with
vetches ara pea vine on the slopes of the hills having a southern aspect.
" The valley is bounded by high benches and a rolling plateau on the we.st, and on
the east by the high range of hills lying betVeen it and the Fraser.
'* About twenty miles up, a range of hills crosses the valley where the latter is con-
tracted to a canyon for a quarter of a mile, but there will be no difficulty in getting a line
of railway through this. One of the highest hills in this range is double headed and lies
close to the valley. It is the same wo hatl seen from the Telegraph lino two months before
antl st'rvod us as a lundniark.
107
" Above the canyon, the valley expands at places to fully two miles in breadth, and
some wide lateral valleys come in from the ^north-west. The lower part of this, by the
river, from a quarter to half a mile wide is 'covered with long grass; then there is a step
lip from 50 to 100 feet, and the upper Hats to the slopes of the bounding hills are covered
with spruce, small pine, and aspens. In some places the ground is swampy and would
rerjuire draining for cultivation. •
"Tha valley ranges from 2,000 to 2,300 feet above the level of the sea; soil a light
loam very deep and free from stones. The river is a sluggish stream 100 feet wide with
deep water, muddy bottom and few fords; it is as crooked as a corkscrew, meandering from
side to side of the valley. We found some pieces of lignite on the banks that had been
brought down by the current and there are probably beds of coal farther up the valley.
" The weather up to this time (15th October) had been as mild and genial as the
Indian summer in Ontario, but now the nights were getting cold, with white frost in the
mornings, indicating the speedy approach of winter. I therefore gave instnictions to the
Division Engineers to close the season's operations on the 24th October, and, after that,
to make all haste possible to reach the crossing of the Fraser at the mouth of Quesnelle by
the end of the month ; whence they would have a waggon road on which they could pur-
chase hay and grain if necessary for the animals — to winter quarters near Kamloops 200
miles farther south.
" I went on ahead with my own and the supply train and we reached the mouth of
Quesnelle on the 23rd of October. Here I found Division M encamijed; they had com-
l)leted the survey up the Stewart River Valley to the mouth of the Chilacoh and com<;
down the Fraser— bringing all their stores and luggage, in the boats which they had con-
structed at Teto Jaune Cache and used on the Fraser Iviver all the season."
I?
108
OPEU^VTIUNS l)UI{IN(l isT.-i
I
l :
ReiHtit on the Surcrij'i in British Columbia duriiiy the »/(.■«;' 187."). 1'>d Maims Sinitli, Hs'i.
* * * "Oil tlie lOtli June we iinivcil at the crossing of the Chilcotui
River whence my pack train and the Indians proceeded vrastwanl to the Chilacoh Depot
and Mr. Seymour and myself rode on to Puntzee Lake, wliero we found P- ' 'on E,
encamped. I spent two days with Mr. Jennings examining the rather broken . . rougli
country on the divide between the Chihicoh and Chilcotin Rivers. About 15 mili-s of line
liad been located, which from the ])rofile, appeared gouorally satisfactory.
"()n the Tird July we arrived at the camp of Division S, 3ir. II. J. Cambir in
charge. They had completed about 14 miles of locatipn and their trial line was some
miles in advance on the east .shore of Eagle Lake, which lies about 5 miles to the south of
Lake Tatla in a trough in the aide of the hill which bounds the latter.
"Eagle Luke is about miles long, and a mile from its west end is the watershed,
from whicli a rather broad valley descends nearly due south into the Cascade iSlountains.
fu this valley there is a chain of small lakes which are the sources of the (^ast biancli of
tlie Ilomathco River, which flows through these mountains into Bute Inlet. The last
and largest of tho.se lakes is Tatlayaco, which is 15 miles long and a little over a mile
wide ; it lies at the entrance of the jkiss, and the east branch of the Ilomathco River
rushes out of it in a rapid current about 100 feet wide.
"It had been proposed to make tlie location survey by tliis route in the hope of iiiid-
iug a better line through the mountains than that surveyed in IS72 by Lake Tatla and
the W(!st branch of the Ilomathco River. And tlie oliject of my journey was to go
through and examine this route in ailvance of the surveyors to ascertain if it had ap))arent
advantages thiit woidd warrant the survey being carried tliat way in j)refercnce to the
line of thc! former survey.
" We left Eagle liake on the .")th J uly and travelled on the east side of the valley, by an
Indian trail; in the evening we encamped near an Indian Rancherie, on the margin of the
small lake Cochin, and th(> next day on the slope of the mountain that bounds tlie east
side of Lake Tatlayaco.
"The A'iew southward, from a point near our camp, was very grand : tli(.' silvery lakt!
lay it our feet, several hundred feet beneath us; from its west bank rises a mountain of
dark jagged and scarred rock 3,000 to 5,000 feet above the level of the valley. On th(>
left, near the foot of tlie lake a bold snow-clad mountain looms u]) to a great hiight.
These form the portals of the entrance into tlie Homatlico Pass. IJeyond, the view was
terminated by the lofty snow-clad |)caks of the ( 'ascade Mountains.
" From our camp the trail curves up tlio slope by which the Indians reacli the liigli
table-land, whicli is well stocked with deer and mountain sheep, so tliat we had to cut a
trail to the foot of the lake and had some ditliculty in crossing a large glacial stream on
our way. Wo arrived there on the Ttli July and camped near (he outlet of the lake,
wiiich is tlie east branch of the Ilomathco Rivei-.
109
" The disitance to this point from tlie River Chilancoh, near wliich Division S com-
uieuced their surveys, is a little over 40 miles. The fii-st half of the distance is over
!i dry morrain formation, the surface broken with numerous dry ponds and lakelets,
kuolls, and gravel ridges, covered with stunted scrub pine, with patches of black spruce
in low moist places. On the adjoining slopes there is an abundance of Douglas fir of fair
ijuality and large enough for such bridging as would be required in the neigh))orliood.
" The latter half of the distance is on the slopes of the valley by the margin of tho
string of lakes which feed the Homathco River. These slopes are broken with some
deep lateral ravines and the luie will have to run across the faces of some rather ste«[>
rocky bluffs on the shore of Lake Tatlayaco. But, so far, this route appeareil on the whole?
tolerably favorable for tho line of railway, with plenty of timber suitable for works of
construction.
" We could not take the pack train beyond this point, so I sent it back in cliargo of
Mr. C. Seymour to join the Y Division on the line from Blackwater to Dean Inlet, and to
1)0 ready for my use on a comtemplateil journey that way later in the season.
" By noon on the 8th July we had got our sup])lies and baggage rafted across tho
t\;ot of the lake, and made a cache of provisions for use in case wo failed to get through
to the coast and bo forced to return, or for the use of Tiedoman and Iloretzky's party
whom wo had expected to meet us here. We then commenced our tramp, my party con-
sisting of five Lillooet Indian packers and one Chilcotin Indian Inmter us guide.
" About a mile below the mouth of Lake Tatlayaco, a large glacial stream comes in
from the north-west. The weather had been very warm for a week past, and from the
melting snow in the mountains, this stream was now very high, coming down with
treniendous force, liringing trees and huge boulders from the mountain sides.
Following this uj) a mile to where the stream is divided by a small islet, we succeeded in
falling large trees across, by which we clambered over safely. Half a mile further down
a large stream comes in on the other side of the valley from the south-east. Here we are
fairly in the mountains, and the valley is contracted almost to a canyon, thero being only
a narrow flat with a fringe of trees by the side of the river, which is in fact pait of the
old river bed silted up with detritus washed down by tho stream. This flat is broken at
intervals by rocky spui-s shooting down from the mountains and abutting on the river.
"The coui'se of the valley from this downwards turns to within a few points of duo
w(>st and is tolerably straight for about 20 miles, at which the view was terininattid l)y an
iiiimense glacier, high up on the side of a mountain rango which appeared to cross the
line of tho vnllev.
lake
in of
the
L(ht.
was
" There was no tiaii duwu thi.s \alUiy, as tho Imlians get to tho coast liy a way over
I he mountains farther south, so that our progress was very slow, being impedi;d by brush-
wood, larg(^ tnniks of fallen trees, and fragments of rock which had rolled duwn from tin;
cliU's near tiie summit of tin- mountain,
" We travelled on the right bank ot llii" river, which iiero Hows between two well
defined raiiges. The sloj>es ou the south sich; of that on which we were travelling were
the most tniiform and mil)roken ; closely resembling from a distant view the back of a
huge wave at tht! moment of its breaking on th(( beach, while t\n' otlaM' side? of tho parallel
rango was rugged, perpeiulicular aiul broUen, like the hollow or lee sidi! of tlio wave.
'■ It took us two days and a half to reach the bend of tho river about 15 miles from
the foot of Lake Tatlayaco, where \vc camped on Huturdny evening, July lOth, and
remained over Sundav.
I !
110
" Down to this point there appeared no very serious engineei-ing diflSculties, the fall
of the valley being tolerably uniform and estimated at the rate of about 1 per 100. But
hero the river takes a bend to the south-west, apparently cutting through several broken
ranges of mountains, the noses of which at intervals abut on the Homathco River in
j>erpendicular cliffs. The naiTOw flat belt by the river side has disappeared, except in
small patches, and the valley has contracted to a narrow deep defile, but, as far as we
could see, there was no canyon of perpendicular rocks on both sides of the river at once.
"Two days and a half more wo toiled along the face of these rugged mountain
slopes ; the weather had become excessively warm, and from the unusual quantity of snow
that had fallen the previous winter, the moiintain streams were now roaring torrents
which we had great difficulty in crossing ; and at points where rocky spurs abut on tlic
main river, leaving no passage lietween, we had to climb up on hands and knees several
hundred feet, at one place 1,500 above the level of the river and descend again on the
other side of the spiir ; such journeys sometimes occupying several hours, though the
distance across the face of the cliff would not exceed a few liundred yards. But the
mountain slopes are so steep and rocky that sometimes our Indian guide had to make a
detour to reach safe footing and fasten a rope to a tree, throwing us the other end to
assist us in getting up with some degree of safety.
" At noon on the 14th July we reached the junction of the east and west branches
of the Homathco River. The last seven miles of our journey undoubtedly presented grave
engineering difficulties. But however difficult we found it to travel, owing to the high
floods and there bf'ing no trail, I had reason to think that a careful survey would probably
show it to possess advantages over the line formerly surveyed by the west branch ; there-
fore I thought it advisable to let the survey proceed by that route, and accordingly
pro])ared topographical sketches and instructions for Mi*. Cambio which I sent back l)y
tiio Indian guide on his return joumej.
J wjis much concerned at the non-appearance of the trail party under Mr. Tiedemaii,
who had been landed at Waddington Harbor on the .'kd June, and four days canoeing
should have brought them to within 12 miles of where we were now encamped, with the
Waddington trail over half tlio distance.
"■ In two hours we succeeded in throwing a l»ri«lgt! over the canyon on the west
brancli of the Homathco and I sent some of my Indians ahead to make a reconnoisancc
and fire off rifles fo attract the attention of the trail party, whom, avo supposed could not
bo far oft'.
" In thiei! hours thoy returned, leporting that they could not succeed in bridging the
large stream that comes down from Tiedeman's glacier ; they had thrown across it
six of the largest trees they could find standing on its banks, which wore whipped away
by the torrent like so many cliips.
" Our case was now becoming scriou.s, \\o h.-id but four or f]v(^ days su{)plies loft ami
fnared that tlie trail party might have been detained by some difficulty with the Indians.
We held a consultation to decide whether to go on or return, when our Indian guide said
he could take us to the Waddington trail by a detour of one day's journey up the bank of
Tiedeman's River, and crossing the glaciej- out of which it issnes.
" < hi Thursday, tlie lOth July, we starlod at G a.m., and in two hours arrived at tlic
glacier. We had some difficulty in ascending the face, which is an irregular slope covered
with loose rock and bouldei*s. It is about 200 feet high at the face, and, as far as we
could soc, was fully 15 miles in length, and from half a mile, at the foot, to three miles in
■
111
breadth. The river rushes out of three tunnels, and the glacier is serrated lengthwise
with ridges and crevasses ; the latter partly filled up with bouldere and detritus from the
mountains. In fact it has the appearance of having broken away in a body from the
mountains bringmg part of the latter with it. Its altitude is about 2,000 feet above the
level of the sea. We succeeded in' crossing safely by intricate windings on the broken
surface to avoid open crevasses, in which we could hear the water gurgling boiioath the
boulders with which they were partially filltd ui>. The sharp lidges wore clear ico, along
which we crept on hands and knees.
" Ascending the south-western slope of this glacial valley we travelled the restof the
day on an elevated plateau well timbered and dotted with several small lakes. Towards
evening wo descended with difficulty by a lateral valley to that of the Honiathco, where
we found Mi-. Tiedeman in charge of the trail party encamped on the same spot where the
late Mr. Waddington's men were murdered by the Indians in 1804.^ Since our survey
of 1872, the Indians have removed all traces of the murdered men's cam)) and bui-nt tlu'
timber and brush which then grew there.
" Mr. Tiedeman had misunderstood the main object of his work, which, according to
my written instructions, was to push forward as rapidly as possible to meet me, throwing
log bridges across the larger streams while the water was low, and improving the trail ou
the return journey. Instead of which he had made only a few miles of trail ^Y\th trestle
bridges six feet wide for pack animals. As the survey parties would not get into the
mountains before the rivers were low, I desired Mr. Tiedeman to break up tlu! trail party
and join Division X to take the topography of the country.
" On Friday, July 16th, we continued our tramp down the Homathco Valley, follow-
ing the Waddington tmil ; the weather continued excessively warm and the streams wei-e
still rising. On reaching' the head of the Grand Canyon we found the river had carried
away the bridge which Mr. Tiedeman had constructed round the face of tlie (;lifi', so we
had to climb up, by a crevasse in the rock, 400 feet, to reach the trail, which crosses over
the shoulder of a mountain. In like manner we found all the bridges he had made
carried away, so we had a repetition of climbing precipices and bridging torrents as thcv
rushed out of the canyons in the mountains.
" We had expected to reach the camp of Division X in two days, but on Saturday
evening we came to a torrent over which we could find no practicable means for throwing a
bridge. So we had to camp and, as we were out of meat, I sent the Indians out to hunt ;
they soon returned with a large black bear which relieved us of all a])prehension on the
score of provisions.
"Next day at 7 a.m., we commenced to construct an Indian fly bridge, but, as w«
had only one axo left and but little spare rope, we had to make lashings from the iiuK r
bark of cedar, so that it took us seven hours to complete the bridge which looked like a
fishing rod and line hanging over the torrent, the butt end resting on the ground and
loaded with bouldera. We managed to crawl over this and drop down safely ou the other
side of the stream. Six hours more of a hard struggle among tangled creepiu-s, over huge
trunks of fallen trees and masses of detached rocks, brought us to the camp of Division X.
This party had completed 18 miles of trial location. I I'emained with them two days,
examined their plans and profiles which showed the line to bo generally satisfactory and a
great improvement on the preliminary survey of 1872.
" On the 20th we droppetl down the river in a largo canoe to Waddington lIarl»o.',
where the steamer 'Sir Janies Douglas,' with Mr. Holmon and a (piantity of supplies
arrived next morning.
/
#
112
" After discharging cargo the steamer stalled back for Victoria, arrived at Departure
Bay and took in coal; on the 25th July we arrived at Victoria much bruised and
shaken by one of the liardest journeys yot made? on the surveys.
"Meanwhile Mr, Jarvis and party, who left Fort George iu December, 1874, to
examine a route across the Rocky Mountains by the north brancli of the Fraser River
and the Smoky River Fass, had arrived at Winnipeg, and reported unfavorably of that
route. It was therefore decided to make the trial location surveys from Fort George
eastward via the Yellow Head Pass, and a party was formed in Ottawa, with Mr. George
Keefer in charge, to execute a portion of this survey, commencing at the summit of the
Yellow Head Pass, and working westward to T6te Jaunc Cache, thence doAvn the Fraser
to meet another party working up.
"Mr. Keefer and party reached Victoria on the 18th July, and before I arrived
they were on their way to their appointed work, but I sent a messenger after them witli
detailed instructions for the practical carrying out of the sui-veys committed to their
charge. The messenger overtook the party in the valley of the North Thompson, and Mr.
Keefer has since advised me of their airival in the Yellow Head Pass and the oomnience.
ment of the hurvevs."
JOUKNEV FKOM DeAX
Inlet across the Cascade Modxtaixs nv
Salmon River Pass.
THE
" I had estimated that the Divisions V and Y would connect their siirveys on tlic
Salmon River before the end of August. So on the 23rd of that, month I left Victoria on
the steamer 'Sir James Douglas' with a quantity of supplies. We called at Waddington
Harboi' on I'ute Inlet and landed sujiplies for the X Division and on the 28th we arrived
in Kamsquot Bay on the Dean Inlet, where we found Mr. Trutch and party (Division 'i\)
encamped on the spit of land that forms the south side of the harbor.
'• They had joined their sui'veys with those of Division Y a week before, abotit 50
miles up the Salmon River, and had then returned to the coast for instructions.
" I immediately had the jiarty re-organized for the survey from Kemano Bay, on the
Gardner Inlet, across the Cascade Mountains, towards Lake Francois, sending some of
the men home to Victoiia and replacing them with Indian packers whom I hail brought
with me by the Homathco Pass.
"The steamer left with the party on the 1st September, and on the 3rtl arrived at
Kamsquot Bay, where the party disembarked to commence the surveys.
" In my report of the work of 1874, Kamsipiot Bay is described as l)cing formed on
one side by a tongue of land about two miles in length, projecting into the Dean Channel :
the Kamsquot or Salmon River flowing into the channel on the other side of the tongue.
This tongue has been formed by the debris brought down V)y the river, wliich has bm-st
through a curtain or saddle of rock about 400 feet high, which stretches across the nioiith
of the valley.
" 1 engaged Indians to pack my baggage and supplies across the mountains, and on
Monday, the 30th August, they had got everything to the head of the canyon through the
saddle of rock about 2^ miles on the line of survey. Next morning wo all embarked iu a
large dug-o\it canoe, being eight persons in all, besides baggage and Hupj)lies.
113
"The stream vuiies from IjO to .100 foot in l>rcailti:, is very rapid ami tlio cam)c was
ruroeJ up by poling, in .some places the rapids wore .so bad th.at avc had to get out, and
the Indians, wading in the watei-, lifted the canoe up by hand. We made about 1 2 miles
tlie linst day, and at noon on the second ilay we wore at tins head of canr ledge of rocks being about 20 feet ,abo\(> the level of the
riTor, over which there is an Indian bridge or platform of round timbers. Immediately
below this there is a fall of about lo feet, over the face of which the [nilians haA'o con-
.^tnicteii n .screen of Avythes, to which are hung pockets of network for catching salmon as
they endcavoiii' to leap tlie fall. The salmon striking against the screen fall into the
])Ockets. The upper lodge of rocks on which the Indian (Salmon) House stands is about
1 GO feet above the level of the river, and a little higher up. on the otlier side of the river,
there is anotlier house on about the same level.
"The ]'iver is well niuneil the Salmon itiver as it swarms with that lish. On my
way uj) the Indians with the canoe jioles .speared what we recpiired for food, some of the
tish weighing over <30 lljs., and at the bridge they were constantly carrying away salmon
that were caught in the nets. These an; called 'Stick Indians,' or dwellers in the forest.
They aj)pear to be of the sanu; race as the C'hilcotins, or intermarry with tliem ;uul undei-
stand their language. They an! mountaineers, not large, but w iiey and Iiav« Ikvii oC
great assistance; in |iacking for the surveying ]i;n'ti(>s.
" The messenger, wiiom I had sent oil' two days previous to our leaving Kams(|U(>t
r.ay, 1 found here sick, so had to .send the nu'ssage on to the camji of the V Division, .">.")
miles distant, by another man and awnii his return. I sjtent this time making some
cxyiloratious in the neighliorhooil.
"At Yeltesse we are clear through the high ranges ot the ( 'a.seado Mountfuns, and the
river conu's to this point in a deep groove in the central ])lateau, which is ot volcanic
formation, the rocks l)eing mainly basalt. The survey followed the river foi* uI)out ;>(>
miles above this place, but the trail goes up a parallel valley to the ,soutli. in this there
are .several .small lakes; the largest Tanyabunkcit, is about si.x; miles in length. This
valley at the lower end near Veltes.sp, is about 1,000 feet above the level of the river;
at the upper end, 150 miles distfint, they are nearly of the same level, and there the trail
leaves the valley and crosses the Salmon Uiver to the north side at the point which we
reached in our e.vploration of 1S74.
15
114
n
" On the 8th July, I started with my pack train eastwai'd from Yeltesse, to examine
the line of survey in the Salmon River valley and across the Divide to the Blackwater,
thence down the same to its junction with the line from Bute Inlet.
" The whole of tliis portion of the line is in a dein-ession oT the central plateau, and
presents no engineering difficulties till after its junction with the line from Bute Inlet.
" On the 18th September, we reached Mr. Bell's camp (Division N), cm the Bhuk-
water, about seven miles above this point the river is crossed by the telegraph trail.
" Mr. Bell and myself spent several days examining the rather rough country that
fonns the watershed between the Blackwater and Chilacoh. We followed up the valley
of the latter 20 miles above the point where the line of survey leaves it, and found that it
widened as we ascended. A branch of the river, coming in from the west by a broad
valley, appeara to turn the noi-th end of the range which divides it from the Blackwater,
and gives facilities for a deviation of tlie line to Dean Inlet, by which much heavy work
would 2irol>ably be avoided.
" On the 23rd September, we left Mr. Bell's second camp on the Blackwater, and
l)roceeded on our homeward journey. We reached the confluence of the lilackwater anil
Nazco on the 25th, and, following up the valley of the latter al)out 20 miles, we arrived at
the cam[> of Mr. Jennings (Division 11,) on the 27th.
" Up to this point and several miles above it, the Nazco is a Inui open valley ; the
river, 80 to 100 feet wide, winds through extensive natural meadows with groves of
s|>ruce, black fir and aspens at intervals.
" I spent two days with Mr, Jennings, furnished him with some rough topographical
sketches, which I had made on my way up, and gave instructions respecting the closing of
the season's work and the return of the party to Victoria.
"Wo travelled on the trail uj) thr^ Nazco Valley to tlie lakes on the central jjlateau
which form the soiu'ces of the river, then crossed to the Alexis Lakes and down to the
tJhilicotin Valle^', which we followed down near to its junction with that of the Fraser,
er mile. ,
1'.
M
1
I
•) 1
-4
I
4
•JO •'
averaging 87.10 feet per iiiile,
" 1.10 '
" 2.00 •
of level
" 2.00 '
of level
'* 1.40 •
" 0.85 '•
" 2.00 •'
" level "
Total rise
58.08
105.f)() '• '
0.00 '■ >
l()5.(iO '• '
0.00 '■ •
74.00 •■ '
■14.88 ■• •
105.00 •■ •
0.00 '• '
1.712 feet.
iff
"There will be a lai-ge tpiantity of ruck c.\ca\atiuu throughout this section, including
several short tunnels, but the reduction in heavy works is very considerable compared
with the line surveyed in 1872, on which the average length of tunnelling in the Cascade
Mountains was fully three miles, while on the present line it will not exceed two miles.
i! i]
" From the 50th to the (list mile at the foot of i.ake Tatlayaco, the rise is 5(I7 feet,
being an average of 4G feet pia* mile. The highest gradients arc oiu' of 7'.) feet per mile for
a mile and a half and another of tU) feet per mile ibr the same distance. N(»iii of the
other exceed 1 per 100.
''The works on tiiis .section will h
of light and medium work.
Llirce uiil'jb heavv rock cutting and ci;:liL miles
"Near the G2nd mile, the line cro.s.scs the Homathco Jiivei - iOO feet wide — cIom to
its outllow from l^akt; Tatlayaco, which is 2,712 feet above the sea level, thence the line
follows tho eastern shore of the lake to its lieaetweon the Cascade and Rocky
Mountains, by some of the numerous valleys and lake basins with which it is ini)0 feet aljove the sea level, and the
1 ise to it from Lake Tatlayaco is almost continuous, there being only a few short stretches
of level intervening. The highest gi'udiont is I ]tvv 100 contimu)Usly for eight miles; the
rest arc easv.
'•Tiio works on this section will be moderate; the cuttings arB princijially in gravel
and boulders, with a sntall projiortion of rock. The heaviest works will l)e the crossing
of the ravines, on(^ of them TjOO feet wide at the top and 114 feet deep, the other 400 feet
wide and 113 feet deep. Hoth of them slope to only a few feet in breadth at the bottom.
"From !).") to lOl.', miles the line runs along th(! sttuth-cast .shore of Haghi JiJike with
I'.tsy, undulating gradients. Tlicre will l)e a c()usidera))le quantity of rock cutting in this
section. .
It
h
" Hence to the Chilaiicuii Valley the line follows a depression in the jilateau, appa-
rently the ancient bed of the lake ami river. Tin; gradients arc generally easy, except 1
p(!r 100 for four miles. They are descending to the Chilancoh, which is 1^,07") feetal)ove
sea level where the line crosses the rivi-r which is 30 feet wide.
"This section is broken with ridges of sand, gi'avel and bouldiMs, and small dry
ponds. Th(! works will not be heavy.
" From the (Jhilancoh to the crossing of the Chilicotin lliver at the 131)th mile the
line is over a rolling country. From the 12"Jnd to the 130th mile it passes on the north-
west of Puntzee liake, well up on the slope, in order to surmount the plateau between that
and the ChUicotiii Valley. The liighest jioint is at 133 miles and is 3,467 feet above sea
level. The rise is almost continuous from the Chilai\coh to this point, Init the highest
gradient is 1 per 100 for a mile and a hsdf.
" Hence the line descends with ea.sy gradient to the Chilicotin Valley; crossing the
river — 120 feet wide — near the foot of the Chisicut Lake at the altitude of 3,290 feet
above sea level.
'• From the Chilicotin Valley -13'J miles — the line roaches the higlajst jioint of the
l)latcau at 153 miles, with easy undulating gradients. This jwint is 3,005 feet above sea
level. Hence to the west end of Lake Nesiacho at 1 C2 miles, the gradients are very
ejisy, that point being 3,470 feet above sea level.
"The whole of this section from 139 to 102 miles is over an arid counti- f 4g|^
grrvel antl boulders, and the work will bo very light.
"From 162 miles the line runs along the slopes of the % alley by Lak N'estach",
Zazatee and Tehu-sin-il-iil to 167| miles with easy gradients, but on half tin listatK/e
there will bo some rather heavy I'ock cutting: the balance will be light work.
"From the last point — 107i| miles— the Nazco lliver, here only 20 feet wide, flows
into a canyon, the head of which is 3,419 feet above sea level. The descent thi'ough the
canyon, eight I'.iul a-lialf miles in length, is at a uniform rate of 1 per 100. Half the
distance is curvature, varying from 1,910 to 1,433 feet radius.
" The upper part of the canyon is comjiosed ut basaltic vock, the lower part con-
jjlonipi-ate.
There will be some heavv ruck cuttings in this section.
119
" From 176^ miles, at thu foot of the canyon, tho valley widens out so that between
this point and the junction with the Blackwater, there is scojxi for more tlian one line.
The line located has bee" r'-osen to shorten the distance as much iis practicable and to
keep off the low lands which ;.. ' subject to overflow, so that there are points at which it
may bo found liesimble to uv, cf sUm'f deviations to reduce tho «jiiantity of nx-k
cvcavatiou.
** Tho altitude at the foot of the canyon is 2,98") feet, and at the mouth of th(! Nazco
J/iSO feet above sea level — a fall of ."(U."* feet in iD miles. TIk; highest grailieiit O.fiO per
100.
"On some portions of this section there will be a eonsideralde ([uantity of rock ciit-
tiiif,', more especially on the shore of Lake Nazco from the ITS to the iSi'ud mile. The
balance will be liji^ht work.
"There are six crossinj^s of tho Nazco that will re([uir(' bridges of ont; ■sj)an of lOO
feet, with alxmt 50 feet of trestle bridging at each end, unless there are stone abutments.
One bridge will have two spans of 100 feet each. The lower chords of these bridges will
be only a few feet above flood level, suflicicnt to ailow trees to tloat under freely.
"From the mouth of the Nazco tho line follows down the valley of tho I'lackwater
.5 miles to the 234th mile, where tho altitude is 2,r)37 feet, giving an average fall of \^h
feet per mile. But tho gradients are undulating and there are three jiieces of 1 j)er 100
making .an aggregate of one and a half mih^s in hnigth. About four miles of this section
is on rock formation and the cuttings will be rather heavy. The balance? is ]>riucii)ally on
gi'avel and boulders^ probably resting on solid rock.
"The river is very crooked in this part of the valley and the line cros.sea it three
times, requiring one bridge of two spans of 100 feet each, and two l)ri(lges (^f three spans
of 100 feet each.
" From 2.3 1- to 237 miles the line ascends the sloi)e of the valley obliquely on to the
jilateau, which divides tho Blackwater from tho Chilacoh Valley, with a gradient of 4.')
feet per mile. On this length there will be some heavy rock cutting and two tunnels,
one 1 ,300 feet, the other GOO feet in length.
II
"At 237 miles the altitude is 2,(583 feet above sea level: thence tht jtlateau is
crossed in a straight line with Ciisy undulating gradients to 217 miles!. The formation is
sand and gravel and the works on this section will be light.
"The height of the last point is 2,.594 feet above sea level. Hence the line descends
the slope by a serpentine coui-se to thfi Chilacoh Valley, with gradients varying from 0.20
to 1 per 100. There are about four miles of the latter in several lengths with stretches
of level between.
"The formation is sand, gravel and boulders and there are no deej) cuttings, but
there are several deep I'avines to cross. The largest of these is .")00 feet at to]). 10 feet at
bottom and 110 feet deep.
" At 25f)i miles the line crosses tho bottom flat of the Chilacoh Valley 2,400 feet
wide, requiring an embankment or trestle work 30 feet high. The river is 1 20 feet wide.
" From this the line follows the Chilacoh Valley do%vn to its junction with tiiat of
the Stewart at 289J miles. The gradients are very ea.sy, the altitude at the (Jhilacoh
being 2,225 feet and at the Stewart 2,or)5 feet.
120
*' On the liififc 12 miles the works will bo very light, but on the next fi\c iiiilos the
river has cut through a range of hills and the valley is contrjictcil j on this l;\st seotiuii
there will be some deep cuttings in sand and gravel. ,
''The line at 27.1 miles is 2,120 feet above sea level, and thence to 2i'
100 fed.
'• This is the j)oint to which tlie trial location survey had been carried in October,
lS7r», and the residt is to a certain extent satisfactory. The excessively heavy works
through the Cascade Mountains, rc(]uii'ed on the lino surveyed in 1872, have by tlie la,«t
survey been reduced to practicable limits. The hingth of tunnelling l)y the former was
fully four miles; now it will not exceed two nules. Tlu> rock excavation and bridging over
deep ra^•inc3 have been reduced in proportion, as the frinatiou line is now at a much less
height above the level of the Ilouiatheo Ivivrr. I'lie u'l-adienvs
ini])roveil.
also considcrublv
" On the other haml the line liy tlie Jliver Na/co li.is not proved so favorable as
anticipated. The canyon at tla; head of the valley is eight miles in length with a continuous
gradient of 1 per 100 and heavy rock cuttuig throughout. There is also some heavy
work on two or thri.'e miles in tin; Blackwuter Valley.
'• The length of line on which very heavy rock excavation a.ul tunnelling occurs is
about 50 miles viz: — in the Oascado iMountains tO miles ; in the Nazco canyon eight miles,
and in the valley of the J*>laekwater two to three niili's.
" it is not necessary hero to enter into a. further classilicalion of tlai woi-ks, fis the
t|uantiti winter running trial lines in ndvaiico
of locatit)n and that they were pi'opared to resume the latter as soon as tli'.- country was
elf ar of snow.
"A branch of tlie liiver Fraaer ris(;s on tiic west side of the \'ellow Head Pass
within half a mile of tho summit, which is the eastern Itoundary of the province of British
(Jolumbia. Tho river Hows westward through Yellow lleail and Moose Bakes, and the
line is located on the north sitlo of these to within four miles of tlu* foot of the latter lake.
m
"In tlio distance located — 22^- miles — the fall is 313 feet. Of tliis fall 03 feet takes
]»laco in tlio two and a-lialf miles from the summit of the pass, to Yellow Head Lake, in
which there is a gradient of 1 per 100 for a mile and a-half. The i-est of the fall is between
the two lakes, on which there are two gradients of 1 per 100 making altogetlier a length
of two miles. On the shore of the lakes the gradients are undulating and easy.
"Tlie works on this section will not be heavy; » few of the cuttings will roacli
."iO feet in depth but chiefly in sand and gravel, with a few shout cuttings in I'ock.
JO t(
"A report from the Engineer in charge of Division M dated May 2nd, 187(j, states
that the party luid been running trial lines during the winter, but resumed location on
the 29th February, and they had reached ami crossed the River Fraser 20 miles above
Fort (Jeorgo. A plan and profile accompanying tlui rqiort, sliow this section t(t be •_".'
miles in length.
"The distanci! from Bute Inlet to the junction of the (yjiilacoh and Stewart Valleys
has been stated 289 :| miles. From this point the lino has been continued along the right
bank of the Stewart River, crossing the latter near the 297t]i mile. It follows tlie left
bank to the 302nd mile, when it makes a sharp turn to tlie north up a narrow valley
]»arallel to the Fraser. At the head of this valley 308tli mile — is the sunnnit of tlu^
divide l)etween the valleys of the Stewart and the Fniser. From this summit the line
descends obliquely the slope of the latter, and crosses the i-iver at the 318.1 mile.
"The line on the banks of the River Stewart and the lateral valley up to tlu' 301st
mile is on fi-rtile flats, with easy gradients and the work will be light.
"The altitude at the crossing of the River Stewart is 1,9.")0 feet above sea level.
The river is r)00 feet wid(! with 20 feet depth of water and a ra])id current. The bridtrintr
of this will be a diHicult i>i(!ce of work,
hei'dit of five to ten feet.
The ice ]»iles up on the sides of (he river to .i
"The sunmiit of the divide is at 307A- miles, and, ascending this on the souoh side,
there are three lengths aggregating three miles of I ])or 100, and, descending the north
slopes, there are five miles of the same gradient on three lengths, Avith short I'iticcs
of level between.
"Crossing tile divide from 30() to .'J 13 miles, the country is serratcnl with sharp
ridgPH and narrow deei» ravines, on which thcK; will Ik; very heavy excavations 20 to Ho
feet in depth, chiclly in clay. On the rest of the distance the works will be very ligiit.
"The Salmon River is cros;;ed at '.iU\'l miles. It is SO feet wid(! luit si;I»J(m.'L In
overllow its banks.
"Tlie Fraser where the line cro.ssec is 700 feet wide between walls of solid rock; it
is 30 feet deep at Hood with a very rapid currcMit. This crossing only appeal's suitai>le
for a suspension bridge, and it may be found necessary to select a crossing where the rivei-
is not so contracted and the current less swift."
1>1:AN iNLliT TO JlNCTlOV 1\ Till'. ni.ACKWATEIl VaLI.KV Wri'll Till; I, INT. IIIOM lilTi;
Inli:t TO Yellow JIead I'ass.
r
"The liiu! of this preliminary survey runs up the valley of the Salmon Kiver, whirh
rises in the ci atral plateau and flows nearly duo west through the Cascade Mountains to
Dean Inlet, it then crosses the watershed to the head of the Rlaekwater, which river
10
122
flows nearly due east to the Fraser. The line follows this to the intersection of the line
from Bute Inlet. Tlience to Yellow Head Pass is common to both lines.
" ToiKjgraphical sketches and some cross sections were taken to a sufficient bread tii
to project a line for location, and, as a location survey is now in progress of that portion of
the line through the Cascade Mountains, it i.s not iiccpssary to enter vcny minutely into a
description of the preliminary line.
"The following table shows the gradients taken at points where there is a vei-y
decided change in the rate of inclination, disregarding minor variations. The Remarks in
the margin will sufficiently indicate the character of the country and works required.
Table of Gradients.
Length.
i
2
17
mile
miles
miles
Si
2
3i'
miles
miles
miles
i.
mile
.1i
24
2.i
miles
miles
miles
miles
miles
m
miles
Gradient.
Remarks.
Level
5.3 feet per mile
31 feet per mile
49 feet per mile
42A feet per mile
80 feet per mile
Level
2fii feet per mile
70 feet per mile
166 feet per mile
90 feet per mile
100 feet per mile
On flat tongue of land, south shore of Kamsquot Bay.
A quarter of a mile of this is through a canyon. Bock cutting.
The line is on the wrong side of the river with a large quantity of
rock cutting and some tunnelling. On the other side are
timbered flats with rock coming to the water's edge for a short
space at three different points. Line being located on that side
will cross river near 19th mile.
None of the cuttings will exceed 35 feet in depth, but will be
chiefly in rock
Tunnel half a mile in length through rock. Rest of the cutting
moderate.
At Yeltesse or Salmon House, cross river 150 feet above water
with bridge 900 feet long. One span of 200 feet over the
chasm and 7 spans of 100 feet with a height of 40 to 50 feet.
Heavy rock cuttings. i .
The canyon. Very heavy work.
To head of canyon. Heavy rock cuttings.
Heavy rock cuttings.
" At Yeltesse, 34th mile, is a fixed point and the line cannot he altered. It will l»e
seen that, with the exception of a half a mile of tunnelling, there are no very great
difficulties up to this point and the gi'adients are not bad. Here we are entirely through
the superior snow-clad ranges of tlie Cascade Moxmtains, and, from the head of the
Canyon, to this point the river finds its way in a deep groove through the rolling hills of
the centi'al plateaii, and the greatest engineering dvffic\ilties will be on 16 miles from
Yeltesse upward. It is possible that a uniform gradient of about 84 feet per mile could
be obtained with heavy rock cuttings and little, if any tunnelling ; but a careful location
urvey can alone determine this.
" The altitude at the 52nd mile is 3,003 feet above sea level. The lino follows the
north bank of the river to 59]^ miles, where it commences to ascend the slopes of the
valley of the plateau which divides the liead watora of the Haliuon Kiver and the
Blackwater.
"Following a chain of small lakes it reaches the highest point of tlio divide near
Basalt Lake at 8G| miles, 3,700 feet above sea level.
128
" In ascending to this plateau the highest gradient is 1 per 100 in four lengtlis
making together a little over seven miles. The gradients on the plateau are easy and
undulating.
" From the 52nd to the 55th mile there will be heavy rock excavation, thence to the
summit the rock will be moderate. The cuttings will be generally under 12 feet in
depth ; a very few A\'ill reach 25 feet, and nearly all will be in sand and gravel.
" Near the 87th mile the line runs at the foot of a range of basaltic columns along
the north shore of a small lake, less than a mile in length, which is one of the highest
sources of the Blackwater.
• " From the 90 to 92^ miles it runs along the north shore of Lake Eliguck, the
second in the chain through which the Blackwater flows and which contribute to its
supply. Thence the depression in the plateau becomes a defined, broad, but not deep,
valley, and the line runs on the north side of it at some distance from the river, passing
the junction of the two branches near the 101st mile; the larger branch coming down
from a high range to the south-west.
"The line crosses the river — 120 feet wide — at 110| miles, near the heatl of a small
canyon ; altitude 3,400 feet. From the summit to this point the gradients are undulating
and easy, there being only one piece of 1 per 100 two-thirds of a mile in length. The
works will be light; few of the cuttings exceed 10 feet and will be chiefly in sand, gravel
and boulders.
"From the crossing the lino follows the right bank of the river, through the caiiyun
about a mile in length with a base of 07 feet.
"From 113 to 125 miles the lino follows the south shore of Lake Thraclia,
throujjh which the Llackwator flows, and at 134 miles near the foot of Lake Euchinico it
re-crosses the river.
" In this section the gradients are generally easy, but the ground is more l)roken and
the work will be rather heav" as there is a considei-ablo portion of rock in some of the
cvittings. It is probal)Ie th.-. better lino could l)o found by keej)ing on the left bank of
the river and lakes all the way down.
"The altitude at the crossing of the river near the 134th mile is 1,335 feet, thence
the line runs on the left bank of the river wliich flows througli a chain of Kuiall lakes to
the IGOth mile. The gradients are easy on this section, but there will be some rather deep
cuttings on the shores of tlie lakes, which, however, can be much reduced by a careful
location of the line.
" Tlio last point is 3,01 7 feet above sea level and from it the Biackwatei- mak(!s a sharp
liciul to the south-east till it meets the Nazco. Tiie combined streams bend to the north-
Ciist. To cut ofV this angle the lino has been run over tlie ridge which luis caused tlio
deflection of the river. I'he summit is near the KitUh mile — altitude 3,228 feet. Jji
descending the Iskultiusley, a tribut»iry of the Blaikwater, there is n gi-adient of 1,^7
per 100, e(iual to 99 feet per mile, for 3:| miles, and another of 1 per 100 for a mile and a
half : but this can bo improved to a uniform gradient of 1 i)er 100 foj- about nine miles, or,
probably much better by a consideraViIe deviation of the line to the northward. The
excavations on this side of the ridge will be heavy, but principally ui sand and gravel or
loose rock.
121
"Tlie Iskultasley River, 20 feet wide, is crossed between tlio 17 1st and 172nd
mile ; thence the line follows its left bank to the Blackwater Valley, wliere it joins the
line from Bute Inlet, which enters the Blackwater by the Nazco ^^alley 10 miles fuiiher
up.
"The length of the line from Dean Inlet to the junction is 184 miles, and from Bute
lulet 230 miles — a difference of 4G miles in favor of the former with generully lighter
works throughout, and it is anticipated that by a deviation of the line so as to fonn a
junction with that from Bute Inlet in the Chilacoh Valley, the heavy work, which is now
common to both lines, between the 230th and 2G0th miles will be much reduced. A
survey of this is now being made."
From Kemaxo Bay, ox the Gardner Channel, to First Lake ox Eastern JsLori;
OP THE Cascade Mountains.
.\ it all the country
west of the territory ceded under the provisions of the foregoing treaties, to the Iiock}-
Mountains, was surrendered to the Dominion Government, with the exception of tin;
country of the Blackfeet lying in the south-west portion of the North-West Territoriesini-
south of the railroad route. It is expected, however, that a treaty with this ti-ibe will be
concluded next year when the Indian title to the whole region will be extinguished in
favor of the Government of the Dominion.
To each and all of the fore-mentioned treaties the following jtrovision was
attached : —
17
1550
" Hftr Majesty furthor agrees with linr said Tiidiana, tliat witlun the boundary of
fiidian Reserves, imtil otlierwise determined hj her (iovernment of the Dominion of
( 'unada, no intoxicating lienor shall be alloweposite.' ■■• We (Canadians) have followed
towards them an undeviating policy f)f coneiliation and protection, which appears to have
won the admiration of some of our friemls in America. 'The Government has assumed a
fri(jndly and painstaking guardianship over them,' says the report above rpioted. W^t*
hav« carefully respected oiu* treaty engagements with them, and have ])aid them for the
lands we have required of them, or have granted them nt^w reservations. We have
supplied them with missionaries and schools, and the elements of instruction in agricul-
tur(> and in various trades. Of more consequence still in estimating the causes staying
their extinction, we have provided for them medical aid, and have taken especial pains to
save them from tlie ravages of small pox, a disease which formei'ly \v(nil(l dostrov whole
tribes."
Ihhl, p. 117.
* ''■'• * " it is greatly to the credit of the Imperial and Canadiau (ioveiii-
ments that since the conquest of the country no wars have been waged with the Indian
t lilies. Treaties have been made for the cession of the tracts of country claimed by the
various tribes, and these engagements have been scrujuiloiisly respected. Large sums of
money are paid annually, in accordance with the terms of these treaties.
''■'• * * "This policy of peace and protection towards the Indians lias
proved a wise one. It has co.st far less than the aggressive policy of the United States
towards the tribes within their boundaries. England is regarded with respect and
aflection by these nide savages. 'King George's men,' as our soldiers are called, arc
siioken of with admiration, and are believed to be invincible."
Ihkl i>. 11!».
* * * " In all i>robability the Canada Pacific Railway will soon be con-
structed. It will pass through 1,500 miles of Indian country. Home management will
be needed to reconcile the Indians to the luidertaking, for the railroad, and the line of
stittlements along its route will tend to ruin the great remaining buffalo grounds, and, in
doing this, will threaten tlie continued prosperity of these wild children of nature.
" For the sake of our own interests, if not from pity for a race destined apparently
to extinction, we should deal with thijse Indian tribes kindly, and let them pass from the
world unstained by the shedding of English blood."
131
Indian Pui'i'i.ATfoN.
Co.nmx of C(tiia-li, 1S71. fntro'I action to Vtil. /l'.,i>. f.XA'XH'.
" Manitoba (C. 1870) Estimate of siboriginal population 50(1
"British Columbiii " " " " 2:$,000 •
" Labrador, KupL'rts ) ., ,^ ^, „ -,-,-,(-)(,
" Land and North-Wcst I "'•''■"'
* ■ '-Tntiil 7f<,000" '
/import i)f tlif //f'/i'irfnienf oj'tln' I nlirlnr, 1^71. /ntnxluftiiui. p. TV.
'• Estimated Indian i)Opulatioii.
" British Columbia ni,.J2(t
" Manitoba and North-West under treaty. 13,'.>44
" Sioux in Manitoba and North-West 1,450
" From Peace Rirer to TJ. S. IJoundaiy, untreatied " 10,000
" Rupert's Land, ito .'">, 1 7< »
'•Total 62,081"
TlIK MOL'NTKD PoLICK.
Ri'poi'l of Mdjor-d'fiicr (I E. Sdhif Smijth, ('ouunandhig Canadid)' Militli. |S7().
"Too much value cannot be attached to the North-West Police, too much alteniion
cannot be paid to their efEciency.
" We read that not long ago these wild Indian tribes of the Far West were
accustomed to regard murder as honorable war, robbery and pillage as traits most
ennobling to mankind; the Blackfeet, Crees, Salteaux, Assiboynes, the Peigiins, among
the most savage of the wild races f)f Western America, free from all restraint and any
sort of control, waged indiscriminate war with each other and with mankind.
"Law, order, and security for life and |)roperty were little observed; cirii and Icg.d
institutions almost entirely vuiknown.
"To day what a revolution can we see: — all these have given place to peace and
security, prosperity, contentment, and good will, it remains oidy to satisfy the Indian
tribes by entering into fair and just treaties, which they much desire : but in carrying this
into efl'ect, the utmost caution is necessary to convince them that their sj)acious hunting
grounds are still ojicn to them, for they will follow the buffalo as long as tli« buffalo con-
tinues to e.\ist.
"The a[tj)ointmont of magistrates, and encouragement of nii-sionary labour arf
(juestions also becoming prominent in the dawning development of that noble temtorv,
not long ago only known to the wild Indians of the mountain, the forest, and the prairie,
to the dissipated, nomadic, half-breed, and to the hardy trapper, but now silently and
patiently awaiting the approach of the immense wave of human life which must shortly
overrun the fair and productive soil of those remote and beautiful solitudes."
*Since this Report was published another treaty has lieen concluded by which the Indian title to
the whole of the Saskatchewan country has been ceded to Canada. There now remains only the
Blauk^ot with whom a treaty will he negotiated in the ^unimor of 1877.
182
r,e2>ort of the Hon, David Lalnf, Minister of the Tntmor, ItSTfi.
" The first stpps taken by the Dominion Government witli a view to the intr<p. 1 1-5.
"General l)oundaries: From Taic Seid (say long. 02" W., lut. 50" N.) to foot of
Rocky Mountains, lat. CO" N.; thence along base of Rocky Moinitains to lat. 50" N.;
thence to the south bend of Mouse River; thence to the Lake of the W'oods, lat. 49" N.;
thence along Rainy River, and thence J.ac Seul. This area, unliroken by mountains oi-
rock to any material extent, with streams and small lakes which but fertilize, may be
stated at 320,000 square miles. ' '
*Since the above census was taken there has been a large immigration of Icclaiulers, Mcuouites
and others into the territovits and tho Province of Manitoba. The number of Icelanders is approxi-
mately estimated as over 1,000, and of Menonitcs about 5,000. The white population of Manitoba
alone 'i» now eatimated at from 35,000 to lOiOOO.
103
" Beyond it, northwards, however, are also areas of richest vegetable mould, (humvn)
oil warm yilurian and Devonian bases, and with marly clays of utmost fertility. They
are found on the lower reaches of the Rivers Peace, Hay, and Aux Liards (Arctic
streams, tributaries of tin; grout Mackenzie Jlivor) un aggrcf^ate, say, of at letust 50,000
square niHes."
VEiiKTAJiLE ASh (.KASS (i:( uNuMU) A11K.\« ULVoNO (AM> NOT INHAUKJ> IN} Till: A110\ E,
WITH SUFFICIENT TIMUKI!, itc.
S(juarc Miles.
'• 1. Ilud.sou's Jjay Uasiii (i)ortion Silurian, so far as known, and fairly
predicable) east .side, '(E. of meridian .^0" W.) 100,000 sfi\iare Mih.'S. Wc.st
.•ride (\V. of meridian 80'> W.) 300,000 square miles 400,000
"2. Winnipeg Basin, east side, from English River to Nelson liiver... .S0,000
"3. Beaver River (middle and lower parts) .'iO.OOO
"4. Methy Lake and Clear Water Jtiver, and Athabasca Itiver from
Clear Water River to Athabasca Lake, east side 30,000
" i). West of Mackenzie (Devonian with coal measures) to wheat line ius
above stated, and from Fort Chipweyan to Fort Resolution on (freat Slave
Lake, say, from hit. .^),S" to 01" N 10,000
" 0. 'East sid(^ of Mackenzie River to Fort Cood Hojie, or say hit. 68" N. 100,000
"7. West of the Mackenzie River from hit. (31" N., northwards, to
American (late Russian) boundary, long. 141" W., and American Pacific
shore strip, viz: — all north of lat. CO" N., e.vcept area No. f), aforesaid , KiO.OOd
" S. Rocky Mountain eastern slope beyond wheat line 30,0(10
'• 0. Outlying areas, amongst others, the extensive but inulcfnuHl ones
between the Hudson's Bay Silurian, and northern rivei-s of the St. I^wrcnce
Valley ; say from Lake Mistassini to Lake Nepigon 1 0( •,()()( >
" 10. Add, also, the (by some called) 'American Desert' of our latitudes;
say, between lats. 4'J" and 50" N., where maize well grow.s, and bu(lalo(;s
fatten — a favourite Indian hunting ground 40,00()
"Total area 1,(100,000
" 'Die b.irlev area of llic aboso ni.iv In- st-iitnl at two tliirds.
"Tho rest of our Nortli-Wcst and Ituperts Lamis, including the immense • Ilirreii
(Grounds' of our Laureiilian system, and the Labrador Jtocks of our eastern Rupert's
Ijitiid, and the great wilds and islands of our Arctic, may be fairly estimat(;d at anotln^-
million square miles.
"The above economic areas are predicated m lIic old eastern I )uundary of Britioh
Columbia, throughout its length from lat. 40" to GO" N., but by recent statute, the Im-
perial Act 29 and 30 Vic, chap. 07, that boundary has been changed so as to give about
30,000 s(piaro miles, or a little more to British CoUinibia, mtkI a half of which 30,000
.sipiare miles is wheat land of be.st ([uality.
"And iiere, as holding special knowledge, personal and documentary, as to British
Columbia, througho.it its interior, known best, if not (until very recently) almost solely,
by the fur trade and the Puget Sound Agricultural Association, in which my father, and
on his decease, myself, were partners, T would make a statement as to the agri'-'ultural
resources of that country, as having some relation to, if not in a sense embracet; in the
general term ' North-W^cst Territoviet. ' of Canada."
184
British CoT.UMnrA.
"Total ai'oa (gfock'sioi'l) 350,000 square miles.
" Wlieat area, islands iueliuled, ostiiiiate at 100,000 S(Hicare miles, being all south of
lat. f);!" N. ; although, it must be said, there are fine wheat valleys far beyond north-
ward. The grass, barley and vegetal>le ai-ea north of the above— that is, from lat, T).')'^
to OO" N. (northern boundary of British (.'olumbia) and from long. 120" W. to the
American boundary, long. 141" W., i estimate at 100,0(10 square miles. A consider-
able j)ortion .say one-sixth of those areas is covered with lakes, numerous, and, like all
the rivers, abounding with whoh^some fis!i~tlie sta|)le food of the natives.
"Wood and glass area 300,000 ,S(|uare miles.
" Barren roi^k, but witli considi-rablc mineral (in commercial qmmtity and quality)
such as gold, siher, e()i)}»ei', iron, itc, and coal of Itest kinds in abunilance and readily
workable, .'30,000 square miles.
"The fish wealth of its sliores (seii i and inland watei's is unrivalled in extent and
excellence.
" Its fur yield to tiie trade, in my tinu^ there, as I see l>y the books and papers of
uiy father and his statV of ehwen clerks in charge of outlying posts in this district, was
projiortionately larger th;'n tliat of any othei- trading district in the whole Hudson's
Hay Territoi'ifs. What now it may lie. it is impossible to say.
" As to the i*daptabilihy of tlic country for stock raising, I may stare, —
" it is more a grazing than an agricultural country, and the horses used liy the trade
(fur) — bands of from 200 to 300 for trans] lort — had cmly the natural grasses, bunch and
other, to feed on the iv/iolr ijeo.r round, and in winter, though ever h^ft in the open, even
fattened, and were ready for their early spring and long summer work. There were no
cattle nor even a pig there in those times, and it was with great ditliculty that in 182G
my fatlujr managed, iu spile of opposing Indians, to take the lirst calves up the Columbia.
Tiiey inereaseil so ra])idly that they (the Coirqiany) had snon more than they rc(piin>il, or
could use in iinyw.iy, and they had to let them run wild.
"Nine \ears afterwards. \iz., in 1^35, tlio I'uget Sound Agricultural Association,
with a capital of ,l'2llO,(>()n ^tg., ten per cent ])aid, was started by a few partners of the
Ihulson's Bay (.'ompany, and anuMigst them my father to the extent of £500 stg. It
eslal)lished a farm. \ery large, on the Paciiic ('oast. Buget Sound, with extension to
Yancouver l^'aml.
"The princinal'olijcii ;\(' market, was the Ku'^sian trade, viz., tall(iv\ (o their tradiiig
posts, and gairisun at Sitka on the north-west (then liussian) coast, and also fiU' supjilies
to the Hud.siai's Jiay Conipany's trade. For some years it paid 5 percent on paid up
capital (10 per cent.), bat, from niisniai agenu^nt or failure of niaiket, disidemls failed
entirely, ami about l.'i years ago I sold out at ]iar.
"The Oregon Treaty gave the Anierieans the greater part of our lands and
improvements, and the indemnity voted, and ultimately after about 20 years paid for it,
was one million dollars, an increase in value of nearly ten fold in eleven .years, the treaty
being in ISjS. The fact carries its own obvious signilicance on the (jtiestions of agricul-
tural resources of the region in question, 'riin average yi'dd oj' that TNlieat field is
iTcdibly reported at fiom 00 to oO birlie) . of wheat per acre (Knr;li.".h acre).
"The Comjyany's farms on tlio ("olumbia and tlio f'owlitz (a nortliern tributary near
tlic coast), constituteil, 1 lielicve, iu tlicir value, tlu; jn-incipal portion of tlic four millions
of dollars of indemnity voted to the ("ompany, and jiaid by the American (rovernment of
the United States under the Oregon Treaty. 'I'he terrain of Southern British Columbiii
— a comparative plateau — from Kamloo|)s to the American boundary {-l',!") rid the
Okanagau Valley, is not a whit less valuabh^ for grazing, and much of itjor agricultural
j)urposes, tlian any part of the Columbia Valley. Unfortunately for the country's credit
in this respect, the late railway surveys have Ikmmi in what truly may be called a Sea of"
jMountains — 'its Highlantls'— its Alpine regions of sonn-what rugged mould; but as
the campagna>, the ever fertile [)lains, and vales and mountain foot slopes of Jtaly, or
southern France, ai"e not to be judged by the neighboring heights that but. minister to
theii- fertility, neither should Mritish Columlna iu Iier pliysi'/al features in tliis respint.
"So much for Southern J'ritish Columbia, say from the American boundary to
latitutle T)!" north. Jk-yond tiiat the country is less numntainijus, and in fact from the
Itocky Mountains to the Coast Kange is a fine rolling ])lateau of wood and prairie with
much lake and river of easy and far continuous navigation, and where, at an average
height of only about l,'JtJ() feet above sea, the |wevailing flora is one indicative of heat
and moisture, and a fine climate, with no severer winter weath'i- than prevails in central
Canada, say in the meridian of Ottawa.
'• It is a region little known, save to tlm eA/ fur traders of the Xorlh West, and
in
their journals and ever faithfully ke[)t anil most credible diaries — from which in ui\-
book, 'Peace Jiivt'r,' pul)lished here four years ago, T tpiote largely we tind recnrd of a
high degree of fertility and agricultural product.
"1 shall here present lait two extracts, viz., from the late » 'hief l-'a'tur llarnioii'.^
journal of life, for several years there, aliout Gl) years ago, and which was printed about
At) years ago, ami is now scarce. 'At Fort St. James' (about latitude .') I" .'»0' uoith, tind
] ,NI)0 feet above sea, as estimated by me, and as subsO([ueiitly aseertaiueil by aneroid
measureuKMit by Mr. Iforet/.ky, of .Mr. I'"lemiiig's stall'), "the liist liarlcy (lise ipiarts)
sown jiroduced live bushels, say about SI bushels per acre.'
"'At Fort Fi'aser' (still further west on the slope of the ( 'asiade or ( 'oast Itange),
' the lirst jHjtatoes planted (about ii l)ush(d) produced forty-fold.'
" Fort St. .James is oidy aliout 5(1 miles, in air line, from old Fort (ieorge on tjic
Fraser, and to which point, it has just been repotted, the Canadian Pacilic Kailway is
being located. '!'he nearest and ln'st access to ocean from that ]>oint is by that valhty — a
tine ojien one according to report- on which old Fort Fraser was imilt, and whence to
ocfuin — Oardiier'.s Iidct, tlnn-o is (nccoriliiii,' to (jld fur trade r"ports in my possession) at
least one stduioii streaiii direct westward to ocean, and salmon lieiug uiifdile to leap
beyond 12 feet in height, their presences on this ]ilateau by sucii short cut from sea would
seem to indicate a line of routf possibly feasiiile lor railway to ocean tliere.
" Tlierw would be more good land along siicli ti line than ., iv other furiher soulli, as
all south between the Friiser l!i,vcr and the west coast is higln , and colder.
" For Canadians, accustomed timl abl(> to cope with .such winter tln-re, tind with the
nnirethan ordinary Canadian degree of growing power in clim.ite and soil, this region in
reiUIy a good one ; and a local market is ever at htind in the gold mining couimiiniticM ot
Cnriboo, Ominica, and Cassiar."
130
AbNANTAGLS UF TJIK CANADIAN lii'l Tt;.
Facts and Fljure.^ rd/.
* * * "(iovci-nof Stftvoiis. (*) of AtiiUH'sota, bflievoH tliiit tlio most
(lesii"al)l(' route to tli(' I'acific will be found iu blic possossLou of (Jn^at Biitaiu, and tiiat
a great inter-ocoauic communication is nfore lit-ely to be coustructod tlirougli tlio Saskat-
cliewan Basin tliaii across tlio Amcricin deserts, the cretaceous ;ind c'(.>iii])ai'ativoly rainless
areas of the southern latitudes."'
TuK rrcAri'; Kim;i! Cointiiv.
T/ie Wil.f North Land. Jiy rapt. W. F. Bathv, F.H.G'.S., pp. 10:5-194.
* '•' '•■'■ " Unlike the, prairies of the Saskatchewan, this plateau is thickly
interspei'sed with woods and thickets of pin** and poi)lar. Its many lakes are free from
alkali, and the varied growth of willows -which they sustain yield amj)le sustenance to
the herds of moosi; which still roam the land. The deep trough through which the river
(Peace) flows increases with singular regularity as the traveller ascends the stream. Thus
at Vermillion the banks are scarcely .'50 feet above low water level ; 200 miles iiigher u|i
they rise to .'JaO feet ; at Dunvegan they are 720 ; and 100 miles still further west they
attain an elevation of 900 and 1,000 feet. Once upon tlie summit, however, no indication
of ruggtHlness meets the eye. The country spi'eads into a succession of prairies, lakes, and
cops(!s, through which the traveller can ride* with ease, safe from the badger-holes which
form such an objectionable feature in more southern prairies. At times the river-bed lills
up the entii-e bottom of the dee]) valley through which it runs ; but more fnr^uently a
wooded terrace lies between the foot of the r\d'>. I'ndcr date of Man lOtli, 179;5.
* '■' * " From the place which we (piitted this morning, the west side of
the river (Peace) displayed a, succession of the most beautiful scenery I had ever beheld.
The ground rises at intervals to a considerable height, and stretching inwards to a con
siderable distanco ; at every interval or pause in the rise, there is a very gi'utly ascending
space or lawn, which is alternate with abrupt precipices to the summit of the whole, or,
at least, as far jvs the eye could distinguish. Tliis magnificent theatre of nature has all the
decorations which th(! trees and the animals of the country cmu aifoi-d it ; groves of ])oplars
iu every sliape vary the scene ; and their intcnwals are enlivened with vast herds of elks
and bull'aloes, the former choosing the steeps and uplands, the latter preferring the pilains.
'■' * ■■'• The whole country displayed an exuberant verdure ; the trees that bear
a blossom were advancing fast to that delightful appearance, and the velvet rind of their
liranches reflecting the oblique rays of a rising or setting sun, added a splendid gaiety to
187
tlie sccaio, Avhu'li no expressions of mine ;ii-o f[iialifieil lo e eight or
teir feet deep. The eastern banks are more elevated, and the soil is yellow clay uu.\(!d
with gravel ; so that the trees are neither so large or numerous as on the opposite slior,'.
* * '■' " The Indians informed rae that at a very small distance from eitlier
Itiiik of the river are very extensive plains, frequented by large herds of butfaloes; while
the moo.-ic and reindeer keep in the woods that border on it."
CatuKla Oil. l/ie Pacific. Ihj Charles IloretrJcij, pp. 34-35-51.
-' * " For several miles to the south-west, the nulile (Peace) Kiver,
tlowiiig S(H) feet beneiith us, on its silent com-se to the Arctic Ocean, coidd be distinctly
traced as ic meandered through its mighty valley. Sevtsral large and wooded islands dotted
its surface hei'e and there. About a couple of miles to the south th(f
Smoky lliver, a very hu-ge tribntai-y, Biingles its waters with thos« of the I'eact; lliver.
From our position, and ombraeing an angh* of fully !;}() degrees, or, in other words, from
tlu' north-west round to south, a boundless and nearly level {^xi)ause of country could be
laken in iit a glance, the only breaks being the great valleys of the Peace and Smoky
Uivei"S, than which nothing that we had ever seen could 1)0 more beautiful, the former
especially, in its jnaguituue and depth, surpassing all we had anticipatfMl. The width ot
the vall(!y at this point cannot be less than two and a half miles; and the banks, covered
with verdure, and showing occasionally clumps of wood, slope downwurds to tlie water's
edge in varied yet evei- graceful foi'ui."
l/n>/, p. \1.
* * * ••The Fort (Dunvegau) is estimated to be 1,000 foet above sea
level : hence the general eh^vation of the surrounding country is one thousand seven
Uundreti feet, which is much the same as that of Lesser Slave Lake. The same elevatii:»n
holds good on the south side, which is j>artialiy covered with a scattei-ed growth of pojtlai-
ami sjinice trees.
" The elllorcscence of Huli)lia(e of soda is occa,sion;dIy remarked along the slo|0(^s of the
valley in the vichii*^y of Dinivegau, and camiel coai occurs within a dozen miles of the fori,
but on the south side. From the Eocky Mountain Portage to the Smoky liiver, a
distance of ])roba))ly 'JoO miles, the Peace Pivcr, after taking a leaji of 'J40 feet through
the last and most eastern of the Kocky Mountain Ranges, has cut its way through thick
strata of clay and sand.stone to a d((pth of 700 and 800 feet, wheieit, Mows over an almost
horizontal strata of limestone, which strfttches northward as far as Lake A ili;il>iiscu, where
the primitive system unlets tlu^ silui'i.'in."
[bit!.
i>-
44.
* * * " We followed a well detuied Indian tiixil, which led us over the
moat charming country we had yet seen, passing sometimes through small poplars but
fhieily over an oiten rolling prairie laud of the most excellent kind.
18
188
* * * " We proceeded to examine the section exposed to view, which
consisted of an iriiraensc layer of clay, sandstone, slate and fossiliferous limestone. Mixed
111* with these strata we found an excellent specimen of coal. .
* * * " After supper this evening 1 te.sted tlie qualities of the coal we had
picked up at noon, and found it to bum readily, giving a good, clear flame, with very little
ash ; the strong odor of real coal Avas emitted. We had, indeed, found a treasure ; and
when we reflect that hundreds of square miles of this beautiful coimtry in all probability
cover immense fields of this mineral, the future of this oasis in the great * Nor-west' may
be safely predicted.
• '*.
* * * :' The whole country passed over during those four days was varied
iu ap])earanco, the trail passing through woods and prairie, principally tlie fonner, and for
the last two days through a. rough country covered with very dense forest. A good many
Ifirge creeks were crossed and they invariably flowed through deep depressions cut out by
themselves in the land, to a depth of .300 to 400 feet, where we crossed them. Some v«!ry
lieautiful prairie land was also seen, but we always kept to the north of the ' Grand
Prairie,' wljich, unfortunately, we had not time to visit; still the favorable ap])earance of
the country we did pa.ss through argued greatly in favor of the inoe southern section,
;ibniit wliifh wo had heard so niurli."
Ibid, p. o-'i.
* * * " Immediately beneath, and at my very feet, lay the little Fort,
(St. Jolin) the doors and windows being just discernable iu the distance, while behind il.
to the south, the high ridge of the right bank of the Pine River could be traced for many
miles to the south-west. The whole country in that direction was one mass of densiir(. of I he Select Committee on Immigration and Colouiaafion. House of Covimo'iit-',
i'tmaJo. Prn/'essor Maamn^s Kvidenre on the Flora and Fauna of the ('(fivlri/.
" (J. is there any other wood than jioplar in tiie Peace Piver country .'
".I. Fi\r sixths dl" all the tiniler is poplar, and i« invariably u «2gn of drv ^oil and
good liind. Balsam poplaf is very abundant on the islands in all the north-western
rivera, often attaining a diameter of from 6 to 10 feet, even as far north as Fort Simpson.
White spruce grows to a very hirge size on all tlie watei-sheds and the slopes of the scjuth
bank of the Peace River, on islands in all the rivers, and very abundantly on the low
lands at the west end of Lake Athabasca. I have often s^en it over three ftset in
diameter, but the usual size is from one to two feet. Banksian pine was not observed on
Peace River, but it occurs at Jjake Atliaba.sca, and is abundant as you approach the
Saskatchewan River from the north. Its presence indicates sandy soil unfit foi" culti-
vation.
" White birch is nob abundant along the Peace River but is common on the .\thii-
basca and Mackenzie Rivers. The Northei-n Indians make largo quantities of .syru[) from
its sap in spring.
"These are the most important trees. There are no licecii, maple, ash, oak, elm.
white or red pine in the countiy.
" Q. What fruits grow spontaneously in the I'eace RivtM' coantry and Athabasc.i
regions ?
".^1. mivdhavry oi iha Amelonchier Canadensis {HGvy'uiQ Beny of Canadians, Poires
of the French half-breeds, and Sas-ka-tum berries of the Imlians) i.s collected iu immense
quantities in the upi)er Peace River, and forms quite an article of food and trade. When
I was at Dunvegan last sununer tlie Indians and Half-breeds were camped out coll<;cting
the berries which were then in their prime (August Gtli). Bears are very fond of them.
and re.soi-t to the sunny sh)))es of the Pe.ace River at this time in great numbers to feed
upon the berries. The Inclian women press them into square cakes while fresh and then
dry them for future use, but those intended for the Hudson Bay Company's posts artidrii^d
in the sun and nii.\ed with dry meat a)id grease to form ji. inmican, or are fried in grease
for a dessert.
"Strawberries and raspbcni>
especially at Vermillion.
'.s an;
ItlM'
" Q. Is tlu> water goed iu the Peace IJiver couritry ?
" .1. The waters of the Saskatchewan, Athabasca and Peace Pivers are n 'vcr cle;a',
and in the spring of the year are very nuiddy. All other waters in the Peace Uiwr
coinitry ai-e good. 1 never saw a brackish pool in the whole region.
" Q. Are the valleys of tlie Sask.itclicwan and J'eace River healthy for white men ?
".I. During the years in 1S72 and 1S7;"), I never saw a sick white uiiin or ll;tlf
l)reed. JNIy own health was so nuich impi'o\t.'d l»y my first trip tlui'^ I have been a Ui^w
man ever since. Meat will keep fresh an astonisliing time, and this is one of the surest
tests of the purity of the atmos[>here.
"The Indians of Peace Ri*-er are failing away, and will .soon di.sap|tcai-. Scrofiduu-<
diseases of vai'ious kinils, and pulmoniuy disea.ses produced by iiiSuHicicnt clolhing arc
doing their work, and the scanty population is lessening every year.
110
" (?. Is there imy game?
"J. The moose is still abundant on both skies of the Peace Kivci-, iuul the vvourl
buffalo is still found between the Athabasca and the Peace Kivei' about bit. 57". From 500
to 1,000 head is the estimate of the lumtei-s. Black bears are \ery numerous on the n|)-
])er part of Peace River, and furnished the chief food of the people in July and August.
Cariboo are north and east of Lake Athabasca, and are the chief food of the Indians and
Half-breeds of that i-egion. Rabbits are in immense numbers wherever the}"e is timber,
and are easily taken. Waterfowl are beyond computation, dnring Se})teml)er, in the
neighborhood of Lake Athabasca, and lai'ge tlocks of Canada geese are found on Peace
Hiver all summer. Lynx, })eavei', martin and fox make iij) the chief fur-bearing animals.
" Q. Are there any mineral deposits in the country ? If so, state the difftjront kinds.
"A. Large depo.sits of coal have been observed, by Mr. SehvyTi, on the Saskatchewan
between the Rocky Mountain House and Victoria, a distance of 211 miles. He sjteaks
in one place of having seen seams 20 feet thick, and in his report for 187.'} and 1S74, lie
gives a photograph, on jmge 41, of this seam.
"Rev. Mr. Grant, in 'Ocean to Ocean,' speaks of a scuui of coal on the Pembina
River — a tributary of the Athabasca — ten feet thick, and from which they brought away
specimens that were afterwards analysed by Professor Lawson, and found to contain less
than 15 per cent of ash.
"While on my trip to Peace River, in company with Mr. Hoii-tzky, in tlie tall of
IS72, I discovered coal in large quantities in the bank of one of the rivei's which flow
into Little Slave Lake. It was also seen in small quantities in a number of other
localities in the vicinity of the lake. It is also reported from the u]iper part of Smoky
River, and I have seen it in snuill quantities on the n])per part ot I'eace River and its
tributaries on the right bank. I observed no indications of coal below Smoky Hiver, but
Sir John Richardson speaks of lignite being abundant on tiie Mackenzie.
" Clay ironstone is associated with the coal wherever it has been obs(vrved, although
possibly not in paying quantities. Coal, then, and ironstone may be said to extend
almost all the way from the boimdary to the Arctic Ocean. Gypsum of the very best
<]uality, and as white as snow, was seen at Peace Point on Peace River, and for a distance
of over 20 miles it extended on both sides of the river, averaging 12 feet in thickness.
Sir John Richardson says in his 'Journal of a Boat Voyage to the Arctic Ocean,' Vol. 1,
]>age 149, that he found this same gypsum associated with tlie salt deposits on Salt River
a))out 70 miles N.N.E., from Peace Point, and he infeis that the country between is of
the same character,
" Sir John examined the salt deposits at Salt River and found that they were derived
from the water of salt springs, of which he found a number flowing out of a hill and
spreading their waters over a clay flat of some extent. The evaporation of tlie water
leaves the salt incrusting the soil, mid in some places forming mounds out of \sliicli the
pure salt is shovelled.
" For many mihw along the Athabasca below the Forks then' are outcrops of black
shale fi'om which liquid petroleum is constantly oozing. At various jwints, at some dis-
tance from th( immediati? bank of the river there are regulai' tar springs, from which the
I ludson Bay I Company get their supply for boat building and oth(!r purposes. The tar is
always covered with water in these .sjn-ings, and something like coal oil is seen Uoating on
this Wi'.ter. Ecaidcs thote mentioned, other springs are knov n to exif^t on the Ckarwat^r,
a tributary of the iVthabasca, and on Peace River, near Smoky River, and Little Red
River on the same stream. Hulpluir spiings are freriuent on the Clearwater, and large
metalifeious deposits are said to exist near Fond Du Lac on the north sliore of Lake
Athabasca. Gold Ls found in small quantities on the upper I'eace River, but it is of very
little account. Immense fjuantities of tirat-class sandstone occur for over 300 miles along
Peace River, and other minerals will be discovered when the country is better known.
" Q. What was the nature of your observations on the flora of Peace River, and
what results did you obtain? , .
" ^1. At six points, as it wei-e, I miide a section by enumerating all the flowering
])lants in the vicinity. Thfjse points were Hudson's Hope, just east of the mountains; St.
John's 60 miles below ; Dun vegan, 120 niilos further down ; then Vermillion, about 300
miles lower down, then Little Red River, 100 miles further down, and lastly at Lake
Athabasca. As will be seen the flora of tlie whole river is nuich like that of Central
Ontario, and of the piaiiie region. It may be as well to remark that we can only deduce
the temperature of the growing season from tlie vegetable productions. The following
table gives the result of the botanical examination in a very condensed form : —
Total. Belleville
'' Hudson's llojie .
"St. John ,
'• Dun vegan
"Vermillion
" Little Red River.
" Lake Atha1>a«ca.
L>1I
L'4S
ti4G
l;-)!)
12.S
1 30
i(;i
10(1
112
«s
INO
I ,-^.
West of
Western
;liec.
Mouutainq.
Plains.
7
17
61
3
6
78
2
5
79
2
1
44
1
39
7
50
" The only plants that show any signs of a boreal climate are those fi'om Quebec.
The two at Vermillion were Yellow Rattle ( Rhinanthus Cristagalli) and High Bush
VA'-Aohiivvy (Viburnit/tn pmLcifloni'iii.) The most prominent feature in the whole region
wiiH a richness in the soil and rankness in the vegetation never seen in Ontario."
NAVKiATION THROU(JH THE RoCKV Moi NTAINS.
Sketch of the S<>rlh-\Ve- 1 nf America. Bij Ms in the world. Its navigation, at any rate in boats of the country, is nn-
interru]ite(l, except by a small fall and a few rapids. These obstructions might bo
removed by works of secondary importance, and then the river would be navigable,
throughout its lon;,'th. for boats cif considerable size, luiJ this, too, nearly throughout the
summer.
" Flowing througii a valley as lifautiful as it is rich, the stream rises in the Rocky
Mountains, quite close to the sources of tlu; celolirated Fraser River, with which, an River
Athabasca does with Columliia River, it forms a water channel that almost uninterruptedly
connects the Arctic Ocean with the: Pacitic.
" The route is certainly not without difliculli'.'s, but these are much less than would
n;vturally be sujiposed to bo connected with crossing the Rocky Mountains by watjr. It
>vas di&covered 'ly Sir Alexander Mackenzie in 17'J3, and hab been usied by fur traders.
U'i
There are those who maintain that it is the natm*al road to the North- West. Tlie valley
watered by the Peace River cannot hut become peopled, and then many inquisitive and
interested individuals will admire this grand stream that is now probably regarded with
indiflerence by the poor family of beavers (1) living on it banks."
Report of the Select Committee of t/ie IIousp of Commuiis, Canada, on Immijratioa atul
Colonization, 1876; p. 50. Mr. Malcom McLeod's Evidence.
" The most impoi-tant stretches of navigation are from Red River to the mouth of
the Saskatchewan, thence to Edmonton, and even some miles beyond. This stretch might
he effected without break ci bulk, or at least without taking the boat out of water. From
a [)oint on the Saskatchewan, say about Victoria or below, a portage road of about sixty
miles should be, and I am told is being made, to the bend of the Athabasca ; thence to the
mouth of the Peace River the distance is about 350 miles ; thence to Mountain Falls is
about 220 miles. This stretch of 570 miles is of comparatively most gentle current and
of ever-abundant brimming waters. The Mountain Falls necessitate a short poi-tage.
Fi'om them to the foot of the Rocky Mountains is a splendid stretch of 500 miles, com-
paratively easy river navigation, without a single break for boats of any size, row, sail or
steam. Here a portage (not difficult) of ten miles occurs. But beyond that, and with a
semi-lacustrine course, across and through the very heart of the Rocky Mountains to
McLeod's Lake, and Fort on the West side, thei'e is unbroken and comparatively easy
navigation for boats, about 200 miles further, and by the Finlay Branch, about the same
distance to the Ominica Gold Mines, a I'egion without one bad rapid.
" The McKenzie River, from Athabasca Lake to the Arctic, has a course of about
1,400 miles, in which, in pietty close succession, not far from the Lake, there are only
four rapids. The rest of the stream, with a body of water but little less than our St. Law-
rence, and in cun-ent like that between Montreal and Quebec, is a thousand miles an