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Un des symboies suivants apparaftra sur la dernidre image de cheque microfiche, seion le cas: la symbola — ► signif ie "A SUIVRE", le symbols y signifie "FIN". Maps, plates, charts, etc., may be filmed at different reduction ratios. Those too large to be entirely included in one exposure are fiimod 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 cartas, planches, tablaeux, etc., peuvent Atre fiimte A das taux de reduction difftrents. Lorsque le document est trop grsnd l^pur Atre reproduit en un seul clichA, 11 est f iim^ i! par6r da I'angia supArieur gauche, de gaucne d droi>e, * et de haut en has, en prenant la nombre d'images nAcessaira. Las diagrammes suivants lllustrent la mAthoda. 12 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 APPENDIX TO THE ANNUAL REPORT — OF THl — DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. CANADA IN 1880. TIEFORTS — or — TENANT FARMERS' DELEGATES — ON TBB — DOMINION OF CANADA AS A FIELD FOR SETTLEMENT. SECOND SERIES. „j» ^^^ OTTAWA: PRINTED BY MACLEAN, ROGER & CO., WELLINGTON STREET. 1881 s-n^i Introdi In trod I f ProfeMB Mr. Hv Mr. 6e Mr. R. Mr. W. Mr. Pe Mr. J. Mr. Ge Mr. Jo Mr. Ja Extrac Extrac Extrac InforiE CONTENTS, T f Introduction 6 Introduction to First Series of Reports 7 Professor Sheldon's Report 9 Mr. Hugh McLean's'Report 31 Mr. George Curtis' Repoit 56 Mr. R. H. B. P. Anderson's Report 70 Mr. W. B. Cubitt's Report 89 Mr. Peter Imrie's Report 102 Mr. J. Span'ow's Report 119 Mr. George Broderick's Report 129 Mr. John Sagar's Report 142 Mr. James Riddle's Paper 154 Extracts from Messrs. Read and Pell's Report 159 Extracts from Colonization Circular 161 Extracts from Colonel Dennis' Memorandum respecting Land Regulations 171 Information for intending Settlers 1*^3 INTRODUCTION. \ Tho rtocond Horios of thi" reports of fartnors from Kngland, Ireliind and Scotlnnd, who viwited Cunada in tlio Hummcr and autumn of iawt year, aro now proHontod to tlio public. They have boon mado by tho following gontlomon, somo of whom woro appointed us dologutoH l)y tho liU'iners in tho districts, while others, from tlioir positions in tho iigiicultural world, arc well qualifiod to spoak upon so inipoitant a supjoct. Ml". J. P. Sheldon, Professor of Agriculture, Wilts and llanls Agricultural College, Downton, Salisbury. Mr. Hugh McLoan, Rhu, Turbort, Argyllshire. Mr. Geoi'go Curtis, VVoodsido, Silsdon, Leeds. Mr. R. II. B. P. Anderson, Listowol, County Kerry, Ii'oland. Mr. W.Cubitt, Bacton Abbey, North Walsham, Norfolk. Mr. Potor Im.'ie, Cawdor-Cuilt, Maryhill, Lanark. Mr. J. Spai-row, Woodlands Farm, Doynton, near Bath. Mr. (J, BrKlorick, Hawes, Wensloydale, York. Mr. John Sagar, Waddington, near Clitheroo, Lancashire. A paper has also been contributed by Mr. James Riddell, who has boon residing in Manitoba for four years. Extracts are also given i'rom tho report of Messrs. Clarke Read and Albert Pell, M.P., presented to Parliament in August, 1880 — and from the Chapter of the ' Colonization Circular' relating to Canada recently issued by the Colonial Office. Containing, as they do, much information upon the agricultural resources of Manitoba, the North- West Territories, Ontario, Quebec, and the Maritime Provinces of Canada, and the suitability of the country generally for the settlement of British agriculturists and others, these reports will doubtless be read with interest by many, who, from various causes, are looking around tor freuh fields in which their capital and energy can be invested to advantage. The following are the classes recommended to go to Canada : 1. Tenant farmers, who have sufficient capital to enable them to settle on farms, may be advised to go with safety, and with the certainty of doing well. The same remark will apply to any persons who, although not agriculturists, would be able to adapt themselves to agricultural pursuits, and who have sufficient means to enabte them to take up farms. 2. Produce farmers, and persons with capital seeking investment. 3. Male and female farm laborers, and female domestic servants (to whom assisted passages are granted) and country mechanics. The classes who should be warned against emigration are females above thegrale of servants, clerks, shopmen, and persons having no particular trade or calling, and unaccustomed to manual labor. To these Canada oifors but little er)coui'agemont. It is claimed that Canada offers advantages to steady, hai-d working men, unequalled in any other country. In the first place, the cost of reaching there is less — a con- sideration where a man has a family and is not ovorbui-dened with cash. Tho sea pas- sage is also shorter ; and the settler remains a British subject, not requiring to change his nationality before taking up a free grant of land, or acquiring the right to record his vote. Free grants of land, ranging from 100 to 200 acres, can be obtained in most of the provinces. In Manitoba and the North- West Territoriies a settler can obtain 160 acres free, and purchase another 160 acres at a nominal price and on very ensy conditions, as set forth in the Appendix. In writing of this part of Canada, its rapid growth and development must be mentioned. The country was practically unknown ten years ago; now it possesses a city of 12,000 inhabitants (Winnipeg), besides 12** 1 f : " many Bmallor towns. The rapid construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway miint undoubtedly bo of incalculable bonoflt to the country, by oponiriK it up and giving employment to a largo amount of labor. Many other railM'ays wiR doubtless be made in this vast territory as the country becomes inhabited. The climate U suitable for Englishmen, and the country produces all the crops that are raised in Kngland, and many more. Tomatoes, melons, grapes, peaches and fruits ripen in the open air and grow to the greatest luxuriance, which is a sufficient answer to anything that may bo said against the climate. It is unriocessary to speak in detail of the various reports ; tho^ need no com- menf and it only remains for persons who are thinking of leaving hngiand to settle down in other countries, to place the advantages of Canada against thedisodvantaj^os, and form thoir own judgment as to its suitability for the settlement of agriculturists, anil those engaged in the other industries that must follow in their wake. The introducticm to last year's issue is also printed, and the reports therein refeijod to may be obtained from any of the Government offices. INTRODUCTION TO FIRST SERIES OF REPORTS, PUBLISHED EARLY IN 1880. The Hon. J. H. Popo, tho MiniHtor of Agriculture of the Govornmeiit of Canuda, cauHod a nnmbot- ol'tlologatoH rupi-cKonting tunant furmeiM in the United Kingdom to bo invited to vinit tho Dominion in tho autumn of 1879, lor tho purpOHo of examining it8 roHourcoH and reporting on itn Huitability art a tiold for Hottlomont. In accordance with »uch invitation, tho following delegates viHitod Canada: — Mr. Biggav, Tho Grange, Dalbeattie, Kirkcudbrightshire. Mr. Cowan, Mains of Park, Glonluco, Wigtownshire. Mr. Gordon, Comlongon Mains, Annan, Dumfriesshire. Mr. Elliot, liollybush, Galashiels. Mr. Logan, Logorwood, Karlston, Borwickshiro. Mr. Snow, Pirntuton, Fountain Hall, Midlothian. Mr. Hutchinson, Brougham Castle, Penrith, Cumberland. Mr. Poat, lioes House, Silloth, Cumberland. Mr. Irving, Bowness-on-Solway, Cai-lislo. ^ • Mr. Johnstone, liOW Burnthwaite, near Carlisle. Mr. Wilkeil, VVatersido of Forbes, Abenleenshiro. Mr. Bruce, Aboidoenshiro. Mr. Wallace, Nithsdale. Mr. Welsh, Kslzdale. These gentlemen wore, in the first place, clearly informed it was of all things desired that their own judgment should be freely exercised and entirely unfettered ; und that it was simply desired to obtain from thom the result of their own personal observations, as well with respect to di-awbacks as advantages, to shade as well as brightness. But it may bo added that even this injunction was unnecessary for men of the character of those who were sen', to Canada, and their constituents do not require to bo informed of it. The motive for thus inviting delogates and attording them facilities to see every part and province of tho Dominion, in so far as practicable within the limit of time at their disposal, was to obtnin testimony as respects tho objects stated, which should not be open to the kind of question that might attach to any statements whatever coming f)om Canada, no matter on what authority they might bo made. The reports now published have been made by tho delegates to their respective constit'jonts, and have been handed to Mr. John Lowe, tho Secretary of the Depart- ment of Agriculture of the Government of Canada, who has visited this country for the purpose of receiving and publishing them. This has only been done after careful revision by the delegates responsible for each. The reports of two gentlemen who did not visit the Dominion as delegates, namely, Mr. John Maxwell, ot Carlisle, and Mr. Chambre, from tho County Tyrone, in Ireland, but who accompanied parties of the delegates as simple observers, are appended to this publication. It is not thought necessary to make in this place any attempt to summarize the reports of the delegates, as they will be read with very gi'oat ana special interest by many in the United Kingdom. It may, however, be generally stated that those who went to Manitoba and contiguous parts of tho adjoining territory found the land to be of extraordinary richness, and specially adapted to the growth of wheat; while in the older provinces of the Dominion they found the conditions of mixed farming very «iuch the same as in the United Kingdom. One of the delegates, Mr. Elliot, stated 12**— IJ that, in the parts of the Dominion he visited, he did not find that cattle required to- be housed longer than in Scotland. Several of the delegates refer to the question why farms may be bought in the older provinces, and why the land is so cheap. In so far as respects price, in the last namoa portion of the Dominion, it is to be observed that the value of occupied land in the older parts of a new country like Canada must necessarily, to a great extent, be governed— first, by the cost of clearing new forest land in the wooded pai-ts; and second, by the facility with which prairie land can be obtained free, to the extent of 160 acres, on the simple condition of continuous settlement for three years. It must be plain to all men that the fact of vast areas being open to settlement on such conditions will largely atfect prices of occupied land a few hundred miles distant, to which there is couiiection both by water and rail. A fact to be remarked is that the farmer who migrates from the British Islands to any part of Canada does not change his flag ; noi- does he, except to a very slight degree, change his mode of life or his companionship. He goes among his own people to conditions of life and society the same as those he leaves behind. He is not obliged to swear — before he can exercise the rights of citizenship, or in some States hold land — that he "renounces for ever all allegiance and fidelity " to his Sovereign and the land of his birth. The farmer who migrates from these Islands, moreover, has the satisfaction of feeling that he is assisting to build up a great British Kmpire, having for its seat the northern half of the continent of North America, occupying a space as large as the whole of Europe, and containing agricultural, mineral and commercial resources to be developed in the immediate future of almost illimitable extent; and, as the reports of the delegates will show, certainly beyond popular conception in this country. The public lands of Manitoba, Keewatin and the North-West Territory are i n the hands of the Dominion Government; and those of the older provinces in the hands of the Provincial Governments. The regulations, as respects the Dominion lands, stating the conditions on which homesteads are given to settlers, and the prices at which other lands are sold, including the railway lands, are appended to this publication. Any further particulars on any point may be obtained by correspondence with a Government agent. THE REPOET OF MR. J. P. SHELDON, PROFESSOR OF AGRICULTURE AT THE WILTS AND HANTS AGRICULTURAL COLLEGE, DOWN- TON, SALISBURY. INTRODUCTORY. Sailing from I'iverpool in the Allan steamship Peruvian on the 12th day of August last, I landed in Quebec on the 2l8t of the same month. I then proceeded by- way of Montreal to Ottawa, steam- ng up the Ottawa river ; I afterwards went to Toronto, and fiom thence, by way of the Great Lakes, to Manitoba, which was the extent of my journey westward. Returning eastward, 1 spent a considerable time in the Province of Ontario, leaving it at last reluctantly. I then proceeded to the Provinces of Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia, and my impressions of each of these will be found later on in this report. Having spent exactly ten weeks in the country, I sailed from Quebec on the 30th of October, and arrived in Liverpool on the 8th day of November. On this occasion I took passage on the Allan mail boat Moravian, and I may now take the opportunity of expressing a high opinion of the great care and skill with which these vessels are navigated, the comfortable and elegant manner in whicli ihey are fitted up, the attention which the passengers get from the stewards, the courtesy which they never fail to receive from the officers of the vessels, and of the general cleanliness, neatness, and oi'der which reign everywhere on board. Going out on the Peruvian we had a large number of emigrants as steerage and intermediate passengers ; and through the courtesy of Captain Smith, who personally conducted me over the ship, being clearly familiar with every detail of its manage- ment, I was enabled to inspect the emigrants' quarters. I wish here to bear testi- mony to the cleanliness and airinesss of the sleeping rooms, to the excellent quality of the food supplied, and to the order, neatness and discipline which prevailed throughout. To cross the great Atlantic in these boats is, in fact, a much easier, simpler, and pleasanter thing than people think ; and if it really is the case that many persons, particularly females, are deterred from going to Canada on account of the voyage, I may here say that there is really nothing formidable in it at all. After a safe and raj)id voyage, emigrants and settlers in Her Majesty's Canadian territory will meet with every attention, and receive the most ample instructions, from the agents of the Dominion Government, who are stationed at every necessary place for the purpose of giving assistance to those who need it. It must be understood that I can only give in this report the unfinished opinions which may reasonably be expected to come of a tour far too limited in time. Opinions, in fact, I shall scarcely venture to give at all, except on certain points on which my information may be regarded as sufiiciently definite ; for the most part I shall confine myself to impressions, suggesting rather than druwiiig inferences. Many of the conditions which bear on the agriculture of Canada are so essentially different from those which prevail in the Mother Country, that dogmatism on the part of a mere traveller would easily develop into egotism; I shall, therefore, mainly con- fine myself to descriptions of what I saw, and to recital of what I heai-d. It is to be feared that some writers on the agriculture of Canada, who were travellers and not agriculturists, have fallen into the error of expressing opinions of a too definite character ; and were it not that I am a farmer by early training, and by subsequent experience pntil now, I should feel diffident at expressing even my im- pressions of the various Provinces through which I passed, of the different soils I inspected, and of the diversified systems of husbandry which came under my notice. 1 made it my business, however, throughout the journey, to see as much as possible with my own eyes, and to obtain the most reliable information within my reach ; it 10 18 therefore competent for me to draw u picture which, if erring in any particular, will en* unintentionally. The Dominion Government und the Provincial Legislatures, as well m the agents of the Dominion and private individuals almost everywhere, afforded nie every pos- sible facility to see the various sections of the country as thoroughly an circumstances admitted, and I found no means lacking or withheld of ascertaining alike the advan- tages and disadvantages of the country as a field for the energies and capabilities of Old Country farmers. It is, in fact, easier by far for a stranger to obtain information in Canada than in England or Ireland, for the people are much more communicative and they spare no pains to give ample opportunity for one travelling as I did to inspcot their farms and stock, and the various details of their practice. My tour through Canada has been a singularly pleasant one — made so by the untii-ing kind- ness of the people ; and interesting, on account of the many striking and beautiful scenes which tne country affords. MANITOBA. A journey to Manitoba by way of the great Lakes Huron and Superior Is full of interest. The scenery in many parts is beautiful ; in some it is even grand and majestic. The various parts touched at in Georgian Bay present in some cases scenes of commercial activity beyond what I had expected to find. At Collingsvood, for instance, and Owen Sound, there ere substantial and thriving towns, with well-built hotels, houses, stores, and public institutions, and the country around and behind them is being rapidly cleared and brought into cultivation. At Owen Sound I had a very pleasant drive often or a dozen miles back into the country with Mr. Keogh, who, with marked kindness, hitched up his team to enable me to make the best use of ihe couple of hours which were at my disposal before the boat started again. We Haw uaiiy farms on the way, most of which had a progressive air about them ; there were also several fine orchai-ds with excellent plums and apples, especially the latter, proving that fruit can be easily and profitably raised midway between the -Wth and 45th parallels. Passing along the northern coast of Lake Superior, I saw some magnificent sceneiy, chiefly in Thunder Bay and in the Fort William district. The last-mentioned place is at present the Eastern terminus of the Canadian Pacific Kail way, a rotid which is being rapidly built, and which will in due time open up the illimitable resources of the North- West territory. This road, in fact, is necessary to the coloni- sation of the North-West. Until it is built, indeed, and until there is a Canadian canal at the Sault Ste. Murie, the produce of the North- West cannot be fo.-warded to Europe without passing thi-ough United States' territory, unless, indeed the Hudson's Bay routo can be made practicable. The Province of Manitoba, so far as I saw it, is, as a rule, flat, wanting in trees, and, consequently, somewhat dreary-looking; but in many parts the land is of strik- ing richness. I was up there in time to see the latter part of the harvesting, and I was certainly r;«- uck with the excellent crops of wheat and oats which were grown with the crudest cultivation. On ttie day after my arrival, September .3rd, I saw a new string-binder at work in a crop of wheat in the Kildonan settlement, near Winnipeg; it was a very nice even crop, and would average, say, 25 bushels per acre of grain, whose quality was very good ; the wheiit was the " Scotch Fife " variety, not a heavy-headed kind, but it was a nice, even crop, the straw rather short and weak, but clear and bright, and the grain was plump, well-fed, V i ight, and fit for the mill at once. This crop was sown on the 22nd of May, on first prairie aod— that is, on prairie land just then ploughed up for the first tin — ^nd as such sod is very tough at first, it may be imagined that the surface of tlio field was rough, and that the seed had been imper- fectly covered; yet the seed was sown and the crop dead ripe within a period of 15 weeks. It is, however, no unconr.mon thing for wheat to be twice in the bag within 90 days— that is, sown, harvested, and thrashed within that period. I saw also a ciop of oats which was sown at intervals, as the land was ploughed, from the 7th to 11 the I7th of -Tune ; the oats were the bl^ck tartarian variety, and though not ripe -when 1 eav/ it, I should say the crop would reach 46 bushels per acre. It was a strung, well-headed crop, and the oats promised to be a good sample. This crop, too, was on first prairie sod, on a farm belonging to Mr. Boss, of Winnipeg, bui some ten or twelve miles away from the city. Land increases rapidly In value near to the city. For this self-same farm Mr. Eoss paid 8367; now he wants $3,000 for it. It is 240 acres in extent, and the owner has put up a small house and a building or two on it, besides breaking up about half of the land. Tl-e soil of Manitoba is a purely vegetable loam, black as ink, and full of organic matter, in some places many feet thick, and resting on the alluvial drift of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers. It is, of course, extremely rich in the chief elements of plant-food, and cannot easily be exhausted ; the farmers know this, so they take all they can out of it in the shortest possible time, and return nothing whatever to it in the foi-m of manure. By turning up an inch or two of fresh soil now and again, the fertility of the surface is renewed, and tlo same exhaustive system of growing wheat, year by year, may be pursnetl for a long period with impunity. It is true, in fact, that for several of the first yeai's, at all events, manuring the soil would do much more harm than good; and, until an Act was passed to prevent it, the farmers were in the habit of getting their litter and manure out of the way by sleighing it out on the ice of the frozen rivers in winter, to be carried away somewhere when spring- time and the floods come, and the ice broken up ; now they leave it to rot in heaps outside the stables, and find it an easier task to remove the stable rather than the manure, when the latter becomes unpleasantly plentiful. In course of time it is probable that the manure will need to be put to its legiti- mate use of improving an exhausted soil, or maintaining the fertility of a rich one. At a still later pv^riod the operation of subsoiling will bring up now earth from below, and there does not appear to be any probability that the better soils of the Province will ever become sterile, providing that the farmers make use of the means they will always have at hand for keeping them up to the mark. At present, however, these rich wheat soils do not need impi-oving; they are rich enough for years to come, and in Honie cases too rich for the welfare of the crop; much of the straw, therefore, is valueless, and really a cumber to the farmer. In the State of Minnesota I saw large quantities of it burnt to get rid of it. The good prairie soils are known by the dwarf wild rose and the wolf-willow growing on them while still in a state of nature ; at all events, the land is at once denoted good where these plants are found, though it is probable that there is good land on which they are not found. But there is a deal of inferior soil in the Province in places; this is chiefly alkaline soil, on which nothing that is profitable will grow in its present condition; in many places, too, the Avater is alkaline. Yet there is plenty of good water to be got in most places by boring for it, and in some instances a clear pure spring has been struck a very few feet below the surface. Ii must not be supposed that the soil of Manitoba is fit only for wheat and oats. The wild grasses, it is true, are very coarse in chai-acter, and there are many weeds and worthless plants among them, }'et cattle flourish on these immense plains of prairie grass. The "prairie raeadov/s" ai-e generally damp lands, situated near the swamps. "River lots" often stretch four miles back, and are 6, 9 or 12 chains wide, as the case may be; 6 chains at that length enclose 200 acres. The Province is not. adapted to gi-ow maize ; it is too far north for that ; but it will grow garden vege- tables very well, and turnips and potatoes, beans and peas, in the fields with com- plete success, while such " tame " grasses, as timothy and the rye grasses, and also red and white clover, grow satisfactorily on land that is at all decently cultivated. Outside the city of Winnipeg I saw a large market gai-den, run by a Yorkshire^ man named Longbottom, in which very large crops of onions, potatoes, carrots, peas, beans, tomatoes, celery, and a hundred other things, were grown in a rough-and- ready sort of a way, but very profitably. There is a good market in Winnipeg for all kinds of garden stutlT. and the earliest sorts command very high prices, so that our Ws- i 12 Yorkshire friend, as I was told on the best authority, is reaping a rich reward of his skill and industry. 1 was much surprised to find among the Manitoban farmers one for my old Cirencester pupils. He had botight a farm of some 400 acres a few miles west of Winnipeg, paying, as was thought, the extravagant price of $20 (£i) per acre. He declared to me that he had the best farm in the locality, which may be taken us evidence of his being satisfied with it; and he was growing crops of turnips, pota- toes, oats, etc., which were already a theme of conversation in the Province; this was done by better cultivation than the land of Manitoba is used to, and it is clear that the soil will produce almost any kind of crop in a very satisfactory way, pro- viding it is properly attended to. And yet, how can we expect the rank and tile of farmers to cultivate the soil carefully in a country which has such a superb abund- ance of magnificent land still unoccupied? In time, no doubt, better farming will prevail; and I hope my old pupil will set an example which will be worth extensive imitation; but at present lancl is too cheap and plentiful to admit of microscoi)ic cultivation, as we have it in England and Scotland. The chief drawbacks in Manitoba, in the estimation of an Englishmen, are these : Bad roads, bad water ii; many parts, the almost utter absence of trees exce])t on the rivers' banks, the flatness ot the country and the long and severe wintei*. (And these remarks apply with even greater force to large tracts of country I have seen in the north-western portion of the United States.,) No doubt the roads in time will bo improved, though road-metal is very scarce; good water will be obtained in most parts of the country by boring for it ; this, indeed, is already being done; trees will be planted to break the monotony of the scene; and so far as the winters are concerned, I am assured by those whose testimony is worthy of all trust, that the mercury may go to 30° below zero, yet the cold is not intolerable, but rather pleasant and bracing, because the air is dry. The flat low-lying land in the vicinity of Winnipeg has hitherto been much flooded in spring time, out an extensive and well-executed system of large open drains, which is now being carried out at the oost of the Government, will greatly diminish the evil, if not entirely remove it. There are other districts needing similar treatment, and, as the land if of excellent quality, they will receive attention in due time. In the city of Winnipeg every household and personal requisite can be bought at not unreasonable rates; and, above all, agricultural tools and machinery of a character euperior to the general run of such things in England, are everywhere abundant. It is, in fact, one of the sights most suggestive of reflection, to notice at the railway stations, here and there, and at the dealers' stores, abundant supplies of labor-saving implements and machinery, which are cheaper, handier and better made than many English goods. The cost of living is not very high ; beef, by the side, in winter is aoout 7c. a lb. ; beefsteaks m summer, 15c. ; mutton in winter about 12c., and butter about 25c, the year round. Eggs in winter are 35c. a dozen. The great features of Manitoba are : Land of excellent quality, very low in price, and in great abundance, and a climate that bring to perfection, in a short time, all kinds of cultivated crops. The value of land is $1 (4s.) to $10 (£2) an acre, away in the country, while near the city, in some cases, it is still higher. Out in the North-West Territory, however, the finest land can be bought at a dollar or less per acre, and actual settlers can obtain free grants of IHO acres for each adult, with a pre-emption right to 160 more on payment of a nominal sum to Government. I can- not, however, recommend English farmers of middle age to go there to settle, because they are entirely unsuited to pioneer life, and would have much to unlearn before they could learn the ways of the cou-itry; but young men with small capital and strong hearts and willing hands, even though they have been reared amidst the com- forts of an English home, are sure to prosper in the new territory, providing they are steady and industrious. Being young, they are no' too closely wedded to certain habits of life, and they would the more easily habituate themselves to the new con- ditions which they would encounter in the new country. But whoever may go to Manitoba from the Old Country, will do well to have a good look around before buy- m 18 ing land, and, if possible, to pass a few weeks on a farm here and there, with a view of watching the processes on which husbandry is «;ouducted in the North-West; arid a man with a small capital and no encumbrances would do well to hire himself out to a farmer for a year or two before locating himself on land of his own. Land may be rented in Manitoba, and probably it would be a wise thing for an English farmer to rent a farm for a year or two, until he ha» learned the country and the country's ways, and he will then be the better able to select the right soi-t of land for himself. Land may be rented as follows: The landlord provides the land and half the seetl ; the tenant the labor, implements, horses, and hall' the seed ; the landlord receives one-third, and the tenant keeps two-thirds of the produce for his share of the busi- ness. Mr. Mackenzie, of Burnside, one of the largest and most prosperous farmers in Canada, lets oft' some of his land in the Portage la Prairie on these terms. ONTARIO. Of the southei'n part of this Province I cannot s))eak in terms other than of warm praise. Generally speaking, this favored portion of the Province has a rolling and, in some parts, almost a hilly surface; in certain localities, as that of Hamilton, for instance, the surface is much broken, and almost precipitous here and there ; but as a rule, the great bulk of the land in this part of the Pi-ovince, with the exception of rocky or swampy districts, is easily cultivable when it is cleared of timber and the roots are pulled out. Thirty or forty years ago, Ontario must have been a very heavily-wooded district, and the labor of, clearing the hundreds and thousands of beautiful farms must have been pi-odigious ; in the district to which these remarks more specially refer, the work of clearing is, for the most part, done, but there are still many extensive t; icts of timber laud here and there, and most of the farms have a smaller or greater proportion of uncleared land upon them. This land is kept to grow wood for fencing and for fuel. This portion of Ontario may be regarded as the garden of the Dominion — liter- ally as well as figuratively the gai-den — for it is there that apples, pears, grapes, peaches, melons, and the like grow, in the greatest profusion, and with the least trouble on the part of the farmer. Every farm has its orchard, and it is purely the farmer's fault if the orchard is not an excellent one, for the climate and the soil are clearly all that can be desired, and the trees will do their share of the work, provided the right sorts are planted. It is usual to plant out peach and apple trees alternately and in rows in a new orchard, and the apple trees are at a distance apart which will be right when they are full grown ; this is done because the peach trees come to matu- rity first, and have Jone bearing before the apple trees reportalion over the sea, have provided a new and profitable opening towards which the energies of the farmers are being directed. The raising ■ *' stock suitable to the English market is now a leading and profitable branch in this part of the Dominion, and it is encouraging to the cultivation of root and green crops, of clover, timothy, and other forage crops, of green corn, etc., for soiling. The growth and consumption of these crops, indeed, is the very practice that was needed to restore fertility to soils which had been injured by over-cropi)ing with wheat. But nurabersof the Ontario farmers seem to be so wedded to wheat-raising, that rather than go extensively into stock-raising and fattening, ana the growth of various rot" tion crops, moi'e after the English, and Scotch moilels, they prefer to sell out and go to Manitoba and the North- West, a territory which is par excellence a wheat country, and which must soon become, pei-haps, the greatest granary in the world. They are the more incliriOd in this direction because they can sell their Ontario farms at 840 to $100 an acre, and can buy virgin soil in the North-West at $1 to $10. By an exchange of this nature they can easily establish their children in separate farms, a thing but few ot them could hope to do in Ontario, where land is comparatively high. They have also the spirit of restlessness whicli permeates the Americans as well, but which is scarcely known in England. These various influences are causing numbers of farmers to migrate in the direction of the setting sun, and the Americans themselves were never more crazed about the West than are the Canadians ot to-day about their Manitoba and North-West Territory. They treat their land as a parcel of schoolboys treat an orchard of apples, into which they are suddenly let loose: they rush about from one place to another, plucking an n]t]Ae here and there, having a nip at it, and throwing it down, only to repeat the process at every tree they come to, thinking in this way to find the beat fruit in the oi chard. So it is with the Canadian and the American farmer of the West. His farm is a mere machine, out of which he gets aU the work he can in the least possible time, and he quits it for another, as his fancy suggests. It is of second or third-rate importance to him, for he can buy on the Western prairies at a less cost than that of putting the first crop into it ; and the affection with which an English- man regards hia farm, and the home of his childhood, is a factor at present almost unknown in the social life of our friends across the Atlantic. In time this will change in Canada, and in England the old ties are rapidly weakening. It is well, or rather, would be well, if English landlords would note this change of feeling, this loosening of the Old World sentiment, this infiltration of new ideas, which are surely, and not slowly, permeating the rank and file of British farmers. Steam has made the whole world a possible market for the products of any single portion of it, and, along with education, is making the people everywhere cos- mopolitan in thought and feeling. To him who trarels these things ai-e clear, and dolaj 16 and I repeat that it would be well if those in power wuiila recognize them willioiit delay. As a dairying country some portions of both VVostorn and Eastern Ontario aro clearly well adapted. The chief want oi" the country in this connection is that of streams, and springs, and running hrooks; the smaller streams, in fact, aio either less numerous than thoy wore before the forests were cut away, or they are dry at the time when they are most wanteil. But the Bellovilio district, in Eastern Ontario, where there is indeed a great deal of excellent land, and the IngersoU and Stratford districts, in the western portion of that Province, with many others here and there, are producing excellent cheese in the factories. It would appear, in fact, that wherever water for stock is available, dairy-far mi.ig in Ontario may be made a profitable business. The lack of water on some of the farms could without much difficult}-, I should say, be made up by providing it in artificial meres and ponds, a practice which is common in many parts of l^ngland. The Canatlian farmers, as a rtde, are alert on questions which affect their interests, though loss 80 than the Americans are, and that this water question, all-important as it is to dairy-farming and stock-raising, will in duo time loceive the attention it demands, is, I think, a point which may safely be predicted. The Canadian dairy-farmer has several important advantages over his English contemporary, not the smallest of which is this: he ean grow, at a very moderate cost, very large crops of forage for winter use ; clovers and timothy flourish well on most soils in Ontario, and 1 should say that ryegrasses would also, though I did not find they were much employed, if at all, in the growth of forage; I think they might be used to advantage. It is also clear, from what I saw in many places, that he can raise abundant crops of swedes and mangels, and very good ones of carrots, parsnips, and the like. Here then, after the question of water, are the first requisites for successful dairy-farming. A rotation of crops is Just the system to re-invigorate the older soils of Ontario, which have been over-cropped with wheat, and rotations work well in dairy-farming. It is true that good natural pastures are scarce in the Province, if indeed there are any at all which deserve the name from an Englishman's point of view (the best grassland I saw in Ontario was in the neighborhood of London, and on the way to Hamilton) ; but, as I have said, clovers, etc., grow well, and they will answer capitally for the pastures for a year or two, a regular succession of them being provided, and it is a simple matter to produce a lai-ge supply of green corn — for Hoiling in summer when pastures run out. The rotations may be as follows: 1. Wheat or oats; 2. Roots and green crops for soiling; 3. Oats or bariey, seeded down with artificial grasses; 4, 5, and if advisable, 6, Grass for forage and pastures. These rotations admit of endless variation, and in a country where no fossilized restiictions as to cropping exist, as they do in Engl' nd, the farmer can always grow the crops that suit his purpose best. The practice at Bow Park is to sow western corn, which is a luxuriant cropper, thickly, in driljs of eighteen or twenty inches wide ; in this way the space between the drdls is easily horse-hoed, until the corn is a ioot or more high ; the corn grows rapidly, and effeclually smothers the weeds and wild grasses which grow vigorously in so forcing a climate. In Canada, as in England, the axiom is true that nothing cleans the soil of weeds so effectually as a heavy cultivated crop of some kind or other. If all the western corn is not wanted for soiling, the balance is cut and stocked while the leaf is still green, and the grain in the milk, and it is left out in the fields, and fetched in as it is wanted in winter; in this way it makes very good forage, and the stalks, leaves, and ears are all passed through the chaff-cutter, and all consumed by the stock. A similar system may be followed with almost any other kind of soiling crop — that is, making into forage for winter that portion of it which is not wanted for soiling. As in the United States so in Canada, cheese-making has had more attention than butter-making, more skill and investigation have been applied to it, and ^i 16 oliccso is conHcqiiontly ahead of butter in average quality. It is, however, j)r()- bablo that the cliinatu and soil are better adapted loi- the former than the latter ; a moist, cool climate, and a natural herbage full of delicate and Hucculent graHses, api)oar to be best .suited tor butter-making; still, it is true that in Franco, for instance, excellent butter is made where the land is almost wholly under arable cultivation, and the cattle arc almost entirely fed on artificial grasses, etc. ; and again, a hot climate induces excessive respiration in cows as in other animals, and whero this is, there is a larger expenditure of fat from the tissues, and a smaller suj)ply ol it to the milk-glands. Be this as it may, however, the cheese of Canada in many cnses is very good, while the butter is scarcely more than second- class quality ; but it oaimot, at the same time, be denied that the present high quality of the cheese is owing to the adoption of factories some twelve or tift')on years ago. The snmo thing indeed may be said of the United Stale.'J, whose cheese — some of it of liigh average quality, while some will rank as first-class anyAvhere — was of a very inferioi- character before Jesse Williams established the first cheese- factory near Jiome, in the State of New York. It may be mentioned hero that at the late Intoriiatioiial Dairy Fair in New York, the highest premium was carried otf by Canadian chejse. Cheese-factories are already numerous in Canada, while croamei'ics, on a corresponding system of butter-making, are as yet few and far between; and so it follows that cheese is a centralized and butter an isolated manufacture, the one receiving collective and the other individual study and attention. Thus it is that cheese-making is better understood, alike in its principles and practices, than is the case in the sister industry. I must, however, not omit to say that I have tasted several samples of butter in Canada that would be hai-d to beat in Ireland, and harder still in our London dairy-shows. The most conveniently arranged and best equipped cheese factory J saw in Canada belongs to Mr. Ballantyne, W.P.P. ; it is known as the Tavistock factory, and is situated a few miles from Stratfo -d. The milk received daily, at the time of my visit, was about 17,000 lb from nearly 1000 cows, but this was in the latter part of September. Mr. Ballantyne conti-acts with his piflrons to make the cheese for them at IJc. per lb., and the cheese I saw there was of very good quality, well made and carefully cured ; the temperature of the curing-room is kept about 80° for spring cheese, and 75° for summer, and at 65^ for rich autumn cheese. The quantity of salt used is 2 to 2^ lb. per 1000 lbs. of milk ; the smallest quantity is used when the cui-d is driest. Mr. Ballantyne for many years past has paid much attention to the subject of cheese making, as also have several other prominent dairymen in Ontario, and their labors have done much towards raising the cheese of the Dominion in the estimation of buyers in England. Formerly thei-e was great difficulty and uncertainty in making autumn cheese in Ontario ; it was liable to be putty and porous ; and, as the whey was not always got well out of it, the flav^or was frequently unpleasant. This diffi- culty has been completely overcome by "ripening" the milk before adding the rennet to it. Mr. Ballantyne thought the matter out in his mind, and argued it to me in this wise : the summer's milk kept through the night is not so deadly cold as the autumn's, and so is in a more natural condition ; its warmth has brous. ht it into that state which produces the best cheese — that is, it has ripened somewhat, because warmth as well as time is necessary to the ripening of anything. He declares his belief, further, that the best cheese cannot be made from fresh, warm milk ; because, though it is of course warm enough, and has never been cold, it has not the required age, and so is unripe. Hence he prefers that one-half of the milk he makes cheese from should be twelve hours old, and this being ripe enough in itself, ripens the fresh morning's milk when the two are mixed together. In su araer tlie ripening of the evening's milk is enough for the purpose, but in the colder vreather of autumn it is not, so the morning's and evening's milk are warmed up together to a temperature of yO° or so, and allowed to stand several hours before the rennet is mixed with them for coagulation, and this is done because the autumn's evening milk has been too cold to admit of enough, if any, ripening. As the mass of milk stands at the temperature 17 named, it ripens, and the difficulty previously so common diHappearw, the uutuma cheese having all the warmth and mellowness of character of the summer cheese, and it is not so liable to bo injured by the excessive hout of the summer climate; this autumn cheese, in fact, take it for all in all, is probably the best of the season, whereas it was formerly, in many cases, the woi-st. The grand principles of the (.Jheddar system of cheese-making — which, by the way, is probably the best system the world knows — consists in the ripening which the curd gets after separating it from the whey, and before salting and iiressing it. This ripening conies ot kee])ing the curd warm, and exposing it to the :iir. But even in the Cheddar system it is well-known that autumn cheese does not mnturo like that ol summer, and this Mr. Ballantyne declares is owing ^o the evening's milk of autumn not having a chance to ripen like that of summer. 1 was pleased to find thai Profes- sor Arnold, an able exponent of the Cherovinir in symmetry, if not increasing in size. The pigs, generally speaking, are very good, better, perhaps, on the average, than tho pigs in tho British Islands. I do not see that this class of farm stock needs much improvement. It is abundantly clear that Canada can produce excellent farm stock of all kinds, and that most of them are being improved. Until recently the inducemonts to improve them have not been strong enough, and in some of tho Proviuces littlo or nothing would appear to have been done in this direction. Now, however, the inducement is supplied, and it is probable that m ten years' time we shall find a marked reform in tho quality and symmetry of cattle and sheep, as well as a groat incroase in numbers. It is not easy to estimate the cost of raising and fattening beef i.i Canada, because tho facilities vary in diilerent districts. The following, however, has boon communicated by an enterprising breeder of fifteen years' experience : — Kaisinjr, feeding and attendance, first year, per head $24 " " second year, " 18 " " third year, " 24 Total cost of fat boast weighing 1600 lbs $66 = £13 4s. This would bo about $4.12^ (16s 6d.) per 100 lb. live weight, or 3Jd per lb. on tho dressed meat. At tho present rates of freight, in the summer time, such aa tl J Park so and I doubt Huporb fctruvu- !if, and W8 and rtificial w boon soo ll»o ro iiidi- il oxcel- il\C!i8 ol known nsplunt- cleai'ly ich have blood is linirably btrangof ; are con- obHorva- that less but they ioicebtors herds, of vas nice- of our as a rule, ipeaking, 1 lalands. )undantly most of lom have Id appeal- jlied, and iiality and not easy facilities ted by an 1 animal would bo lundod in TiivorjMK)! for £5 to £6, including fi>H(l and attondftnco. It is probable, in fact, that (/'aniidian l)e»M' will bo landed in LivoipDol, giving fair profits to all concornod, at 5d. to 6d. nor lb. A neighbor of mine in I)orbyshu-o, an ititolligont working nmn with a largo liiniily of children, wont out to Canada, some Ion or twolvo yours ago, with about XlOO in hiH poeki«l. Having bin addresM with tno, I wrote to liini, and ho catno to Toronto to moot mo. His homo tor tho prosont is in County <«ray, Ontario, whore ho is lurming 200 acriw of rented land, in ad farming had at all events paid five per cent, per annum during that period ol' deproKsion. Pre- viously, a farmer expected to buy and pay for an extra farm every eight or ten years, hut of late years they have not been able to do so. Tho land about Bradford is a clayey loam, some of it almost a clay, and. as a rule, it is well farmed. More or loss live stock are kept, and the land is farmed in rotations which are lar from arbitrary w regular. Wheat is taken now and again ; mangels, carrots, turnips, etc., are grown, and the land is generally seeded down with a white crop; if with autumn wheat, the timothy is sown in the autumn and the clover in the spring. It is needless to suggest anything to the farmers of Bradlord, except that thoy keep as many live stock as possible, making the other opeiations of the farm subsi- diary to them ; the live stock then will do their part in maintaining and increasing the fertility of the farms. I had the pleasure of being present at the agricultural shows of Toronto, Hamilton, and Montreal, and I may say that I have seen no show.-* in England, except the Eoyal and the Bath and West of England that can claim to be ahead of them in aggregate merit. The Montreal show is a new one, and in a short time will also be a very good one, no doubt ; in any ca.so, its permanent buildings are tho best I have seen, either in Canada or tho States. The Canadians throw themselves with great spirit into enterprises of this kind, and these shows are a great credit and orna- ment to the Dominion. The school accommodation of the settled districts of Canada, and the quality of the education given to the children are among the country's greatest merits and t ornamenta. The school-houses are frequently the most prominent buildings in many 12** 2 22 of the towuM and villages, and throughout tho Dotninioii the education of the young is regarded as a mutter of vital importance, and ono of the highe-t duties of citizonshi]). Evorywhele primary education is free, the poor man's child enjoying advantages equal to the rich man'n, and even in the higher branches of education in the coUegPS the fees are merely nominal, the State providing all the machinery and defraying nearly all the cost. The education of all children between the ages of seven and twelve is com|)ulsory, and Acts of Parliament are in force under which delinquent parents may be fined for neglecting to send their children to school. It is impossible not to discern in tliese provisions one of the suitst pledges of the future greatness of the country, and they obviously provide the poor man with advantages greater than those he will meet in mo.-t parts of Kngland. One ol the first duties of a new district is to erect a school-house with ample accommoilation ; and so imbued are the people with the need and wisdom of such an act, that the provision is made with alacrity. Sec- tarian dittorences ai-e arranged by the erection, where necessai-y, of separate schools, but in any case the children are bound to bo educated. It may be true that the support of the high schools should come in a larger measure I'rom those who benefit by them, ana in time no doubt this part of the educational question will bo more or less modified, yet it cannot be denied that if the Provincial Governments have erred at all in this matter, they have erred on the right side. It is not competent for me to go farther into the question in this report, but it is important to notify to intending emigrants that, at all events, their children are sure to be provided, according to the measure of each one's capacity, with the knowledge which is power. Among educational institutions the (Juelph Agricultural College occupies an honorable position. The College was unfortunatelj'^ not in session when I was thei-e, and the President and Professoi- of Agriculture were both away at the Hamilton show, 8o that 1 saw the College and farm under unfavorable conditions. The Professor of Chemistry did all that lay in his power, however, to give me facilities for seeing the educational machinery of the College, as well as the farm buildings, the farm, and the stock. The following day I had the pleasui-e of meeting Mr. Mills, the President, and Mr, Brown, the Professor of Agricultui-e, at Hamilton. It is satisfactory to know that the College is being more appreciated and employed year by year by those for whose benefit it was established. Increased accommodation is now being provided, and there is a prospect of the College even becoming self-sustaining in time. Already it is a flourishing, though quite a young institution, and its influence is being felt on the agi'iculture of the Pi'ovince. The students receive an agricultural education, in which science is happily blended with practice, and theory is borne out by demon- stiation. The farm consists of some 550 acres, on which a variety of experimental and practical crops are grown, and several kinds of pure-bred English sheep and cattle are kept, which, in their turn, will have an important effect on the country's future. The taxation in Ontario is light, as it is everywhere else in tho Dominion that I have been. At first sight it would seem to bo heavier than in souio of the other Provinces, yet it is not reallj' so. It is assessed on the basis of valuation of property, and in this sense differs but slightly from the other Provinces. Land, and real property generally, leaving out of consideration such cities as Montreal and Quebec, is more valuable in Ontario than elsewhere, yet the total taxation, including school- rates, does not often go beyond 25c. to 30c. an acre, while it frequently falls below those sums. Some districts have public pi-operty which nearly provides all the public money that is neded, and others are the more heavily rated for the present in order to wipe off sums of money which were given as bonuses to new railways passing thiough them. But nowhere did I meet with an instance in which taxation may lie regarded as really burdensome ; yet it will be expedient for new-comers to make inquiry into these matters before pui'chasing farms. In the matter of assessing land for taxation, the farmers appoint a Commission to value it, and it is revalued each year if thought expedient. If any dispute ai'ises the land is looked over again, and the dispute may be privately settled by the judge. Practically the farmers hold their taxation in their own hands, for no direct imperial taxation is levied. I nnd i ally i On tl bistin; remir 23 The farming in many parts of Ontario is of a higher oi-der than I had been led to expect. West of Toronto, as well as north of it, I saw many farms in a condition which would be no discredit to any country whatever, but a great credit to most. QUEBEC. 1 have to regret that ray time did not admit of my taking more than a glance at the Eastern Townships of this Province, because I am persuaded there is much excellent land in them, and a good opening for English formers. They are situate between the cities of Montreal and Quebec, and near some of the cities of the United States, in all of which there are good markets for farm produce. The land, moreover, is much lower in price than in the better portions of Ontario, and farms for the most part cleared and fenced, in a fair state of cultivation, and possessing good houses and buildings may be bought at the rate of £4 or £5 an acre. The district is rolling and the soil loamy; it is also well supplied with water, a valuable feature in dairy- farming and stock-raising. The climate is healthy, for it is here that Mr. Cochrane has raised his excellent shorthorns, and whore ho is now beginning to raise high-class Herefords in the place of them. The agi'iculture of Quebec, generally speaking, is susceptible of improvement, and the same may be said of its cattle, sheep, horses, and pigs. In many parts the farmers plough the " lands" too narrow, as if the soil were very wet. If such be the case, it were better to underdrain it. I noticed that grasses and clovoi-s grew best in the numerous furrows. The fences of Quebec, as a rule, are quite equal to those of any other Province, and pi-obably superior, because, being straight i-ail fences, they are not such a harbor for weeds as the /.ig/^ag "snake-fences" too commonly are. NOVA SCOTIA. Of this Province, too, 1 am unable to say very much, us 1 had not facilities for inspecting it equal to those with which I was j)rovided elsewhere. In the neighbor- hood of Truro I saw borae useful land, in the vale of Annapolis also, some of which is not easily excelled in any part of the Dominion. I was recommended by His Excellency the Governor-Oeneral, to pay a visit to this fertile region, and I may fairly say that I should have missed a treat if I had not done so. Tho finest pot lion of the valley is found in the Kentville district, and in Cornwallis, in King's County; and the great feature of the locality is found in the dyke-lands, which have been I'cclaimed from the Bay of Fundy. Of the natui-e of these lands I shall have to speak at some length in my remarks about New Brunswick, whicli Province also has a large area of them. There is, however, some very fine upland in the valley, which is admirably adapted to the growth of roots and grain, and to the raising of live stock of various kinds. Tho apples of the Annapolis Valley are famous in many countries, and though they do not surpass those of Ontario, they are an ornament to the country, and a source of profit to the people. It is probable that Iheie is room for :i limited number of English farmers in Nova Scotia, but, so far as I saw it, it does not offer inducements equal to those of the adjoining Provinces. The country for some distance out of Ualifax cannot ever become valuable farming land, a great part of it being what is termed a 'hard country,' that is, rocky and short of soil. PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND. In some respects this is one of the most beautiful Provinces of the Dominion, and it has probably the largest proportion of cultivable land. The soil gener- ally is a red sandy lo/»ra, of one character throughout, but differing in quality. On the whole the grass-land of the island and the character of the sward, con- sisting as it does of indigenous clovers and a variety of the finer grasses reminded me strongly of some portions of Old England. Tho people, too, are 24 mere English in appearance than those of •'ny of the other Provinces, with the exception of New Brunswick. This is probably owi.ig to a cooler climate and the contiguity of the sea. The hotter climate and the drier air of the West seem to deprive the cheeks of some of the color. The summer climate of the island appears to bo almost everything that can be desired, but the winters are very long; the Northumberland Straits being fiozeu, the people are isolated fiom the mainland during the winter, unless, indeed, they cross over on the ice — a thing which may bo done, and I believe not uncommonly is. One of the moet annoying circumstances in connection with the island winters is this : it commonly happens that in spring numbers of icebergs find their way through the Straits of Belle Isle, and collecting in the northerly half-moon coast of the island, melt there sl!)wly, retarding vegetation sometimes a fortnight or more. The people believe that if a breakwater were thrown across the Straits of Belle Isle the climate of the Gulf of St. Lawrence would be vastly improved, and there are some who incUne to the belief that in this event the St. Lawrence would bo navigable the year round. If such results were at all likely to follow the closing of the Straits, why — the sooner they are olosed the better. Prince Edward's Island is covered with a soil that is easy to cultivate, sound and healthy, capable of giving excellent crops of roots, grain and grass — an honest soil that will not fail to respond to the skill of the husbandman. For sheep, particularly, the island seems to be well adapted, for the soil is light, dry and sound, growing a thick-set, tender and nutritious herbage. For cattle, too, it is suitable, though per- haps less BO than for sheep. For horses the island has been famous for a long time, and American buyers pick up most of those that are for sale. It is not impiobable, in fiact, that taking them for all in all, the horses of the island are superior to those of any other Province ; it seems^ in fact, to be in a sense the Ai-abia of Canada. The sheep, as a rule, are fairly good, but open to in^provement; the cattle, generally speaking, are infei-ior. Many of the sheep are now being exported to England, and the day 1 sailed from Quebec, Mr. Senator Carvell was shipping 1,200 of them, most of which were of very fair quality. This gentleman, to whom I am indebted for much kindness and information, informs me that sheep from the island cost 158. a head in freight, food and attendance, b}^ the time they reach Liverpool, besides which there is insurance, which varies from 2 to 10 per cent., according to the season of the year. It cannot but be regarded as a good thing for the island that Mr. Carvell has opened up a trade in this way, and it will be an inducement to the people to go more into sheep ••aising — an industry for which the island is specially adapted. The cattle at present are not goo<:l enough lor the English market, and they are not worth taking over. The Provincial Government has established a stock farm near Char- lottetown for the dissemination of better blood through the flocks and herds of the island ; but so far the farmers have not availed themselves as they ought to do of this great advantage. The new trade with England will, however, in all probability cause them to put their shoulders to the wheel and bring their cattle up to the level of the sheep, Beef and mutton are very cheap at present on the island ; stall-fed beef in spring can be bought at 3^-c. a lb., live weight, and grass fed beef in October was worth cmly 2Jc., while dressed beef by the side could be bought at 4c. to 5c. per lb.; lamb and mutton by the quarter, and of very nice quality, was being sold in the markets at 5c. per lb. Lambs were worth from 6s'. to 10s. each, ana ewes, 10s. to 18s.; while fat wethers and ewes were bought at 15s. to 20s. By exporting a few thousands yearly to England, the price of sheep will increase on the island. The farmers complain that they receive but 27c. per lb. for their wool ; but HO long as they shear unwashed sheep they must submit to low prices. The island grows very good wheat, and probably betttor oats than most other parts of the Dominion. Of the former, the ci-ops are from 18 to 30 bushels, and of the latter, 25 to 70 bushels per acre. Barley, too, as may be expected, makes a very nice crop. Wheat at the time of my visit was worth 4h. per bushel of 60 lbs. ; oats Is. 9d. per bushel of 34 lbs., and barley 29. 6d. to 39. per bushel of 48 lbs. Winter . 2S I the . the m to wheat is regarded as a precarious crop, being liable to be thrown out of the loose soil by the thaws in spring. The same thing holds good in Manitoba, and in Ontario i found that the farmers consider there is danger on the one hand, with winter wheat that is too far advanced when winter sets in, of having it smothered by a too heavy fall of snow lying too long, especially on damp land; and on the other, of having it throw itself out of the ground by the heaving of the frosts and thaws of spring. lu this event the dead plants may afterwards be raked off the land like so much hay. There is indeed, on these loose soils, room ftatoes are raised; and, indeed, it may be I'egarded as a manure of great value and applicable to any kind of crop. Nor is it soon exhausted, for the sheila in it decay, year by year throwing off a film of fertilizing matter. This singular deposit is obtained, as a rule, below low-water mark, and in winter when the water is a solid mass of ice. Holes are cut through the ice until the mud is reached, and a powerful and ingenious horse power scoop is ut^ed to fetch up the mud and dump it in the sleighs. It is then taken to shore and laid in heaps until it is wanted. There is not much Crown land to dispose of in the island at the pi-esent time, but there are plenty of encumbered farms, more or less improved, which can be bought at $5 to $35 an acre. Taxation on the island is very light ; it amounts to 2c. to 8c. an acre according to value, or from 15c. to 18c. per $lOi) valuation. The educational advantages of the island are on a footing similar to those of the other Provinces. There are good roads, i-ailways, etc., and many excellent harbors around the island. There are also thriving woolen and other mills, not to mention the lobster fisheries, which are a source of considerable wealth to the Province. There are, however, complaints that too many farmers have been tempted into the fishing business, to the neglect of their fjirms ; that between two stools those men have fallen to the ground ; and that the land is sometimes blamed for losses which really come of neglecting it. 1 was assured on the highest authority that fanners who have minded their business, have been steady and have used a moderate supply of common sense in their dealings, have made farming pay and become independent. It is true that a man is independent on a smaller sum in Prince Edward's Island than he would be in England, but at the same time there are numerous evidences of happiness and contentment among the people. I', 26 It appears to me tliat Englit-hmon of ruodenito ambition would find homos con- genial to their tasten in this beautiful Piovincc, and I have an improfsion that, with cattle and sheep raising and latteuing for the English market, better times are in store for those hospitable and kindly islanders, many of whom I shall always lemem- bor with feelings of more than ordinaiy kindness. For agricultural laborers there is plenty of employment at good rates of pay. A man will get $80 to $150 per annum, plus board and lodging; or, minus board and lodging, but with cottage, keep of a cow, and an acre ot land for potatoes, will receive 8140 to $200 in cash. Farm- ing, after all, cannot be bad where such wages are paid to men, and there is every inducement for the farmer and his family to do all the work they can within themselves. NEW BRUNSWICK. Apart from its wealth in timber and minerals, the latte'- as yet only Just begin- ning to be developed, the Province of New Brunswick is well adapted to the pursuits of agriculture. In several portions of the Province theie are soils which have cei-- tain very remarkable features and properties; and in many other portions I found soils that are easy to cultivate when once cleared of timber, deep in staple and rich in the accumulated tertility of many centuries. Many of the upland soils bordering on the beautiful valley ot the St. John Eiver have every indication of being well adapted to stock raising, particularly of bovine stock. They are for the most part sandy or gravelly loams, sometimes approaching to stiffness, but gei>erally friable, varying, no doubt, in depth and quality, out hai-dly anywhere good for nothing. It is proliable, in fact, that, with the exception of Prince Edward's Island, New Bruns- wick has a larger proportion of cultivable soil than any of the older Provinces of the Dominion. 8o lar, however, the settled parts of the Province are chiefly along or adjacent to the rivers which drain the countiy; but there are yet many millions of acres not appropriated, as good, in all probability, for agricultural purposes, as those that are — if we make exception of the "dyke " and " intervale" lands. But those unsettled portions are for the most part still covered with a dense growth of timber, and I should hardly fancy that English fai-mers are either fitted for or would like the task of clearing it off. The work of clearing these lands is, indeed, herculean, but it is generally sup- posed that the timber will pay for it. The land may be cleared at a cost of $12 to $::(> an acre, and it is said that a Canadian backwoodsman will cut down an acre of heavy timber in three or four days. Let ue take the new settlement of New Denmark as an instance of what may be done. Seven years ago the locality was covered with a dense forest, and the Danes who emigrated to it were very poor ; now hundreds of acres are cleared, and are pro- ducing abundant crops of grain and vegetables, some of which are of a superior character, and the land supports a happy and prosperous. colony, which in time will be a wealthy one. It is not too much to say that the coi dition of these people is far better than it ,vould have been in the land of their birth. Take again the S'^otch settlement of Napan, on the Miramichi : here we have also a favorable illustration of what thrift and industry will do. The settlement is mainly Scotch, but there are a few Irish among them, some of whom have prospered. One Irish farmer we met had become Avealthy, " and," said a countryman of^ his to me, " we call him Barney Eothschild itself!" It is at once pleasant and instructive to see these new settlements, for they are only what will be found all over the province in course of time. It would seem probable that a number of English farm laborers might do the Bame, starting with free grants of land covered with timber, and clearing it as far as circumstances would admit of They would in any case meet with encouragement from the Government and people of the Province, and with industry their reward would be sure. Geneially speaking, the sheep of New Brunswick are tolerably good, producing^ very nice mutton, and it does not appear that any special effort at improving them i& 27 (jor- at present called for. But the cattle goner lly are very inferior, and lieie it is that ert'its at improvement are urgently required. It appears to ine that good shorthorn, pulled Abemeen, or polled Norfolk hlood would bring about the desired chani^'o, I .saw, however, many cattle in the neighborhood of Sackville, that are good enouirh tor all practical purposes, and tit tor the export or any other trade. Hero, then, the " blue noses " have an example in latllo-brceding sol them in their own country. It is clear that the cliniato and the soil are tit to produce excellent cattle, and if wo find comparatively few such, it is man's fault, not the country's. Ontario is a long way ahead of any of the other Provinces in cattle, and this will give hei-, in the new trade, a lead which cannot easily be taken away. The soils I have spoken of as possessing certain remarkable features and pro- ])orties are the "dyke" and the "intervale" lands. Both Nova Scotia and Now Bruns- wick are celebrated for the forruoi', while the hitter are a peculiarity ot Now Brunswick, in the valley of the noble river St. .John. The dyke lands of l)oih Provinces are found boidering on the inlets of the Bay of Fundy. Tho,se I saw in Nova 8cotia are in the neighboi liood of Kentville and Amherst; in New Brunswick I saw them at Dorchester and Sackville. As the name suggests, they are dyked in from the sea, from which they have been from time to time reclaimed. In many cases marsh grass is cut from saline swamps which have not yet been djdced. and over which the high tides for which the Bay of Fundy is noted, still during certain seasons, continue to flow. The grass is made into hay in the best way possible under the oircumstar.ces— on the ridges of higher land, on platforms, etc. — and is stacked on a framework which is raised several feet above the land, supported on piles; and it is a curious sight to see the water trowing under the stacks and in and about the piles when the tide is at its height. In one case I counted, near the town of Annapolis, upwards of 140 of these stacks, each of tliom containing a ttm or .so of hay. They are put up in this manner hurriedly, and are fetched into the farmyards, in winter, as they are wanted, to use along with ordinary hay, with straw and with roots, to which they are found to form a tolerable though coarse addition. But the dyke-lands proper are so fenced in from the water by a strong bank of earth thrown up some six or eight feet high, with a broad and substantial base, that the laud within them is firm and solid, of excellent (quality, and covered with a thick sward of coarse though vigorous a.ul nutritive grass. The fertility of these reclaimed .soils is unusually high ; they are never manured, but cut on the average upwards of two tons of hay to the acre — a yield which has been sustained for many years, and shows no signs of running out. The land, however, under this system of farming is found to become weedy in the course of time, and it becomes expedient to plough up portions of it in rotation, at intervals often or twelve years, taking one ciop of wheat or oats, with which new gra.ss weeds are sown, to form the new sward which is desired. This once ploughing is found to kill the weeds for the lime being, and they do not again become very troublesome for some years ; and when at length they do, the land is simply ploughed up again in the way described. Those bottom-lands are valuable acquisitions to the upland farms adjoining, most of which have more or loss of them attached ; and they do much towards maintaining the fertility of the uplands, obviating the necessity of using purchased fertilizers on them. These dyke-lands are in much reciuest on this account, and they are worth from $50 to 3150 an acre, in a country whei-e ordinary uplanil farms are not worth as many shillings an acre. The portions of these dyke-lands owned by different men are marked out for identity's sake, but are not fenced off from the rest. Kach man cuts off the hay from his portion, and takes it home, sometimes several miles, and the altermath is eaten in common by the stock of all the owners combined, com- mencing on the Ist of September. A few days before this date a committee of asses.-ors is appointed to place a value on each mail's portion of the land, and to decide on the number and kind of animals he shall send for pasturage. So it follows that we see very large ti-acts of land, on which hundreds of cattle roam about and feed at will. The extent of those dyke-lands is said to be about 65,000 acres, and there is still a large area to be reclaimed. A largo poi tion of the marshes was dyked by the 28 French, previous to the coiiqiiowt of Fort Boausejoiir in 1754. Immediatoly afterwards they VJOYO taken possow-ion of by the English settlors, who alleiwanlK obtained grants of them from the Crown. The expense of dyking fresh marshes has ranged from eight doiluris to twenty dollars pci- acre, and it is 'vorthy of note that the system of constructing dykes and aboidoaiix adopted by the first French settlers is the one still employed. The system of cultivation is very simple, and consists of surface draining by cutting ditches 22 yards apart, 3 feet wide at the top, Z feet 9 inches deep, and sloping to 1 foot wide at the bottom ; about throe years afterwards the land is ploughed in ridges of ti to 8 feet wide, sown with oats, and seeded down with timothy aiul clovers. It then yields lai-ge crops of grass ot a coarse description, and it would seem to mo that careful draining, generous cultivation, and discrimina- ting manuring would increase the quantity, or at all events improve the quality of the grass. By a well-devised system of drainage, carried out in a workmanlike manner, and by the free percolation of rain-water through them, these dyke-laiMls would gradually lose much of the saline element which at p/esent is not favorable to the growth of the tiner grasses, and they would become litted to the growth of roots, green crops and giain. while as pastures they would be greatly improved. The " intervale lands "of New Brunswick are, as the name suggests, found in tfie valley. The name is peculiarly appropriate and ex])ressive. In England we should call them bottom-lands or alluvi.-! ^oils. They are, in tact, allnviai soil to all intents and purposes, with this peculiarity, ihey are still in process of formation. In some cases these intervale lands consist of islands in the rivers — and there are many such i.i the magnificent river Si. John ; but for the most part they are level banks, on each f'ide of the river, in some cases several miles wide, and reaching to the feet of the hills, which form the natural ramparts of the valleys Ihey enclose. These intervale lands are rich in quality, and the grass they produce is very good. Like the dyke-lands, they need no maimring artificially. The dyke-lands, in fact, have such a deep excellent deposit of unusual richness, that manuring is superfluous; but the intervale lands receive a periodical manuring in the deposit which is laid on them each spring by the fi"eshets of the rivers. They are, in fact, flooded more or less foi* several weeks in the spring of the year, and the deposit left by the i-eceding waters is of a character to add fertility to an already rich soil, and at the same time, to add to its depth. An inch or two of rich alluvial mud deposited on these lands each year is gradually raising them above the influence of the frei hets; and they are to-day among the most valuable soils in the Province. Much of the upland of the Province is of a verygood quality, excellently adapted to the growth of cereal, root, and green crops generall}', and for the raising of live stock. Sheep in particular do remarkably well wherevev t have seen them in Canada, and nowhere better than in New Brunswick. Little, if any, improvement in them is specially desirable, for they are already of very good quality in most respects, and they are of com-se well i-nired to ihe soil and climate. The cattle, on the contrary, are of a very inferior character ; yet, at the same time, they are sound and vigorous in con- stitution, and therefore provide an excellent basis on which a very profitable breed of cattle may bo built up by the use of improved blood from the Old Country. There are ill this Province millions of acres still unoccupied, except by a heavy growth of trees which form the primeval forest. The forests require a large expen- diture of labor to clear them, and English farmers are not well calculated to do the work ; but there are numbers of cleared farms which can be bought, with good houses and buildings upon them, at the late of £3 to £8 an acre, and it seems to ma that a practical farmer from the Old Country, especially if he has a rising family to help him, could hardly fail tosuied alike in Manitoba and Prince Edward's Island in Ontario and New Brunswick, that the winters are bracing and healthy, full of enjoyment, and fai' more tolerable than a severe winter in England or Scotland; though the ther- mometer may now and again fall to 30° below zero, the atmosphere is always dry, and 80 the cold is not felt so severely as a much less extreme degree is in a damp climate. The farmers of Canada woi'k, it is true, but 1 doubt if they work as hard as we are in the habit of thinking. But in any case they work — not to do so would demoralize the men — and it seems that a drone cannot wtii oxist in the atmosphere there. I believe I am correct in sayin-^ that the dignity of labor is more generally honored in Canada than in England, and as there are fewer idlers, men in rags are scarcer. I do not, in fact, i-emeir.ber seeing more than two or throe men in rags tho whole time of my wanderings, and not many dirty, except the Indians, and not always these. Yet the farmers have not all plain sailing, nor do they grow rich without industry and thrift. Every country has its disadvantages, and Canada is no exception. There are sometimes violent storms which do injury to the crops and stock; some- times they are troubled with the grasshoppers, but their visits are few and far between, aid they have only made their appearance about six times in the last fifty years. The Colorado beetle I only saw once. It does not seem to have yet reached Manitoba and the North-West Territory, and is not nearly so numerous as I had expected to find it, having confined its ravages more particularly to the United States Territory. Then, again, the weevil and the Hessian fly attack the wheat sometimes, and it is difficult when they do come to check their ravages ; and lastly, the winters put a complete stop to agricultural operations, and the ploughing and sowing, as a rule, have to be hurried through in a limited period. The seod-time and harvest are very busy periods, but when the winter is over the spring comesat a bound, and vegetation grows at a rate whicli surprises Englishmen. These disadvantages apply to the whole of Noi-th America, and not merely to Canada; but they have no apparent effect on the progress of settlement in the country. Men soon learn to accommodate themselves to these things, suiting their work to the seasons and planning out beforehand various things that can be done in the depth of winter. Three things in Canada strike a stranger powerfully : the vastness of the country ; the unbounded faith the people have in the future greatness of the country; and the 30 i-hueil'nl loyally to tho Old (Joiinliy whiili Ih ovorywhoro found. The libei-ty of the C'anadiitii fsii hut, ^rand and unconvontional as it in, und the indopotidciice of mind an;! if poHition, oorisiderahlo and ovon comploto as it is in many cacos, do no-dovelop iiii . icencti and ii'cklo.shnchs, hiil into clieorfiil and ^onoroiH ludiitH of life. Loyalty to tho Old Ooiinti-y and prido in their own aro loading fbaturoH in tho political faith of tho people; hospitality to slian;,'oi>, und roaciinoss to impart inforn\ation and rondor Borvice.s, uie <'(|ually lealuro.i in tlioir domestic life; while a liviiii;- faith of the future ol the Dominion, based on a kfiowlcdifo of its oxhaustloss natural wealth, und of the inherent ener^'y of its citi/ens, is prominent in their conversation. It iw not tho aristocracy of hiilh, but tliat of labor and of brains— peisonnl merit, in fact — that holds a foromtist place in the estimation of the jieople. Tho now departure which has recently begun in Canadian fanning — that of send- ing cattle and -hoop alive and dead to Kngland — has elated the faiiners in Canada in a degree corresponding with the (;iicely the place for a man who has boon long aocuslonied a) English methoils of fanning; that is, they would have to unlearn their old methods and learn now ones, but it is onlv fair lo add that the land and climate of Manitoba are so generous that very careful cultivation is at present alike unnecessary and scarcely profitable. Those latter men, as it seems to me, would bo hapijier, and their wives would bo more content in Ontario, or Now Brunswick, or Prince Edward Island. The}' are not suited to the cinder life of the far west. A man with a capital of £1,000 would do well in one or othoi- of the Maritime Provinces, or in the Eastern townships of Quebec; one v/ith £2,(»00 would do well in Ontario. A man with little or no capital should either go lo the Red River district or take a free grant of land in one of the Lower Provinces. But any man should look lound him for some time, and get into some kind of employment before he buys a farm or takes up a tree grant. Look- ing at the increasing competition which British farmers have to meet, and at the heavy rates, taxes, rents, bills and wages they have to pay, I have no doubt many of them would do better out yonder, and their families would do better than they can in England, providing always that they are not afraid of work, and are sober and frugal. It is said that Canada is the place for a poor man, and this no doubt is true; but it is also the place for a man of means, for capital tells a tale there. It is not probable, however, that many farmers of capital will face the ills they know not of in Canada, and indeed I would not advise anyone to go there who is doing well in this countrr; but, then, it is hardly fair loC'anada that only poor men should go there as farmers, in- money is wanted to develop the riches of the soil — not labor only. I know farmers in England who toil year after year, and live very carefully, without being any forwarder at the year's end than they were at its start; this sort of thing seems very hopeless, and I would say to such men : " You will get along faster in Canjvda." There is not and has not been a better time than the present for English farmei'S going to Canada. Canada is just recovering from a period of depression during which the value of land has become reduced, and it so happens that many of the farmers of the Lower Provinces are looking wistfully at the wonderful prairies of the North-West, and are anxious to sell their present farms and go there with their rising families. They, it is true, are fitted to go ; and it seems to me a nice arrangc^ment that English farmers of capital should take their places. It would seem, indeed, that the sysiems of farming to which English farmers have been long accustomed are well adapted to restore condition to the land, while Canadian methods are better suited to the present condition of the North-West. It is at the same ♦ime true that many Englisl- farmers would do well in the North-West, particularly those whose capital is small, and who are not too old for pioneer life. Yet in the Lower Provinces they would find farms and homes more in keeping with those they leave behir!" in England. Their sons, in turn, will move in the diroclion of the setting sun. IS REPORT OF MR. HUGH McLEAN, RHU, TARBBRT, N.B., THE DELEGATE OF THE KINTYRE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY. " Yestei-day (Nov. 19, 1880) Mr. Hugh McLean Rhu, the delegate appointed some time ago by the Kintyre Agricultural Society to visit Manitoba, and report as to its suitabilitv for emigration purposes, etc., addressed the members of the society- and others in the Town Hall. The delegate was accompanied to the platform by Provost Greenlees, ex-Provost Galbraith, Rev. J. C. Russell, David McGibbon, E^q., Chamberlain to His Grace the Duke of Argyll ; Lachlan Clark, Esq., Robert Aitken, Esq., John Gilchrist, Esq., Charles McConachy, Esq., James B. Mitchell, Esq., and James Littlojohn, Esfj. David Mctribboii, Hsq., <)(cu|)io, by tho AMan Lino sloainer Surdinian, Ciipt in Diittoii. Tho \> divided in .. seven \v;rtor-tii^ht conipurtnients, is propolloil b}' a pair ol diivct-aotiii;-' compound lii^di and low prcHwure en^nnes ol" 2,S(,M) hoi-Ho power, and maintains a spoo'i ol U knots per iiou''. Siio is stroni;Iy iiuilt, oarrios ton life-boatH, has accomm'i(latii)n loi IS') saloon, (JO intcrmodiato, an is tho prevail iii^ Lions, in tho rivoi, to ^uido tho nd'ts that do^cond the rivor to tho variouH Huw-mills. Tho land around Hull is very ^ood, and judging from tho condition of sheep and cattle, as visil)lo from tho railway, tho grass must have a fattening (inaiily. Crops of wheat, oals, Imckwheat, and coin whirled past a8 tho train s"j»od from station to station. Wooden houses, with verandahs in front, constantly mel the eye ; wood fences every whore, till at last night closed the scone. At length wo arrived at llocholaga stalion, which is tho name of tho original Imlian village, on tho site of which Montreal is built. Tho city of Montreal is siliuitod on an island. The Victoria Bridge crosHos iho St. Lawrence, its length being 9,194 feet. The city contains many objects of interest, which wei(! seen on my return; but on this day 1 visited Notre Dame (Mnirch, whicli internally is a most ex(|nisitely finished place of worship. The Cnicifi.\ion, the A|tOHtles, the Altar, the candlesticks, the gold and crimson decorations, all surpass description, and fill the beholder with awe and admiration. 1 started for London, Canada West, by the evening train, but saw nothing of the country till next morning. When daylight came the morning was vovy wet. Tho country was beautiful. T found several fellow-passengers by the *Sa/-^///H'rtM were on the ti..in. We wore all glad to meet, but they dropped out one after another, and we were lost to each other probably for ever. VVe drove througli a country fai-med by English, Scotch and Irisn. There are good crops, good cattle, gocxl houses. Tho fields are rich with golden-colored grain. The orchards loaded with fruit. Kvery- thing to tho passing visitor has the appearance of plenty. Now we pass field s of clover. Arrived at Port Union, we pass more clover fields. S^vamps intervene, then light crops. By-and-bye beautiful crops burst upon the view. Everywhere the fields are fenced with zigzag rails, which appears to me to occupy too much land ; but the British Canadian adopt them universally. We come to Toronto. We proceed and pass through Guelph. On the run we notice brick buildings going up to replace wooden houses, generally a fair sign of a prosperous farmer ; but sometimes i was told emulation induces a man to build a fine house while his land is mortgaged. We pass Breslau, which seems by the map to be not far from the Bank* and Braes o' Bonnie Doon ; then through Berlin, Hamburgh, Stratford, St. Mary's, at which last place I changed for London, and saw the last of my last Sardinian. 1 arrived at London and took train for Newbury, for the purpose of paying a short visit to a Kintyre settlement. I was driven over a clayey road from Newbury to Crinan by the light of the moon, and as yet saw nothing of the country. My quarters at Crinan were with tho Rev. John Milloy, a native of Clacluiig ivintyre. In common with the whole settlement, I was roused about two o'clock in the morning by a thundersti.'-ra. In the midst of it all I fell asleep, and awoke to find niyself surrounded by giorious sunlight, and everything smiling. I partly visited in the neighborhood the farms of Messrs. John McMurchy, from Leanngbhoich ; Archibald McEachran, from Auchnadrain ; Jumcs Stalker, from Achnacloich, Muasdale; Duncan Stalker, from the sanie pkn e; J)ougald McMillan, brother-in-law to Mr. John Gilchrist, Ballinvain ; Messrs. Duncan Campbell, from Ballochroy ; Finlay McNab, from Cour ; Donald McCal him, from Carradale; Peter McMillan, from Achnafad ; and many others, all natives of Kintyre, and all evidently doing well. I then called on Mr. Neil Walker, from Achnaglaic, near Tarbert (who had no notice of my approach), and who gave me a hearty welcome. I took the liberty of putting inquiries to him, as to his success since he lefi Tarbert in the year 1874. His farm I found to consist of 100 acres, one-third or 33J acres being under wood for fuel, one-third under wheat and hay, in proportions of about 18 acres of the former, and say 15J of the latter ; the remaining third contained 3 acres of barley, 2 acres Indian corn, 14^ acres oats, and the balance summer fallow. The summer fiallow land is ploughed in autumn ; it lies exposed to frost all w.nter and to the sun till the 1st September, when it is sown with fall wheat. He e:i plained. lliiif wlnri ilnj l«ri. moii|iiii)>i nway liutil il in !ilvi! arid un»!, Imrns, etc., lit- having aNo the .>^lruw of iho wayj/oing < rop. He howh i hii^helH of ttill wheat ami Ji l»u«,holn of oaln to the imperial mn:. He wAved .'JO huhlieU of whuut luisl year and had 2'M hil^holn, which lie i) Ijwt )enr, in the fall, and >ow oal.-t in it in the spring. Alter oatn, .summer liillow it; after (allow, how whuHt again, hut putting all the manure the farm producuis on the fallow. TurnipH and mangel wnr/e| are not grown. lie had 10 milch eow.s, 7 Iwo-year-oldn, 4 one-year oldn, i{2 evv<;H and 20 lambs, 5 |)igs, ami .'i hor.sen. Uo Uiid bia two .soilH labor the ground. 'J'he following wtsrc the receiptH and ex[»enditure for the pant year:— liKCKII'TS — Produce- of c(,ws Ht»ld JKiO 00 Two three year <»lil stotH 66 00 Wheat 233 00 VV<...1 47 12 Lamb^ 60 50 I'igs 50 00 $606 62 I'lxi'KNDITI.IlK — InteroHt on »:{,H0() $IJ)0 00 TaxoH 20 00 liubor I'll 00 Clothing 100 00 Smith-worh 5 00 506 00 I'rolit, C;!0 2h. TkI., or $100 62 111 giving the above, it is to be underHlood that the items intorost, labor and clothing are nuM-ely eslimaled, -ah he does i.-t pay interest, and the labor is done by his family. The following wen- Mr. Wal'.er's returns of various cereals since he i>niigral(Ml in IS" I Ykah. 1H75.. 1876.. 1877.. 1878.. 1S75K. WllKAT. 170 bushels. ISO .MO " 350 3M> Ha K LEY. Oats. Pease. 80 bushels. 600 bushels. 350 220 210 lti5 220 bushels. 100 105 70 « 37 " •5 SUIIM Uo wiHhod lo improMH on tuo that tlin luritl .«»iill rtnpiires ^ivn\ itiipiuw tnoiilN lo lio inudo uii it, imd lliiit it' it wm-v iarrni'd on tliu muiio Hystotn that in udimtiMl at hoiiit<, il would prodiiro doiitdii wluil. il now doOM. With i"i);^ard to thi< yichf ot t ho cows Mr. Wttlktir Htalod lluit— in May lunt, 2.0H» ihs. olinilk wore Hold, which made lH2llii. of choose, which, minim oxponnos of factory, loaliMcd jil<>.5ti, oi' C! (>•*. 'Jd. In Iho month "f'.liiiio, 2,i)!»fi Iht. of milk woro wold lo the factory, making 27(1 Mh. of chot'Ho, rouiiwing JlT.'iO, or C'A lOn. 5d. II(> stalod lliiil in July tlioro wax a drawhack owin^ to thi) hot vvi'a'lu'r. In Au^'ust and Scipti'mhcr, although ihcro was loss milk, it took loHH milk lo mako a pourui ot cIiooho. Oclohor is ibo best monoy making' month in the year, lio can avorajL?«) 820 por inonll) for six niontliH out ol the ton cow.s, and can Moll $ to dollarH wortii of butter ; that i>, the c.,wh produce *l of groat boara and capacity, and could take not a few buggies, waggons, etc., with their horses and (Kcupants, over each time. I forget the fare paid. We reached the opposite side, and then ^aw the steep bank which we descended on tha previous night, which we now ascended with great difficulty. We soon thereafter got our luggage passed by the Custom-House officer. A person with "checks" asked us if we -."ished our luggage sent to our hotel. We agreed that it should be sent, and hat ihe luggage to our hotel, and paid the ferry lx)th Avays, it was a pretty expensive item. My companion aod 1 then called on Mr. Jiespeler, and received a map and printed regulations respecting the disposal of certain public lands for the purposes of the Canadian Pacific Railway. He also gave me a jotting of the route he suggested I should take, in order to see the country. Sevei-al things combined to prevent my following his route. I had therefore, to dovise a route. By the time the call was made, and another call at a bank, we found that the steamer for Portage la Pi-airie, which was the place I ictf^nded proceeding to, had sailed up the Assiniboino; and as there was no stage til! Monday [ had nothing for it but to wait at Winnipeg. In the interval, having been advised by Mr. Sinclair, Miller Street, (xlasgow, to call on Mr. Gerrie, Winnipeg, who owns land at Sturgeon Creek, I did so, and Mr. (ierrio kindly offered to drive me to bis farm when the roads became passable. At jn-esent they were absolutely impassable. I was, thorefove, somewhat downhearted at ray bad fortune in losing the steamer and being detained at Winnpeg, but bore up the best way I could. Meanwhile, I was introduced by Mr. Gerrio to Mr. Bathgate, Main Street, Winnipeg, who informed me that coal had been discovered on the Souris ]{iver, and is in course of being worked, and some of it brought down to Winnipeg. He said that a railway is likely to be constructed between VViniiipeg and the Souris River, also that coal had been found on the Pembina Mountain. Further, that great (inantities of coal, of the very best quality, had been discovered on the Saskatchewan River, but that, in the meantime, this was very far distant. He also stated that on certain parts of the Canadian Pacific line of railway not only coal but other minerals were reported to have been found. Mr. Bathgate took me to an office in Winnipeg where I procured a specimen of the coal from the Souris River, which I have in my possession now. The following is the experience of Mr. McCorquodale, Headingley : He left Craignish, Argyloshire, I85i, for Canada. Had many hardshipswhon he came to Canada. Bought 100 acres at $1 per acre; had to clear it all of wood. The land was in the township of Greenock, back of Kincardine, Lake Huron He got on very well there. Two of his sons and hinisolf, three years ago, came to Manitoba to see the country. It pleased iiim so A^oll that he did not return to Canada. His sons returned tempoj'arily. He himself spent six weeks travelling through the country, looking for a suitable place. He did not sleep in a btd all that time. He took thio farm by share from the proprietor, Mr. Cunninghame. Mr. McCorqu jtlalo's terms were to work the farm and get half the profits. During the first year ho looked out for a suitable place t»!sewhore, and purchased one of 320 acres for himself, 12—3** 38 and one of 320 for his son, in the south of the Proviiico. There is a good dwelling- house on each farm. The farms are partly sown and partly planted, ready for his going theie next month. 1 drove through these farms on a future day. They were next to the Mcnnonite Settlement, on the way from Pembina Mountain. Other four eons bought each 3'-;0 acres at the back of Rock Lake, about 60 miles farther west. He consideiod that Manitoba was very far before that pari of Canada he came fiom, but the roads, he said, were very far behind. This was certainly a great inconven- ience to new-coniors. "Any one coming here," said he, " taking up a house, has nothing to complain of, comparatively; but if one has not got a house, he must pre- pare to go over the country and pitch his tenl, and that is liOt always agreeable." The following is a statement by Colin, his son, of the capabilities of the land pro- aently faimod by his father : '' Wheat (2 bushels soWn per acre) producal 35 bushels. The wheat is sown in spring. Fall wheat is not generally sown in Manitoba, but a test has been made, and it has succeeded. Eeaping commences in August. The land is ploughed right up that same fall, when wheat is sown again in spring in succession for years. Weight, €4 lbs. never less than 60 lbs. per bushel. " Oats average 75 bushels per acre, but it is not usual to take 100 bushels off. Sow 2 J to 3 bushels per acre, Oats weigh 34 lbs. " Barley does well. Sow 2 bushels per acre, i-eturn 60 bushels. " Potatoes — 3 bushels planted produceil 87 bushels • 400 bushels have been raised per aci'e, but not on his father's faim. " Turnips do well. " Indian-corn does not ripen. Farmei-s cut it green, and it makes an excellftit feed. ' Cabbages, carrots, lettuces, parsnips, cucumbers, melons, squashes, etc., do well. " Have not yet grown apples. Old settlers have grown them. ' Prices— Wheat, 65c. to $1.05; oats, 42c. to 74c. ; barley, 60c. to 65c.; potatoes, Lo $1.25. The two prices are fall and spring rates." If a man cuts as much grass as will feed his June is the wet month; more rain 60c. to All round is a grazing country. <5attle, it is then suitable for grazing. The hot weather begins in June, about 1st. falls in it than in all the other months. July is hot, with occasional thunder-showers. August is warm and dry. September is warm and dry. October is cool but dry. November, winter sets in about 10th. It sets in with frost and occasional falls of snow, but not much snow. December, snow falls about 20th. The greatest depth on the level is 22 inches. January, snow falls. February, snow falls. March, begins to get a little warm; about 15th begins to thaw. Aj)ril, snow being off at latter end of March, begin to plough and sow. Weather pleasant for working. May, usually fine weather, and devoted to sowing pui-poses. The months of March, April and May are spring; October is the fall. Labor,— Farm servants, $16.00 per month, £4. Maid do 6.00 do 1 is. Day labourers 1.25 to $1.50 per day. Taxes.— No taxes till this year, except the school-tax. Water is very good in this place— the very best, pure spring ; but in some other parts it is impregnated with alkali, and of a saltish nature. Soil.— If the grass is short and smooth, and not a close sward, that ground is not good. If the grasH is long, close sward, and the soil black clay loam, that gi-ound is Manuring the alkali land with stable manure makes it good. The soil where is, is of a sticky natura, and manure loosens it. good alkali Sf) J. _-:rr N.B.— I found this diaputed elsewhere. Some say that two o.rops of beet absorb the alkali, others laugh at the idea, and say: " Have nothing to do with it." Grain is sold without any trouble to merchants. Milch-cows average $35, or £7. They can be bought at that in the country cjisily. Cows are cross between native cattle and Durham bull. Team of horses cost irom $250 to $300 per pair, that is £50 to £60. Team of oxen, $140 to $180 or £28 to £36. Mrs. MoCorquodale says a cow will make 100 lbs. of butter in the season, from May up to the end of September. Price, 20c. to 25c. — yielding £4 to £5. In winter the price is 50c. Sweet milk cheese is 20c. to 25c. ; eggs, 25c. to 30c. per dozen ; poultry, $1 for young turkeys; $3 for gobbler, and $1 for turkey hens; 25c. for com- mon hens ; $1 each for ducks ; $5 for a pair of geese. I left Headingley next morning, driven in an Indian cart, and proceeded to the Kivoi' Sale. Wc pa-sod through three very bad swamp^", from three-quarters to one mile broad, and of indefinite length. These swamps might be drained into the Assini- boine and Sale Jiivei-.s without much difficulty. The Indian pony, Jeannie, dragged her owner and myself through the swamps and over the prairie grass, eating a bite and I'unning as she ato, without being in the least liitigiied. Hei' drivei' used neither whip nor switch, but only a kind word of praise, which she evidently understood, or a word of caution, which she understood equally well, or an appeal to energ}', which set her all aflame when she came to a diflScult spot. She was the best of ponies. Her owner's name was Bmou. Mr. Alex. Murray, of the hostelry of the River Sale, a branch of the Assiniboiiie, has a stock of twelve cows. The spring was so wet that he did not sow wheat. He says the carriage of wheat to Winnipeg takes 25c. off the price. He mentioned that he had a farm lor sale in the county of West Marquette, parish of Portage la Prairie, of which he gave me both particulai's and price. We Icit the River Sale next day in company with a Canadian, he being on horse- back. We wore both bound for the Boyne settlement. Wo passed some very bad sloughs and wont through three large swamps. The prairie grass was very good and abounded with dog-rosos, which dotted it all over, growing about eighteen inches high, and which were very beautiful. The principal grasses were bone-grass and buffalo- gi'ass, a brown grass ^'aid to be good for cattle, also goose-grass, said to be very good for horses. These grasses indicate good soil. There is another grass in the prairie called by some arr w-grass, by others spear-grasi^ , When drawn and thrown it sticks like a dart, and is bad for sheep and cattle. It is always iivoidod for hay. The arrows had dropt off when I was in the country. We arrived at Mr. Johnstone's farm on the Boyne after a long journey, during which the Canadian horseman was left behind, his horse having become exhausted, and he himself being obliged to dismount and walk. He wat clo>e to a faim at that juncture, which relieved my apprehensions for his safety. We sojourned with Mr. Joseph Wells Johnstone, who came from County Oxfoi-d, Jntario, in 1870, and settled on this farm. Since he' came to Manitoba his wheat has averaged 32 bushels pei- acre, but he has thrashed it at 5:^ bushols and at 60 bushels, and five years ago at 48 bushels. Last year it was 20 bushels. He sows 1 bushel and 5 pecks to the acre. As to oats, he considers this the best of countries for oats, which weigh 42 lbs. per bushel, and produce 70 bushels per acre. He has known, at Headiugley, a field of 10 acres produce 1,010 bushels, or about 100 bushels per acre. Barley weighs from 48 to 52 lbs., and an acre produces fron\ 50 to 60 bushels. Finds a market at Winnipeg, which is 60 miles distant from this. He grows no Indian corn. Price of barley, last year, 60c. ; oats, .50c. ; wheat, $1; potatoes, .50c. per bushel; butter, 25c. per lb. ; pork, 10c. per lb. The system he adopts is : Starts ploughing about 15th June, and breaks land till 15th July. Leaves it lying till following fall. This ploughing is as shallow as possible — say 2 inches — and from 12 to 14 inches broad. In the fall he backsets it — that is, ploughs it the same way, being 3 inches deep and 12 to 14 inches wide. He harrows It in spring, and sows it with broadcast seeder. Has a 10-horse power thresher;. 12— 3^** 40 to 100° in the shade. very hard. Inst winter. charges 4io. for threshing wheat; 3ic. for barley, and 3c. foi-oats. Sows timothy and white clover. Timothy is a splendid success; has one piece which lo cut in July, and expects t/o cut it again before winter. Mangel-wurzel does well, ar i so do turnips ; also onions, carrots, gooseberries, currants and ihubarb. Buckwheat arrows well, so do cucumbers, melons, squashes and strawberries. With logard to flies, he says that the bull-dog is dreadful in July on horse and cattle- makes a horse lean, and he will not eat. The mosquitoes need no comment ; they ai-e very troublesome. The butfalo-gnat is very bad for horses and cattle in June and July. There is also the sand fly, which is not very bad, but is found where there is high grass and scrub. May, a veiy nice month. June, very wet. July, very hot; hotter than 0»>tario — up August, showery and cool. September, fine weather. October, very fine month. November, fine month ; clear and frosty. December, snow— 1 foot average; freezes January, very cold ; thermometer froze up February, cold month. March, not so cold ; snow begins to melt. April, fine month. The soil is black vegetable mould and clay bottom. The water is spring water. The water is good in the Boyne settlement. He says the heat, even when the ther- mometer is at 80'\ is not felt so much as in Ontario, as there is always a fresh breeze. Although very cold in winter, he says that cold is more endurable than in Ontario^ there being less changeable weather in Manitoba. He spoke of the Indians dying in the spring of the year from consumption, but attributed this to their being careless as to keeping their feet dry. He has seven cows and three teams of horses. I took samples of oati and wheat. He has one crab-apple tree beai-ing fruit, of which he is very pi'oud. Mr. Johnstone added : '• In Ontario all I could do was to make a living; here I have made money." I should have mentioned that we passed the Poplars before coming to the Boyne settlement. We passed Tobacco Creek settlement, which lay east of us. We started on the morrow for Nelsonville, but were overtaken by Mr. Inraan,^ of the Boyne, who owns 800 acres of land there. Mr. In man spoke of a blue flower that always indicated, by its presence, good water. He mentioned that he paid $10 for 160 acres, and got 160 acres for pre-emption price. He bought scrip for the balance. He has 60 acres in crop. Wheat will average 30 bushels per acre, 60 lbs. Oats '• 40 " 3+ " Barley " 30 " 48 " Potatoes *« 250 " 60 " He staled that he does not make butter, but reai-s cattle. The price of wheat is 81 per bushel ; outs, 65c.; barley, 60c,; potatoes, 2.5c. in the fall and 50c. in the jpring; butter, 20c. Young cattle can bo bought in the fall for from 87 (£1 8s.) to $10 (£-!) per head. Hay can be made here, deducting expense, tear and wear, for $1 (or 48.) per ton. Two tons of hay, with some straw, will winter a yearling well. A three year-old steer is worth from S35 (£7) to $50 (£10 i. Hence he considers it is more profitable to rear cattle than to grow wheat. This is the way he puts it : " Wheat worth $1 per bushel in Winnipeg last season ; the year before 6Cc. only ; 40 bushels can be taken in a sledge in winter over the ice, by a team of oxen, to Winnipeg, sixty miles distant. It takes five days to make the round trip. 41 A man and his team is worth $2.50 per day $12 50 Expenses on road not less than 8 00 820 50 Price of 40 bushe's, at 81 840 00 Off oxp'inv:o8 20 50 40 bushels realJHe 819 50 " Actual price of wheat 48c., or 2s. per bushel." lie says th; t a man on the river brought 12 sheep fi-om Ontario, and they are doing very well, as he has lost none yet. Prairie dogs are dangerous for sheep. Water is good, and there is good timber near hira. The Dominion harvesters are very bad [N.B. — The blackbirds who feed on wheutj. Wages, 815 (£3) per month for farm servants. 8-5 (Ci) per month for haying and harvest months; 86 for maid- servants {£1 4s.). Taxes — School tax is y\ths of a cent per 81, according to the value of the land and other property ; he is also bound to give three days of road labor for each 160 acres he owns, or pay 81.50 per day. The Province is divided into municipalities, in each of which there is a warden and tive counciljiors. In the municipality in which Mr. Inman lives, every man takes care of his own cattle, and is responsible for any damage done by them to his neigh- bours' crops from Ist April to 1st October. After that they are free coramonera. Pigs are pi-ofitable— S8 per 100 lbs. They are fed on cracked barley. Fife wheat is sown mostly on the Boyne, also red chaff wheut. Oat» — black oats chiefly, and white oats also are sown. A man coming here to settle, should start with oxen for the first two years, until he gets enough crop to feed the horses. Having to erect a house, his horses are standing exposed to the weather, whilst the oxen will take care of themselves. Having arrived at Nelsonville, I washed with soap and water in the hotel, and felt an uncommon irritation over my face, whilst my hair and beai-d seemed to bo glued. I was told that this arose from alkali water, and that no soap should be used in washing. M.r. Nelson, founder of the town, stated that when searching for water and digging his well, which is the well from which the inhabitants obtain drinking water, the vegetable mould was 18 inches to 3 feet deep; then 3 to 4 feet of marly clay; then 5 feet of solid grey clay ; then black soapstone. The water is generally found between the clay and soapstone. '' If not successful," added Mr. Nelson, " try another place." Wheat produces 20 to 30 bushels per acre. Weight per bushel, (U to 66 lbs. Oats " 40 to 90 " " " 38 Barley " 40 to 50 " " 50 Potatoes " 200 " Mr. Nelson camo to Manitoba in 1877. He had planted cucumbers, potatoes, «ubbages — very weakly plants — on the 28th June, and they all came good. Boots, turnips, and mangel-wurzel do well. Mr. Nelson corroborated previous statements as to the weather, remarking that the thermometer showed llO'^ in the shade in .July, but that one could stand the heat better in Manitoba than in Ontario. He thought that the cool nights helped it. There are only two or three nights in the year, he i?aid, that they don't use blankets. He remarked that the thermometer froze last winter, but tiat the cold was endurable when there was no wind. He is a miller by trade, having grist mills which grind wheat, etc., at loc. per bushel. Nelsonville is a thriving little place, and the inhabitants are kindly. It is destined to bo a place of considerable trade, as it is on the track to Turtle Mountain, which is fast settling up. Mr. Nelson showed me next day tomatoes sown on tho 10th May, which promised to ripen. I took samples, but they did not keep. Ho showed 42 me cauliflower8,o8(i mated by him at 4 to 5 lbs. weight. Potatoes— early roses keep till the new ones come again. Plant them from 1st May to 1st June. L took two aamples, and one potato from a seed planted on 3rd July. When the hill ^as dug there were seventeen potatoes on it, the sample taken being the biggest. 1 also took an average onion. The Pembina Mount is a lising eminence, so gradual in ascent that I could not discover that 1 was ascending it. It is ])retty thickly wooded tVom Township 4 north, but has not such uninterrupted good prairie. Thei-o " - jaid to be a stretch of sandy land not very good for settlement beyond it, but good land comes again at lurilo Mountain, which is well wooded. Ciystal City is on the east side of Rock Lake. The Kev. Mr. Rd wards, whom I met, stated that there was plenty of land all through the count-y that could be got from men holding the land on Crown patents. Tobacco Creek is t'onsidered the best settlement in the country. The soil is loose black vegetable mould, clay bottom. The water if; very good thei-e; wells can be had from eight to twenty teet deep. Wood is rather scarce, being from -fix to eight miles distant. Blackbirds (or Dominion harvesters, as Mr. Inman called them) resort to woods and water, but will not go far away from a good supply of both. All the land about Tobacco Creek is owned by private individuals. Mr. Edwards stated that $5 an acre was the highest price asked ^,'or land, and fiom the location ho considered it reasonable at that price. Having now turned towards Mountain City we passed Minniwashtey, meaning " good water," also Adamson Creek and Deadhorse Creek. I was sti-uck \vith finding boulders of granite on the road to Mountain City, being evidently floated there during the glacial period. The number of houses that Mountain City rejoices in is eight, but it will probably bo a big place byand-bye. After leaving Mountain City the stage proceeded to Stod- dartville, whei'e we put up for the night. Mr. Stoddart had very good crops. Next morning we started early, passing Calamity Creek and Liff'ey Creek, an Ii-ish settle- ment, and the farm of Mr. Windram, M.PP., Bluff, South Durterin. Ultimately, after passing various farms, amongst others. Mi". McCon^uodale's, we came to Austervitch, a Mennonite village. Before coming to it we saw a great patch of alkali land. The crops in this neighborhood were light. We could, on looking back, now discover that we had descended the mountain, but the descending was not realised in the act. The Mennonites have very good crops. Their cattle pasture togethe. m great herds. They had steam threshers, and all their houses were neatly thatched. They also had machine-houses to hold their agricultural implements. An accident happened to our stage by the rim of the left fore wheel coming off, whioh we repaired under peculiar circumstances. We came soon to County Touro, Rhineland, and met a party of emigrants. We passed Snipe Lake, and perceived a horse threshing-mill treading the corn under foot, according to the Eastern custom. We met the Governor of the Mennonites driving out. A large windmill made of wood was in one of the villages. Ultimately we came to Nyonloch, and dined in a Mennonite cottage. Everything was very clean and tidy. Sunflowers were cultivated in the gardens, as were also poppies. We came next to Grangehall, ultimately to the Eiver Moraye, and saw Smuggler's Point, Dakota, not far off. Finally we crossed the Red River, and entered the thriving little city of Emerson. The city of Emerson contains about 1,500 inhabitants, and it appears to be a place where a good business is done. The mud is not quite so bad as that of Winnipeg, but it is bad enough. On Monday I returned to Winnipeg. The streets by this time had dried up, but the ruts made driving very unpleasant. The following are the prices of certain articles at Winnipeg: Breaking plough, $25 to >f29; common plough, 816 to $22; reaper and mower combined, S200 ; horse hay-raker, 835 to 845; waggons, 895; spades, 81 ; shovels, 81.25; hay-forks, 75c.; manure forks, 81 ; harrows, 815 to 835; two hoop pails. 25c.; three hoop pails, 30c.; lii inch tubs, 90c.; blankets. $3; wood, $20 to 840 per 1,000 feet; dressed 43 shingles, 86 per 1,000 ; laths, $5 per 1,000 ; nails, $5 per 100 lb. ; single harness, 820; double, 035; hay, 87 lo 812 but wood, 8c.O to 8<)0 ; (loots, 82.50; sashes, 81 per paii poi ton. The population of Winnipeg is from 8,000 to 10,000, and that of the Provinto of Manitoba is said to be 100,0011. The Indians are supposed to number about -1,000. ThiTo are about 13,000 half-breeds, who are a mixture of English and Indian, Scotch and Indian, and Irish and Indian. The Mennonites aio Russian, and number about 7.000. There are about 18,.t90 French in the Province. The Province of Manitoba is in latitude 49° O' to 50° 2' north. It contains 11.000,000 acres, and is divided into four counties — Selkirk, Provencher, Lisgar and Marquette (and these into twenty-four districts), each of which returns a member lo the Dominion Parliament. The land in the Province is divided into ten strips. 1,400,000 acres of land are i-esei-vod for the Indian half-breeds and 512,000 acres for the Mennonites, The sections throughout the Pi-ovince belonging to the Hudson Bay and school districts are likewise reserved. There are also Indian reserves. Unless the land held by speculation is thrown open the tide of emigration must flow wostwai'd so that until the country is opened by railways, its future prosperity must undoubtedly be greatly retarded. The wild animals of Manitoba are deer, bears, brown and black ; prairie wolves, not formidabhj to man, but destructive to slR'e|) ; foxes, badgers, skunks, gofers, and the common grass snake, grasshoppers and frogs. Locu.sts were very destructive some years ago, but they liave not re- appeared. It is noticeable that all wild animnls fall back with the advent of the white man. Buffalo bones are common on the prairie, but no buffaloes. Although I went through what was last year a bear country, not a bear was visible this year. The mosquitoes and othoi" fly pests become less venonous as agriculture advances. As for fowl, there are ducks, bittern, prairie chickens and partridge; and of birds of prey, hawks of great size ; also several others whose names I did not ascertain. The prairie does not look like a solitude ; there is always plenty of life moving about. The grass reminds one forcibly of fields of waving rye-grass. Trees are found along the course of streams. In some parts they have to drag wo(xi a distance of twelve miles. Compressed straw and manure is used for fuel by the Mennonites, though wood is not far distant from their settlements. Bad land is easih' known from the smoothnet j of the surface, the sort of bluish green of the grass, and the very sickly hue of the thin vegetation. There is uo alkali where timber grows. The wolf-willow, a sort of scrub, grows on good land. Moles or gofers show hills which, if of black clay or loam, without grey or white clay ot- gravel, indicate good land. When light clay or gravel is tui*ned up, the land is not desirable. The best time to look at lat)d is in July, August, or September, when the grass shows it. If one goes in March he is in danger of hisanimals being starved. If he goes in June the roads are impas-^^able, and he is likely to fin i great obstruction. A farmer going can travel better and cheaper by purchasing his horse and buggy and after- wards sellir-o'or keeping them. After selecting his land ho has to secure it at a land ofliiec-. Then ho has to purchase material for a house and lo build it; then to break up his land. He has then to go back for his family. One way or another he will be put to immense inconveniences and considerable expense before ho can settle down. I returned to Ontario via Sarnia, by the steamer Quebec, C:ip(. Anderson, and visited Captain Morrison's farm in Corunna, being afterwards driven by him over the township. On his fjirm the red clover grew naturally. His apples were the golden russet, the pear aopic, the snow apple, the strawberry apple, Rhode Island greening, northern spy, Newton pippen, eic. The wheat straw was put up in stacks for winter-feeding. The cattle came round it and helped themselves. A young bull came to us tossing his head. "Ah," said the captain, " he is missing his salt." All the cattle get an allowance of salt. He huil splendid timothy hay stored up in his barn. He showed me a stump extractor. His farm evinced that he was an energetic and successful cultivator of the i-oil. A sailor till four years ago, he is by no means the worst farmer on the St. Clair. His lands are well fenced, his fields are levelled, and »( 44 he in now uiicieidrairiit)g the soil The water used on his Iund is fVom the river. It J8 allowed to be less tinged with alkali than any water in Canada. Since his return flora Prince Ai'thur's Landing on Lake Sujforior, he slai-ted underground draining. " TheweatheiatCorunna," said Captain Morrison, "is a bluster of snow in March which soon disa|)|)oars. In April the frost gets out of the ground, smd ho plough!* about the 10th. Mny is tine weather; puis in balaiife of seeds, and on to 20lh June, and then there is rain. July is the corn harvest for tall wheat; August, the general harvest. September, sow fall wheat. October, Hne month. November, broki-a Scotch weather-. December, frost stops the jtloiigh Jiinuary, winter; snow 1 foot. February, partly snow; cold." ■ He told me that there were several farms in his neighborhood for sale. He also told mo of a farm belonging to his father that ho would wish sold. It is in the town- Hhi])of Finch, Stormont, Ontario. I met at Sarnia several parties acqjiaintod with people at home. On returning to the township of Aldborou^^h 1 made further inquiries as to returns. Mr. Stalker's returns of wheat averaged 20 bushels ]>er acre; oat.s, tiO ; potatoes, 20 returns per bushel;- barley, 160 bushels from 12 bushels; but this was not good, the season being unfavorable. During my absence they had had a very wet harvest, lie was wintering 15 three-year old steers, feeding with chopped stuff, peas and oats. Peas not doing so well with the bug; he uses Br. Tach^'s antidote. They put all the manure they can spare on the wheat land, sow it with wheat and timothy and clover seed (5 lb. timothy and 5 lb. clover to each acre). The average price of a three-year old steer is $40, or £6. Visited Hector McPherson, lona, irom ilhunahoaran ; Duncan McLean, West Aldborough. He thrashed 000 bushels of wheat from 21 acres, sown with 1| bushel seed per acre; 40 to 50 bus'iels oats from 'J, bushels sowing; 30 bushels barley per acre. Has 11(1 acres; 90 under cultivation. Taxes, $25. His rotation is wheat sown in fall, and clover among the braird in spi-ing. Cuts it in July. Sometimes has a second cut of clover for seed. Next year he lets the clover grow up and ploughs it under, and then gives fair crop of wlieat again. The towuship:^ here are ten miles long by ten miles broad. Mr. Dyke, in this township, sowed 12 acres of wh^at, and thrashed 277 bushels. Eaised 50 to 60 bushels Indian corn per acre. Grazing is from 2 to 3 acres per cow. Good hay 2 tons per acre; light crop, IJ tons per acre. Turnips do not grow well in hard clay. I saw many other Kintyre people — Mr. Ramsay, Mr. Stewart, and visited a cheese manufactory owned by James McLean. I went to Lome or Bismarck, where I met with Mr. A. Kerr, from Kilmory, Lochgilphead. Left in 1818. Was in the woods all his life. His wheat averages 20 bus! els per acre, weight over 601b.; barley, 30 bushels per acre, weight 481b. He stated that 12 acres grazed 5 cows for him all summer. A good cow should make $35 out of cheese ; has cows that exceed that. Leicester sheep require great care; South Downs are best. I met with a German gentleman, J. C. .Schleihauf, who gave me information as to shingles, flooring, etc. : The former, $J.25 per 1,000; the latter, 4in. to 6in., $18 to $20 per l,t.00 ; 1,000 shingles cover 100 square feet. Bricks worth about $5 per ],000; drain-tiles. 2^ inches, $!• per 1,000; 3 inches, $11 ; 4 inches, $12; length, 12 inches. Land can be bought here from $20 to $30 per acre. I visited St. Thomas ; took rail for Dunkeld, County Bruce, Ontario. Saw splendid land on the line from London City to Hari-isburgh. Passed Guelph. The land here seemed to bo gravelly clay with loam above. Arrived al Dunkeld station late. Proceeded to Souihampton, on Lake Huron. This country is not very pre- possessing. Diove fi-oni Southampton to Owen .Sound, passing the Dageen River, Chippewa Hill, and an Lidian reserve of 12,000 acres. The soil is light and sandy. A good deal of bark is made from the hemlock tree f(^r tanning; sells at $4 per cord — that is, 8x4x4. Cedar is used for paving. Passed the Saugeen Kiver, Mr V.-h is made to the windows, and thereafter to the bell-rop ' to stop the train, and we learn that five of the cattle had leaped out. By-and-bye, after a drive of many hours through a poor country, enlivened by many incidents, such as a Scotch terrier i-acing us, and barking furiously, night comes on, and we ultimately alight at Toronto. ,•,•,• Next day I went to Hamilton to attend the e.xhibilion, but Canadian exhibitions iire not like exhibitions in this country. The cattle were not forward, and, although 46 tlic oxhibitioii was partly opoii, it liad not l>eon formally opoinnl by HIh Excolloney tilt-' Governor (itMicral. ant! would not Ijo for u couple of days. Tho land in the noiifhborhood of Hamilton needn no description. It is, aocordinj^ 1() the people of thai (piailtsr, the puden of Canada. Hnt the most of Canada is a garden. The oi-cliards of this n>ifion are oxti-aordinary. Clover cut tirHt in Juno is now (September) cut apiin »<)r weed. I can easily fancy what a beautiful county this must appear in spi'ing, vvlieii the apples and ))eache8 are in blossom. It is literally a paradise. The soil in this distiiet is a deep r<'d. I left Hamilton for a trip lo Niagara. The soil becomes oj a litjht color, but the tine vegetable mould remains. The fields show what splendiil crops wore produced. More orchards, more rociuimed bush — brick and .stone Iiouses. Ii was a relief to see a stone house. Indian-coi'u extensively grown. Magnificent orchards. It is hopeless to dosci ibe the land; it •was one panoramic vicjw of sylvan and rural beauty. We passed the .loidan. I came out at St. Catharines, and drove to Clifton, and visited the Falls of Niagiu-a The land in this neighborhood is limestone. The falls and the bardvs ol the river are subjects for scientists, and would require a very lengthy description. Tlicy are valuable geologically, and every stranger should visit them. Having returned to Hamilton, I went to the exhibition, which was to be otHcially opened the r)ext d;iy. Among the exhibits were turnips of various H}iecies, cabbages, savoys, parsnips, beet, squashes, cayenne pods, pumpkins, mangels, potatoes, a fine collection of wheats (spring and winter) from the Government experiment fai-m, Ontario. The Toronto cordbinder. Thrashers (37 cwt.) and engine (50 cwt.). Praii'ie Queen ploughs. No cattle foi-ward e.\cept a contingent of Here- ford and Ayrshires, and a shorthorn steer and one cow. I couki not lose another day, in case it might cause me to li>so a week ultimately, and therefore, to my great regret, loft before the (lovernor General arrived. I then went to Ottawa, and returned by tho Grand Trunk to Monti-eal. The quality of the land along this route, on the whole, is good, though I find that fall wheat, equal in ([uantily to that of the west, wa.s not raised on it. I called on my townsman, Principal McHachran of the Veterinary College, and was very kindly received by him and his brother, Dr. McEachran, who drove me far into the country, and showed me all objects of interest around Montreal. I was also kindly entertained by 'Mr. Drysdale, Mr. McNish. and Mr. Alex. Milloy. On the Monday, T started for the Eastern Townships, going ovei- the Victoria Bridge, which is tubular. Before going to the Eastern Townships I should remark that, in the bush in Canada the best land is generally found where deciduous trees most al>ouQd. The pir e groves on sandy ridges and swamps ; on sandy ridges it is of regular growth, on Hwampy land it occurs here and there. As a general rule, deciduous trees, such a» maple, beech, oak, etc., indicate good land. The drive through the French country was delightful. It is a beautiful country, sind the farms are bettei- cultivated thtm those on the line from Quebec. The system of fencing with straight rails is now introduced, and tho zigzag Ontai'io rails cease. We pass the river Eeiceil. The river may bo about 200 yards wide, and was of a sky-blue cole, like Lake Superior. We next ap|)roachod a place called the Mountain, which is wooded to the base of a perpendicular precipice which was lost in a fog. The autumnal foliage is rich, abounding in green, purple, yellow and brown. The rooff of the churches are of tin, and the spires are also lined with that metal The effect when the sun shines must be dazzling. The country consists of panoramic views of rare beauty. In tho fields, the ridges are not particularly straight— I believe designedly crooked. I have noticed the same phenomena in County Gal way, Ireland, and in outfield lands in our own Highlands. I also observed that groves of poplar, which is a sacred wood in Catholic countries, abound in the French country. At length we arrive at Durham. Alder buphes are now seen. These bashes do not grow in Upper Canada, and here do not become trees, as at home. Ultimately we came to the St. Francis Rivei-. The scenery here is gorgeous. Painting itself would fail to represent the loveliness of the foliage. A picture such as this would be con- demned as unnatural. We pass Richmond, Mr. McKenzie's farm, from Loch Broom j 47 and fog. :i1h(» Mr. Hto«.«r8 farni. Urnlerniound (Irnii)ing Ih ()aid he, " oatt, or barley are put in. Wlieat sometimes does well, and in some places better than either oats or barley. Next year potatoes manui-ed, next year wheat, and seed it down with timothy grass and northern clover, sotnetimcs Alsike. White clover is nalui-al to the soil. In poor land the ground is manured tor second-year crop. It is allosved to lie in pasture till its turn comes around." VVMien Mr. Buchanan came here six years ago the land wius run out. The heaviest crop was a half-ton of hay pei' acre. He manured the land for two years ami cropped it, and laid it out to grass, and first year cut IJ tons to the acre; the second year 2 tons (part being manureil and |)art not) per aero. In some farms this quantity is taken twice in same year. Eeturns — Wheat, 25 bushels per acre 60 lbs. per bushel. Bar)oy, 30 to 40 bushels per acre 48 " Oats, 50 to 40 bushels per acre (known to be 00) 32 " The oats are small long oats. Pease, raise them among oats — two thirds of oats, and one-third of peas. Beans good. Turnips do txceediugly well, but there is too much work in weeding them. Wheat $1 per bushel. Other cereals as in Ontario and Manitoba. Buckwheat, Mr. Buchaann said, does well. The raoro rain it get» the better it will be. It produces 50 to 75 bushels per acre. He sows 4 bushels of oats per acre; wheat, 1^ Ixishels; barley, 2 bushels; buckwheat, 1 bushel. Indian corn requires more manure in Bury than turnips. 100 loads of manure will produce 100 bushels of Indian com. Cattle sell 3c. to 6c, live weight. Horses, $100 for good junk (15 to 16 hands) ; cheese, 12c.; butter, Uk'. ; 'yearling, $10; two-yeai'-old, $20. i^ acres pasture per cow sufiicient; has 5 milk cows and their followers. Henry Cowan, Goulliihilioii, Moiilioul, and wliieli olxaiiiod first pri/.c. Sliowii alHO a twfvyinir old impoi-toil AyisliiiT bull, a vciy Hno aniinul ; also tlie DuUo ofOxfor-l, a vory tammiw J)iirliaiu Tlu> I>iicIh!ns of Aiidrio i.s twelve years old, and lior doM!cndanlM liuvo ri'aii/.od lo Mr. t'ocliraiio .C.^i»,3(»(), lioiii^ uiiprtH-edenled in liovino hintory. Was uIho sliowti oilier cows, all of uxcflltMii ()uality, kept for foodinj,' llio tliorou^h-brod calvt's. Mr. Coclnanc docs not pamper the I)iu'Iiohs, l»ut kwps lu-r in ordinai-y t'onditioii. lie rocoivt'd :i trtind who ui'ionipanicd mo, and mys»dt, vi-ry kindly. Saw a splendid turnij) tielii on liis farm. Ili>- farms aro in iho hiichosi order of eultivation, and show what that sod is (•.•iimhic of prodnciiii; when lai-nu'd scii'niilii'ally. His land was of loss intrinsii' vjdiie oriji(iiiaily lliiin other laiidH in tlu! neiy;lil)oring townships, but to llie olwoivor ii would appear now to l)o vastly superior to any in the district. Of rourso his micccss is iinlneiiin' others to follow his uxampUi, There are no colleetioim of field stones tiidded in heups over his Hells, as tnny lie seen everywhere in the Province of (^ncliei', and also in the townships uhont (hveii .SomKl, Ontario, and else- where. They are put into substantial stoiu) fences. There is u phuil i i the district called thj wild schiimac. which cau.sos the hand» and face to swell if tonched. 'I'he wild ivy also atVetits some pi'ople oven if they come within the wind oi it. it is found in Quebec, Ontai />, and Marutoha, iind also in the States. I visited at Sherbrooko the I'aton Woollen Mills, havin«rt}' in taxed, ami ovory man IVom iw»Mity-otu! to Hixly payn SI po!! tax. Tho Kivoi" St. .lolin is navi^'ahlc fur triuliii/L^ vohmoIs ot say 50 tons iMinliin, aiiil >niull HtouinorH, Tor al)oiil liliy milo> of itH conrMo. SnialliM- emit (tan ^ot up IRi) inilort. Among llio tisli aro Hilinon ami Htiir-j^ooii. Tlio l)anl<.s aro fortilizoii hy iho ovortlowingH ot tlio rivof, loaving uliiiviai lioposilH which nianiiio an>l onricli llio grawH. I ullitnaloly arriviwl at St .lolm, wliioli i niatlo my lu^'i(i(|iiai'tei>i in Xow Bruns- wick. 1 tlioi'cat'toi' rotuiiit'd lo Siis;oautit'ul and !ias a rich appearance. Soil, as turned ovor hy tho plough, is t»ocoming, as wo travel along, of u lighter red . Passed Norton Station. The rivei- hanks present splendid grazing, l*tl^^ed Ai)ohaqui ; then some Indian wigwams covoro«i with hirchdtark. * Arrived at Sussex, and called, 4th Oclobor, (»!> .VI r. (ieorgo A. Dobson. lie showed mo oxoeodingly good mangel-wurzel. lie stated that his wheat producorolitics were the kind, but they rot more than the othoi-s. The red safes have a red streak when cut, are latihh, but very good. Has silver dollars, a wliile potato. Has two oxen (Durhams); would weigh when fat, live woight, 3,800 lb. Ho fed and sold off Xi head of fat cattle last season. His statement of the weather was that snow falls in December to a depth of two foet, and lasts till Slarch. January and February are tho ccddost months ; hardly any rain in winter months. In March snow begins to docrease. April is rainy. Half of May to hall' of June is occupied in sowing and planting, May is mild; June, very hot J July, hot, little rain, thunder generally ; August, hot, also thundei-; Seplomboi-, dry, with occasional showers. Visited John Graham, from Girvan, at the cheese factory. He conducted the first factory in the Province; makes from 25 to 2b" tons per season. Ho mentioned that he knew^of many farms foi- sale. Land has not been so cheap those thirty yeais, lie said, as at present. Ho howumI 7 bushels of wheat, and thrashed 103, being 29 bushels per acre fully. Last year he had 33^ bushels from 1| bushel sown, the extent of ground consisting of hai'dly an acre. Weevil used to be bud, but is not so now. Oats average 45 bushels, and aro sown Ist June, thrashed 2nd September. Potatoes: Considers New Brunswick the best country he ever .saw for potatoes — has generally 20 to 2<) retui-ns. Labor is from $f)0 to JI570 por six months— that is, £12 to £14; $14 ; md $20 per month for haying. GirLs, $5 to $6 per month. Milk, 2c to 3c. , . sv, 18e. to 2Gc. ; boef and mutton fie, to 7c. On $500 ad valorem, a tax of $1.80 is payable, and $1.25 foi- school. They have to give three days' statute-labor on the roads, or pay 50c. per day. Ministers are supported by voluntary contribution. Schools : No house to be more than 2^ miles from a school. A house is seldom more than three miles distant trom a church. Su8,sex Valley is a good district lor Indian corn, squashes, melons, pumpkins, etc. I thereafter drove past Mr. Nelson Oinald's farm. Mr. Charles liaison's — a farmer who goes in for vegetables, carrots and strawberries, sending them into St. John; he also grows plums, currants and gooseberries. Mr. Hugh McMonikale breeds horses — from thirty to forty thorough- breds — and has fenced in parks for training them.. Passed many farms, all of excellent quality, with splendid orchards attached. 50 Tho natuvo of the soil in this district, as seen from a well in process of being Ju^', is loiim on top two feet thick, gravel two feet, red clay and gravel mixed all down to ten or twelve teet, where water is got. Tho foiost trees are the pine, tamarac, spruce, birch, alder, cedar, maple, balsam, and birch. Wild animals are the oat, bear, moose-deer and cariboo. The latter are frenerally twenty miles back in the forest. Calving cows can be purchased ct from £b to £6 ; yoailings S12 to $15 ; two-year-olds, 820. The Permissive Act is in force in King's County. We drove into a liit'eront township, and passed through many fine farms. The lollowing is the i-otutioii practised by some farmers. A field in pasture, on being broken up, 's sown with buckwheat. Next year half in oats and half in potatoes; next year, put potatoes in whore oats of last year were; and oats seeded down in potato ground of the preceding year; next year, oats and seeding down. Take hay crop ctl' for three years; pasture a number of years according to extent of ground. Mr. Nelson Coates, whose farm I did not visit, stated that his wheat would average 25 bushels, and his oats o5 bushels per acre. He has a 330 acre farm, 160 of which are in cultivation. Cuts 100 tons of hay annually. Winters 60 head of horned cattle. The pasture gives 2 acres per cow taken all through, but in certain parts one acre would graze a cow well. Labor, $100 to $12U for a man per annum; $<)0 lO §70 for i-ix months. Has '^2 milk cows. From a dealoi- 1 learned that South Downs and Leicester sheep ar< the breeds generally in this Provinr-c, weighing as a rule about SO lbs. They are ^vintered on iiaj' :uui' grain, and can he purchased at from $5 to $6, or £1 to £1 4s. Freight to Liverpool, $1.30 fiom TJimouski on the St. Lawrence. He stated cattle freight to be $14. The Sussex Valley is uncommonly fertile, and farms are said to be easily ])urch;ised. The ('ily of St. .John contains 32,000 inhabitants, and has a consi- derable trade. 1 was piesent at the opening of the Provincial Exhibition. The display of agricultural }U'oduce was very good indeed. It is situated on the Bay of Fundy, where the lide rises thirty feet. The fish around the coast of the pro- vince consists of saiiLon, herring, gasp rouche, shad, haddock, pollock, lobster and halibut. Sturgeon abound in the rivers. This province is bounded on the north by the Province of Quebec and the Bay of (^haleui-s ; on the east by the Gulf of St. La ivrence ; on the west by the State of Maine ; and on the south by the Bay of Fundy . Having crossed from St. .lohn by sccamer to Annapolis, I entered another very tiric Province, that of Nova Scotia. This Prcv'nce is bounded on the north by the Bay ot Fundy and Chignecto, and is separated from Prince Edwai-d Island by Northumber- land Strait. The (rut of Canso separates it from Cape Bieton ; otherwise, except at Amherst, where it is connected with New Brunswick b^- an isthmus about twelve miles long, it is altogether surn,uiidt\i by the Atlantic Ocean. The length of this Provinoe is 260 miles ; its greatest breadth. 100 ; its aiea, 16,500 square miles. Cape Breton, attached to it, is 110 miles long by 90 broad. The ])opulation in 1871 was 387,000. The Catholics and Pi-esbyie'i'ms are about equally divided, being about 103,000 each. Other denominations number about 181,000. There are fourteen counties in Nova S{'otia and four in Cape Breton. Nova Scotia is an undulating country, consisting of hills, plains and mountiiin ranges. The ridges run along the entire cotTntry, throwing streams to the north and south. These ridges terminate in bold upright headlands on the coast, and sometimes graduate into verdant plains. Between the North Mountain, along the Bay of Fundy, from Digby to Cape Blomidon, and the South Mountain in Annapolis and King's Counties, is a beautiful valley, which was part of the subject of my visit. The soil throughout the Province is varied, the inferior being found along the southern shores. The best soil is on the northcn. The counties along the Bay of J'undy contain mtich ilyke land — that is, land that was enclosed from the rivers by the early French colonists, by means of earthen dykes. It is exceedingly fertile, having, without mi.nure, produced .nplendid hay crops for the last 1;jO years. deep mom plou| Pota The winter 80t« in about the lat Decembor, when snow'falls from one to twu ieet deep. .Fanuary, the tVost is pretty severe. February, 20^ to 24'" l)oIow zero. Ther- mometer never freezes. March is wintry, bhistery weather, rain and snow. Snow leaves about the last week of April and tlie first week of May. Then ploughing and sowing are in full operation, and continues to thtj 10th of June. Potatoo-^ and buckwheat are in by the Ist of June. In the iast week of July and first week of August, hay i.s cut. Harvest commences about the 20th August, and all through September. Spring wheat is cut in September. The steuni' r, on hei- way to Annapolis, touclie I at Digby, a considerable town. I was impressed duiing the sail up the Annapolis Gul by the appearance of well-to-do farms and rich dyke mcjidow land, comforttible houses, with orchards. [ was not prepared for what was still to be seen. 1 went by rail from Annapolis to Hridgetovvn. I visited the Paradise Cheese Factory. There tlioy can manufacture 15 cheeses per day of from 20 lb. to 18 Ih. weight. The factm-y is a Joint stock company composed of farmert" in the district. They send in their milk, and the proceeds, after doductng expenses, are divided amongst the partners. They manufacture sweei-milk ci^eeso from 10th May to 10th October. Skim-milk cheese runs a fortnight. This .sea-«.r> lliey made 1,250 cheeses, the weight being 27 tons. 300 cows are al)out the numl»er that supply milk The profits allow about Ic. per ftt. of milk. Two hands are employed in the factory, and five teams. The choese is sold in the local market- of St. John, Halifax and Yarmouth. They manufacture the cheese on the principal invented by Je.sse Williams, the first cheese maker- in the United Stale.-'. The average price for cheese is 12c. 35 head of swine are fed with the whey. The following are the factories in operation in Nova Scotia: 4 in Piclou County; I in Ca))e Hreton ; 1 in Hants; 2 in Colchester; 5 in King's County ; S in Annapolis, and 1 in Yarmouth. Ml". Betton, Paradise, says that wheat averages 23 bushels; oats, 25 bushels; barley, 23 bushels per acre. Potatoes are not good with him ; they average 200 bushels per acre ; mangel-wurzel, 500 bushels ; hay, 2 tons pei- acre. The best lanil in the county for hay is the dyke land. His farm is 101 aci-es. He goes in for raising oxen. liaises three calves a year. Sells a yoke each year; price. 8^ per 100 11). The pail- weigh together 1,400 lb. dead weight ; live weight would be 2,800 lb. Farm laborers get $12 (£3) per month for ordinary woi-k. One dollar j)er day for ha3'ing, and T5c. for harvesting. Servant girls, 84 per month. Many of the i;irls go to the Slates. The county of Annapolis will produce 150,000 ban-els of apples, 81.25 per barrel ; and judging from the number of voters in the county, and that the half of them are farmers who, as a rule, sell two oxen each annually, there may be 3,000 oxen exported yearly for the Knglish a., i Scotch markets from Anna- polis county alone. J di'ove into the country, up one road and down another, and was charmed with the farms and general appearance of 2)r()sperit3-. Notwithstanding all this, I was informed not only in Nova Scotia, but also in New Brunswick, and in the Quebec and Ontario Provinces, that many farms are heavily mortgaged, which means that heavy interest is payable for moiie}- advanced to their ownei-s, and that their owners are only too anxious to sell ott' their farms so as to be able to clear their debts; so that there is a gnawing worm at the root of every tree, however promising it may be externally. The farms consist of mountain land, upland, and intervale land. Bridge- town, fourteen miles from Annapolis, is at the head of the navigation of the river, and is the largest town in Annapolis county. I saw a vessel here of from I5!t to 200 tons burden, tiiat would draw probably from eight to ten feet when loaded. The cry everywhere I went lu Nova Scotia was, " We want good agriculturists." Bridgetown would aft'ord employment to many artizans; a grist-mill is much wanted, so is a woollen-mill, and a steam saw-n,ill. Having left Bridgetown and its betiuliful fruits, 1 proceeded to Kentville, which is environed by hills. I here e.xperieiiced the greatest hospitality from a fellow- countryman, Mr. Innes, manager of the Annapolis and Windsor Kailway, not only in driving me over the country, but in explaining the nature of the district, and after- wards entertaining and lo,000, and arrived at Winds(n-, a thrivin-^ town of 2,500 inhabitants. This neighborhood is rich in limestone and gypsum, much of which is exported. By the kindness of Dr. Black, 1 was again driven over the country. We called on Mr. Maxner, who has a farm of 126 acres, His crop of wheat this year was crop ot wneat this year wxcepuonaiiy poor; 11 wouia only average 17 bushels per acre. His oats would average 36 bushels per acre ; barley, only sowed half a bushel ; potatoes, 200 bushels. 53 con- He has 25 head of cattle ; generally fattens two every year. He has 45 acres of dyke land, and 17 or 18 under crop. He keeps 15 cows. He sellis milk at Windsor, 2^0. a lb., and gets at factory Ic. ; butter averages ^Oc. Dr. Black said that retail juice of lamb was 10c. ; roasl beef, 12Jc.; steak, 15c., at Windsor. The milch-cows are a mixture of Hereford, Durham and Devous. A good ccw would cost from $35 to $40, and would average ten quarts per day for six months. Mr. Maxner corro- liorated all about dyke and upland. Dr. Black drove me to the place where for many years the late Judge Hali- biirton, who wrolo " Sara Slick," i-esided. Not far from his houwo a large gypsum (|iiiii-ry is being worked. I was very kindly entertained by Dr. Black, su'd afterwards liuving accidentally )net Dr. Kiasei', Windsor, he also was exceedingly kind to me. VV.' witnessed the tidal wave called the " bore," coming up the river. All creatures leave the way when it approaches. The cattle know the sound of its roaring. From Windsor 1 returned to Horlon Landing, Grand Pre, and called on Mr. I'aterson, who also received me very kindly. He likewise drove nic over the country. He owns 100 acre.s, 30 being upland, 70 dyke-land. His wheat, he slated, averages 20 bushels per acre ; oats, 40; barley, none, hut 40 used to be the average. Potatoes, he had 8 acres, which produce I 2,000 bushels, which he was shipping ; this gives 250 liushels poi- acre. He stated that he never succeeded with turnips on his land, they worked too much to leaf and stem with him. They, however do very well with a neighbor who, on the other hand, could not raise mangels, whilst on his land he can raise 1,000 bushels per a(;re without trouble. Of sugar beet, he stated that hv raised 200 bushels last year; but sugar beet was more difficult to cultivate than either mangels or turnips, Indian corn did fair — 25 to 80 bushels per acre. in that Province they manure the ground for potatoes, spreading it on ; al.so manure the turnip ground, and sow it in drills. Ho kept 10 cows last summer, and raised the calves. This summer only kept six cows, filled up the vacancy with oxen. He is under the impression that it is more profitable to feed than to broe.l. He says the dyke-land will produce 2 tons of hay on an average per acre. The upland, by under-draining and manuring, will produce 3 and even sometinves 4 tons per acre, hut the dyke-land will take care of itself. It has been cropped continuously for 150 years. A 14^-haud horse, about 1,000 lbs., would be worth $130. Next day 1 called upon various parties in Halifax ; amongst others, I had the nioasure of an interview with Mr, (ro.ssip, tho President of the Geological Society of Nova Scotia. Having a day to spare, 1 visited the east side of the peninsula, for the piu-pose of passing through a portion of the mining countr3\ On the train, I met the Hon. Mr. Holmes, and also the Hon. Mr. Pope, Minister of Marine, Ottawa. I Vi'ceived much information from the former as to the geology of Nova Scotia, and from the latter an invitation to visit Prince Edward Island, I was very sorry that I could not do so, as I have reason to know that the island would have richly repaid the visit. In common with Nova Scotia, that island has a mud in the beds of rivers, which is a great fertilizer. It consists of oyster-shells, animal remains, and d6bris of soil washed down by the rivers. This, when applied to the land, enriches it so much that t cannot be surpassed in the Dominion. At the Montreal Exhibition. Prince Edward Island took the tirst prize for white oats, the first for black oats, the second for spring wheat, and the secDtid for barley. It also carried the tirst prize for draught-horses, and the second pn/.ti ior. shorthorns. I come now to the peculiar excellencies of the peninsula of Nova Scotia, and that is its vast resources in minerals. The minerals generally belong to the Government, but they are leased to parties desirous of entering into mining operations, and evorj facility is offered to prospectoi-s. Particulai's can be had on application. The coal of Nova Scotia is bituminous, and consists of coking, cheny and cannel coal. A vast coal-field, extei.ding seaward under the Atlantic, occurs in Capo Breton; the Sydney coal-field is famous, and has been found valuable for steam coal and for gas ; the Inverness coal-field is likewise well known, and, from analysis made, would command H ready market if suitable facilities for shipping it were provided ; the Pictou coal- 12—4** I, I 54 field, south of New Glasgow, which place I visited, has an area of thirty-five miles, in which the beds arc uncommonly large. It is very favorably spoken of by tiu» manager of the Richelieu and Ontario Steam Navigation Company, who considers it equal to Scotch. It is used on the Intercolonial Railway. The Allan Line steamers also use it. The Cumberland coal is much used in St. Johns, New Brunswick. In one mine the vein is eight foet thick. Springhill is extensively worked. Between Capo Breton and Nova Scotia there are coal-beds which cover an area of 68 > squaiv miles. In addition to coal, there is gold, which is to be found along the Atlantic coast ti'om Canso to Yannouth. It occurs, as is stated in the lodes, "in spots of every shapo and size, up to ()0-ounce nuggets." In this Province the deposits are found at VVaver- ley titty feet deep. The following are the districts in which gold is known to exist : €aril)()u. Moose River, Fifteen-mile Stream, Gay's River, Laurencotown, Montagu, Waverley, Oldham, Sherbrooke, Isaac's Harbor, Wine Harbor, Tangier, etc., etc. For full information, hce work by Mr. Edwin Gilpin, jun., A.M., F.G.S., on "The Mines and 3Ii Moral Lands of Nova Scotia ." Amongst the information in that excellent work will be seen a return per man from the various districts, the highest being the Montagu, $fa'.13 per day ; next to it Oldham, 85.41 per day. Tnore is also iron to be found in the Province of great value , Londonderry is si •well known mining locality, and the iron hoi-e is believed to be superior to the best English iron. Iron ores are also found at Pictou. Iroti is found all the way from the Gut of Canso to Yarmouth. Copper also is found, as well as load and silver; antimony, nickel and tinstone are known to be in the Province; also arsenic, sulphur, and manganese. It is believed that of the latter large deposits exist. In this Province also, gypsum, hard and soft, is found in groat beds. Soft gyp- sum, as stated, is near the late Judge Haliburton s house at Windsor. It also occurs with lime when entering the railway station from the north. Sof; gypsum is valuable as a mineral manure, and for plaster purposes, cornices, etc. The hard is not so much used, being more costly to work. Besides the above, the paint trade is greatly indebted to Nova Scotia. Ochres are found at the Londonderry iron minep, and in Antigonish and Pictou counties — modifications of i-ed and yellow being produced by other means. There are also salt (springs and mineral waters, freestone, granite, flags, slates, clay, limestone, marble and natural cements ; fire-clay for bricks and tiles; grindstones, millstones; as well as amethysts, caringorm stone, jasper and opals, and heliotrope or blood-stone. In conclusion, the Province of Manitoba appears to have a more fertile soil than any one of the older Provinces. In productiveness it ranks first in respect of wheat, oats, and potatoes; but I found that continuous cropping of wheal is reducing the land. Turnips and mangel-wurzel do exceedingly well. The averages taken from the preceding notes are: wheat, 30J bushels per acre; oats, 62^. Potatoes average 225 bushels per acre. As the Province at present consumes all its wheat, the prices obtained are as good as those in Ontario ; but when wheat is exported they will be relatively lower. The country is suitable for cattle raising. Timothy hay and Hun- garian grass produce good crop;; i-ed clover has been tried, but will not stand the winter. Fuel can be obtained along the banks of the rivers, and wood lots are assigned to settlers ; but unless coal or other material is substituted, wood growing must be very extensively resorted to to supply the settlors with fuel. The climate of Manitoba is healthy — the air dry, clear and invigorating. Land can easily be protected from prairie fires, which are not unfrequent in September. Next to Manitoba the Province of Ontiirio has the best cereal crops. Wheat in the district visited by me averaged 27 bushels per acre; oats, 48; barley, 55. Potatoes are not much grown, except for home consumption. Indian corn does very well. Fruits are excellent. The climate is good. There are many industries in the towns, principally connected with agriculture. Next in order comes Sussex Valley, New Brun.swick. Wheat produces on an average 26 bushels, and oats 48 busheif per lusre. New Brunswick has a later spring and a later harvest, and a damper climate than Ontario. Potatoes, mangels and 55 turnips thrive well. Cattle feedinff for the Knglish market is being entered into. Hay land is good. The local market for mowt produce is St. Johns. The Eastern Townships ot Quebec produce wheat averaging 24 bushels per acre ; oats, 37i; barley, 28J. The townships are good grazing lands, and cattle feeding is boing gone into. In Nova Scotia wheat averages 21 bushels per acre; oats, 25; barley, 23. It has exceedingly rich dyked marsh-lands, the river bearing down a mineral deposit, and the tides carrying up vegetable and animal particles, which together form a mud iliat cannot be surpassed as manure for grass lands. Nova Scotia consumes all its cereal produce, iti winter is longer than Ontario, but vegetation is very rapid when the heat of the summer comes on. Cattle feeding for the English market is exten- sively gone into. It can vie with Ontario for its apples, pears, plums and grapes. Its industries are tishing, mining, ship-building, lumbering, commerce and manufac- turing. In all the older Provinces, that is in Ontario, Eastern Townships of (Juobec, Nova ficotia and New Brunswick, there ai-o many farms for sale. The houses in Sussex Valley, in New Brunswick, and in theCornwallis, Windsor and Annapolis districts of Nova Scotia, are very nicely got up, and in general are better than the run of Ontario houses, though in some townships and near towns these also are very good. The price of land of course varies very much, according to its the vast area of prairie land between Manitoba and the Eocky Mountains, a distance of not less than 909 miles. My idea is that Canadians are better fitted for prairie life than we are; and teeing that they are not very far distant from Manitoba, families could overcome, without nearly so much inconvenience or expense, the difficulties which distances throw in vhe way of British farmers. I met an old Canadiiui, Mr. Jfiitherfoi-d, from Oxford county, Ontario, who was all over the Province of Manitoba looking for land. He bought an impi-oved (Ir-m west of (Julf Mountain. I'lnibina Jlange, consisting ot 320 acres, for $2,900, including 20 aci-es of wood with buildings. Ho reported that an excellent crop was on the ground. He preferred paying the above price to incurring the great expense and labor of erecting buiklings and fences, and the inconvenience and expense that would otherwise be attached to his settling on unoccupied land. If Mr. Rutherford found thi.-i to be advisable in his case — and he was a man fit to judge — I think any person desirous of emigrating should consider well, whether, if he can afford it, it might not be desirable for him to give a higher price in the Lower and Maritime Provinces foi' a ready-made farm, where he might have all the social comforts of life (|uite within his reat-b, than proceed westward. Many Canadian farmers are b'.irdened with mortgages on their farms, and they are anxious to be relieved of these farms, and to start life afresh in Manitoba, where they can get their sons around them, and be afterwards provided for. These men are accustomed to rough it, and know how to use their axes in erecting log-houses, etc., and they therefore are eminently qui^Hfi^d for life in Manitoba. As to schools and churches, the Dominion is as highly favored as we are ourselves. A school-tax is paid, but no fees. Medical practitioners can everywhere be had in the Lower Pio.'inces, and by^ and-bye will spread themselves over Manitoba. 12 -4i^>=* 5(i I returned from Halifax by the Allan stoamship Hibernian, Captain Archer. We had heavy weather, but had a good whip and a good commander; and although our poHsago was protracted, we passed a very pleasant time, arriving at Liverpool on the 26th October. After the report had been read, a number of gentlemen sat down to dinner in the Argyle Arms Hotel, D. McGibbon, Esq., presiding. The usual loyal toasts having been duly honored, Provost Greenlces said it had fallen upon him to propose the toast of the evening. He did not know for what reason, but he supposed it was because he was a very old friend of his. All must admit that Mr. McLean had done his duty faithfully. When they consider that he had kept them for two hours and throe-quarters listening to the acicount of his experiences in that country to which he had been sent, they would acknowledge that he was a man of no ordinary ability. In seeking a representative to send from this disti-ict the farmers could not have got a bottei' man. He could fancy Mr. McLean going about evry where with his note- book under his ar/n. He did not give them the ideas of one man only, but ho compared various opinions with his own, and then arrived at the result, and he was certain that in every opinion he gave he was thoroughly honest. He asked them all to join in drinking long life and health to Mr. McLean. 1 he toast was drunk with enthusia mi. Mr. McLean made a suitable reply, and, after other toasts, the company separated. EEPORT OF MR. GEORGE CURTIS, WOODSIDE, SILSDEN, YORKSHIRE. "Craven farmers are pretty well acquainted with the circumstances which led to the appointment of Mr. G. Curtis as their delegate to Canada to report on the suitability of that country as a field for the emigration of Craven farmers. Suffice it now, therefore, to say that live months ago, on the invitation of the Canadian Government, the fai-mers of this im])ortant grazing district appointed Mr. Curtis, and he accordingly went out to view the land, leaving the shores of England on boar the Allan Line steamer Sarmatian about the middle of July. He remained in Canad" a little short of three months, confining his observations chiefly to the Province of Ontario, covering in that period a tract of country' about 700 miles long by 300 miles broad. Recently Mr. Curtis returned home, and last Monday met a large gathering of the Craven farmers at the Assembly Rooms adjoining the Black Horse Hotel, Hkipton (Mr. John Throup). It being the fortnightly cattle-fair day, the room was crowded. On the motion of Mr. H. Holden (Halton East), seconded by Mr. W. H. Davis (Gargrave), Mr. A. Ross was called to the chair. Amongst those present wei-e Mr. Gi-ahame, of Glasgow, Canadian Government agent ; Mr. Gomersall, Otterburn; and Mr. Shuttleworth, representative of the State of Iowa, U.S.A. "The Chairman, in opening the proceedings, said that five months ago many of those present assembled in tha room to select one out of three gentlemen nominated at a previous meeting to proceed to Canada, at the invitation of the Canadian Government, as a delegate from the Craven fai-mers. Mr. Curtis was selected, and to day they had met together again to hear Mr. Curtis' repdrt on Canada as a field for emigration. Doubta had been expressed as to whether they had done right in selecting a gentleman who had passed the meridian of life for so arduous a task. But in looking at Mr. Curtis now, and at the voluminous report which he had laid on the table, he was sure the issue had confirmed the wisdom of their choice ; and he was glad to see that, mentally as well as physically, Mr. Curtis had taken no harm by his eojourn in the Western Hemisphex-e. — Craven Pionter, Novembar 20, 1880. 57 Mr. Curtis, who received a very hearty welcome from his brother-farmers, then formally presoiitod hi.s report, which wa.s a long and exhaustive one, and ably written throughout. He said : I proceed to give an account of my stewardship, by submitting to you a report of the mission with which you entrusted me a few months ago. t went to Liverpool on Iho 21st of July last, and there inet with Messrs. Sagar, Imrie, and Broderick, iellow-delegates. On the following day wo sailed in the Sarmatian, a vessel of admirable build and noble proportions, under the etticient command of Captain Aird (an appropriate name for an Airdale farmer to sail under). This vessel is one of the sploiidid lino of steamers owned by Messrs. Allan Brothers. We had a large number of emigrants and other passengers on board. We called at xMovillo (Troland) for tho mails, and then steamed away across tho Atlantic without lot or hindrance until the 28th, when we were onvelojjcd in a dense fog. The weather became very cold, and we were close o a number of icebergs. The fog-horn was repeatedly sounded, but as that had no effect upon those mountains of ice, our speed was slackened and the engines finally stopped, to avoid a collision with one of those "cool customers." On the 29th we passed thiough the .stj'aits of Belle Tsle into the Gulf, and as we steamed into the River St. Lawrence the weather was delightful. Tho shoie on our left, near which we sailed, appeared rocky, but well timbered. Patches of wood are cleared in some placea, and upon these clearings are erected houses inhabited by fishermen. They are painted white, ard have the effect of bi'ightoning up an otherwise sombre scene. There is also a fine view of the Laurentian Hills, which stretch away as far as the eye can reach. Some miles before reaching Quebec, on the right-hand side of the river, we obtain a pretty view of Montmorency Waterfalls. We arrived at Quebec on the afterjioon of the Slst, where we remained until the Monday morning, the 2nd of August, anil then left for Ottawa, the capital of the Dominion. In a consultation there as to out- future movements, it was thought unad- visable for all to travel over the same ground, and with a view to spreading ourselves over as wide an area as we could thoroughly investigate. Messrs. Imrie and Broderick took the Pi'ovince of Manitoba and Mr. Sagar and I that of Ontario. We travelled over a considerable section of country together, but there were large districts in which we separated. I shall therefore, to avoid confusion, speak only of myself, and give my personal observations, recorded daily in my note-book at the various places visited. I may here state that I was permitted tbo fullest liberty in the choice of localities I wished to visit, and that every information was given and facilities afforded by the Canadian Government, through Mr. Lowe, the courteous Secietary of the De- partment of Agriculture at Ottawa; and among many othors, the Hon. A. S. Hardy, Professor Buckland, Mr. D. Spence and Mr. J. A. Donaldson, of Toi-onto ; Mr. .J. Smith, of Hamilton ; Mr. A. J. Smythe, of London, as well as Mr. Stafford and Mr. Persse, of Or-abec. When I arrived in Canada, tho Hon. J. H. Pope, the Minister of Agriculture, was in England on a visit ; but on his return I had a ple:isant and pro- tracted interview with him. I fljund him practically conversant with all matters pertaining to agriculture, and inc eed he owns a large farm in the Ktistern Townships of Quebec. Tho land around Quebec, as well a-t the Province generally which bearp its name, is to a large extent occupied by French Canadians. Thu part of the Pro- vince called the Eastern Townships, said to be the ganlen of (Jiicbcc, is inhabited by Scotch and English settlers ; the soil is of very good quulity, and well farmed, with satisfactory results. Wild lands can 1)0 bought here at from 2s. ti. to 3s. per acre ; and improved farms from $20 to $23 per acre with buildings. Ottawa, the capital of the Dominion of Canadn, is built upon the banks of the Ottawa Eiver. It has a 'population of about 25,0i)0. I was struck with its magni- ficence on the one hand, and its incompleteness on the other. There is plenty of walei'-power in the vicinity of the city, which is utilized fbr saw-mills and other purpo-es, and the visitor cannot but be struck with the largo piles of deals, uut into the proper lengths, which cover many acres. The scenery round the capital is beautiful, and the dj-y transparent atmosphere enables one to see to a great distance. 58 The foIlr)winjf wore the ]iriooH of ^oiue of lli»' ('(mimodities in the miirkct at Ottawa: Buttor, 20c. per lb.; nuitloii and bt'el (liy the fniarlei) 5^c. to (ic. per ib. ; ogf^N, of u iL5o»tri«t watered by tiie river of that name aw far as i*embi-oke, prettily nituated on Lake Alumette. Some of the laml is cleared ; and about Pembntke and Kenfiew there are laige tracts devoted to farming purposes. Stone and bricks (the latter made front clay found in the neighborhood) ai-e used for Imilding purposes, and in many places some capital buildings are being erected, which is indicative of progress. The country is practically a new one, and is only just being opened up. The lumber trade is the pi-incipal industry. On our way fiom Ottawa westward we pae.sed Brockville, named after (ieneral Brock, who fell at (^neenstown in 1812. It has about 7,H(iO inhabitants. We next cume to Kingston, one of the older cities, with a ])opulation of about 13,;-{00. It has not inci eased so rapidly as some othei- places, although it is jnore ancient than many, having been an im|iortant town when some of tlie existing ones were not thought of. It used to be a garrison town when British ti-oops occupied the country. It is now the seat of a military college where young ('anadians receive a military education, under the tuition of Knglish officers. The next place we arrived at is Belleville (the capital of Hastings County) with a population of aboui 7,000, and growing rapidly. The town is lighted with gas, and is a large commei-cial centre. Large qmm^ities of barley are here exported to the States. Cobourg is our next stopping pif.'^:e (popu- lation 5,000). Six miles further, and we are at Port Hope, where iheri are some tine farms and good residences. Cobourg is alto the seat of a Wesleyan (Jolhge. Then we come to Newcastle. The land about this place appears to be of a superior ([uality and well cultivated. The selling price is about ?75 to $80 ])er acre, according to the Iwsition ol the land and the state of the buildings. While staying at Newcastle with Ir. Betts, 1 had an interesting interview with Mr. Allan Wilmot. Ho was one of the pioneer settleis in the neighborhood mere than tifty yeai-s ago. He now lets his larm (200 acres) at about 84 cr 84i per acre, and he is prepared to sellit for $80 per acre. I also visited the fish-breeding esUiblishmeut at Newcastle, which is under the management of Mr. Wilmot. The brother of the above named gentleman kindly explained to me the interesting process of fish cultivation. A little further on and we arrive at Whitby. The land through the Townships of Clark, Darlington and Whitby is excellent. I saw many liarms in good condition. This season's ci-ops were good, and the cattle and sheep were of a superior class, espe- cially the latter. Cotswolds seem to be faxorites. The price of land varies from £5 to £16 pel- acre, and farms can be rented from 4s. to 16s. per aci-e. The next place I visited waa Toronto, called the Queen City of the Dominion,, and capital of the Province of Ontario. It has a population of about 80,000, and it gives one an impression even at tirst sight of being a thriving and populous place. On our arrival 1 was introduced to the Lieutenant-Governor, the Hon. J. B. Robinson, and to the Mayor (Mr. Beaty), who accompanied us in a tour through the city, Houses of Parliament, colleges, parks and the various public places. It is really a beautiful city. Its streets are laid out at right angles, one of which Yonge Street, I was informed, extended into the country for sixty miles as straight as a line, excepting for one slight bend about thirty miles out ot ihe city. The first farm I visited in the neighborhood was about twenty-six miles distant, at Bronte, on the road to Hamilton, with Mr. Breechon, a gentleman from Wiltshire, who was in a tieaty for the purchase. The farm belongs to Mr. White, of Milton. It consists of 415 acies in capital condition, with new buildings replete with every modern convenience. There is also a neat residence built of concrete, in a nice situation. There is plenty ot water, and most of the land is cleared of stumps, which have been so arranged as to form a substantial tence round the farm. All the C1'0| beii w;i- <» over also ask CI &9 (•io|i-. had been rcnpod and liarvontod exfrept of thirty acres of oatw, which were thi'n lu-ing cut. Those oatH, 1 was iiifoimod, were how n on the lUh May, and my visit wa> on the J 2th Au^unt. There wan a field of swede turnipH, almost the hest \ have ovof seen. They were hown on the 10th June. Twenty-four aci-cM of (U'chaid are also attached to tlia firm. The crops of hay and corn were abundant. The pri^o ;isl was lV«m Curllon-on-Trenl. We were " raised," a-, our ivttnadian cousins wmikl any, within a few miles of each other. llo is (ioinjf a larf;'e biisiiioss in f^rain, and has >n:ido his money in the country. He started without any capital, but is now a wealthy man. The city itsolt' is a miniatuio of our own metropolis. Its river, hridifos, parks and principal strctits are named after similar ])lai'Os in the capital of Knic'imd, and they oven jmsscss :i newspaper cfdlcd the AV'/to. The surroundings of the city ai'o very pretty, and tlui substantial residences and well l^ept gardens all s|)oak of the pr<)s))ority of tiio pcopU*. I vi>iled the estate of Mr. Wm. Kaiiics, which is for sale. It id situated in the county ot Kent and lMantau;onct. on the Ottawa River, about K) milos from Ottawa city, t.'i ( acres are in one block and 150 acics detacheci, ot which ;')() acres are cleared, tlio re>t boiiii^ in timber. I'^iftoen dollai-s per acre is tlie price asked for the property. The soil round thocit}- of London is u rich loam. J >h'iuld think l'r(jm my experience that a market gardcMier would get on well in this ])iirl. The land is good, and the growth ot vegetables [)rodigious. Bound London is a vciy tine farming district: in fact, one of the finest that J had, up to this time, visited. Laml could be obtained for about $), including buildings, drain wa-< selling at '.'Oc. per hiisliel. On Icaviiiii' London I made for Windsor, wheic land of very good quality, I found, could bo bought at from £5 to £S per acre; while in Middlesex the price is from tl'i to .tl() ))er acre. There does not appear any rc!ison for this dirterence in price, as the soil in the county of Kent is generally equal to thiit in Middlesex. Leaving Windsor, I drove along the road by the Detroit River, and called to >ce the stud of blood hor.ses owned by Mr. Chap])ellc. lie has some very hauiLsonn* animals. We then drove through a fertile but indifferently farmed district. On our way from Windsor to Gosfield we passed through the township of Maldon, and there saw some good land, but it could be improved by better cultivation, The county of Colchester possesses the same general characteristics as that of Maldon. Passing along by Harrow, the land was teaming witli vegetation, and the weeds are not the lea^t luxuriant. Many patches of tobacco were growing on the French Canadian farms. I also saw a great number of pigs along the roadside. Thoy were not all of the best quality, but did not appeal-* to give much trouble in feeding. LANDS. 1 next went through a fine district along the shore of Lake Erie. The land was very fine, but much overrun with rag-weed and other rubbish. The farmers excused themselves by pleading the unusual quantity of rain that had fallen this summer; but the land is of a drj', sandy nature, and, in my opinion, no difficulty need be found in keeping it clean. It is really a wonder to me bow they can afford to grow so much thistle and weed -the most expensive of all crops, and the least profitable. After making a call at Leamington, near lo the Island of Point I'eleo, which con- sists of 5,00 acres of cultivated land and about 8,000 acres in wood, we drove to Eulhvon, and afterwards to the village of Coltain and Ks.sex Centre. The land thi'ough this district was good, but badly farmed. It seems capable of producing anything in large quantify, and would, I think, be very protil:ible if in the hand.s of enerirctic farmers. At Kssex Centre, I met Mi'. James Matthews, land agent, and Mr. John Alilne. the president and manaijer of a considerable saw-inill and sash and door factory, which articlt'S are iikely to bo largely exjioricd, and will provide cm])loyment fhr many carpenters and joiners as the trade itici-easos. Thoy told mo they had land in this locality on which timbei is growing, that they could sell at a price which the value of the timber would more than cover. The soil is of a dark loam, rather heavy, but of great depth ; and- on portions of the cleared land crops of Indian corn were being reaped. From Charing Cross we took the stage to Morpeth, and pa.ssed on our way several small villages, and a larger town called Blenheim. There is some fine land in this 6t county, and well fnrmod. Tito land round Moi-peth is very fine, and tiuit uIiomhIh worywlioro. Wo wcio nua at tho hotel b}' Mr. .loliii Duck, wlin, with Dr, Stnitli, accompaniod uh (o tho farm of Mr. (Gardner. He has upwai-ils of 200 acred, and \mn greatly improved i(, Mr. (iardner makes a very liheral use ot Malt um afertilizer, with very i^ood rosultn in the yield ot grain and in Htraw. He has nome gofnl cattle, and I piirticiiliii-ly admii-ed a shorthorn hull. Ho had not, sit the lime of oiw visit, sold IiIh wheat, hut ho informed mo that last scaHon he ol»t«inci> oblaiticil from about I'H un acre. Our next drive was through a section of countiy ?'oniewhat inferior to the above but fur from being bad. It inijirovod as we neared Rutgeiown, where ihoro is somo good land — a loam resting upon a gravelly subsod. Lund at this place wa-* stated lo be valued at £10 an aero. Chatham is the next place wo arrived at. We visited several places of interest in the neii^hborhood, including Mr. Taylor's woollen facloiy, and examined the cloth, which, while it cannot be i-oinpared witli the lOnglish manufactures in points of finish, is yet a good production. Fi'om Chatham we went into tho country to see the land, and the way in which it was managed. We called at Mr. Dolson's farm, where I saw a garden laid out with great taste. His fai-tn has an area of about 400 acres, and is in veiy good order. He was well satisfied with the crops this year, and his Indian corn, which was then stand- ing, was something marvellous — the finest ciop T saw in Canada. It would probably yield more than (JO bush(!ls to the acre. He had also some excellent oats. We travelled through some good land in this district, and it is well cultivateil on the whole. FAOILITfES I'OH THE THEAl' TRANSFER OK LANOS. Chatham is situated on the River Thames, and stean\ors run between it and Detroit. It has excellent railway communication, aiwi every facility foi- transporting its products and maniifiictures. The surface of the count ly aj'ound Chatham is very taking to the eye. It was formerly marshj^, but sluices or open drains have been cut through the land right to Lake Erie, a distance of about thii'teen miles. The soil in the district is not surpassed in any part of the Provinces lor dej)th and general fertility, but is capable of improvements by further drainage. The land bears a general resemblance to tliat of the Fon districts in Lincolnshire. 1 had an opportunit}' during n\y stay in Chatham, through the courtesy of tho Registrar, of inspecting the simple and chcaj) system that is adopted for tho convey- ance and transfer of land in Caniila. All tho holdings in eveiy township are numbered, and the deeds of the same are kept in the ofttce ot' the Registrai', together with accounts of a'l sales, transfers, mortgages, etc., so that the title of any property can be vei'itied without difficulty. The whole expenses in (Connection with (lie transforof land, including the lawyer's fee. very often does not exceed tl 8s. The land from fjxeter to Wingham, through the town of Clinton, is of excellent quality, and the same remaik will apply to the country for twenty miles between Wingham and Lake Huron. There is a mai'ked thoroughness about the farming in this secli(m of the countiy. Where the land is cleared ol timber and stumps it isput into a capital tilth for crops. Barley and wheal seem to be favorite crops for some miles around Wingham. Most of tho land .iround this neighborhood was wild bush fifteen 3'ears ago. A large school has recently been erecteil .-it a cost of about £2,000 .sterling, which is very creditable to the ;^,00it inhabitants of the place. The school 6S viifi^ amoiinis tf» moro timn (Mi»'-lml('(»r(ho entire nitist*, bill tliosc arc Iciw, and ofic dot's iiiil liciir any ('oriiplaiiils. The |iri(o of land is «l>oiil $10 an acre fur partially cleared land. I may >ay lliat the woodland in regarded o(|iially an valuahio aH dio rleiired, on arcoimt of tlu^ liinlier. Nonr Wiii|^liiiin i?- a Uiilief nianiduclory. The whole of the l>uller in taken by a . more for it than the loeal market priooM, which Average about -Uc. per lb. The establitHhinont is owned by the farinei'M of the
  • lrict, who Mend llieir milk into the factory daily, and are paid accoiding to tlu) quantity they fiiinish and In thi' price tho butter realizes. Tliere are many manufac- tories of the kind iti Canada, I formed a very high opinion of this district, and the lanil iH clieajjcr than at H(»mo otiier places 1 came across, averaging i'\'o\n £5 to £8 j>er aero. When at Ntiwcastle. the IJev. Mr. Belts drov(* me out to llie Ijuke Shore, where I met Home grain flealers. Itarley wnt* l)eing quoted at ()0c. per bubhol,and wheat was from ■*.')c. to !)0c. per imshcl. While in TorcjDio, Mr. Ucimio, a seedsman of that cily, kindly drove us round Scarborougii and the iidjacent di>trict. We went to Mr. >'.. iienlties lUrm. Mr. Beattie is well known all over Canada as an importer and e.xpoiter of liist class cattle. Ho was present at the last Royal Agricultural Society's show at ('arlisio, ami purchased some of the finest animals exhibittd for breediii'.; pin po>es. He bad some excellent root crops. In this case, as in ever)' othei' where special nttention is paid to tlie fattening of cattle, there is a corresponding attention to root growing. VVe i>asHod Hevtual other taiins, among wliicb was that of Mr- Andrew Hood, tho prize ploughman . I was much surprised at the excellence of the ploughing in Canada gonerall}'. Mr. J^eiinie bad some of tho bo.^t croj)s of carrf)ts and mangels that it has been my lot to see. We s:iw pumpkin> growing which were ilf) lbs. in weight, and .squashes 150 lbs. each — likely to be 275 lbs. beb)re they slop growing, and swede turnips of good size, indicating what can be done in fancy farm ng Tho grain crop was stowed away in the barns in e.\'collent order. Mr. Itennie int'ormcd luo thut in .seventeen years fai-ming bis smallest crop of barley averaged [iS b^l^^hels to the acre, anon's lather, Mr Trudgetni, was the tirst settlor in this district, when tho country around was a dense forest. There was not oven a road from Toronto, and they had to find their way through the forest. Mr. Adamson came out Irom Kiiii'land. Ho is now over sovonty years of age, and is halo and hoarty. [ found no larm in this fouiity in neater trim, or more profitable cultivation, than that of Mr. Johnson-Harrison, of Milton. Jloro the thistle, the great drawback to Caim- dian farming, is not allowed any (quarters. Ho keeps some entire horses of tho loadster class — fine animals. He also has a superior herd of short-horned cattle. I stayed in tho district of Halton for a low days, u.nd received much information from Mr. White, who accompanied us through tho county. Tho price of land appeared to run from $40 to $f'i) per acre ; for renting, about $3 per acre may bo taken as an average. The following are the principal towns in the county of Halton : Oakville, about "J, 000 inhabitants; fleorgetown, about 2,000 irdial'itants ; Acton, 1,000; Burlington, 2,000; Milton, 1,200. The population of the whole county is about 25,000, consi^ting principally of English, Irish, Scotch, and nativo Canadians. It is a fine grain and grass-growing country, also a favored location for fruit crops, and is famous foi- its sti-awberries. Its position is between Toronto and Hamilton, and tlio county is traversed by four different linos of railway. 'i msE I'Ro.M POVERTY TO WEALTH. On arriving at Ingersoll, we called at the farm of Mr. Wilson, who came out from England with his father, iu 18^2. When they arrived hero they were the happy possessors of $3 (12s). Now every branch of tho family is wealthy, owning, among other properly, 1.200 acres of land of good quality, with noat and substantial residences. Wo also insjiected a cheese factory u|)on his farm, and while partaking of lefreshment listened with intense interest to this tine and inloUigent Yorkshiro emigrant of nearly fifty years ago, 1 may add that their wealth has been obtained from agricultural j)ursuits, and that the land does not represent all their wealth. These cases speak for themselves, and dhow what can be done in Canada by hard work and thrift. We next visited, among several others, Mr. Agar, who farms 400 acres of land of good quality. Ho also milks 60 cows, and makes a large quantity of cheese. The houses for the cattle were undergoing extension and alteration. The stables are well arranged, and have every convenience. He started with a VQvy small capital, € 64 liut is .low in n position ol' aftlneiico, which has been obtJiinoil, a« in Mr. Wilson's fuso, trom agriculture. VVc visited several cheese inanutactories in this locality. They are conducted oil the same principles as the butter manufactories, described elsewhere. All iiispoi'tion of this disirict shows how easily and profitably the land can be devoted to grazing purposes The soil is a rich loam, somewhat undulating. The brick and stone residences, with their cedar walks and ne.itly trimmed lawns and hedges, and the orchards, with their golden burdens, form a jMcture difficult to e(ni;il in the tiiiest districts of the Old Country. 1 now proceed to devote a few linos to Tilsonliurg. which is becoming an important jihuc. thanks to the energy and enterprise of its founder. Mr. Tilson. The town is in the cuiiity of 0.\'ford, and its valuable water piivilcges have already given an impetus to the eslablishment of manufactories. It possesses a saw-mill, corn, oatmeal, and pea-splitting mill, a large brewery, and a sugar manufactory nearly ready. A large quantity of beet is grown in the neighb>i'liood. A manufactory fir drying fruit for exporting has also lieen started, and they expect to use 25,01)11 bnshels of apples alone during this season. • Building materials arc very ^heap. White bricks (\jry durable) S5 per thousand, lime, ::c. per bushel; '.lard wood, $2; ami snft, SI per coi-d (4 feet scpiuie, 8 feot long). This, taken in (injunction with the extensive vvater-povver available, prognosticates a busy tUtiire 'or this young town. It is also said to be probable that any new factory started wuuld get a subsidy, and perhaps exemption from taxes i'or a certain time ; so there appears to be a good opening. We went round Mr, Tilson's farm. The land is good and well cultivated; the country around is a tine farming district, and n^ L inaptly named " Goshen.'' In driving around 1 camo across two namesakes, (loorge Curtis and W. Curli-*, who came from Lincolnshire They and another brother arrived in Canada without capital, and are nov/ in the hapjiy position of being their own landlords. The jii-ice of land around Til onbnrg and Goshen varies from $'iO to $60 per acre (£(} to £l'«), and, though near the to^vr. rather light, is of a capital quality. Continuing our journey to Bari'ie, and having been joined by Professor Sheldon and Messrs. Sugar and Donaldson we paid a visit to Bradf "d. Some of the land we traversed was inferior, but about Newmarket and lorward to Bradford it was ol good qualitj'. We were joined at Bradtbi-d by Dr. Morton, the Heeve of the township, and drove out to Ilond Head, calling at Colonel Tjrwhit's, who owns upwards of 200 acres of land in good cultivation. He has some good horses, cattle and sheep, and excellent root-crops. We also visited Mr. Stoddard's farm, the greater part ot which is under-thai ned. This southern portion of Sinicoe seems equal to the best parts of Ontario. At Mr. Stoddaid's farm I had a conversation with one of his men, who came from Whitby, Yorksliire. He had been there fifteen months, and during the first twelve months ha i managed to save SloO. His wages were $110, including board and lodging, so that he had nothing but clothes to find. He is now getting $126 per annum, and hopes to save a still larger sum this year. To use his own words, he " means to have a fiirm of his own before long.' We then wont on to Barrie, the countj'- town of Simcoe. It is one of th^ largest counties in Ontario, the ^liiTonsions being roughly 156 miles by SO, and, generally speaking, is a tine agricultural country. Barrie is very prettily situated upon a bay of Lake Simcoe. We left Barrie in ortler to make a visit to the Miiskoka district, and were accompanied b}- a pai'ly of gentlemen to Gravenhnrst. where a railway is being made to con-ncct witn the Northern Pacific. I will give you genenilly my imjiression of this district, as it is attracting a good deal of attention. Its scenery is very romantic; indeed, it is called the Wales of Canada. It is well watered.' Part of the .soil is g0(Kl, and part is rocky. 1 have seen some very fine samples of roots and grairi raised in the district, and think it is likely to become an important district both for I he growth of cereals and the raising of live stock. The population is increasing rapidly, so I was told, and the i'reo giants of lands are being availed of. On returning to Bariie, we called on Mr. Bridges', who is a breeder of Hereford cattle. He owns a 66 large nmount of land — about 1,800 acres, I think. He has a farm of cleared land, and is clearing about eighty acres every year. He told me that a good deal of the iiind has co^^t him nothing, the timber having realized more than the price of the land. Most of the farms in the district present similar features to that of Mr. bridges', though to a more limi od extent. Before leaving Canada 1 had an opportunity of visiting the agricultural show at Hamilton. It comprised many of the same features that I observed at the Toronto Kxhibitiou ; indeed, many of the cattle and most of the general articles did duty at both places. Gravestonet* were shown at Toronto, but coffins were also on view here — so that the ut^efulness of the shows are rather extendoJ. covering both the living and the dead. The machinery, hardware, and carriages wore very good, and the former exhibit excelled Toronto if anything — which is not a matter for sur- ])rise, when one is informed that Hamilton is the Birmingham of Canada. The horses and cattle were good classes. One fat ox, shown also at Toronto, scaled 2,850 lbs. The pigs also, of the Sutfolk and Berkshire breed, can be commended. 1 had tlic pleasui'e of an introduction to His Excellency the Governor Genoial (.Uarquis of Lome) here, and had an interesting interview. I found him very affable and pleasant. ■ Just a few concluding remarks about the show. There was a cloth cutting machine of very ingenious construction ; a splend:' 1 show of the Wanzer sewing machines ; and 1 must not forget to mention the implements shown by Mr. Coop— they deserve much commendation for their neatness and lightness. The fruit show was also excellent, and as a conclusion I may say that I had a ba^^ket of very tino grapes given to me at Hamilton (grown by Mr. Hard in the open air), which [ brought to England, and when opened, after three weeks, were in perfect order. It, therefore, is not unlikely that this fruit may form a '.o inconsiderable feature in the exports of Carmda at some future day We next made our way to Niagara to see the famous falls of that place. The district between Hamilton and Xiagara is famous for its fruitgrowing, especially for peaches. It soeras to be quite a profitable trade, and I was told the fruit of the district was celebrated all over the continent of America. The land about St. Cath- arines is light, and not very valuable for farming purposes. As to the falls, so many have given a description of these mighty waters that it is almost superfluous to mention the subject; but as no one has seen them with my eyes, I suppose I ought to say something about a spectacle so world renowned. It is truly a sublime sight to behold. There is something akin to disappointment at first, but as the whole is ga/.od at, and its grandeur impressed uj)i>n the rauid, it become-i awfully magniticeut. The rapids above and below the falU aru only less beautiful becaut-e less awe-insjjiring. GENERAL SUMMARY. I have now finished my detailed report, and propose to summarizo, under con- venient heads, my opinions generally abi.'it Lhe portions of the country that I had the privilege of visiting. Climate. — It ma}^ be said generally that the summer heat and winter cold are greater than in England. But it is onfy fair to i-emark that owing to the dryness of the atmospheie, the heat is not so incoriv*:oient as it would be in our murky climate. At the same time it has a wontlerfiil ert'<*ct in bringinu to maturity the fi'uiis of the soil, Oats can be sown and reaped in three m<)nths, and fruits are grown to such perfection and in sucl; luxuriance as t// surpriK< one from the Old Country. Almost everything that grows in Kngland will jfrow in Canada, but vegovables and roots attain a greater size in the latter, and melon- i vitality. jSoil. — Speaking genei'ally, the soil of Ontario is of a loamy nature, some light and some clayey, but in the latter case it does not appear to be so heavy and difficult to work as the clay lands of England. This may be owing to the clay being less tenacious, or by the pulverising otFects of the winter frost. I may say that I saw no real surface clay soil. There was, of course, subsoil of that nature. In a country so hirge as the Pi-ovince of Ontario many different kinils of soil are naturally found — good, bad, and indifferent ; but the former seems to preponderate, as the diversitied products and tiie luxuriance of their growth demonstrate. Kut the land has not been u ed well. It must have been exceeding rich at one time, but continued cropping and careless farming is bound to bring its results, and the lesson cannot fail to U> useful. The effects are seen in the better system of farming that is now being adopted, and to the greater attention that is being given to dairy farming, to the fattening of live .>tock, and to the consequent extended gi'owing of root crops, all of which will lend to recuperate the soil, drainage loo is now being looked after, and more in this direction may yet be done in some districts. Free (rranti^ of Land. — Upon this point i cannot do better than (juote the fol- lowing extract, taken from a work issued by the (rovernment of the Pi'ovince of Ontario : " Hvery free-grant settler over eighteen years of age is entitled to select lOtI acres, and every head of a family 200 acres. The conditions of settlement are set forth in the (oilowing clause of the Free Grants and MomesLead Act, Revised Statutes oi' Ontario, cap. 24. sec. 8 : ' No patent shall issue for any land located nndor this Act, oi under said regulations, until the expiration of five years from the date of such location, nor until the locatee. or those claiming under him, or some of them, have performed the following settienvent duties, that is to say : have cleared and have undei- cultivation at least fifteen jicres of the said land (whereof, at least, two acres sluill he cleared and cultivatcii iinnually during the five years next after the date of the location to bo computed sucn date), and have built a hou.se thereon tit for habitatioi', at least sixteen feet b}- '^enty feet, and have actually and con- tinuously resided upon and cultivated the su^ni land for the term of tiv(^ years next succeeding the date of such location, and from thence up to the issxie of the patent, except that the locatee shall be allowed one month from the date of the locaticm to enter upon and occupy tlie land ; that absence from the said land for in all not more than six mouths during any one year (to be computed from the date of the location), shall not be held to be a cessation of such resilience, provided such land be cultivated as aforesaid.''' •lust a word in regard to the free grants. No one should choose them in a hurry. There is plenty of good laml, but as much care should be exercised in its selection as if it had to be bought, for it is a matter upon which the success of the settler primaiily depends. Ontario <(.s (t Fielil for SettlemmL — 'Sly np\n\o\\ on this point is that a man has every chance of doing well in Ontaric* and that many havC suc«;eeded is demonstrated by the examples which I found in the turso of my travels 1 may be asked, and it is a fair question, whether I would c-are to live in the country myself and adopt it an my home ? In lesponse. I can say tha? if evei- 1 did emigraie, Canada is the country J would go to. Indeed, such a change ^t.■^ regariU associations would be veiy little, as Ontario is much the same as England, its inhabitants all hailing from the Old Country, having been boin heie, or descended from earlier emi::rani> from our shores. In a would pc( aiigt pi intag( tin place a less capital is required ; one can hu}- as much land in (Jntario toi' a dollar as in England for a sovereign. This is a i-ough and ready calculation, but is sufficiently near the mark. For laborers Ontai-io offers great advantages to steady, hard., k- l ' boi caf int lh( ]•'■' rei P« wc a ui ing, and thrifty mc Th ey get good wages, and ma\ took torward to bt^ing able to 67 start i>u their own account if tbey arc careful. Most of the iahorerw arc boarded and lodged in the fannhoiiaoH, so that ningle men arc preferred ; hut in the neigh- borhood of the towns and villages this is a disadvantii^e not without remedy in the case of married i-ouj^lc-i. But 1 thinic Ontario larnKM's would be serving tljeir own interests if they were to erect cottages for the meti, and thus foster a class similar to the farm laborer of Hnu'land. Capital Requind. — In the first place, I may say that improved farms vary in price from £8 to £l() ]jer acre, which includes fences and all buildings, in fact a farm ready for occupation, while land of similar qualit}' can be rented at from 10s. to 20s, per acre. It is, iherefoi-e, easy to calculate what capital a man ought to have. He would, of course, have to buy implements and cattle and seed, to enable him to make a start, and the amount to he expended under this head would, of course, depend upon the means of the fairaer and the system wliieh he would adopt. 1 may remark hero in parenthesis that land and buildings can be bough^ in the l-lastern Townships for £4 or £5 per acre, it is said that on a free grant a man should have £100 or £130. He would not, of course, be able to put a whole farm into woiU at once with Ibis amount of capital, but each year he would be getting a retain and be adding to his capital, and tlius b« able to extend his area each j'car. Until a man had enough ground under cull. 'U to occupy him entirely, ho could eai-n good wages for his hihor in spare time. \\ eh would also help him. Many have started with little or no capital, or at any rat* much less than the figures named .nbove ; but this can only be done by dint of hard work and self-denial, which, atter all, are in any case the first elements of a success. 1 may add that 1 did not come across any grumblers in my travels. The people seemed happy and contented. I may say further, that I was only asked for alms on one occasion, and my inquii-ies elicited that he was not a Canailian, but a man on tramp from Rochestei', in tlie United States. As regards taxes, 1 found on iiujuiry ihat they averaged from £5 to £7 per 100 acres, and a few days labor (or its e(iuiv- alent) in connection with the roads. There arc ueial app'ication of manure, and th( scarcity ot' labor tends to inereabe the ex})enses. Dairy proiluce is also now coming to the fore, but I intend giving some statistics Uh to this later on. Cattle. — (iiade cattle, taken uerd for herd, are e([uai to any tiiat will bo found on this side of the Atlantic. They also have some litie herds of pure breeds of various sorts, as my readers will remember. There has been no cattle ])lagne or pleuro- ])neumonia in Canada, so that the Dominion is noi included in the scheduled coun- tries. The cattle aie therefore admitted ^o the English markets alive, which is an advantage not jjOssessed by American st^*i^'k-raisers. The breed of sheep is generally good, and tlie ci-os^ is favored rather thiiri ihe pure breeds. There is a good iuality of the stock . The finest cattle and horses are beiu^ lUiported evwy year tor breeding pui|:ioses, and many prize-winners at oui- -juows find their way 1« Canada, at no small expense to the importers. The berls of pure-bred cattle, in various part of the country, contain many excellent animaJs, and those at Bow Park, and at .Mr. Coehrane's farm in the Raster n Townships, have a reputation by no means confined to trie ATiiurican con- tinent. 68 Markets ar>.d Means of Com muni cation. — The Province has good rail communication, as a ul'.ince at a map will .show; and an to markets each town has at least two each week, and the villages one. A I'armer has no difficulty in getting rid of all his pro- duce. As regards barley, I am told that the greater portion of it is .sent to the United Stales, where it is much esteemed. Implewents. — I was much struck with the implements 1 saw. They are light, yot strongly made, aixl easy to handle. The Americans used lo control ilio market h i'oi' these goods, but 1 am told they are now almost entirely superseded by Canadian manut'ttctures. System of Fanning. — 1 have mentioned this undei' the head of '* Soil." Thegreat fault seems to have boon the want of a system. Mixed farming I am salistied is the best thing an Ontario farmer can adopt. By raising cattle he is obliged to use his suaw, and to grow i-oot crops, thus attording the means of keeping the soil well nia' Hired. It is true that wheat and other exports do not fetch the same price as they do here, but the cost of produeing them is less. The pi-ice of food-stutl's is low; bian, for instance, costing only a third of tvhat it does here. Exports. — The following figures are useful in showing the progress of Canada as an agricultural country. Kxports in 1878 of wheat and flour, 10,895, Ko bushels; other grain, 12,923,tt71 bushels; in 1879, of wheat and flour, 12,t)73,f..5 bushels; other grain, 11,270,195 bushels. In 1^78, 5,635,411 bushels of wheat, and 2,t»21,581 bushels of (Mher grain were iniporiod into the Dominion; and in 1879, 4,768,733 bushels of will It and 2,190,;55fi bushels of other grain. But most of this was for exportation from Canadian ports, on account of cheap freights and better facilities for getting to the seaboard, and not for home use. In fact the import of wheat decreased in 1879 by 1,000,000 bushels, while the exports increased by 2,000,000 bushels. The export of flour in i879, was also equal to 3,000,000 bushels. The following are the exports of butter, che»^se and eggs during 1878 and 1879: — 1878, 13,00t^6:i:6 lbs of butter; 38,054,294 lbs. of take up fresh lands and get those inti« cultivation, adding lo their means in this way. I came across a man at Wingham to whom this applies. Many go to Manitoba, which is attracting so inucl) attention. Another reason is that the oce-upiei may have got into years ; his sons have taken to professions or commercial jjursuit^ rather than farming, and he desires to retire and live <»*i his capital. 1 vvas informed of tiiis b}' a man at Mdton who had a farm to sell. Then, again, somh" are due to bad tanning. The occupiers have not ii-ed ih" soil well, arid i-alhtM- Uian take the trouble of adopting higher farming ami manuring llien lands, prefer to go to new land, where they can continue their unwise and sh(»rt^igliled opeiutioMM. Others wish to take larger farms. S'icial .4.s/'«(.•^s. — Just a few woi-(l,-> upon this subject and 1 tinish. The Canadians posNCfts the characteristieH whieji are usually foun opoii CATTLE, SHEEP, HOUHES, PIOH, RTr, T did not vinit any of llie oxtonsivo herds of j)Uie-bie(l oattle that Canada tan boa«t ()!', being Hati>tiod that thoy existed. I may Junt say that having fust imported their 8tocl< from this side, they are now able to sell iis animals for enormous tigiircs. One that I have seen myself was bonght as a nine-month old calf hy Mr. Talliot Crosby, from Mr. Cochrane, of Compton (Eastern Townships), for, if I mistake nol £850. I thought it more to my purpose to see what class of cattle the ordinary t'arnicr was able to roar, and great was my astonishment to find on farms of loO or 200 acios (the ordinary sizo Ota Canadian farm), shorthorns of I ho very best faniilios, which they cross witfi the native cow, producing very good animals indeed, cither for tho butcher or the dairy; and sheep that would raise env}'^ in the breasts of some oC om flock-masters in this country ; the South Downs surprised me much, us I wnsinclincil to think the cold climate would noi suit them, and exi)eeted they would bo small and puny, but such was not the case. Up to the present, the Cotswold seems to be most m favor. Ttie pigs, too, are excellent. 1 saw some Suttolk and Berkshire pigs in Ontario that would do ci^Mlit to any breeder in this country. I may mention, in Eassing, having seen a beautiful shoi-thorn cow " Isabella," the property of a Mi. lussell, of Markham ; she was a perfect animal of hei- kind. I shall h ji'e say a few words on the prospect of the cattle trade with this couii t ry. I believe it to be only in its infancy, and that five years hence Canada will be able to send us one hundred pounds of beef for every one she sends at present, and of almost, if not quite, as good a quality as our home-fed bee' My reastms for this opinion at - as follows . — Until a very few years ago, the Caii ans had none but native cultn which, when crossed with a good breed, produce very fair animals, but are themselves inferior except for the pail; and as they only lequired the.sc for dairy purposes or work-oxen, the calve-^, as a rule, were destroyed as soon a^ dropped. Now, not otdy are there several extensive herds of pure-bred cattle in the country, but it is no uncommon thing to tiiid ordinary farmers with a couple of pure-bred bulls and goiKl sized herds of excellent "grades" (crosses between the native cow and shorthoin or polled Angus bulls, this last-named breed being admirably suited to the country). The calves are all reared, and as dairy farming has not paid so well the last few years, and the cattle trade with England has been tried and is found remunerative, many men have turned exclusively to rearing and feeding cattle for the English market. At present the Canadians are, and will be for some time to come, behind us as feeders; but they are fast finding out the increase bushels per acre; fall ditto, 2-1; barley, about 40 ; oats, about 45 ; peas, 25 to aO; potatoes, 300 to 40U; turnips, 600 to 800; mangels, about 1,000. It must be remembered that these crops are raised on land, for the most part, inditt'erently farmed ; crop after crop of wheat being taken from it for years in succession with the least possible quantity of manure — indeed, in some cases none. 1'lie Canadians are utterly innocent of the use of artificial manures. But contact with Old Country farmers, and the strong common-sense of the Canadian, will soon improve his farming; and I think 1 am safe in saying that, with improved agricul- ture, an increased yield of at least one-third would result. I saw a field of carrots, mangels and turnips, grown by Mi-. Eennie, of Scarborough, on virgin soil; they were better than I have ever seen in this country. Mr. Rennie, who is an exceed- ingly intelligent man, showed me, with honest pride, some of his ploughwl land. No doubt the friable soil he hjui to deal with did not present the difficulties to fhe plough that our heavier ant' ore stony land does ; but if Mr. Rennie throws down the gauntlet to .' f) r' men of this country, I would advise none but the very best to take it up, Timothy is the "tame" grass, as they call it, usually sown for pasture or hay; they also use " orchard grass," answering to our cock's-foot, which is a good pasture g:;iss. Timothy yields from two lo three tons per acre at one cutting ; and when tlic season admits ot it there is usually a second cutting of about e(iual weight. In Canada the acre i-^ a statute acre. Some of the farmers have trie.! " lucerne" as a soiling crop with gieat success; on fair land it may be cut three times a year, and yields from two to three tons each cutting. Clovers do well ; but the best crop is maize, which is cut when about ten inche^s high, and gives a wonderful return. They have tried Italian rye-grass, but it has been a complete failure. T-.tken altogether, Canada is not such a fruit country as 1 had imagined. Ir (Quebec little or lume is grown ; the same may be said of Manitoba and the North West. Ontario, however, is exceptionally adapted for fruit-culture. Apples grow to perfectioii all through the Province, and no homestead is complete without its orchard of from five to ten acres. It struck me that most of the farmers make a mistake in j)lanting too m..ny varieties, as they seldom have enough of any one kind tor expor- 14 lution. Tho Moiilhorn purl of the Provinoo i»» u poilorl liuit-^urdoii, producii)^ gi»M»t«.H, f)eachoH, utc, in groat ulniiuiuiico, and of very gcxnl quality, though not equal to our lOt-houMO grupeM und peuchoM. If tho mornberH of tho Fruit (Jroworn AHHOoiutiou luo any judgew o( tho Muitubility of tho ciiumte, etc., (a«id wo must wuppOMO they uro), tho nu)ro tender liindN of fruitH are not grown at all to tho oxtont thoy might bo. A mombor told mo , if owing to tho olovation of tho country about (iuolph arul tlm nature oi tho Hoil, it might, bo tuUon for granted that any tVuit whiuh could be rai.sod in that diHtrict would do well in any part of the Pr()vin<'0. At Guolph I hkw, in tho garden of the Agricultural School, about twenty variotioM of grapes growing in tho open air a])pnrontly to perfection. I hud uIho tho ploahuro of walking through Mr. Stophonson'H oxloiiHive orchards, in which I saw a vaiioty of fruits of wonderful excellence. niSBASES OF CROPS ANO ANIMALS. Both cattle and cropw are wonderfully free troni diHeuHo; in fact, neither horncil cattle, nheep, nor hordes seom to be affected with iho diseases to which they are usually liable in these countries. Wheat sutt'ersoccucionully both from smut und i-ust, but to no great extent, and tho former is preventible. A dry summer generally leaves the turnips to tho mercy of the fly. The pea is sometimes a good deal damaged by the ravages of a little insect. The potato-bug, although Known in Canada, is no longer i-egarded with the feelings of dismay it excitcxi at first. A little Paris green, about 1 pound to tho acre, generally makes short work of this pest. It is a curious fact that it seldom attacks potatoes planted in now Innd. SIZE OF FAKMS. The ordinary Ontario farm is from 100 to 300 acres; tho capital considered necessary for proper working is from £2 lOs. to £3 an aero. The houses of tho bettor class of tarniors are comfortable brick structures of the Swiss villa style, arul are many degrees more elegant and comfortable than tho houses of better-off men at home. The same cannot always be said of their out-offices, however, though the^o arc said to have been much improved within the last few years. Every homestead has a large collar in which to store roots. The farms are generally divided into good-sized fields by wooden fences; one rarely (^omes across a ditch or wall, but I have seen a hedge of the Osage orange, which maks a capital fence, the shrub being of a prickly nature. The snake fence is a useful one, easily made, but is untidy- looking; it is gradually disappearing. Owing to dry climate, fence rails last for many years. Lately a barbed fencing wire has been introduced. It is an effective but dangerous one, and one, I hope, that will never bo introduced here, or else good-by to hunting. If an animal luba against it, it is sure to be torn by the barbs ; I t-aw two 01- thiee horses terribly injured by it. Each farm has, as rule, a good water supply, for though there are not many running streams, there is any quantity of excellent water to be had by sinking for it. and there are numbers of good-sized rivorsa There is usually sutticient timber on the farm for fuel and fencing purposes, and young plantations are being made on many of them. Numbers of these farms are now in the market, the price, which includes all improvements, varying from £20 an acre, round Toronto, to £8, in the more distant parts of tho Province. An ex(o!letit farm can l>e had, with well-built brick dwelling-house, out-offices, etc., in n good district, for about £12 an acre. There are three causes at work which place these farms in the market :— 1st. Many farmers have ,so run down naturally goo<; land that they find it no longer profitable to farm it in the old way, and are eithei- ignorant of how to bring it into heart again, or have not capital enough to enable them to do so, and must therefore sell. "2nd. Many find the 200-acro farm too small to keep a large family together. The sons, of course, wish to settle on farms of their own, and Manitoba, or the North- West is the place they naturally turn to, and the capital realised by the sale of their 200 acres in Ontario is ample to start the largest ri family moHt lulvnntaKeoUHly in thin now coiintrv. Mrd. Many fHiriMM-M, liiivin/jf timilo nioiioy uml likin|if town iilo, proter to soil thoir liinnH uial go mto IniMinoMH. Lot it Ik) rcmombercd that tho capital tho original .sollloi« MtiirtoU with to clour awiiy tho mighty f'orostM wuh tho wtrength ot thoir miLsciiliu- arniM. WA(1K8 AND TAXES. Wagos tuo high, good men lecciving Irom C.JU to i;35 u your with houid in Ohturio; womon-Horvunt £20 to £'2b. 'luxtia uro a nioro hagatollo, amountitig to alM»ul 1h. por ucro, KchtM^I luto includtHl. 1 wuH ugiooably MjrpriKod to Knd that drunUonnosiN in not common in Canada; indtod, 1 waM struck liy tho alinoneo of spintiiouH Ucjuoin at tho dinnor-tuhle in tho Jiotols, und wart umuHod whv told by a wuitor that any doubt about tho nutihment. The corn-elevatoi's in Chicago are worth seeing; I was surprised and ()ut, looking at the various operations, and their black diesses were as free from dust as they would be in a drawing-room. While passing through Minnesota I saw one of the many ruses the American.- practice to prevent emigrants going into Manitoba, in which they .see such a powerful competitor. I mention it hei'e, as it may prevent many persons being deceived. 1 left my own carriage and wen, into one full of emigrants, for the purpose ot questioning them as to their designation, ])rospects, etc. At one of the stations 1 remarked two Yankees, apparently farmers, chattir'[5 together in the telegraph-office. A litile before the train started they got on board, but evidently wished to bo thought strangers to each other. After a short time, one of them entered into conversation with a Scotch emigrant, and discoursed eloquently on the honors of Manitoba — said that it was a swamp, that he ha strengthened on ronoliing the "(Queen's" hotel, wlieio I was .-howti into a most cointbrlabie bedroom, as nicely furnished an one could wish. Next li.on.ir.g — Sunday — I explored the city, and wjih utterly astonished at what I saw. Some eight or nine years ago Winnipeg was a wretched village with .i coui)le of hundred inhabitants ; now it is a thriving go-ahead little city of 12,000 or lH,Oi)0 inhabitants, the floating population alone being estimated at 1,000. 1 went into the Pi-esbyterian place of worship and found assembled 1,200 to 1,300 lashionably-dressed persons; in fact, but for the organ, which I consider a decided impi'ovement, it would not have been hard to believe I was in the church of some Presbyterian divine in the good town of Belfast. Two very fine riveis Join at the ci y of Winnipeg — the Assiniboine and the Red Kiver, which are navigable for hundreds of miles. To give some idea of the importance of Winnipeg, 1 may suy that it supports three banks and some eight or ten very good hotels; has a voiy nice club and si.\- or eight churches, which are generally well Hlled. There is a very tine college and public schools ; the shops are much better than in any town of equal size in Ireland. One can get almost anything, from a "white elephant" to a lady's hair-pin in them. The trade is both exten.sive and brisk. On Monday 1 cidled on Mr. llespeler, the Government agent at Winnipeg, who procured me hor.ses, etc., with which fo commence my journey North-West. I take this opportunity of thanking both him and Mr. Keed, the intelligent head of the Lund Department at Winnij)eg, and also Mr. Desbrow, for their kindness in getting nic information and facilitating ni}' movements in the country, and I believe 1 am safe ill saying that any settler calling upon these gentlemen will receive court'T.iis attention at their hands and valuable and reliable information. Mr. Hespeler introduced rao to a Member of Parliament from Ontario, who wished to see part of the countiy, and asked if I would allow him to be my travelling comp:inioii for a few days, to which I gladly consented. This gei:lleraan is an example of wliat a little luck can do in Canada. Thirty-two years ago he arrived in Ontario with no capita! ut his trade, that of a blacksmith; he has now retl''ed from business, having ama.ssc;! was. a large fortune, and is spending his time in travelling and in attendiiig to his Pai i a- mentary duties. I started at noon on one of the hottest daj's of this year in Mania)(>a, on my North-West Journey, but 1 felt no inconvenience from the heal, except being compelled to take m}' team along very slowly. For some miles outside of tiie municipal boundaries there is a good deal of low scrubby land, thi-* district being a half-breed reserve settled almost entirely by half-breeds whose farming is not good. Yet, in sj)ite of this, ihe evident want of drainage, and a late season, I saw some wonderfully heavy crops of wheat. The soil surpiiscd me greatly. Having heard a good deal of it, I was prepared tor something uncommon, but did not e.xpect the black, rich, heavy loam which T found. I 'vent but twenty-five miles the first evening, stopped at a small wayside inn for the night. My landlord look me to -oc a Held of barley, sown on the 12th July — it was eight or nine inches high on the (>th ot August when I saw it. He told me that if the September frosts — a light fro^t some- time; comes for a night or (wo early in September — did not cut it off, it would yield a fair return. To this point, and for some miles beyond it, the countiy seemed to need draining. Here 1 ma ic my first acquaintance with the mosquito, or rather with a whole family of them. 1 had met single members of the tribe before, and I must say I should h.'ive preferred their room to their company. Next morning I started on my wf.y at 5.30 :i.ra., and had to make a detour of nine miles to avoid an impassible part of the traci<. Now that the Province has been divided into municipal divisions there will be some effort at roatl-making. 1 was rot sorry to leave the beaten tra-'k and have to strike out a course for myself through the prairie, it wasii novel and enjoyable experience. I found the prairie not nearly so monotonous or uninteresting as i expected; there was not much heavj' timber, but (^uite enough of one sort or another to brighten up the landscape, aned by tlie niuulier and variety ot the birds — one species, resembling our blackbird, i^ becoming quite a nuisance, there are such numbers of them. However, they can easily be ahol down if necessary. A farmer to whom I spoke of them shook his heatl uud said, '' They uru bad enough, but there's plenty tor us all ; in spite ol them 1 shall have over tliiriy-fivo bushels to the acre." About High Blutf I saw several Indian encampments, tlicy looked very pictuosque, but less so than the occupiers with their peculiar dress. I had the ciiiio.sity to enter one of their wigwams — they miglit bo cleaner without being open to the charge of fastidiousness. Portage la Prairie, which a few years ago was i»art of an uniihabited waste, is now a thriving little town with a couple of hotels, and half-a-dozeu machine depots. About twelve miles from Portage a -;ir. McKenzie has very extensive farms. I was received by him with much kindness. .Ml'. McKenzie showed me iwo fields of what, olf one of which he had taken ten crops in >uccessioii, otV the othe', tw, ; the crops I saw were the eleventh and third, and the •eleventh was ever so much bett .ir than the third, the ear being longer and the grain larger, while the straw was less luxuriant. He showed me two shorthorn bulls just iiji from Oiitai'io; I hoy were f'^tlr animals. Mr. McKen/ie considers that cattle do even better in Manitoba than Oiitario, in spite of the more severe winter — severe as regards degrees of frost only; otherwise it is a less trying winter, and cattle have not to be housed longer than in the lower Province. He is a good authority, having been an Ontario I'arrner liimselt. On this farm 1 saw some excellent roots, beetand mangel, and u m:ign"iticeut crop of potatoes. About twoniy or twenty-five miles north-west of I'oriage, thei'e is a belt of pooi' land some twenty miles wide. As soon as that is cro.ssed yon gel into beautiful dry rich rolling prairie, practically unlimited in extent. On my retiiin journey I made another detour and was much pleased with the country. The great numbers of cattle I passed in wonderful good condition shows plainly tliey can bo kept without difficulty during the winter. These cattle were large, coarse, I hick-skinned brutes, that a grazer in this country would despair of making anything of, yet here they were quite fat, and this after passing llii'ough ihe severest winter the Manitobans remember. So much fbr the prairie grass ; ihe introduction of good blood will give it worthier subjects to feed. I saw many magnificent work-oxen among them, and the cows, as a rule, appeared to be good milkers. These oxen are used for draught, and , their great strength making them jiariiculaily so in a country intersected with '' slews" and broken land. J-'or " breaking" the prairie they are invaluable, the sod being very tough, making it hard fbr horses ; besi 1 -, the ox requires no food but grass, and the horse cannot live Without a libe al supply of oate. I am told that the oxen trained in Manitoba are much better and faster than those brought from the United States ; the latter are usually slow and very stubborn. I was amused on one occasion by the remark of an ox- driver. Jle had a pair of truly obstinate brutes to deal with, and was using both his whip and very unparliainentaiy language without seeming to affect either their hides or hearts much. L said to him, "You seem to have rather a hard time of it, my friend, since you find cursing and the whij) no good. Wliy not try a blessing and a little gentle persuasion? '' " No use," Sc.id he ; " 1 tried those in the beginning. I have been driving oxen for the last five years, and though you would scarce believo it, I was a religious man when I began, but 1 have at last come to the conclusioa that one can't serve God and drive oxen ; it is impossible." The best authorities, however, tell me it is not impossible ; that abuse seems to stupifv the animal, but that gentleness with a Judicious use of the whip will make them do good work. I reached Winnipeg late at night, the last ten miles having been got over amid the glories of the most magnificent thunderstorm 1 ever witnessed — the lightning wasvivid beyond imagination. The thunder was not very loud or frequent, but the noise of the rain was quite sufficient to make up for this. There are usually a number of these thundoi-storins during the summer, but very rarely is any damage done by them, l^ext day I left Winnipeg, prepared for camping out — and a most enjoyable way of living it is — und stai-ted in a south-westerly direction. I met my first mishap crossing the ferry just outside Winnipeg; my horses fell " all of a heap " on the ferry tl e: 81 boat, but lay quietly till we relieved them, and then got up uninjured. We tnivelled for some rnileH close to the river ; the land was first rate, and much of it vvas covered with light timber. Near Morris I wan struck by the peculiar a|)poa?'anco of some tields of wheat, part of which seemed to have failed, or to have suttcrod from some blight, while the rest was covered by a luxuriant crop. On inquiring the cause, the owner (old me it was the effect of a hail-storra. These hail-storms somoiimes do damage ; they generally occur in July, and are extremely partial, catting the crops down in a belt perhaps a mile wide, but perfectly straight, light throui^h the district visited. It is well thej' are not ver}- frequent. Tlio farmers, however, do not make much of it, as they say there is always enough left to p:iy them. The i-eturn is generally eight bushels instead of twenty-tive. Leaving Morris behind, 1 passed through an immense marsh on my way to the "Lowe Farm." The Messrs. Lowe have something like 19,()00 acres in this neighborhood in two farms. The land is excellent, but too wet ; it is admirably suited foi- stock-raising, as there is abundance of hay. There is some difficulty about the water-supply, whicli, I am suio, will be overcome. They are fortunate enough to have one of the (jovernment cuttings run near them, which drain their land thoroughly, and it will then be fit for any )>urposo. 1 had from this place a drive through many miles of flat treeless prairie, much of it marshy, and I could boast a fair experience in the ai-t of extricating myself from a " slow," by the time I reached Nelsonville, the land about which is very tine, rolling, diy and rich. Here 1 met a North of Ireland farmer, who seemed much pleased with the country : he had taken up 320 acres. My next drive was through the Pembina Mountains. I was greatly pleased with the land, which is rich and very easily worked. Three years ago there were not a dozen settlers in the whole district ; now for fifty miles round there are few, if any, quarter-sections unoccupied. In the big Pembina Valley, which is a really beautiful spot, 1 met two young liishmen, Messrs. Armstrong and Atchison, whose only cause f ^r grumbling was the scarcity of wives ; they told me if I could bring out a cargo of eligible young ladies, 1 would make my fortune. Here two days' rain gave me a very disagreeable opportunity of judging what wet weather in Manitoba is. I was, however, none the worse for a thorough drenching, nor for having to let my clothes dry on me : I should not like to try the experiment in this country. Eemarking on my escape to a settler, he said, "Pooh! I am here four years and have never heard a man cough yet." I saw a good deal of the countiy in the direction of Eock Lake, but had not time to go as far as the Turtle Mountains. I next visited Mountain City, the property of i)r. Codd and Mr. Bradley. As this embryo city occupies a good and central position as regards some of the other towns, and is in the middle of a rich district, the owners may be congratulated. About ten miles east (>f Mountain City is the Mennonite Eeserve, which stretches forty miles towards Emerson. These people have a tract of magiiilk'eiit land ; they are very thrifty and hard working, and, as contract labore'*s, are much better and cheaper than any others in the Province. But they are not over-clean , cither in their persons or in farming. Their crops were very good, but showed careless cidti- vation. They grow very tine flax for seed. Their cattle also are very numerous and of fair quality. Having spent a good while examining this settlement, I started for P]merson, which place I reached late in the evening, and left it next day on my hotnewar 1 journey, having travelled over several hundred miles of the country : and yet 1 feel it almost pre.siimptuous to speak as having seen it, so small was the portion I examined compared with the vast whole. I shall now give some idea of the crops, climate, etc., under their various heads, and state the conclusions I drew from my visit. CLIM.\TE AND SEASONS. The climate of Manitoba and the North- West is one of their most serious draw- backs, but we are inclined to look upon it as a much more serious affair than ii really is. Description will do little to remove these impressions; it must be experienced to bo 82 iindei-stortd . At home, oxcessivo heat is genenvll}' aot-oinpunied by opprossiveiieHH, with itH Hiloudunt weuriiiws and inei'tiu; and cold, us a iiilo, with dampnoHH, uiakeK it raw and ])iemng- Now this is not the oaso in Manitoba or the North-West. The heat at lOU*-' wa.s unuoubledly very intense, but — and I spealv from personal experi- ence — without sultriness. \ perspired freely, but othei-wiso felt no inconvenience, und had cncrg}' onough tor any amount of work. This was an u.iusual degree of heat ; the summer mean is, I believe, about 70^^. Usually during summer there is a pleasant breeze, and tlu! higher the thermometer stands the more likely is there to be a breeze. No matter how hot the day, the night is sure to be cool. In winter the cold is very great, but nothing like what it is at home in proportion to the degree of frost; if it were animal life would cease, for the thermometer sometimes sinks to 40° to 5J° below zero — }i\>i imagine what that would mean in Enghiml I — but when it does so it is certain to be accompanied by a bright and perfectly still atmosphere and a warm sun. However, as a rule, it stands at from 10*^ to 15°. As 1 had not an opportunity of experiencing it myself, I was not content with the testimony of the ordinary settler concerning it, but had that of such men as the Bishop of the Saskat- chewan and clergymen of various denominations, as well as bankers and others, on whose opinion I could rely. All agreed in saying that one feels no colder when the thermoraete stands at 40'' than when it is at 10° below zero, and that winter is a delightful pai't of the year. Numbrs of people troui Ontario said the climate of Manitoba compared favorably with that of Ontario. There are, however, slight deviations which are intensely disagreeable. In the summer there are sometimes extremely high winds liail storms, and in the winter of storms and snow — '' blizzards," as they a'-e called. In spring and early autumn frosts sometimes occur, which do no good to the ci'ops ; but all these things apply to the Western States of America just as much as they do to Muniloba. Indians camj) out in their wretched cr.nvas-covered tents during the most severe winters, and white men, when hunting, have often to do the same, and think nothing of it. A curious fact is that Europeans, for the first two winters, bear the cold better than the Canadians themselves. Snow does not fall to any extent till the beginning of the year, and seldom exceeds an average of eighteen or twenty inches in depth. When the thaw comes it is unaccompanied by the abominable slushiness wu have at home ; the snoiv evaporates, leavir ' +he ground dry. During spring and early summer an immense deal of rain fa, drought, which so often ruins the farmer in the United States, never occurs here, xhe dews are so heavy that one would imagine there had been a fall of rain in the night. The seasons are as follows: Si)ring, April and May; summer, .June, July and August, and part of September; autumn, part of September to the middle of November; and then winter. Of course in so extensive a country as ('anada there is some slight ditf'erence in climate. In Ontario the harvest is ten days earlier than in Manitoba. All agree that as regards health the climate of the North- West cannot be surpassed. SOIL. The soil varies much, as it is natural to suppose over so large a tract ; but as a rule it is a rich, black, vegetable mould, working very like clay — rich beyoDd ima- gination — and resting on a marly clay. The depth of the surface soil varies a good deal, in some places nt)t more than ten or twelve inches, in others as many feet. I am informed that chemical analysis have proved the soil to be the best adapted of any in the world i'oi the gjowth of wheat, and certainly ))ractic.al experience bears this out. It 18 very easily worked, becoming as fine ns powder. However, there are all descrip- tions of soil to be hail here, from the heaviest clay to the lightest sandy loam. raoDucTs , Wiieat, of course, is the principal product, barley next, and then ':.t.°. Indj^ii -corn (maize) does fairly in some places, but is not grown to any extent. OiLi' seeuA to ripen too fast, and while it yiokfs a great numboi- of bushels to ^he acre^ ia not his business can .secui'e in Mani- toba heavier yields of any crop tiiat will grow there than he can in this counti'y, and with one-hblt the labor and expense. The natural grass is wonderfully nutritious, and is excellent food for cattle and sheep. Sheep-fanning is getting moVe and more popular every day. Curiously, the sheep seems to ))retei' the (•iKir>er parts of ihe grass. I am doubUul of Manitoba ever being a fruit country; si rawljci'ries, rasp- berries, currants and plums will do well, and grow abundantly "in a wild slate; and I have seen apple trees that looked as if they might bear— it seetnod a struggle with them to hold their gi'ound ; but peaches, grapes, etc., will nnt grow. Melons, t -latoes, etc., can be grown in an 7 quantity, and o\' the very ti nest' description, in ti.e open air. Those I saw I thought finer than any I had seen in Ontario. Garden vegetables of all de>ci'iptions abound, and I was deiighleil by the bla/.e of color ihe flower gardens in fi-ont of the Mennonitos' houses pi'esenled. CULTIVATION. June and July, and, in a wet year, part of August, is the time foi' bi'caking the prairie; the sap is well up in the grass, etc., which is ei'sily killed hy the summer heat when turned up, and the ground is wet, making easy ploughing. Tlo sod is merely pared, the more lightly the better; thefun-ow tu'-ned is about fifteen inches wide. In the autumn or spring the furrows are backset, the j)lough turning about three inches of soil, [n the spring the seen seed, particularly the soft maple, which 1 have seen 18 inches high nine months alter the seed was sown; and plants but ten years old were from 8 to 10 feet Ingh, and quite bushy. These are beautiful and useful trees. The seed is to be had in abundance. It ripens in June, and should be .sown at once, as if it dries it fails to grow. Perhaps 1 h;.ve been too particular in giving these details, but I consider tree cullivatioii of the utmost importance. Nothing can speak more sti-ongly for the luxuriance of the natural grasses, and consequently for the richness of the soil, than the fact that these great treeless prairies do not suffer from drought, and are so wonderfully productive. It is well known that the destruction of forests over large tracts ot country is usually productive of barrenness of the soil from two causes: isi. Moisture is not attracted; 2nd. Any moisture there may be is ev.iporatod from want of protection. Tree planting also has a material effect upon the temperature, and breaks the force of the winds, etc. While I do not say that the North-Wect lequires increasefl dampness, noi- would it, be an improvement in such a cold country, the value of the shelter afforded by plantation, putting other considerations aside, cannot be calculated. If the Government would again put the tree cultuie regulalioni* in force, and have some simple instructions drawn up and circulated among the settlers, and forced the regulations to be I'ightly adhered to, I think it would benetit the country. PENCINO is an easy operation. I have known two men put down an fencing in a day. The snake fence is much used. English mile long of > grow in its oy are ng his oy are • keep, An ox can be to be !s from iir n«iw lown iu . BUILUI.NO is not at all so difficult as I had su|)posed. A .settlei- can, by giving his own labor and that of his oxen, and hiring a man who utiderstanils the building of log-housos, have a comfortable log house put up— about 18 by 22 feet inside, with a good lofi overhead, well thatched, the crevices filled in with brick-clay, and nicely white- washed—for about £15, These huts are warm and comfortable. Bolter class houses are expensive, as lumber is dear in Manitoba, on account of the scarcity of timber. However, brick-clay can be had almost anywhere, and I believe bricks will soon be commonly used. The wooden houses in Winnipeg are being lajVidly replaced by handsome brick structures. WATER . The settlor mu.-t, above all things, make sure that there is a good supniy of water in a neighborhood befoic he decides on taking land thoro. Very often there i> none but brackish water to be had in a whole di liict somclimes oone at all; but, .'is a rule, there is an inexhaustible supply of delicious ww'or to be hud by digging from .6 to 40 feet for it. VVBL. Timber is tho principal fuel, but there are liii-f^e peat-bo^H in the country which, when properly utilized, will yield a fine supply of splendid fuel. It in black, hard peat, and ^iveh an intense heat. There Ih also an ample supply of coal in the Saskat- chewan dintrict, which will come into uhc on the completion of the railway. LAltOK. There are plenty of men to be had, but wagoH are high. A man will earn from 8h. 4nen'ioning; they do not amount lo more than a few ponce an ux-.m. Schools here, as in Onfario, !,re suj»- ported by taxation; of course they are not yet very numerous, biit they a/e quite adequate tor the retjuirements of the country, and will 1 am sure be kept so. PURCHASE AND DIVISION OV LAND. The country is dividetl into bolts, 5, 1.5, 20 and 5') miles wide cm each sido of the railway; these belts aie again divided into townships of t> square miles each; these 87 hoetions again are divided Into (luartor-Mectiona of IfJO acres eai!h. Two sections in each townsLii) aro wot apart for school purposes, and two belong to the Hudson Bay Company. The sections are unilbrmly numbered from the south-easterly to tho iioith-wosterly aii)s to whom success would not be a probability, but a certainty, i.e., men who understand their buiiness, and havo a little capital do not go out there. I coulo, if space permitted, give instanc,o after instan(;oof men who left Ireland paupers and are now well off, many of ihom ric'i ; but is there nooi that I should do so'? Where is the Irish family who has not sonio 12 -tii=i--=.'= 88 lelutivo on the other side of the Atlantic, und that huH not over and over again received that exoeodingiy jdonsing proof of prosperity— a bunk draft from hini ? But these drafts, I am worry to way, are oftonor the fi uit of work done tor others thaii thenifolveH, for 1 was struck by the fact that the Iiish sel(k)m quit the large town^^ in wliich they have to work rnnlly hard for their wages, while they leave these rich lands to bo occiii»ic emigrate to any place, and is not afraid of hard work and some discomfort for a few years, and whose family can got on for a time without the aid of female servants. Sucli a man will, if he has pluck, succeed in time, though ho went with- out a penny, but if he has £100 or £200 in his pocket, he .nay expect to enjoy a prosperous and happy homo in the immeing t-ystem — much grain with. but few cattle. We returned to Port Hope. I could not but come to the conclusion that under a more liberal systeni of farming very nearly as much meat and grain could be produced as in our own country. We here took leave of our excellent and hospitable friend. A SUOCESSFUL EMIGRANT FHOM NORFOLK. We next journeyed to Toronto, a well-built city, very English-lika in the habits and manners of the people. I did not remain here long, as 1 was anxioub to visit some old servants who left my neighborhood some forty-seven years ago to better their position, it being a period of great agricultural depression. This couple landed at Quebec after a six weeks' passage with but ten shilliigs in their jK)ckots. Through nijiuy ti*oublos and privations, they worked their way as far west asGarafraxa, about «)00 miles from Quebec. After a hard struggle, in bringing up a family of twelvj children (four of whom they have lost;, they saved sufi'^cient money to purchase 100 acres of forest, had a rasing bee, and in one day fell" ■! squared sufficient timber to build the walls of a log-hut. The roof is put ol oy more skilled hands. It is said these Canadian woodsmen are so clerer, that with an axe, saw and auger, they can buil'J a house. Having erected this dwelling, my friend commenced cutting d«,srn the sunounding timber. " I watched " says the wife, '• with much anxiety the felling of the first tree, lest it might fall on my house (as does sometimes happen) and destroy it . ' In the course of years, the farn. was cleared, and the soil being rich, these good people ultimately succeeded, and within the last year have sold their farm and are now living in comparative comfort upon their hai-dearned savings. Their sons have also been placed on farms, and their daughters are settled in life. This is but one out of many similar ones. AGRICULTURAL COLLEOB AND MODEL FARM. I Started the following day with a buggy and a pair of horses some twenty miles across country to the town of Guelph, where I visited the Model Farm and Agricul- tural College (supported by the Govei-nment of the Province), at which young men receive a practical aa well as scientific education in farming at a very trifling cost. I found both Mr. Mills (the president) and Mr. Brown (the manager) courteous and Benaible men, well fitted for the positions they held. I was invited to go thiough the 92 m farm, and to critcise fioely. making any HUggestions that I might think deHirablo. [ paw some exeollcnt cattle, eKpecaliy a Hereiord bull. The »heep were also remark- ably good. The root-* were fnii-ly planted, and gooil in size; but although the mangol seed wart ohtainod from one of our crack Ijondon Heedsmen, the bulbs were of various species, presenting a moHt irregular appearance. It was Mi'. Brown's opinion that the cultivation of both mangel and swedes might be increased to advantage throughout the Provinces, and that there would not be difficulty, as had been rcpnv sentea to me, of getting them off before the advent of frosi. Considerable alterations and additions wore being made to the College Farm (for increased cattle and sheop accommodation) which, when complete, will render it one of the most valuable insti- tutions of the Dominion. ENORMOUS ROOTS. I returned by rail to Toi-onto, which is surrounded by districts of great fertility, particularly towards the westward . In the township of Markham I parsed some excel- lent land (clay loiim) which, with draining and good farming, wouli grow tirstrato crops of i;ll descriptions. 1 believe Mr. Reed went over the same land, and was driven by the same gentleman, Mr. Rennie, seedsman, Toronto. On his brother's farm they were busy selecting roots for the Markham show, the weights of which I caretnlly noted. 1 would here explain that the prizes are not given to the best farm or field of roots, but tf) individual specimens, to grow which unlimited space is allotted. The ibllowing v/eights were recoi-ded : — Six long, red mangel, 213 lbs., one of -vhich was 54 lbs.; two mammoth squash (a kind of pumpkin), 556 lbs. The heaviest was 30.} lbs., and girth 8 ft. Six white carrots, taken from the regular field-crop weighed over 4 lbs. each. The general cultivation of this farm could not be surpassed — both ploughing and sowing wore first-rate; indeed, Mr. Ronnie wished me to state that he was willing to enter his brother and brothor-iu-law to compete in any all-England ploughing matches which might henceforth take place. NIAGARA. — PEACH AND Al'PLB FARMING. On my again returning to Toronto, I went to the Falls of Niagara. They tpiile equalled my expectations. One is not surprised at the immense volume of water when the fact is known that it is the outpouring of Lakes Erie, Huron, and Superior into Lake Ontario, thence finding its way by the River St. Lawrence into the sea. Large quantities of peaches and apples are grown throughout Ontario, but it is in the neighborhood of Niagara where they are cultivated in such luxuriance. Peach fann- ing is very protitable. The trees are planted as in an apple-orchai*d, and when in full bearing net n clear profit of about £8 per acre. I was in company with a gentleman from Niagara who had t>0 acres of his farm in peach cultivation. THE TORONTO AGRICULTURAL SHOW. I passed the next three days at the annual Toronto exhibition, where farming stock, implements, and manufactured fabrics were shown. The implements are of the lightest and most effective kind, and were all in motion, driven by machinery beneath the phitform on which they were placed. I noticed a peculiarly constructed grasHCuttor, the knife Ijeing driven without connecting-rods. 1 am not sufficiently mechanical to explain its construction, but it seemed most ingenious, and, if successful, must sooner or later come into general use. I think our agricultural mechanics might, with adv.sntage, attend these shows. The cereals and root-crops were an excellent exhibit. The cattle in so young a country could not, of coui-se, comnaie witi: those exhibited at our best English shows, but they wore creditable. The Here- fords, polled Angus and Ayrshires were well represented from the Model Farm, but many were imported animals. The shorthorns, from the same farm, were of medium quality, but this was amply compensated for by those sent by the other breeders of the district. We also noticed a splendid white four-year-old shorthorn, which would 93 have made hi^ miii-k at eithor Birmingham or London. There wei-o otiioi-H of ilio Humo kind worthy to compete with him. We also noted a splendid while cow (puio shorihorn), and a grand grade red cow four yearn old, nhowing what can be done by crossing with pure bhorthorns. There were also many specimens of younger cattle of Ctinsiderable merit, but owing to the want of catalogues it was impossible to obtain the names of the owners and other desirnble particulars. We saw a pair of beauiilul cows, one bred by Cruikshank of Aberdeen (evidently ot the Booth type), her com- panion a beautiful rod (said to be imported bj' the States) of the Bates type, and a capital milker. Later on, large numbers of the polled Angus arrived, and there were good sprcimons of Canadian-bred Devons, they were of a larger size than those of our homo-brooding, and this applies generally to the cattle bred in the Dominion. I cannot attbril to devote more space to this cla>8, but must not omit to say that [ saw nothing to surpass, or even equal, the magniticont Hereford bull that Mr Brown showed mc at the Model Karm. The pigs wete in large numbers, quite equal to the English breeds. Indeed, my companion, Mr. Christy, of Limerick, thought them generally better, and I noticed throughout the country that the swine were excellent. The horses wei'c not so well represented, excepting a few good imported Clydes- dales. The Canadian cart-horse is rather an undersized animal, bnt has more breed- ing than our English cart-horse, and I can testify to its pluck, speed and endurance. On the prairie you can see the men riding upon elevated seats, driving their horses abreJist, in ploughs turning 11 and 16 inch furrows, at a puce which would astonish our country ploughmen. Indeed, it would do manj of our men good to send them across the Atlantic, if only to he initiated in the art of moving, either on foot or otherwise. It has been found that the Canadian horses ai-e much im|)rovoil by crossing with our big English oarri age-horses, which gives strength with the activity so desirable. We also saw admirable animals (from a cross with the Clydesdale) employed about the railways, breweries, and distilleries, ^or must I forget to mention the hack and harness horses, generally small, but surprising for their pace and endurance. Our English hacks are softer, and coulif not live with them in long journeys over heavy roads. I also saw many good carriage-horses and hunters. There are fox -hounds in Toronto, but they run imaginary foxes over a trail ; ami if the hui-dle-race at this show is any criterion of the power and speed of the horses and of the skill of the riders, I am sure the Toronto hunt would bo in the leading ruck with the fastest pack we have in England. Some sixteen or twenty stai-ted in this, and raced (riders young and old) in scarlet uniform. " They are off ! " The young fellows make the running, taking stiff hurdles :it full speed, clearing them in splendid style, and this on a hard road, round a grass plot. Three of them keep the lead and come in nock and neck. Jo the centre of the show-ground, in a splendid building, was the exhibition of their home-mado wares and fabrics. The latter were interior to our English exhibits of the same class, but it must not be forgotten that Canada is only a j'oimg country as regards her manufactures. At the same time, I could not but think, if England manufactured for thetn a much better and cheaper article (to bo free of duty) that it would be to the advantage of Canadians to apply their spare capital to the much- needed improvement of their stylo of agriculture; but more on this point shortly. I had almost forgotten to mention the sheep classes. The dovns wore well represented, and took the lead in short wools ; but the long-wools, especially the Cotswold and border Leicestors, were the favorites. Generally speaking, the shoe))- breeding in Canada is behind that of cattle, and no doubt will remain so, the winters necessitating their being housed. BXTRAORDINARy SUCCESS OF NORFOLK MEN IN TORONTO. Before leaving the hospitable city of Toronto. I mu-r 200 or ;^00 miles sailing, wo reached Thunder bay, the proposed terminus of the Canadian Pacific fjailway, which is to be the route lor con veyir>g grain and othei- pro, equal to JEltJ IM. 2d.; shrinkage and offal on 1,200 lb., 440 1b.; thus leaving a balance of 760 lb., which at 7d. per lb. realises £22 3s. 4d., showing a profit ( sinking the hide, etc.) of £5 lis. 2d., which compensates the importer for trouble, commission, aii(l food, etc., during the voyage. In charging the cost of the animal 4c. per lb. live weight, I ought to state that 3c. is tho more usual figure, save for animals of the very primest quality. Krom Prince Arthur's landing we steamed to Duluth, a rough, straggling town of some 2,000 or 3,000 inhabitants, whence a train takes us to Winnipeg; the first portion of the journey being of the most rugged description, after vvh.cli we reached tho Minnesota prairie, and travelletl some iiOO miles along a porf'octly level surface. Portions of the land ai-e being cultivated, but tens of thousands of acres are yet unbroken. Concluding a run of 1,200 miles by rail and about 800 b\ lake, we wore in tho city of Winnipeg, containing about 12,000 inhabitants. It has some good nhops and public buiklings, and the people seom to be driving a profitable trade. We took up our quartei-s at the Queen's Hotel ; but the weather was wet and the country was not seen to advantage. For miles round Winnipeg and :ilong the line of tho Canadian Pacific it wa.^ with few exceptions, wet and swampy, the seasou having been an exceptionally wet one. The soil, however is rich, but will require thoi'ough drainage before it can be successfully cultivated in such seasons. We drove out some twenty tnilos to Hoadingley to look over a farni of more th.an 2,000 acres, belonging to the brothers Boyle, conveniently situated on the brnks of tho Assinniboine and a stream called Sturgeon Creek. This firm has opened an office at Winnipeg with tho intention of looking after young men desirous of settling in the country. They will give them the benefit of their advice and o.xperience, ami thus {)revent their being victimised by land-sharks, who have bought up largo tracts of and on speculation in the hope of making fortunes at the expense of tho emigrants. Messrs. Boyle intend taking pupils, for whom they will purchaso land, and are open to act as buyers for other parties in Kngland. We had tho pleasure of crossing the Atlantic with Mr. Henry Boyle, on his way from New Zealand, and can recommend these young Englishmen to any requiring advice and assist- ance. Upon examination of their farm we founil throe feet of rich black soil befoi-e touching solid clay, but it struck us that thorough drainage would impiove it very much. On our return to Winnipeg we found the mayor, the railway con- tractor, and other kind friends had organised a shooting expedition, oni took us the following day some 40 miles up the prairie for a day's sport among the wild ducks and prairie chickens, the majority of the party camping out for the night. Some of us, however, preferied returning to visit the Winnipeg show, of grain and vegetables the day following. The wheat we saw was exceedingly fine, and is valued by millers far and near. Some of the swedes weighed over 22 lbs. each, cabbages averaging 4^ feet in circumference, potatoes exceeding 2 lbs. each, and squash 138 lbs. The)* 96 Tvore also onionn, i-arrots, ]ifli'snipH and other vogotableH shown ol' coiisiderablo merit. AN ACrOUNT OF DR. SUTHKRUANDS .lOURNKY IN TllK NORTH-WEST. Tho day uf'tor wc |)rej)ared for a journey of about 300 miles up the country us tar us Turth) Mountain, ititondinjj to return by way of Pembina Mountain. We pro- vided ourselves with all necessarvfampingequipr.ge, including nuns for duck and prairie birds; but tinding the roads so bad and in places a! lost impassable from the heavy i-jiins — owing to the exceptionally wet seaso-j, such a one not having been experienced ibr thirty years I was told — I only procectled a day's drive beyond Portage Ih Prairie. I found around this place a good farming district, (he land being much ♦ Irier and more undulating. My friend and his companion pushed onwams, but I returned 1o Winnipeg, where I mot with Mr. Eraser Rae, one ct tho Times cori-es- j)Oudents, also the Lieutenant-Governor of the North- West Territory (Mr. Laird), from whom I received valuable information. I also gained much knowledge of the country from Dr. Sutherland, of Toronto, and a practical liirmer from Niagara, the former of whom accompanied the latter in a journey of 1,000 miles — tho details of winch are so interesting and so well authenticated by those who had travelled through the same district, that, in tho interest of my readers, I give th«jm verbatim : — " The route usu'.illy taken in journeys of this description is to enter the country by way of Manitoba, and proceed westward by one of the principal trails. For various reasons I reversed this course, entering the country through the Territory of Montana, uta point some tifty miles east of the Rocky Mountains, proceeding northward as far .as the Saskatchewan Kiver and then east and south-east for a thousand miles to Mani- toba. The entire liistance travelletl in the North- West Territory' and Manitoba was about 1,600 miles. ] left Toronto on the 2lst of June, and travelled by rail, cid Chicago and St. Paul, to Bismarck, in Dakota. This pavtof the journey occupied less than four days. 1 then proceeded by steamer up the Missouri liiver to Fort Benton, in Montana Territory, a distance of 1,200 miles, which occui)ied ten days. From this point the journey was made with horses and waggons. The IIowed, is reckoned at about 276 miles. The country is a vast treeless prairie, with a hard and somewhat arid soil, much of it strongly impregnated with alkali, which also taints tho waters in the streams and pools. The herbage is short and rather scanty, and soems to indicate an insufficient rainfall. There are said to be vast tracts in Montanti suitable for both stock-raising and agriculture ; but certainl}' such is not the charactei" of that part of the territory through which I i)assed. When we reache)sirable during the winter season. I have no doubt, however, that abundant shelter could be found fifty or sixty miles westward, among tho foothills of the liocky Mountains. Experiment alone can prove whether agriculture can be successfully followed in this region. The chief drawback to stock-raising is the nearness of Milk River to the boundary line, and the consequent danger of raids by American Indians. " As wo proceeded northward there was a steady improvement in the quality of the soil, as shown by the rich and luxuriant vegetation, and this continued, with but little intermission, all the way to the North Saskatchewan, a distance from the bound- ary line of some 400 miles by tho trail. In fact, throughout this entire region there is scarcely an acre that could not be utilized either for farming or stock-raising. And even in those parts of the country where it would be necessary to house the «tock during winter, hay is so abundant that a sufficient supply could be obtained at a trifling cost. 9t — ■ — — . . .,,, _ , ■ , . — — _ " After nuHHinj,' Port McLoihI (about SOf) miloa in a direct lino fi-ora the l)oundjiry) (nu course luy parallel with tho Porcupine HilJH, and a short distuncvj to the oast of tlio ran^^o. llore also wo found magnificent stretchoH of rich prairio wniting for the plough; iind 1 wasjnformod on good authority that between tho Porcupine Hills and the Kocky Mountains ihoro^ is a tract of country, say, speaking rou^'hly, 60 to 100 miles in extent, which for stock-raising is unsurpassed on tho Continent, and which, if is liolioved, would bo found equally valuable for agriculture. "Some eighty miles north of Fort McLood wo crossod Shoop Crook, on the banks of which we found tho richest soil and tho moat luxuriant jjustursigo that we had mot with up to that point. Not only on tho level bottoms of tho valley, but over the hills to the north, the rich black soil was of great depth, and where thrown up by the bmlgeis, was as mellow as the soil of a thoroughly worked garden. Timber also, is found on tho banks of this stream, not in large quantities, but sutHciont for building and fencing purposes. Whether the seasons will admit of siiccussful agri- culture, remains to be soon ; but as far as soil and water are concerned, a more atti-activc location could not be desired. " Vov stock-raising purposes, however, by far the best region 1 vi-ite d&yti ill mo inland li tisii of proiiiu'o I . From II OXttiluiH tl III I tic to L'xceoding i it to way, 1 rosomblo ispitality, I nothing Aj'i'icul- 1)11(1, and oi^rot that H report 1 fh. They indH from d a coDi- lut tell itt) tut land in at t of tho fathers, ight have ,ny to sell ulated as* yhood to but few rovioutjly lioHO naen CH of fair )rl,tO. It IK't. But lontinuod iblo thorn whilst 80 H it more tillage, iloyed as cottages* resident abor, and ntor ? I uld go in that I am paMHiiig a hwoi'ping condoinniiiiMii upon nil tho Ontario fni-inorH oi tariniiiir. Far from it ; tor I iiad llio ploiiHiint of vi^iiing many taniiH, <rially on tlioM' licli noIIm wont (il'Toroiiio, wIh'Iv iigi'iciiltiiriMls wtirc (piito alivo to llio iioti'MHiiy of catlloiai^.ng and toodiiig, iiikI aro niiiUing groat ntridos in that diioi-tion. Hut tho-**' woio not tint nun (lesiroiih olHclling llioii" farniH. It '\r* sciircoly noccssaiv li>r nu' to »uy tjiul lbo»o itMiiiirkrt do not apply to Miriiiolm and tlio Noflh-Wti-it Ti'rriloiy . KarnifrH going into tho liiltor Provinco-*, wInTt- tlio soil is virgin, nood not follow llio iinwiso MyHtoin piiiMiu'd in tlio old«r pai'tH o| ('anndii. and tbcri^ Ih no rotiMo*; wliy llioy ^houlll imi ^iirci'od, iCllioy aro not atViiid o| luifil work, and ai(» pos^cN-od of -onio . lo Knglaiii In looking ov*'r iho liiillo"k-t tliey Wfio pi'Oparing (or shipinont, thoy int'ormot nu- lliat during tho piovioiiM lour wooks t hoy had pnichaNi'd ovor li.OOO hoad t'roiii ilio larimirH in tlio lownnhipof Lolio, within iwonty milosof London (Caiiala). a district iioliood tor iIm I'ich ^fvti!^^, tho soil being clayloani. Tho-o oattio woro brought Ironi lainiH ol from 100 to 'iOO acros, each farm looding from thirty to sovoniy bond. I'lioy woro lioiighl by tho ownors in a loan ntalo at from iL^ to C!* oach, and sold otV tho grasx at from £\H to £M> per lnMid. Much of tho land in tin* wostorn part of t)iilariocan bodovotod to iirazitig piirposos. The principal foodorn during tho wintor aro located in tlio rountios of ^.ollington, (juelph, Klora. Forgii?', (Jalt, Walorloo, and ibo iiiljoining noighborhoiKlw. Tboy agrooil with n\o that if i-alMo woro s;ippliold.s, ii would bo jirotitablo to tho tarmor. Thoy added : " But it must bo borne in mind that tho oxporl tiado is only of rocopt dato. Fivo years ago only a thousand head bad boon sbip|ied to (treat Mritain Our markets previously had boon Albany, Bi)st<»n and Now York ; but iho oiitragoous duty of 20 per ooiit. laid upon us by tho Amoricans for all live f*to(!k, and their own inciroasing Nupplies, provontod the triMlo proving vory Kimunorative, and farmers received no oiicouragoment. Itut now that thoy have iin assinod market in Kngland the improvement has boon rapid, ami wo are \'early increasing our exports. Tho improvo, vvitb miller's ott'al to be obtained at nominal prices, and bran, which possesses .so many nutritive properties, soiling at loss than six cents per stone, there can be nooxciisofor tarmorsnotkoojung more stock njion their farms If tho English land wore cultivated upon so penuriou- a principle general bankruptcy would be the rosult. Hero a man with 100 acres in tillage would bo expected to stall feed from twonly-tivo f.o thirly-tivo bullocks, upon each of which he would spend some £5 or £6 per head (in aiMilion to roots) upon artificial footling. It is not surprising that with such farming in ('uiiada so miicb land should bo for sale in Ontario, and now offering at prices ranging from £10 to £15 per acre, which cost tho early pioneer little or nothing. In favored localities it might perhaps command hi'jher rates, but present pro.speets would seem to denote a further roiluction. [t maylbe asked if the purchase of such land would not bo a fair speculation for English farmers. My reply must be in tho affirmative, provided that two or three occupations could be laid together. In Canada, farms are occasionally rented at from «2 to $5 per acre, but they aro neither subject to tithe ror jjoor rate. 13—7** WJi From Is. to 28. por'acre would cover educational'and other charges. Connected with the question of tithes is the fact that poor as Canada is in comparisor with England, her people build ihurches (many Episcopalian), and pay their own ministers; nor can a stranger travelling through any of hei" country districts fail to notice that her people have more reverence for i-eligion and more loyalty to their sovereign than the inhabitants of many older countries. After u most enjoyable and instructive visit, of which I shall long retain pleasing rccol lections, I took my leave of Canada, and embarked on boaid the Allan steamship Sardima7i on Saturday, October 9th. THE RETURN VOYAOE. Our return voyage was all that could be liesircd, and, barring a delay of eight hours during a log off Belle Isle, we ran, accoiding to log, an average of 300 miles daily, arriving in Liverpool at two p.m. on Monday, October 18th. We only brought home about fifty saloon passengers, amongst whom were Sir Hugh Allan, the princi- pal owner of the Allan Line, and Bishop Tokc, of the Reformed National Church. Another of our passengers was Miss Annie Macpherson, of Spitnltields, London, who interested me in her work among the peiishing children of that great city. During the past ten years she has rescue and trained several thousands of children, and has crossed the ocean twenty four times. On an average 250 children have gone with her to her Farm Home at Gait, Ontario, where they remain till proper situations are found them. Many a sorrowful story of desertion tills her heart ; orphans and others thrown upon the streets by the inhumanity of drunken parents. She assured me that Canada had been a God-opened way for these waifs, and that 98 out of every 100 were doing well. They are principally placed with lurmers, who agi-ee to keep them, giving them board and lodging and six months' schooling each year. They get $2h for their services, with an annual increase; .so that at seventeen or eighteen young men are able to hire themselves out at gotxl wages. Ten pounds enables Miss Macpherson to rescue another life and give it a htart in Canada. May God speed the work ! THE REPORT OF MR. PHTER IMRIE, OF CAWDER-CUILT, MAHGHtLL, LANARK. The first i-emark it occurs to make to such as may he thinking of emigrating to Canada is tha* the voyage across the Atlantic (at least in an Allan Line steamship) is entirely pleasant. In the saloon you have a high degree of luxury, in the inter- mediate cabin a considerable degree of comfbi-t, and in the steerage very tolerable iiceommodation, witu plenty of good, plain food. I made it a point to look into these matters for myself, and also convei'sed with the different classes of passengers on the Hubject. But I fancy there will be few emigrants of any class who will consider themselves at the end of their journey when they leave their Atlantic liner at Point Levis. There is nothing to attract the emigi-ant, or at all events the agricultural emigrant, in the neighborhood of Point Levis. J fancy many a one might do worse than take a look at ttie fCastern Townships of the Province of (Juebec before proceed- ing further westwai-d. These townships are easily reached b^' Gi-and Trunk Railway from Point Levis, via Richmond and Sherbi-ooke, the last named town being the capital of the townships, and situated at the junction of the railways running eastwanl through the new settlements of Scotstown and Lake Megantic and south-east to the United States, through the older settlements of Compton, Eaton, Stanstead, etc., etc. Government land in the Eastern Townships is to be had at 60c. per acre. It is «ll dense forest; and in many sections the roads are few, and bad and far between. I could not recommend any emig}-ant from Scotland to go in for these lands. Better buy a partially improved lot. Such rnay be had in any district at little more loted with England, ers ; nor that her I than Ihti visit, of nnda, and of eight JOO miles y brought he priiici- l Churth. idoii, who During 1, and hus ;one with itions are ind others ed me that ^ 100 were 3ep them, ■/ get $25 on young bios Miss speed the ating to eamship) le inter- tolerable into these rs on the consider at Point •ic'ultural do worse proceed- Railway eing the eastwai-d St to the etc., etc. e. It \H between. landH. Itle more 103 than the COc. per acre, jo/us actual cost of improvements effected. Of such improvementa the tirst is that of road making, the cost of which is laid upon all adjoining lands in the form of a tax. But the most important, of course, is the catting down and burning of the timber, or of such portion of it as may not be worth saving. Unless in unfavor- ably situated localities, I believe it pays to market all the cedar, pine and spruce that may be upon these lands, and perhaps one or two varieties besides these; out all the oiher wood (and that will be the great bulk of forest in most cases) is fit ior nothing but the flames. It near a largo town, however, suou as Sherbrooke, portio.is of the otherwise useless wood may be sold at faii-ly remunerative rates as firewoodi In fact, in a very '^old winter I understand any industrious man may mtike 82.00 per day of clear profit at this work, and if he employs men besides himself his protits may, of coui*se, be relatively increased. But rough or forest land in such favored localities cannot be purchh^od under $6 an acre, or thereabouts. The cost of cutting and burning the wood, so us to leave the land tit for ploughing, varies somewhat accord- ing to circumstances, but I believe may bo sot down generally at about $15 per acre. Of course the stumps »ve left in the ground for several years, to allow them the necessary time to die and grow easy of removal. After the cutting and burning of the wood is done with, and any large stones removed, it is usual to ^jlough the land roughly, and to take off a crop of wheat or potatoes, or both, afterwai-ds sowing down for hay or pasture, in which state it will remain until the stumps are i-eady for removal. Xow, as already remarked, the cost of bringing the forest land to a state of readiness for this course of cropping may be set down at $15 per acre. There are plenty of Frenchmen and others who are clever ut using the axe, and at all the other processes in forest clearing, who will d > the ■work by contract at the figure named, or even less; and the tirst crop of wheat, manured with the ashes of the burnt forest, may, I am told, be reckoned upon to yield 20 or 2,5 bushels per acre, notwithstanding the presence of the stumps. With a fairly good market, it is considered that this crop alone should very nearly pay the cost of clearing, thus leaving the farmer with a piece of really good grazing land, at a price which can never be high, and which, I fancy, must in many cases be merely nominal. When the time comes for extracting the stumps, say in six or seven years, there will, of course, be a considerable outlay of capital necessary for the perform- ance of that operation. Of course the amount will depend very much on the nature of the soil, and very much also on the number and character of the stumps. Six dolltu-6 per acre was about the figure mentioned to me in more than one quarter, as a fidr quotation for this description of work, but I am bound to say I am inclined to think the job hard at the money. Ten dollars, or two pounds per acre, would pi-o- bably not be too much to pay to get the work properly carried through, and even at that I cannot but think the farmer would have his perfectly cleared land at a price of which he could have little reason to complain. In some part.s of the townships the forest is not the only obstacle that has to be dealt with, huge boulders being also rather too plentiful. There are some stones even on the most choice sections ; of that no one would complain, but I saw some other sections where these boulders were so numerous as to render the land practically worthless. Parties who think of purchasing land in these townships should, therefore, be careful to find out before they do so that they are really purchasing land, and not merely stones. A good deal of inspection may be necessary on this point, as, where there is a rank forest growth covering up everything, a merely cursory glance in passing through the forest may detect no stones at all— no matter how plentiful they niay actually be— except of course the very large stones, which no amount of vegetation will suffice to hide. Another point wortuy of being kept in mind by the intending settlor is, that in the case of lands under cultivation, much of which is offered for sale is completely run out. Where this is the case, I am told that it will often cost more lo put the land in good heart than it does to bring wild land into cultivation. Gi-eat care must therefore be exercised by parties purchasing. Purchasers should also be ^;areful to employ a respectable solicitor, so as to make sure of getting a good tit'e 12— 7i** 104 before paying away any money. I hoard of several cases-: of great hardship through neglect of this necessary precaution. iSpeaking generally, I think I might venture to sjvy of the cleared land in the Eastern Townships of Q"obeo Province that it is probably about equal in quality to the average run of land in Ontario (a Province whicii 1 have also visited), and I must say that f think the townships have several very material advantages over the more popular Province i-eferred to. In the first place, land is much cheaper in the Eastern Townships than in Ontario; I think I might venture to say 30 per cent, less, for equal qualities of land and housing. For a home mai-kot they are probabl'- about equally good ; and, for an export market, the townships have the great advautago of being in close proximity to several fii-st-rato seaports. The flat lai ds in the Eastern Townships are of really high quality. These lands aie, of course, worth a good deal more than the cost of clearing them. In fa' i I believe some of them may run as high as S70 per ticre. But that would mean very fine land, and favorably situated. The same land in the neigborhood of Glasgow would be worth £3 per acre, or thei-eabouts, to rent. The hilly land (which is much more plentiful than the flat land, in the sec- tions of the townships with which I happened to make most acquaintance) is not of the same value by any means, being generally too light and sandy, and I think perhaps fully as badly affected with rocks and stones. But, of course, it is relatively cheaper. On the whole, I would incline to think that an industrious man, with a few hundred pounds of capital, might reckon on being able to make a living in these Eastern Townships without much risk of ruination — certainly much les.s risk of that than at home. And he might also find himself growing gradually richer, in a manner, through the increasing value of his farm. But it is noplace for any man who wants to grow rich in a hurry ; at least for the present it is not so, I feel very sure. There can be little doubt that this is a healthy and good country for stock- raising — the soil being mostly dry, the air clear and invigorating, and the entire country well watered. I saw many young beasts grazing among the stunips, and thriving well. Disease is, I believe, unknown, in its most serious forms at alleventi. Hoi-ses also do very well. 1 do not know wfiether it is the clear, bracing air that favors them, but I think they are generally longer winded than the driving horses we have at home. Sheep also thrive well, and good sorts are frequently to be met with. If stock-rearing (without fattening) for the English market will pay in any part of Canada, 1 incline to think the Eastern Townships of the Province of Quebec may be as likely a locality for it as any I had the privilege of coming across. And I believe it is a trade that will pay fairly well, so long at least as the colony may retain the good fortune of being exempt from contagious diseases. I will close my remarks on the townships with the following extract from my diary, viz. : " Drove from Sco'stowu lO Compton, and thence to Lonnoxville, a very long day's driving. The country improves all the way, and at Compton there are many really fine farms — especially those in the valley. Visited the Hillhurst farm, belonging to the Hon. Mr. Cochrane, and saw his famous Duchess cow, now twelve years old, and the mother of ten calves, two of which I saw. The other eight realized $130,600, or an aver..ge of £3,000 a head. Saw also a pure Duke bull, and two others of the purest Bates blood. Mr. Cochrane is just starting a herd of Herefords, which he thinks will be the best breed for the groat North- West; he has got fifty cows to begin with. Visited also the Hon. J. H. Pope's farm. The apparent comfort of the farmers hereabouts would seem to indicate that the clearing and subsequent farming of land in this quarter are not by any means discouraging occupations. "Learned that there are always plenty of partially cleared farms for sale in the Eastern Townships, owing to Manitoba fever (which means the tendency to emigrate to Manitoba) and to ordinary domestic causes, farmers here thinking about as little of selling their farms as those at home do of selling their crops." Coming back from the Eastern Townships to the main line of the Grrank Trunk Railway, we journey onwai-ds to MonM-eal. The intervening country is still chiefly in the hands of French Canadians. Cultivation, however, appears to improve jome- 103 p through nd in the quality to lid I must • the more er in the eont. less, ibh about miitago of le Eastern good deal an as high ited. The ereabouts, in the sec- ) is not of id I think relatively with a few ig in these ibk of that a manner, who wants ire. J for stock- the entire tunips, and . all event!, ng air that ing horses to be met .n any part uebec may is. And [ ay retain from my LUo, a very there are mrst farm, low twelve Iht realized two others Irds, which [y cows to tort of the it farming sale in the emigrate |ut as little Uk Trunk till chiefly I'ove jomo- 'what fi'om the moment Quebec is left until^tontreal is reached. The quality of the land appears also to grow gradually better, and it is also somewhat more extensively el eared. Travelling westward from Montreal, we leave the Province of (Juobec and enter that of Ontario. On arriving at Ottawa, I arranged to leave the inspection of Ontario to Messrs. Sagai and Curtis ; Mr. Broderick and myself proceeding at once to Manitoba. On my return journey, however, I spent about a week in Ontario; and, although so short an inspection is not siitHcient to wai-rant any attempt at a comprehensive report. I asceitained a few fact^ which seemed to me to indicate that the profits of farming iit this Province cannot be great. For instance, from all the information I could gather from hankers and merchants, as well as from farmers themselves, i was led to the conclusion that ('om|)aratively few of the farmers lay past money. One man who has relations farming in West of Scotland, confessed that they made more out of their capital, on an average, than he did. Another sign that farming in Ontario is not over-profitable is the undeniiible heavy emigration to Manitoba. Ancjther circum- star/je indicating the same conclusion is the fact that the hope of the farmers of Ontario appears, by all accounts, to lie chiefly in the raising of cattle for exportation tt) England — an enterprise which, 1 feel sure, cannot be reckoned upon to leave any great profit to the fsirmer ; so that, if that is their best prospect, I am unable to see how their general prospects can be satisfactory. Taking land and labor at their present prices in Ontario, a three-year-old ox can- not be raised there so much as £y cheaper than in England, and it costs that to tiansport him from the one place to the other, and to pay expenses of marketing. Moreover, this £9 does not include the profit of the exporter, which would require to bel£i per head more at least in a business where considerable losses a i-e so inevitable. The Ontarian farmer would thus appear to work at a disadvantage of £il jier head as compared with the English competitor. Against this he has (1) a lower rent to the extent of about £1 per acre in the case of fair average land ; this would come to £6, or say £7, of the cost of raising a threo-y ear-old; in every other respect the cost of producing f'oddei- and other feed is nearly as high as at home. But (2) the Ontari»n has less money in his beast, and thus saves interest to the extent of, say £1. This leaves the Englishman with £3 of an advantage, a good part of which he must write off against risks from disease; whereas the Ontarian has to make no such ])rovision. At present, therefore, the Ontarian can only compete with us in cattle-raising by working at a smaller profit, and if he had disease to contend with he could not do it. In short, but for this really precarious consideration, I venture to say that cattle- raising would be a distinctly less profitable occupation in Untario than in England, as things go at present. 1 cannot see. therefore, how land is to maintain its present value in Ontario any more than in England ; and indeed, if they come to have cattle diseases to contend with, the fall in the value of land there will be by so much the greater than with ourselves. In point of fact, 1 suspect that Manitoba and the far west (to which so many of the Ontarians themselves are emigrating) will drive down the value of.land and of farm produce at least as seriously in Ontario as in Great Britain, s<> that it is hard to see where there would be an}^ advantage in emigrating to that part of Canada. Of course, if the current prices of land in Ontario be further reduced, without any cor- responding reduction of rents at home, then I would believe in emigration to Ontario ; but, for the present, the landowner of Ontario seems as unwilling as the English landlord to j'ield to the fact that our ever-increasing facilities of transport have prac- tically added the vast fertile plains of the far west to our supply of available grain and cattle producing land, thus rendering that supply so much in excess of the demand that prices must come down and down with every increasing facility for transport. The only way to stop this decline would be for the Governments of Canada and the United States to place such a price on their unpeopled territories as would prevent settlers thereon from pi-oducing more cheaply than the Ontarians and ouiselves. So long as there is m price put upon these vast and mo^t fertile regions— so long as they continue to he oft'cred to all mankind for nolhirttj — wo long, I say, n)ust the value of land, holh in Kngland and elfewheve, be ^veined strictiy by the coHt of produilion in these new regions, plus the mere cost of transportation to Ontario, or England, or elsewhere, as the case may be. Now, as the expenses of transportation must neces- sarily decrease with every new mile of railway westwaids, and with every new invention in the locomotive ])OWers, and as there is no probability of either Canada or the States altering the present policy with respect to unsettled territories, it stands to reason that the value of land cannot fail to decline to that point (whatever it may be) at which the cost of production in the new countiy pins transpoitation to the old, becomes exactly equal to rent plus cost of production in the Old Country. There is no escape from that law. And if we assume that the cost ot production in the ok) and the new countries may remain relatively pretty much as thej- are at 1)reeent, then the rents here and the prices of farms in Ontano cannot possibly rise, )ut must alike continue to fall with every iail of fieightage from the far west. Jn these circumstances it is awkward to be tied down to :i long lease in England, but it is equally awkward to be tied down to a proprietorship in Ontario, and will remain so until the Ontarians recognize their proximity to the gratuitously acquired farms of Manitoba and the North-Wost, by a reduction of say 25 to 50 per cent, in the prices they put upon their land. If they were to do that at once, and before English landlords came to see the necessity of doing something similar, they might reasonably expect a good flood of superior emigrants ; but not otherwise. Assuming that some Onlarian farmers may soon incline to part with their holdings at the I'eduction 1 have ventured to indicate, I may now say that Ontario generally is an agreeable place. I would think the climate (so far as my experience and information go; preferable to that of Scotland, or even to that of England probably. The dry dear air renders even the hottest days v.o way oppressive. As to the land it is very much like the iand at home, some of it very good and some of it very middling. Its goodness or badness depends also very much on the way in which it is treated. So there is little use talking about the number of bushels of wheat or tons of turnips per acre. But for fruit-growing I never saw the like ot Ontario — the peaches especially. If anything would tie me to Ontario, it would be the peaches. I believe most of the country within a few miles of Lake Erie is suited to the production of this fruit in its greatest perfection. Apples grow to perfection througnout the entire Province ; and I believe both they and peaches yield a good profit if skilfully managed. I shall win(1 up those remarks on Ontario, with a few extracts from my diary : 1th August — Sailed from Sarnia for Duluth, whence we travel by rail to Manitoba. In the steamer I fell in with a Mr. Allison, who has farmed in Ontario for many years. He eame originally from Stri'thaven. With regard to clearing land in Ontario, he, as well as another experienced Ontarian who was with him, informed rae that an average man can clear ten acres every winter; a good man will do an acre a week. And after burning the wood and scatteiing the ashes, and scraping the land with a V harrow, may sow wheat, and reap about forty bushels per acre the first year, the soil being well manured with the ashes. Part of the timber is of course reserved for fencing. The snake fence is by far the cheapest in Canada. Quickset gets eaten up by mice in winter, and straight fencing is expensive, owing to the necessity of putting the posts in very deep (say three feet), so as to prevent them being thiown out when the thaw sets in. Dairy stock pays pretty well : can draw about 845 per cow, feeding on grass in summer and hay and straw in winter. Few farms are wholly cleared. Clearing is admitted on all hands to be a very heavy job; but with oi'dinarj'^ industry and perseverance, Mr. Allison firmly maintained that a man •nay begin on a forest lot and make his way steadily to fairly comfortable circum- stances; and, of course, only a very small capital is wanted to beg'n with ; in fact many have started with nothing but an axe and a small stock of provisions. '^5th September.'— Met a farmer from near Niagara, who considers farming, on 1 he whole, fiairly profitable, especially fruit-gi-owing ; wheat on well-farmed, well- manured land yields as much as thirty-five bushels per acre ; maize and artificial VIllllO of uduclion jiand, or si noces- eiy new [• Cuiiuda itoricH, it vhatevei- tation to Country, action in ly arc at Ibly rise, it. England, and will acquired cent, in id before y might ith their Ontario perionce England 'e. jood and 1 on the f bushols e like ot «rould be is suited Ejrfection a good iiary : Manitoba. many land in •med rae acre a the land the first course juick^et 5 to the nt them ,n draw Few vy job ; it a man circum- in fact 1, , on 1 he well- tificiuL 107 grasses are the other crops in his rotation, with one year fallow. His land, like all land near Niagara, is pretty sandy; thinks fruit-growing prospers best near tho lakes. A farm near Niagara, with say 10 \m- cent, ur.der fruit'-ti-ees, and with good housing, is stated by the gentleman referred to, to be wortii 3100 per acre overhearl ; but farms without any considerable orchard may bo had at 8t)0 per aero, even if of high quality otherwise. This gentleman consitlors that with careful and liberal management, an Ontario farm of 2U0 acres, of avenigo quality, should maintain its owner, and give him 81,000 per aimutn to put in the bank in lieu of rent. Ol course this 81,000 roj)resents interest on the value of the farm, say $12,000, and stock, say $5,000, which is equal to about H nor cent, on the money invested ; the farmci's own labor being thrown in against the board and lodging of himself and family. 2'ith September.— Went thiough Thompson, Flannigan k Co 's byi-os at Toronto, whole about 4,000 bullocks are fel on distillery slop for six months, commencing abiuit the Ist November. The slop is forced through pipes fiom Gooderham and Worts' distillery, a mile ofl", and is run right into the cattle iroughs, atSH per head for the season. This, with a littlo hay, islhe only food they get. With the facilities mentioned, four men attend to 510 cattle. I learned that these cuttle must clear ri.'is. jtoi- cwt. in Glasgow or Liverpool to make the trade pay, though it' there were few accidents 60s. might not involve positive loss. These are not the best quality of cattle exported. The best are those which have been grass fed, and then finished ott" with corn ; it does not do t(, ship grass-fed beasts without this finishing, as they would be soft and would lose seriously on the voyage. 1 am told good store stock is getting rather scarce in Canada now. iiOth September. — Met an intelligent farmer from Huron county. He says farm hands aie getting very scarce there, owing to the emigration to Manitoba . This farmer, as well as many others with whom I have conversed, inclines to name $>0 per acre as a fair average for a good fa»'m in Ontario, if, without any special advantage, such as pi'oximity to a large town. To buy such a farm and stock it would probably not i-equire very much more capital than would be required merely to rent and stock a similar farm at home ; but neither would the return be any greater over a term of yoais, pi'obably a good deal less generally, and with no better prospects of selling out to ndvantnge. The risks of serious and overwhelming loss are, however, decidedly fewer- in Ontario than at home ; so that farraei-s with barely sufficient capital to carry on their business, and unable on that account to stand through two or three bad seasons, such as Groat Britain is occasianally visited with, might be able to keep out of difficulty in Ontario for a lifetime, which, so far, is a compensation for the generally small profits of the calling in that country. To retired merchants, half- pay officers, and other amateurs endowed with agricultural instincts, and with some independent income, I fancy that, on that account, Ontario might be considered proterable to either England or Scotland ; especially would I venture to commend to such gentlemen the tract of country from Niagara westward, along the shore of Lake firie, where tho pleasure ot growing peaches and other fine fruits can be advantagously added to the more ordinary occupations of the farmer. To the practical farmer — to the man whose pleasure in the occupation is measured strictly by the i»rofit — I have no hesitation in saying that, as prices of land go at present, the Eastern Townships are preferable to Ontario for cattle raising, and that Manitoba is vastly preferable to both of them for grain growing. I almost forgot to mention that no one should on any account buy land hurriedly in Ontario. It is jwrticularly advisable to look at severalplaces and make numerous iiKiuiries before purchasing, because the prices of land are in a transition stage there at ])iesetit, so that as much is often put ujwn a bad place as upon a good one, according as the seller may happen to think moderatelj- or extravagantly of the prospects of the place, or, in other words, accoiniing as the seller may happen to be ".live or not alive to the depreciating infiuence which the opening up of Manitoba is liound to exercise upon the value of land in Ontario. ■i 108 Perhiips the sim])lost way of Hxiii,<; the vuhie of lunil in Oiilurio in the followitiy: 1. As there is alwiiyn 11 surpliiH of agi'icultui'ul ])ro(ltico to export to Knjfland, ]>rict'8 ill Orituiio are naturally the same as in England, minus the cost of trun«|)ort- ation thithoi-. "i. Land is of much tin; same qualilicH, and labor much about the same expense in eilhei' countiy, scj that, (t/iart from rent, the eost of jn-odiiction will be the same in either. ;■{. The value of an acre of land in Ontai'io is, therefore, just as much less than the fame iti Knglaiid as it costs t(Mransporl the produce of such land to Et),nlarid. 'Jims itii acrt^ of vvoil-farmed land in Ontai-io will produce Ii5 bushels of wheat; and to transport same to England, from, say Toronto, will, under ordinaiy circumstances. cost abou*: • 5t^.. so that the ivnt of the land ought to be 35s. less in Ontario than in England. In the same way we may count that a good three-year-old bullock represents a j'ear's prmiuce ol about six acres of fairish land (besides labor), and it will cost at least £11) to cover all expenses of sending to Kngland and pa} iiig the e.vporier for his tiouble ; so that for cattle raisirrg the Ontario land would requins to be 33s. 4d. cheaper than the English to cover thai expense.='= MANITOBA AND THE NOUTIIWEST. The immense territory indicated by these titles is of the most varied qualities. Vast tracts ai-e barren and worthless — vast tracts are extremely fertile. Again, narrowing down our view to any particular locality, it will be found just as at home, that a very fine piece of land may lie alongside a very middling piece. Bog and dry land, especially, are varieties to be found in very frequent contigiiity. So also in tlie same section you will often find the soil much thinner at one place than at another. And, again, over so enormous an expanse of territory, there are necessarily varieties of climate, which of course also materially affect the agricultural properties of the localities in which they pirvail. On the whole, therefoi-e, it is not safe to indulge in general statements regarding this territory. And, on the other hand, it is beyond the bounds of practicability for us to treat of every locality particulai-ly. We will, therefore, attempt to treat of a small nart only; and, indeed, for all practical purpf)ses of emigration, it is not necessary to cfo anything more than that, as emigrants going out now will naturally settle either among those already out or just beyond them. We will therefore confine our remarks almost entirely to those parts of the country that are are alieady settled, and a little way beyond. This will not carry us more than 250 miles west of Winnipeg. The Red liiver Valley, in which Winnipeg is situated, is covered to a depth of probably over two feet on an average, with the richest soil I saw in all my travels. But a veiy large ])roportion of it is too wet for cultivation. These b<\ggy ]>arls yield heavy crops of hay — rather coarse looking stuff, but undeniably nutritious, and not distasteful to the beasts. It is an open question whether these wet tracts will admit of being thoroughly drained, owing to the extremely level character of the valle}'. 1 feel pretty sure that tile drains will do at all events, both because of there being too little fall, and because of the severity of the frosts, wbich will go deeper than the tiles could be put, and would be certain to disturb them serious'y. I fancy theiefbie that open drainage is the only kind practicab'e, and this is already being taken in hand by the Government. The plan of the Government is to cut good- sized ditches ;U right angles to the rivers, and to let the settlers drain their fands into these, by means of plough furrows, or shallow open drains. Fortunately the soil is well suited to this sort of drainage, for it has been found that once a ditch is cut and set running, it has no tendency to till up, but rather wears gradually deeper and wider, so thiit in time these Government ditches will no doubt become small rivers. These ditches will of course require to be paid for by means of taxation. If the Red River * NoTK.— It sliouhltju meniioiu'd that only a small quantity of the land in Ontario is rented; the fanners generally being their own landlords ; also that the taxes are light, rarely exceeding about Is. 6d. per acre, and that the cost of living is clieaper than in Kngland. ollowiny : Kn^rlnnd, truiiHpurl- I expense > same in loss tlian Ed^laiid. leut ; and mstancos. ) than in J bullofiv •r), and it i^iiig (he i'Cf|nin! to qualitiuH. Again, at home, i; and dry Iso in the another. varieties ies of the ndulge in Bvond the We will, j)urpf)He8 nts going nd them. country us more a depth II all my ce b<>ggy utritious, 'et tracts racter of ■ because 1 will go rjus'y. 1 a 1 read 3' cutgood- inds into 16 soil if» cut and id wider, These id River inted ; tlie lout Is. 6(1. 109 Viilley land can be drained at anything like a small tinuie, 1 liavr im lif-iil.t it would pay to do it even just now, m, when dry, it is undeniably iho best wheat land on the American continent. In any case, i1 will pay to drain it some day, no matter what the cost; though of course it would bo foolish in the Government, or any individual proprietor, to la}- out any heavy expenditure on it just now, while theio is yet abund- ance of nearly as good land dry iincl ready for (he plough in the iinmediale neigh- borhood. As for tiie naturally diy land of the Red River Valley in .Manitoba, all I can say is that there is notliing like it. The wheat crops which it jiroducesdo not. it i> true, show such an average as woul.1 be considered great in Kt)gland ; but that is not tho fiiidt oi the land. I sujjpose the farmers titid that it pays them bettei- to till a big brejidth badly than a small breadth well. At all events that is what they .seem inclined to do. But witiud, the extent niider cultivation is still insigniti not a better tract of land than this, and of equal extent, in all Manitoba. The value of land in this quarter is a thing not easy to fix. Some men seek as high as 815 per acre, while others, with equally good land, would sell it at half that, or oven less. This district is already penetrated by the Canadian Pacific Railway. Of course there is no. free-grant land now obtainable here, so that it may not suit emigrants of small means; but, for men with £1,000 or upwards of cajutal, I incline to think it is worthy of attention. Its better situation and its higher (|Uidity render it all its price more valuable than the lands of the Vur West. Wood and water are also pretty easily procurable hereabouts. Asa result ot a gooti deal of inquiiy, I believe wheat can be produced in this quarter at 2s. per bushel just now ; but, with the natural development of facilities, it may probably beeome practicai'le to produce it profitably at even a lower figure, the land wants so little labor and so little manure. Wnen the new railway is ready, as it will be very sooi», it will bo easy to (iclivei- this wheat in England at about Is. 6d. per bushel ; so that once Manitoba m.t^ fairly .set agoing, it is hard to see how wheat in Flngland is to average over 3s. (kl. per liushel. ;6ut it will take time to come to that. For the jircsent, farnuM^ in Manitoba have so little capital in comparison with the extent of their lands, that only very trifling areas get put under crop. There can be no mistake, howevor, as to the merits of the country for wheatgrowing. No part of the Unite within comparatively easy aocess of Kmer.son railway station, so that, on the whole, i think farmerii wivh meana might advantageously invest ill it, if the Government be prepared to sell at a reasonable rate — say Hve dollars per acre; and I K-arcely expect, from anything 1 know, that they will ask more. At that price, an energetic man of fair means — say £J per acre — would be able to clear off the cost of his land the very first year, so that he would ever afterwards be as woll off as if he had taken up free-grant land, and he would, of course, have his immediate market, and otherwise advantageous situation, all to the good, hiniigrants with lueaiis ("ihoiiM certainly keep these ciicmiistances in view. If they go away Far West, where then* is no railway, nor market for prcxUice, they must sit still till such arrive. If, ou theolliei- hand, they spend five to ten dollars an aci e in the purchase of first-class land immediately accessible to a market or to a railway, they may clear off all the purchase- money the which the settler on the five-grant lands further west is waiting for the railway to arrive, before he can begin operation at all extensively. Throughout the lied Rivor Valley (and it is larger than all Scotland) there are many tracts of fine land besides the two [ have referied to. And then there are also many sections, which are partly iliy and partly wot; but for the present these need not ite particularly referred to, except to say that anyone whose fancy lies towards a place of that kind, would require to be careful where he planted his house, so as to ensure for himself a dry road to the outer world at all seasons. I do not know that I need explain that a vast extent of the Rod River Valley is in the hands of speculators, who bought it up from the Half-breeds. These Half- bi'oeds had 1,400,000 acres allotted to them bv Government, a great deal c.f which has got into the hands of various speculators in Winnipeg and elsewhere. In many such cases a bottle of whiskey was sufficient to buy a farm. Then again, all the land, for two to four miles back, along the banks of the Bed River and the Assiniboine, was originally allotted in strips to the discharged servantB of the Hudson's Bay Company, who still hold them to a considerable extent, but are mostly willing to sell at reasona- ble rates. If I were buying a farm in Manitoba, I would think it an important advantage to have one or more of these river strips in addition to any other land I might have, so as to ensure a supply of wood, which, for the present at least, grows hardly anywhere in Manitoba, except along the banks of these large rivers. The unlimited supply of water is also an advantage, though there are few places in which water may not be had by means of wells. « It ia well enough known that the river water is not very good, and that the well water even is not all good ; in fact, much of it is very middling, and plenty of it very bad. There seems little reason to doubt, however, that good water will be found in ample quantities in all localitie.s bj' means of deeper wells than can be conveniently sunk by settlers generally just now. In concluding my remarks on the soil of this most splendid valley, I have to say that, for the present at least, it is disagreeable in wet weather. The mud is something quite incomparable in point of stickiness, and the rain brings forth small frogs in millions. The settlers make .soup from the hind-legs of these creatures, and declare it to be very fine. I never tasted it. There ;8 not such a thing as a hard road in the country, so that the mud is a thing that cannot he escaped ." one goes out of doors at all in wet weather. Even the streets of Winnipeg arc still innocent of all haitl material, except the footpaths, so that, after a day's rain, the horses are up beyond their knees and the carts to their axles. Things, however, will no doubt gradually grow right in all those respects ; for it is really in- conceivable that a country so extremely capable of furnishing forth the necessaries of lifie, should remain for ever disagreeable in any respec;. that admits of being mended Ill a thing streets t, after Tbingy, Uy iu- ries of tended l»y tho inhubilaiitM. Ol coiii'so it will tiiko time to biin;;' alKtiil tliewe iniproviMijunLs, hut probably not at lony timt-.- Thoie iiru iibnnduiil ^uppliuN of giuvol and loml- motiil now, obtainable for VVinnipi'i,' by nioanfHoJtlie railway. In ibocoiintiy dUtiicts, liowever, rnotal roadh may lomain .scaivo lor many a day; and, in fact, witli tlio exception o( two or thrco months in the year, they lire not wanted; for in tho dry weather tho hind itself mal an exceptionally good road, tit to stand any amount of Irattic; and then, in tin- wiiitt-r tnonths, the wiiole country in an hard as iron. Another momentary linr.vbui'k to .Manitobai-s the presence of so many blackbird^ ; there are millions of them. f'Mles.s something is done to keep them down, they will practically diminibh tho yield of wheat to a serious extent. However, 'as thoy arc good for eating, I have no doubt they will bo kept duly down by-arid-bye. The mos- quitoes are also a little troui>lesome, but not very. Of all the drawbacks to Manitoba, however, the most material one, and in my humble opinion tho only one worth calling a drawback, is an occasional plague (')f locustx, or some such insects, which oat up every green thing. I believe that, on an average o. yeai's, their ravages do not amount to an^-tiiing i'nsut^erable; but if they were to happen to como for two or three years in close succession, they might leave very little food for man or beast. Judging from past experience, however, the chances of so calamitous a visitation are not groat. During the present century they havo appeai-cd in devastating numbers only three or four times, and that at long intervals. So, if they be no worse in the future than they have been in the past, ijo one need shun the country on their account. The long winter is also a thing to be considered. The country is as hard as iron lor five months, and the tomjierature much lower than we know anything at all about in Scotland. It is not unbearable, however. People who have lived through it tor years look quite well ; and, indeed, they declare it by no moans so disagreeable as the raw wet wintry weather of the British Islands, it is seldom that one catches cold out there. The dry clear air seems to prevent that, in wet and cold weather alike. [ myself have slept in damn clothes, with the wind whistling through tho tent about my oars, and still awoke in tne morning fresh and well, and without a vestige of cold. If you expose yourself thoughtlessly in winter, you may got frozen to death; but j'ou won't catch cold. The climate is, in fact, undeniably healthy ; butcare must bo taken in winter not to go far from the house without ample precautions, in tho shape of buffalo robes or other wai'm clothing. Of course nothing can be done on the land during tho winter months; but still u good deal of employment ma^' be found in putting up housing, hauliiig wood, thresh- ing and taking grain to market or railway station, attending to cattle, etc. Speaking of cattle. I may say that I doubt if they will ever be other than u secondary consideration in the Red Eiver Valley. The long winter and the nece-sity lor house feeding, will always make it dear to raise them tlieie, in comparison, at all events, with the cost of raising them in the far west, near the base of the Rocky Mountains, where the winters are greatly milder, and the cattle never rei|uire to be housed at all. At the same time it is the fact that there is a decided scarcity of cattle in the country at present; and so long as that may happen to continue, tho rearing of them cannot fail to be f profitable. Looking beyond the accidents of the moment, however, wheat is the thing that is to make the country rich. That is the product with which it can defy the competition of the rest of the world. That and potatoes ; but they, of course, are not so well suited for expoi't. I never saw such u country for potatoes — ten tons to the acre — with no manure and no cultivation worth}' of tho name. Turnips, carrots and other vegetables also very strong. I saw no beans grow- ing, but I cannot help thinking it might be a good country for them, and that they would be a good crop to alternate occasionally with the wheat. Onts grow healthy and strong and heavy to tho aero, but not heavy to the bushel ; they ripen too fast. By-and-bye it is very likelj^ that a variety better suited to the climate may be found. • NoTi. — Manitoba is now being divided into rauniciiial districts : and one of the first duties of ihfse corporations will be in regard to rends in the Province. 112 S.> also Willi wlioat i it would Itc a gioat tliiiiy; I'M" tlio «oiiiiliy if thoy could find a variety thai would stand through tho wiiiti'i- : at prchciit spiing whout is the only Milt ( iiltivalud. It would divide tho woik much bottoi- it tho whoal Hovving coijld bo got over in autumn, and no doubt it would holp to load to hoavior crops an woll. The hil)of question is one that has not yet presoDted any ditticuly. Laborers, it is iriH(, me not j;leiitiful, but the doniund fur them is not great either. Were capital bullied al ail freely into the country, I have little doubt lafiorers would also turn up. r'jom away far soiith, in the United States, large numbers ot men sol out annually to reap the harvest northwards, and northwards through Dakota. They will, no doubt, go over (lie border into .Manitoba as soini as thoy are winited. Then there are Men- iionitos, and Indians, and Ilalf-breeds who, though lazy, nn' lond ot dollars, and will doubtless grow griidually willing to do a good doul to get thom. Fo- a long time there will also L'c a stream oi frosh immigrants iinnually, many of whom will pro- bably incline It) hire themselves out Ibi- a >e!i»on before settling down. VVe shall now pr>;; olsI to the North West Terri'.ory, where those emigrants must go who want to take up free grant lamls. Hetore leaving the Red River Valley, how- evci I would like to say that if, by the time this report gtMs published, it should ]i!ippen that tho unsettled Mennonite lands, already referred to, are offered by the (lover.'iment as Ireo giants, rather than tor sale, it would, I think, be more imme- diately proHtable to settle on thom rather than go further west. The point will no doubt be decided shortly, so tln-t anyone going out next season will easily obtain the ii.torinalion from any ot the emigration agents. Leaving the Red River Valley abtiut 25 miles to the west of Portage la Prairie, oi 9U miles to tlie west of Winnipeg, we pass through a section of rising sandy land which would incline one to think th.it the Rod River Valley muy at one time have been a great lake, and this its margin. The character of the co.intry is now voiy ditVereni from what we have been accustomed to since we entered the Eed River Valley at (Jlyndon, in Minnesota. From then till now, all the land we have seen has been as flat as a lable. and in many places not a tree nor a hut to bo seen — nothing bill grass as far as the eye couli reach. Wo felt the monotony of the scene some- •whai oppressive at first, but soon got used to it. Now, however, that we have got to the Jled River Valley, we are away from all that ; and on these sandy ridgos we feel lis if wo were ai home, except for the scarcity of houses and of population. This,>.ort tif land extends from tho Ked River Valley to tho Big Plain, a distance of perhaps 15 fiiiles. There lire odd bits of very good land amongst these ridges — sandier than in tho Red liiver Valley, and will not stand such heavy croj)ping, but still very good, . ! Avas there the land was not all surveyed, and immigrants then arriving were in some difficulty where to squat, as, if they happened to settle on land that was not free-grant land, they might subsequent!}' be compelled either to remove or pay a price for it. Next seat^on thore will be no difficulty of that kind in this quarter at least. Of course it is to be remombeiod that this place is over 200 miles from Winnipeg, and thai until the Canadian Pacific Railway is exten''ed this length, thore will bo no reliable market for produce. Incoming sottlers may want a little, and in some .sea-^ons Government may possibly want to buy a good deal to feed the Indians ; but neither of these markets can be considered sufficient. Of course, even without tho railway, no settlor is in danger of starving in such a fertile country; but if once the lailvvay wore thore, I cannot but think that the settlers might soon find themselves getting into really comfortable circumstances. Tho workmen engaged in making the railway will want a lot of farm produce. In travelling from Birtle to Fort Ell ice, I wont a rouml-aboul way, by the cast side of Bii-d Tail Creek and through an Indian reserve. On this route 1 pa-^sed over some of the very finest land imaginable — within an ace of being as strong as tho Red Eivor land, with natural grass that could not bo surpassed, abundance of fine water and wood, and a sufficiently diversified landscape. I cannot c»n- ceive any immigrant to this quarter over regretting his choice of a home. Hero tho great River Assiniboine flows very tortuously through an immense gorge about lU liiilf a milo wido iiiid 200 to .'{00 foot down holow the lovol of tlio suiTuiiudin^r prairio. For two or three rniloM lack fV(;m tho rivor, on oilhor bank, tlu' land iHijuitc too liirht and Handy, but uttor ihat it in nio.stly good. Joiirnryinf^ nortliwardn from Fort Kllico to Shell River, we paHH over Hrht, lwt>or tliroo iniloN ot'liji^htland — for iIm- next ton miloH the land in stronger, soil two feet d«o|», with a nice moderately Mtroiii,' hulwoil— nil fit for ploii^hinj/, except a fe«v largo hay niarMhes which coidil l)o very oaHily druineil, but they are pi'ohably more useful aH thoy »iro. Heyond (his tho land grows still stronger as we got north lovvards Shell l^iver, but Ik a good deal more brokon, more ponds, more wood, uv^vo Innh. As a rule, in this North-West Toi'ritory, it has Hoomod to me that the strongest lands are alinoil all eiii-iimborod u good doiil with ])onds and brushwood; which indeed is only natural, as tho liglitor, sandier land, will neither hold water nor grow rubl)ish (or anything else) so well as the stronger soils. Con.sequontlj' anyone who is bent upon having tho very host class of soil must, as a rule, make up his mind to some extra preliminary labor at clearing and draining before ho can have the iv/iole of his land rojidy for tho plough. On all sections, however, there is a largo proportion of imniodiatoly ploughaMo land. Very little of the largo tract bounded on the west and south by tho Assiniboino, oti the north-west by Shell Iliver, and on the oast by Bird Tail Crook, is yot occupied, except along the banks of Bird-Tail Creek, and about thii-ty families at Shtjll Itivor settlement. All of the settleis in tlicso parts to whom I spoke appeared to be really cheerful and satisfied; iind 1 incline to think thoy well mjiy. As good a far-m can be got here as to tho oust of Bird Tail tvook to which I have already roforrod ; and a better one may bo had in either oi' (hoso localities than at any point for many miles further west, beyond the Assiniboino. In fact, once this Shell River district and all east of it gels taken up, it is not unlikely that immigrants to the Norlh-VVest may pass over more than 100 miles of itoor or middling courtry so as to got to the neighborhood of the Touchwood Hills, where tho tost class of land isi said to bo quite plentiful. Away up bore in tho North-Wost there is one c )nsiderablo draw- back as compared with tho Rod River Valley, and that is that the seasons tl)r seeding and reaping are shorter by several days — perhaps oven a week or ton days sometimes. Settlors np here would therefore probably do w settled hero last year; passed over a largo tract of most dosirablo land. Mr. Dawson is on the west bank ol Snake Creok, and ha.s good crops and a splendid farm. Ho Jiasjust purchased eight or nine very fine Galloway cattle. Mr. McDonald (who knows all this country well) informs me that away to the south of Fort Fllice tho land is good, but destitute of tinil>or, except along the river bank. Mr. McDonald thinks highly of the land away westwards by the Q^^'A-ppolle, and in the Touchwood Hill district, although for the first eighteen miles west of the Assiniboino it is not good. This is also the report of Mr. McLean, tho Hudson's Bay factor from Fort •Qu'Appelle, whom I had the pleasure of moetim; at Fori Kllice. .Mr. McDonald also informs mo that to the north-north-west of Shell River tho country generally is only suitable for cattle, being a good deal broken, and the soiisons i-ather uncertain. Tne wood jegion does not begin till north of Fort Polly, which in 120 miles north of Fort Ellice. Mr. Maicus Stnith, of the Canadian Pacific Railway Survey, called at Fort Ellice to-day. Ee has been up and down the country surveying for nine years, and gave much valuable and reliable information, which is interwoven here and there throughout this report. We now turn homewards, with a feeling that we shall look in vain for any finer farms than are to be found on the best sections of the Bird Tail Ci-oek and Shell River districts ; and as thore is comparatively little of it yot taken up, 1 have no doubt all immigrants for tho next year or two may find lots to their mind. Driving south-east fi-om Fort Ellice, along the north bank of the Assiniboine, we find the first sixty miles to be rolling treeless prairie — much of tho soil rather •too light, but still here and there a piece satisfactorily strong; very few settlers on iiid In (luitf k'jirclH Iron I 1(1 — for lln' oly Htroii^ vory oa«ily limd grows )l really godd croj-., ami iu.,^» ; in that roHpoi't it in well siiitod for hoginncrs, like ilu^ Iniiaris; and I would almost vonturo to suggoHt to the Dominion (lovornniont tho prtipiioty of sooing that all tho Imlian rosorvos should bo composed of land oj that class. 'On other lescrvos, wlior'c iho land was immonsoly stronger, but of couist loss oa-y to manage, I tuutiil a much lo^s satisfuotory rosull. At tho mouth of tho Oak Ifivor" ihoro is ono olthoo rosorvos. on low-lving alluvial soil of a (piality oijual to tho Kod |{ivor Valley; hul. n^' nearly m. HUitablo tor Indian fanning as the lighlor lands on ihc plains. From th. ' onward> towards Hapiil City tho trcoloss pruirio continues tor twelve or li>Mitoon niios — soil Htill rather sandy gonorally--black, say tiftoen im lies, with rather a sanly loam tor Hubswil. None ot the grass on this light land is heavy; but it i- nice gias i, and, in the course of lime tliih may come to boa tine sheep countrv. Water >oldoiii soon, but said to bo (sasily pi-ocurablo by mei.ns of wells. Saw ono settlor (an (JiHarian) who said ho rather preferred this light sharp lanthis Brandon Hill quarter is a decidedly douirable one ; but, ot couree, all the best m ■ 116 free-grant sectioiiH in it Imvo boon taicon up. I am assuied, however, that pretty good ono8 are still to be hud in tho noighb<,rhoo»l, and of course there are plenty of unoccupied railway sections of tho best quality for sale; and tho price will piobably not be high, though at present it is not possible, I believe, to speak with v'orUinty on that point/i* Wo now pass through (xrand Valley, whore there is much finer land protty well taken up, and a gocnl deal of rather graveliy lan(i not much taken up. Un arriving at theSoufis Ivaiid Office we learned from the agent that immigrants to. his disirict noxt season will be advised to go twenty miles southwards to tho Souris Plain and westwai'd into tho Plum Creek neighborhood, whore ho says there is good limbei- and hotter land than any previously surveyed in this part of tho country. I am sorrv to say that, owing to an accident to one of the horses, it was impossible foi^ me to go west to .-ee this Plum t^reek district ; but I inclino to believe the report ot the land agent respecting it may possibly be correct, as 1 heard from another I'oliable genllcmiin, while at Fort Ellico, that the land about Oak Lake (out of which Plum Crook flows into tho .Souris) is of high quality. 1 woukl bo doubtful, however, if an}' of it is as strong or good as the best lands in the region of the Bird Tail and the Shell i?iver. We stayc-d over tho night at Milford, a rising town of two stores, a smithy, a saw-miU, ami the prosjtoct of a gristmill next year. Called no.xt day on Messrs. ('allunder and Roid, five miles south-oast of Milford, on tho banks of Oak Creek : line water, plenty of timber, beautiful situation, and a decidedly good farm. If the land agent's paradise at Plum Creek is its good as this, I can recommend it. But there is no tii-st-class free-grant land just hereabouts now— none till wo got up to al)out Lang's Valley, whei-e the Souris, coming from tho west, bends northwards. From Callander and Reid's towards Lang's Valley the land for the first seven or (Mght miles is protty good prairie, then a large tract of somewhat hilly land, say five miles north and south, by fifteen east and we.st. Li this hilly quarter there are •Lv oral fine lakea, and plenty of good grazing and hay land ; also some timber and evidently some heavy game. I saw a bear, and plenty of foxes, also a few deer. A finer country than this for hunting in could hardly be imagined. In this clear, oxhiliarating atmosphere good horses can hardly be tired out. Lang's Valley, at tho bend of the Souris, is quite a dip down from tho level of the surrounding prairie; it is not an extensive tract. There is a nice little stream of water running through it, the last we shal! ^-cc A)! n g( od while. Most of the land in the valley is good hay land ; sorrie of it dry enough to plough. Mr. Lang praises tho land away west bv P'.im Creek. Len/i g Lang's Valley wo enter on avast expanse of slightly rolling pr.nirie, which extends southwards for twenty miles or so to the Turtle Mountains, and west- wards hundi'ods of miles. On the borders of this plain, adjoining Lang's Valley, there is some timber, and the only settler on it told me he found good vvater by « igging an oight foot well. A largo tract of tho land just here is wonhy of special attention. Whore the well above referred to was sunk the black soil is two foot deep, Avith layers ot'clay and sand undorneaih. Tho black soil is a sandy loi'in ot medium snongth — really useful land, and will be oa.sy to work. No drainage will be necessary horeubontr:, nor any clearing away ol bush. There are a few hay marshes, but not more than will be wanted; and ever}' other acre is immediately fit for ploughing. Along the banks of the Souris there is sufficient timber for immediately adjoining settlors; and when it runs down there will, I believe, always bo a practicability of getting boards at the Milfot'd saw-mill. On tho whole, I think I might venture to specially rocommond this (luarter to tho attention to any immigrants who fool as if they might bo disheartened by the ponds and brushwood of the stronger lands up about the Shell Kivcr. * Note.— The luaximmu price of tlii; lailway landa along the route of the Uaiiiidiaii Pacific Railway is $6 (jGI) per acre. hat pretty are plenty price will ipeak with >rotty well 'n arriving hirt tiialrict Plain ftiid )od timber ;ry. I am ossiblo for e report of rn another ke (out of 13 doubtful, )f the Bird smithy, a on Messr.s. ale Creek : ra. If the d it. But e ^ot up to lorth wards. t seven or ;' land, sa}' r there ai-e imber and i few deer. this clear, ley, at the ig prairie ; g through ey is good land away ig ])rairie, and west- 's Valley, water by of spoeiiil feet deep, 1 medium neeetisary s, but not Ploughing, adjoining ability of enture to feel HrS if lands up ific Railway 117 But lot it not be supposed that all this vast Souria plain is equally good. I spent several days on it, taking a very zigzag course; and [ do not know that I found it any bettor than the piece, of about a township in extent (say thirty-six square miles), in the vicinity of Lang's Valle}-. already referred to. Beyond that, westwards for about fifteen miles, there is a good deal of the land gravelly, with very thin soil; and also a good deal ot it stony, liut, interspersed therewith, one also comes across many a good bit ; and, of course, anyone going in during the next year or tiwo will have no difficulty in .securing such, as there is one settler, or two at most, there yot. I travelled lor days over this plain without encountering a human being, or seeing any trace of one — ii boundless grass park, with nothing on it now but a stray fox, or deer, or skunk, and a few buffalo bones. There are no butfalo hereabouts now; at one time there were hundreds ot thousands. Travelling further west we lind no change in the character of the country ; but, on turning southwards, away from the neighborhood of the Souris, wo begin to cross more frequent patches of fine land. The prairie gets to be more roiling, and the hay marsheu more numerous, and some of them very large. On the whole, however, I am doubtful if this vast Souris plain contains more than thirty or forty per cent, of first-class ploughable land. But in saying that, I ought to explain that I am speak- ing with the fastidiousness of a Manitoban, and so condemn all land that requires money to be expended on it to make it plouijjhable and fertile — a doctrine which is quite correct in a country where thei-e is so much faultle-s land to he had for nothing, or thereabouts. We now steer direct for the Turtle Mouiuains, which necessitates our crossing a terrible marsh, whose area cannot he much under 40 squai*e miles. I would rather go a good bit round about than cross that marsh again. In the middle of it is White Lake, where there are innumerable ducks ; we also saw large flocks of wild geese; and, out of the Souris plain, tnere are more prairie fowl than we encountered in any other quarter — altogether an extraordinary locality for wild fowl. The Turtle Mountains lie along the border of the United States; and, for 5 or b miles north of them, there extend tracts of leally good land, on which thert. are a good many settlern, but still plenty of room. Emigrants who think of settling here should leave the train at Emerson. In many respects this is a particularly desirable locality. There is abundance ot timber on the Turtle Mountains, and numerous streams of splendid water flow from those mountains northwards. The soil i^ of various qualities, but, for the next year or two at least, all immigrants may easily obtain a good bit. It is very much like the Souris plain soil — perhaps a shade stronger —black sandy loam, 12 to 18 inches, or perhaps 2 feet in some places; subsoil pretty stiff, but not more so than they like it out hereabouts. There is also plenty of lime in the district. There is but little scrub, and, on the whole, not too much marsh or hay land ; some parts too stony, but no immigrant need settle on these for the present. I am lA^ld there are now 150 settlers in the district, but there is still room for thousands. The Land Office is at White Lake. The greatest drawback to this district is that there is no immediate prospect of a railway ; but, for my part, I cannot see hov/ so fine a tract of country is to remain either unsettled or utuailwayed for any groat length of time. In any case, so large a district cannot tail to furnish a moderate market from incoming settlers for a year or two. Altogether, with its abundant wood and water, this is a comfortable looking spot to pilch upon, and there is plenty of room. Emigrants coming out in the wet season, however, should not look .near it, as tlio streams whicb flow across the trail aro then big, and there ace no hriUgos, and to ford them is an enterprise to which I will never roconimeml any honest man. In point of f.ict, there can be little sweet travelling anywhere in Manitoba during the wet season. From Turtle Mountains eastwards to Badger Creek the land continues to be pretty much as above described, except that the gravelly and stony ridges become lather more fre quent, and of course wo are always getting fuither away from the fine timber supply of the Turtle Mountains. Down Badgei- Crcvjk, which is a small river of boauliful water, with some timber along its banks, I am told there is still sufficient free-grant land of high quality for quite a number of settlors. At Rock Lake, several miles down, there are 160 settlers already. 12—8** 118 Driving 16 miles further east, over rather a rough looking country, to Clearwater Village, we see no signs of settlers till we get to the village, where there are a good many, and all apparently more comfortable than those further west are yet. In fact many of them appear pretty well-to-do. I learn that all the land hereabouts is either settled or bought up, and so also all to the east of this, over which we have yet to pass. From Clearwater to Pembina saw good crops of oats, fair crops of wheat, and most excellent potatoes. This ti'act is very level and of high quality, almost every acre of it tit for ploughing; but it is not to be had for less than $3 to 85 per aci-e. This class of land continues for a few miles east of Pembina River Crossing. After that the land gets oven better, but is so bogg}' and scrubby that only a small propor- tion of it is tit for ploughing. Passing or. t(, within five miles of Mountain Cfity we enter on a tract of a.s useful land as we have seen ynywhere. Saw a man who camo fi'om Ontario three years ago with S500 and took up 32U acres, for which he has now refused 83,500. The land hero undulates a little, is dry and well wooded, and about strong enough. Black soil as much as three feet deep. 1 do not know that we have seen any bettei- land for general purposes than this part of the Pembina Mountain district. Wheat is said to average 35 bushels after the first yeai-, which, from all 1 saw, I half incline to believe. There are lo bo three cattle shows heroabouts within the next three or four weeks. Many of the settlors are now in course of getting nice frame houses ei'ected in front of their oi-iginal log shanties. Churches and schools are in progress, and in some instances (.onipleted; and altogether the country is assuming a Iook of comfort which, considering that it is onlj' three or four years out of prairiehood, may well cheer and encourage settlers in the further west. A few miles oast of M'^untain City wo dip again into the Red River Valley, with its dead- level magnificent wheat land, little good water to bo seen, and trees only in the distance. 1 have now done. In concluding I merely want to say that, notwithstanding the high quality of the soil, Manitoba is not the country for every sort of person to go to. As Bailie Nicol Jarvie would remark. i( is far away from all the " comfort o' the Saut Market." So, any person to whom these are a necessity hiui better delay coming to Manitoba, for a few years at least. It is in many respects a sort of agricultural paraaise, but tor the present it i.s rather a dreary one. That dreariness, however, is just the price which present immigrants have to pay for their estates, and I really cannot think them dear at that cost. The feeling of loneliness mu.st bo worse in winter time; and to combat it 1 would almost venture to suggest that every man going out there should take a wife with him, and that two oi' three should go together, and build their hut alongside each other. It is grievous to see so many bachelors as there are in Manitoba, wasting half their time upon household work, and wearying for want of society, when both evils might have been prevented by a littlo forethought and courage. No doubt one cannot but have a feeling of unwillingness to ask a woman to enter on a life of even temporal y roughness; but after some littlo experience of it myself, both in tent and shanty, 1 feel safe to say that no one need shrink from the experiment; in my humble opinion it is neither disagreeable nor dangerous. 1 close with the following sketch by a gentleman who had been three years wettled near Morris, on the Red River, where he has 560 acres of tine strong land, viz. : Consider that a settler with a yoke of oxen should raise thirty acres of wheat, besides sufficient vegetables for his own use ; with two horses he could probably do 40 acres; expense of living, say $50 a year, if done economically. After three years a man starting with no spare capital ought to be in a position to hire one man, and so double his crop ; but to accomplish this requires diligence and economy. To begin lightly, a man requii-es nearly £200. Ho may do with half that, but his progress Will be slower and his discomforts greater. This gentleman recently purchased 240 acres of first-class land, all arable, on tho east side of the Red River, at three dollars per acre. Considers it even stronger than on the west side of the river, but requires more careful cultivation ; considers that money is most certainly to bo made by Clearwater ire a gooci it. In fact ts is either lave yet to (vheat, and loat every 5 per acre, g. After allpropor- n Cfity we who came le has now and about A we have Mountain from ail ] lilts within otting nice .nd schools aountry is years out t. A few I its dead- nly in the thstanding person to comfort o' tter delay a fiort of reariness, )tat06, and must bo lat evej-y lould go so many work, and )y a little lingness ome little one need mble nor f ee years ng land, wheat, jably do ee years nan, and To begin progress sed 240 I dollars requires nade by 119 growing wheat in the Red River Valley, but not without patience and perseverance as well as capital. Considers the conditions of life hard, both as to weather and work and circurastancos, but still not intolerable. He himself works out all winter, hauling wood, building stables, etc., etc., and wears no underclothing. If the man had a wife, I cannot see but that he and she would be as well otf as Adam and Eve. REPORT OF MR. JESSE SPARROW, WOODLANDS FARM, DOYNTON, BATH. Having been seloctod as the delegate from the County of frloucester, at the invitation of the Canadian Government, to visit the Dominion, and to report upon its suitability as a field for the settlement of agriculturists, I now oroceed to make my report. 1 started on my mission on August 11th, 1880, and embarked on board the rtteamer Peruvian of the Allan Line, which sailed on the 12th for Quebec. While on board I was introduced to Professor Sheldon, of the Wilts and Hants Agricultural College, who was also proceeding to Canada. We made a very favorable voyage, and landed at Point liCvis, at mid-day on the 21st August. We had an inti-oduction to Professor McEaohran, the Government Vetei'inary Inspector, who watches the cattle- trade from all the ports. He drove us to the heights of one of the forts formerly used for garrison purposes, but now titteil up with capital sheds and yards capable of accommodating over 200 head of cattle. There was a quantity of stock in quarantine at the time of our visit. Amongst them some very tine Herefords and some excellent Abei-deen bulls, also a few shorthorns, and other breeds, in all about 150. There were also different breeds of sheep, comprising Cotswolds, Shropshires, and Southdowns. We then drove back, and crossed the River St. Lawrence to Quebec, the river being little less than a mile wide. We took the train the same night for Montreal, and I availed mj'self of the comforts of the sleeping-cars. The pleasure of railway-travelling in Canada is far beyond what we are used to in England. The cars are built on the Pull man system There are sleeping-ears, dining-cars, smoking-cars, and all have lavator}- conveniences ; and one can walk from the back car to the front while the train is in tnotion. We spent Sunday in Montreal (a city of about 160,000 inhabitants), and explored the beautiful Mount Royal Park, whence the visitor has a good view of the city and the Rivei" St. Lawrence, with the Lachine Riipids in the distance, and the gi-and V^ictoria Bridge, vvith its twenty-four abutments. I left by the Grand Trunk Railway en route for Ottawa, on Monday, and travelled through an agricultural district occupied by French Canadians. Tlieie were some very good farms around Morrisburg station near Prescott. The country from Montreal to Prescott is rather level. I was surprised at the scarcity of sheep in this neighborhood. The few I did see looked remarkably well, and the appearance of the principal part of the land, light, sandy and gravelly loam, indicated that sheep could be raised with sulvantage to the farmer. After changing at Prescott,. the train passed through some uncultivated land. A great deal of this forest was on fire for several miles, the smoke fillitig the air. Nearer Ottawa a change for the better was perceivable, and I saw s(-me pretty- looking farm-houses and farms, Arriving at Ottawa 1 met my friend Professor Sheldon, who came round by steamboat. We went and reported ourselves to Mr. J . Lowe, Secretary of the Department of Agriculture. It was agreed that I should go through the Eastern Townships of (Quebec, and then on through the Province of Ontario, Professor -Sheldon going on to Manitoba. I stayed at Ottawa through the day, and in the afternoon went to see the saw-mills at Hull, on the Ottawa River. We went over them, and it will repay one who is fond of machinery to inspect thorn. 12— 8i** 120 There are about 300 hands employed at each of the 9av/-mill8 in the nf;ighl)or- hood, some of which are going night and day. They are driven by water-power of great Btrength. CIoho to these mills rvro the Ohaudiero Falls. We also had a drive out through the country to the township of Nepean, County of Carleton, whore a farmer had two farms for sale, with residences, barnp, stables, etc., near church and chapel, and close to turnpike road — price for both, 87,000. Drove back by tlie Eiver Kideau, whei'o a Scotch farmer has purchased a largo farm. It looks very well ; grows splendid swedes. He has had it well fenced. On August 25th, I left Ottawa by steamboat for Montreal. We had to change and travel by train for about twelve miles, owing to some falls in the river ; then took to boat again, and were soon out in the St. Lawrence Eiver, passed through (he Lachine Eapids, under the Victoria Bridge, and arrived at Montreal. .[ drove into the country along the Upper Tiachine Road to see Mr. Pennor's farm. He was not at home, so we did not go over the whole of it. Thei-e are about 200 acres. He had 20 very good Ayrshire cows grazing in one of the fields ; they looked heathy. HL mangels and swedes promised a good crop; the potatoes were also good, as well as beans and maize (or Indian corn), and, by the appearance of the stubble, he must have had splendid crops of oats and wheat. Around this neighbor- hood there are splendid orchards in full bearing ; the ti-ees are allowed to head near the ground. They looked very healthy, and most of them were so laden with choice fruit that many of theii branches drooped to the ground. We also drove to Mr. Joseph Uickson's, Cote St. Paul. He has just imported some very fine Hei'efoi*ds, Aberdeen polls, or Galloways, and has a few good shorthorns; also an excellent show of poultry of several kinds. We next went to Sherbrooke. On the way there are some very good farms, especially between Montreal and Acton stations, farmed piincipally by French - Canadians. Sherbrooke is a nice city of about 5,000 inhabitants, containing cloth and other mills. I stayed there two hours, then took the train for Eaton. The land in this district is rather rough, much of it in a wild or forest state. Some of the timber — spruce, cedar, hemlock and maple — is fine. On our way we met a gentle- man from Toronto, who has just purchased 1,040 acres of timber land near Lake Megantic . He seemed much pleased with his bargain . He was formerly from Yorkshire, England. We loft Eaton the same afternoon for Lake Megantic. This is a new line, and passes through a dense forest, which seems sometimes to darken the road. Settle- ments occasionally appear; one was called Bury, an English settlement; and another Scotch towti, a Scotch settlement ; and I noticed some others. The town at the foot of Lake Megantic is called Agnes. Two years ago it was bush-land ; now it contains four hotels, two stores and several houses. The lake is about twelve milas long by two miles wide. Most of the land is taken up by settlers and speculators. I believe this place will become a great resort for visitors during the summer months. The lake abounds with tish, and, at certain seasons of the year, with wild duck. We remained there over Sunday, and then returned to Eaton, in the County of Compton, wliere the Hon. J. H. Pope, the Minister of Agriculture, resides. Ho wan in England at the time, respecting the completion of the Canadian Pacific Eailway. He has a splendid farm of about 1,000 acres, and capital barns and other buildings. I was introduced to his son, who drove me over the farm. I was shown lauds that a few yeai's ago were in a toxigh and wild state, and was surprised to see how quickly they can be brought into cultivation. The stumps of trees are not drawn until they become decayed (from six to eight years), when they can easily be got up. Mean- time the lands grow good feed for cattle, and are called pastures. He called my attention to one of these pieces. After clearing away the stumps and once ploughing, it was put to oats last spring, and a yield of from 60 to 65 bushels per acre in expected. It was put down to clover and timothy, and looks very promising for a good crop next year. Two to three tons per acre, I have often been told, grow in this country ; the second crop averaging from 1 to 1^ tons per acre. He has 200 oxeu and heifers, and generally brings out 50 by the Ist of May, and 150 by the Ist of August. 121 9 nf,ighl)or- or-power of jan, County i-np, Htable.s, 3th, «7,000. largo farm. to change rivor ; then hroiigh the r. Pennor's e are about ields ; they titoes were ranee of the 8 neighbor- > head near vrith choice ove to Mr. Hei'efoixlK, ellent show food farma, by French- lining cloth The land Some of the )t a gentlo- near Lake [lerly from line, and Settle- nd another at the foot it contains as long by I believe iths. The County of He waH Eailway. building-, auds that w qaickly until they Mean- called my loughing, expected, ood crop country ; ■oxeu and f August. It is very surprising, I was told, how quickly they fatten on the clover pastures during the summer months. 1 noticed some very tine yokes of working oxen on his farm, and some good horses. I was driven Jiround the country and shown some cheap farms for sale. F'arms in this part can be bought from £3 lOs. to £6 per acre, with dwelling-house, barns, and other buildings, and good water accommodation. Each farm has its " bush" and ma]>lc grove. The " bush " is a portion of the forest left for firewood and for build- ing and repaii'ing purposes. Sugar is extracted from the maple tree, which grows in this country. They tap the tree in the spring of the year by boring a hole into the stem, and hang a bucket or similar vessel under it to catch the sap. We left Katon by rail for Slierbrooke, and drove to the Hon. J. Cochrane's estate, at Compton. This is one of the prettiest villages I have seen in this part of the country. We halted at Compton a short time, and visited the blacksmith's shop, and the carpenter's and wheelwright's shop. The blacksmiths' anvils are erected on higher blocks than in Kngland, and the men stand more erect at their work; at the carpenter's shop a new farmei''s waggon was being made. The carriage and wheels were put together very well ; the weight was about half a ton. About a mile further and we came to Mr. Cochrane's farm, situated on one of the ranges of hills that abound in this part of the country; the hills seem as fertile as the plains — indeed, the apple trees thrive much better on the hills than in the plains. We drove in through a fine gateway. He has a prett}' villa-shapod house, the lawn being on our left-hand and the conservatory and garden on our right; then through another gate and we caine upon the barns, stables, cattle sheds and other buildings, around a large yard. The farm is called " Hillhurst," and some of the cattle take their name from it. It was purchased by Mr. Cochrane about 15 years ago, and contains about 1,100 acres. Mr. Cochrane received us, and we inspected his cattle, sheep, pigs, etc. The cattle need no comment from me. They are well known, and show what can be done in this country. I took a note of some of the animals. A dark roan shorthorn cow, 10th Duchess of A.irdrie, is a magnificent creature, and was purchased by Mr. Cochrane from England, at a cost of 2,300 guineas, but has given him good returns. In the autumn of 1877 he sent a consignment of 32 head of' "ittle to England, where they were sold by Mr. Thornton for £16,325 8s. Two realized respectively 4,100 guineas and 4.300 guineas, the latter price being paid by the Earl of Bective for the 5th Duchess of Hillhurst, and the former by Mr. Loder for the 3rd Duchess of Hillhurst. These two cows were descended from the celebrated cow, 10th Duchess of Airdrie. Her last calf, a splendid creature, dark roan, calved April 6th, 1880 — weight, 5001bs. ; sire, 3rd Duke of Oneida. He has many other fine animals, Kirticularly two bulls, one a dark roan, Duke of Oneida, nine years, and a dark red, uke of Oxford, five years. Mr. Cochrane is about to start breeJing in the North- West Territories, and is importing a stock of Herefords as a foundation for his heixi. I was sui-prised to find this valuable herd grazing on the pastures, and but little high feeding indulged in. The most remarkable feature of the herd is the good health maintained. The swedes and mangel on the farm are very goo»i. He said he had just thrashed some of his wheat, which yielded nearly 30 bushels per acre. After driving back to Sherbrooke, a distance of .18 miles, we took the rail to Stanstead. Next day we went through the country. Near the towu are some nice farms. I noticed one for sale— 100 acres, close to a good road, with brick dwelling-house, good barns and water— price $5,000. Then we drove on to Barnston, about 12 miles from Stanstead. I thought this district was equal to Mr. Cochrane's. I went over a farm for sale— 420 acres, about 300 cultivable, the rest bush or timber-lands— price 87,000; I should say the dwelling-house on this farm is rather small, but the barns and 3;ai-d8 arc very good, so is the water. Next morning we drove to Lake Magog, a distance of 20 miles through much uncultivated land. Magog is a very nice little town. The laifc abounds with fish. The Hon. G. G. Stevens, M.P., very kindly drove us around the country. Some of the farms looked very well, others rather rough. We called at a farmhouse in the evening. The farmer, his wife and daughters were sitting in their rocking-chairs under the verandah, enjoying the cool of the evening. He had some capiUil Indian corn; two of the cones I brought home with tne. This farmer, like many others, seemed very proud of his place. Ho showed u;* around liis build- ings, the gardens and orchard. The land in the Eastern Townships is principally undulating. That portion under cultivation is verj' fertile, and good crops of cereals, roots, fruits and vegetables aro })roducod. Its suitability for cattle-raising is demonstrated by an inspection of the lerds of the Hon. Mr. Pope, Hon. Mr. Cochrane, and many others 1 could mention. The scenery is very beautiful, and the district contains much wooded land. Farms, including the necessary buildings, can be purchased at from £i to £10 an acre, while bush-land can he bought from the Governnrent of the Province at fron> Is. 9d. tu 48. per acre. 1 thou lei't the Eastern Townships for Toronto, the capital of Ontario, distant fi-om Montreal about 330 miles, and on the way met some cattle-trains laden with boasts for the Montreal market. The greater part of the country from Montreal to Toronto is level. There are some very nice farms at Kingston, where I stojiped during the night, i was shown round by tiiv Go\ernmont agent. Phosphate of lime iB found here and in other parts of the country. It is veiy much used as a fertilizer. Toronto is a very fine city fiacing Lake Ontario, containing splendid buildings and long streets. The exhibition was just commencing, and lasted twelve days. Tho Giand Park in which it was held, is situate about one mile from the the town by tho car road, or two miles by boat. The exhibits in the central building put me in mind of the exhibition in London in 1851, on a small scale. The grounds were well laid out for the accommodation of the cattle, sheep, pigs, machinery, implements, and for the dogs and poultry exhibited at the show. The horse-ring for the trotting races and other purposes was of good size — three times lound to the mile. The horses, as a class, were good ; the cattle were excellent, and quite equal to any that T have seen at our district shows in England. I was attracted by a Durham ox whi(th weighed li,feOO lbs. ; a four-year-old heifer of the same breed weighed about a ton. Thei-e can be no doubt that during the past few yeai's catt'e-raising has become an important industry in this Province, and its growth has been very rapid. In 1878 only 18,655 cattle and 41,250 sheep were exported to Great Britain, while the exportation during the present year (up to the end of November) has been : cattle, 49,650 ; sheep, 81,543. The breed of the cattle, too, is improving. The fruit show was better than any I nave ever s^een; apples and pears gi'ow iu abuniance in this Province, jib well as peaches, giapes and plums. A few words on bee-farming will doubtless interest my readers. The largest exhibitor at the show was Mr. D. A. Jones, of Beeton, County Sinicoe. He has several hives of bees, and has recently been importing from Cyprus and Palestine with a view to improve his stock. Last year he sold 7,500 lbs. of honey, the wholesale price of which was 12c. per lb., and also further quantities at retail prices which I did not ascertain. 1 spent five days at this show, and enjoyed it very much ; but it would enable visitors to take a fai" greater interest if catalogues, giving particulars of the exhibits, were prepared and sold, as in this country. "While at the show 1 was invited to inspect a fiirm about 28 miles away. It was about 400 acres in extent, nearly all cleared, well fenced, and with about 20 acres of fai-m and good out-buildings, one barn being fitted up for tying 50 head of cattle, and there is also stable-room for 9 horses. The farm is situated IJ miles from a railway station, and 2 miles from Luke Ontario. The price asked is £14 an acre. I also visited anothei- farm, 4 miles from Toronto. The owner came from Eng- land some 40 j-ears ago with another gentleman ; when they arrived at Toronto one had £11, while the other had to borrow money to carry him to the end of his journey. Now one has two farms of 180 acres each, in a good state of cultivation, and has just purchased a little property near Toronto, and erected a nice villa-residence, where he intends to spend the remainder of his days ; the other owns a farm of 100 acres. While at Toronto I, of course, took an opportunity of visiting the Niagara Falls, which form a very grand sight. 'his fanner, id his biiild- irtioti under jotablef* aro Jlion of tiie Id mention, id. Fai'inH, acre, while s. 9d. to 48 . irio, distant laden with Montreal to I'e I Htojipcd liate of lime a fertilizer, id buildings I days. The own by the me in mind le well laid jnts, and ti)r ng races and horeeB, uh a [ have seen ich weighed There can 1 important only 18,655 tion during |650 ; sheep, 'ars gi'ow in iThe largest has several Itine with a wholesale •es which I [ich ; but it particulars tty. It was 20 acres of 1 cattle, and a railway I from i'iHg- loront(» one MS journey, and has residence, rm of 100 jara Falls. 123 From Toronto I went on to Hamilton, a city of about 35,000 inhnbitants. While ul this place I came across a relation ol one of my neighbors, who was very ]»leaseil 1(1 see me. While driving through this district I was much struck with the abundance of fruit grown, and its excellent quality. The apple trade is rapidly becoming an impor- tant industry in the Province of Ontario, and lai-ge quantities aro shipped every year t(t England, and 1 am told yield a very good profit. 1 also visited a farm in the neigh borhootf of Burlington and OnUville, ccmtaining 166 acres of land, including 12 acres of bush and 12 acres of young oi-chard. There is a good residence on the land, and the price asked is $70 an acre. From Hamilton I took the train to Paris, County Brantford, and then drove for about t> miles through a beautiful fai ining country. There are many sheep kept in this district, and they looked remarkably well. There is plent} of water, and the (irand Kiver runs through Paris. About two miles from Barford, Mr. Townsend, Deputy Sheriff of Hamilton, has a nice farm for sale. Ther'\ are i'bout 200 acres, and a small river runs through a ])ortion of the farm. The price is plO an acre. I also went through the districts of Chatham, Woodstock, Ingers(vll and London, all splendid farming districts, and in fact caded by some the gaiden of Canada. The piice of land ranges from £10 to £14 an acre, including the building and fenein,<<. This country produces excellent crops of cereals, as well as roots of a lorger kind 1h:ni are grown here; and while mentioning this I cannot do better than quote an aiticle 1 i-ecently saw in the Irish Farmer bearing on the question : "EXHIBITS OF CANADIAN PROKUCE AT THE SMITHFIELD OL IT II SHOW. '• Tliere was not, perhaps, at the late annual show at Smithfield a more interest- ing exhibit than that of the Canadian produce to be seen on the stand of Messrs. iSiilton Jc Sons. In our opinion, it went further than volumes written by travellers and fanners' delegates towards indicating the capabilities of Canada, and its newly- acquired North-Weste'-i Territory (Manitoba), which has been so much spoken of the i)att two or three years, and completely refuted the statements one occasionally sees in print made by interested parties, that it is not a desirable colony for the British farmer to go to with a view to settlement. Having repeatedly, in these columns and elsewhere, advocated tha advantages British North America possesses over other English colonies for farmers and others of both large and small means to emigrate to, we were naturally pleased to see oui- statements receive such positive confirmation in the display made on this occasion. The samples included in this collection were gathcied for Mi-. John Dyke, the CaiiJviian Governmept Agent at Liverpool, who made a tour through the Dominion last autumn, by the Winnipeg (Manitoba) Agri- cultural Society, and the Ontario Kool Growers' Association (Toronto), and included some of the most wonderful specimens of agricultural produce ever exhibited on this side of the Atlantic. " The most remarkable exhibits in this collection were some Long Red mangels, the heaviest of which weighed 73 lbs. ; Yellow Globe, ditto, 58 llw. ; citrons, 33 ibs. ; Held pumpkins, o7 lbs.; and a mammoth squash, 313 lbs. ! The latter was sown on 1st May, and cut on the Gth of October, thus showing au average growth of some- thing about 2 lbs. per day. We have taken some trouble to learn how this weight compares with some of the heaviest squasf es or pumpkins grown in England, or even on the Continent, and find that it is more than 100 lbs. heavier than the largest grown in Britain that we have any published record of, and 70^ lbs. heavier than any grown on the Continent. Loudon's Mayazine contains the record of the heaviest grown in England, this was produced in the gardens of Lord Rodney, in the year 18o4. and weighed 212 lbs. On the Continent we find that a market gardener near Orleans showed in 1861 a larger and heavier one than this, which weighed 242| lbs. "The at any ex hi They were 124 exhibiti'd very little of that ^•oa^nene^*H uMially neon in lar;?e rootn. Some of tlio turnipH wei^'lioil u|) to 28 lbs., and wore fiim and i-joanly grown. In addition to liu! foregoing thwe wore also on '-iow parsnips and carrotH, proportionately large and of prime quality. potatooH and grain, all t»f wliich indiraled in the most forcible manner the wonderhil fertility of the soil they wore grown in. They also proved how well adapted the oliniate is to bring to the highest perfection (evtn higher I ban can poBsibly bo attained by the best Hystem of farming in B Itain) every class of cnip usually cultiviitod here, and many besides which we cannot attempt to grow. With such a floil and such a climate within a IHtlo over a week's sail from our shores, we cannot help regietting that many more of our struggling farmers have not ere this taken 1 ossession of portions of it, and thus freed themselves forever from the numerous acts of injustice they are constantly being forced to submit to under the inif|uitou8 land laws of this countrj'. No better evidence could be adduced of the fertility of the soils of Manitoba antl Ontario than the exhibition of their produce us arranged at Smithfield by Messrs. Sutton and Sons. " The Canadian Government acted wisely in causing such an exhibition to be made; and proved, beyond doubt, to the thousamls of agricultui-ists who witnessed it, that to farm successfully, and grow as tine crops as it is poHsible to cultivate, it is not necossai'v to go beyond the protection of British rule, nor travel further than from 10 to 14 days' journey from home." While at Chatham 1 went to see several hundred acres of prairie land at a place called J)over West. Tt was recently regarded as quite useless for agricultural 1)urposc8, but it has been bought up and drained. The spot was former!}' nothing )ut a swamp, but the soil, a rich black loam, turned out to be of surpassing I'ichness, and grows excellent crops of all kinds. There are about 2,700 acres of it altogether, 1,200 of which the proprietors mean to farm themselves, and the remaining 1,500 they want to sell. Application can be made to Messrs. Fuller and White, barristers, St. James Street, Hamilton. Chatham is the centre of a much newer country than most of the other places I have been in. The soil is very rich, and consequently they grow wheat for several yeai-s in succession. Indian corn also thrives well. Farms can be bought at fron- 8*0 to $60 an acre. Round London the country is very level, and some rich pastures are to be found. This district seems to possess the necessary advantages for stock raising on a larg« scale. A good deal of the land would be improved by better draining, and this will no doubt be done before very long. At Deal Town we called at Mr. Anderson's fai-m, situate on the banks of Lake Erie. He has al)out 200 acres, and was busy putting in his fall wheat He has a beautiful apple orchard laden with fruit, and also one of the finest peach orchards I have seen. The ti-ees are planted about 12 feet apart, and grow almost as high as the apple trees. On my way from Chatham to Windsor the train ran through a swamp near Lake St. Clair, said to be 50,000 acres in extent, which will doubtless be drained in some future lime, and will become valuable land. I returned to Hamilton to have a look at the exhibition which was being held there. It resembled the Toronto show very much ; indeed, many of the articles ex- hibited did duty at both places. The show, as well as that at Toronto, was visited by a large number of people, trains coming in from all parts of the country, but tie farmers in the neighborhood either drove or rode to the exhibition. I noticed one firmer thice mornings in succession come in his buggy, driving a pair of splendid dark grey> w th mounted harness. I thought if some of our farmers in England were to come out in that way they would get talkei about a bit, and probably get their rents raised ; but the great number of farmers in Canada are their own landlords, and have no rent or tithes to pay. There is very little dip^'-ess in the country, and everybody seems to be getting on well. Ofjourse thjrc are some poor people, but nothing like the distress that is r or workhouses. T appai poor principal the school-tax, but this is very light and no disadvantage to the farmer, as his 125 110 of tlio lion to ilu! •ffo and of le niaiinor how Well • than ciiii w of crop w. Witli horos, wt' It ore this from tilt- inder- I he ed of tfu' rodiioi! iih Ion to lio witnessed 'ate, it is her than at a place ricultural ' nothing' richness, together, ng 1,500 •arristei-rt, itry than ntly they Farms be found. a a largM this will of Lake .0 has a ■chai'ds r high as ■np near lined in ing held cles ex- sited by but tl ced one splendid nd were 3t their ndlords, getting that iH 1 tax is aH his Ijimily are ediK-aled free of cost, and indeed receive a very nscfiil and thorough t'dncaiion. On my way from Perth to Newry 1 unfortunately overHlept myself, and was carried past my dewtination, so that I had to walk back about four nnlos to the farm- house I was goinir to visit. However, 1 got u lift which took me three miles on the road. The man I went to see left Knglant ubound with tisli, iind ihero uio plenty of wild-fowl; hiitilltlNh idso abound, und nro sold at very low ratos. Tiio soil iliroii<;lioiit tho inland «oen»t'd to In- of ono kind — a rud, Handy loam — and tho country lOHomblcs Kn^land inoi'o than any othor yarl of Canada 1 visited. It i« alx'ut 14U inilos loug, and varii's in width tioni 8 to 40 niiioH. Lurgo nuraborw of shoop and calllo aro oxportod t(» Knj^land, and alno oatH, Govoi ii mont lands, of which there me only a limited (|uantity, can he ohiained at from $2 li» $4 per acre, while improv«Ml funn.s (((st from 8-0 to 840 pei' acre. So tar n» 1 could aHcertain, the taxes amount to from 5c. t-o 15c. per acre. In the beds of most of tho rivers and bays there are ^i*cat (|iiantities ol decom})osed shell mutter, varyiii;:; from 4 to 15 leet in depth; it is called mussel-mud, and has, no doubt, accumulated for centuries. The farmers j^ct it in the winter-time and put it on tho land, its value as a fertili/or being very us metal. From Halifax we went to Kcntville, passing through n romantic country, some of it as wild as nature had left it. Arrived at Kentville, which is sitiiatelv low in this fount ly, namely, IVorn §20 to $40 per aero (iVoni £4 to tH). While at Fri'(lorici<»n wv had tho pleiiMUio of an introduction to tho Jiicutonant- (lovcrnor ol' tho Provinco, tho lion. U. 1), VViltnot. Wo bad an oppoitunity n| driving ucroMH to (tibsontown. Wo (suw Mr. (Jibsori (af'tor whom the town is named), who is tho propi-ietoi' of large saw-mills situattid (»n H river which flows into the St. John. This gentleman is a selt-m.ido man. like many others I mot. As tho >aying is, he rose from nothing. N'ow ho has a splendid house for his own ubo, niiother (or his son. and a little wa}- off arc ilwollings for his iorem«'t» and clerks, and cottages tor his workmen, showing that ho does not l()rgot his employes in his own snccoss. \ now grist-mill has just boon ore<;ted which is turn- ing out large quantities of Hour every day. Mr. (rib«*on bus aUo erected a church at his own expense. Mr. (-JibMin started wchow the day boloi-e we reached theio, but the maiuigement detained tho nroductions until our arrival in order that we might be al»lo to form an idea of tho exhibits. I cannot speak in disadvantageous terms of any of them when all wore so good. 1 was especially Htruck with the enormous si/.e of the vegetables, particularly the potati>cs and cabbage. I also noticed some specimens oi blankets, etc., woven by the farnnirs' wivo and daughters; and the butter I saw wa-i also exceedingly good. While at the (Jraiid Falls wo visited the now I)anish settlement, about 12 miles distant. They were having their little show, too, on the day of our visit; but it was a very |)riraitive sort of affair. These peo|)lo settled here some years ago, most of them with only a few dollars each. Fiach family or adult obtained a Government grant of 100 acres of this forest land. When the timber iscloared they plant and grow their crops between tho stumps, and the soil being a rich sandy loam and voiy fertile, give excellent crops. The ca.tlc on show wore tied to the stumps of the trees, and tho sheep and, pigs in peculiar sort of pens. Inside tho shed which had boon put un were exhibits ol produce. The exhibitors wore continually calling me aside to lool< at the wheat, barley, oats, carrots and cucumbers, some of which were six foot long, and many kinds of vegetable marrow. In fact, they seemed very proud of their exhibition, and con- sidering the way in which they had started, and the ground they had to work upon, covered as it was with forest, it must be admitted that they have done very well. We next took train foi- Woodstock, and on our way visited a largo fiirm, which was for sale. It contains about 800 acres, with over half a mile frontage of tho liver, and 200 acj-es of it are cleared. The farm-house is small, and there are two barns. 1 walked over it and insj)ected the land, which was very rich, being nice light loam, with very little sand in it. I thought it would make a magrnficont farm when all was cleared, especially considering tho facilities for transport. The price was 89,000. I took a tour through this district and found that tho farms generally could be bought at from $lft to $20 per aci-e; tho soil is deep and good, and is well watered. Kound Jacksonville Orchards are very numerous, eveiy cottage having fiiiit- trees round it, more or, less. We were informed that there are thousands of acres of land in Now Brunswick just as good s\8 that which I have described, waiting lor peo- ple to cultivate it. Arriving at Woodstock we went to inspoct the ironworks, which it is expected will be a success. The district of Woodstock is much noted for the apples and plum* which grow there. We then made our way back to Fredericton, to look at another farm for sale, about 9 miles from that place. It wa.s about 600 .res in extent, with m IM •Homo rii'h jmHtiirort, wimo of wliich I thought wnn uk f^ootl as any T hml soon in Kii^- laihl. A portion ot it is intuivulu lund. Thoru is no taiiii-lioiiso on this fui-Dfi, liiit. '^owi burn accomniodution. I was told it was to bo sold at a vory low price, but I did not ascortain tho Hgiiru. Wo woni on to St. Jt)bn, and thonco startod tor Sussex, on 'J'llh Octobi'i". It was lallior cold l)iit tlic wualbor was brilliant. Noarin^ Kothsay we cunio in viow of the Kivor KonnohocasNiw, on which tho ijroat oarsman IJontoi-lh diod a tow yoars a^o. It is a n(d»lt' river, and has ^^rcat facilities foi' yachting', lioaliny and tho liUo. Upon tlu! picliiro^'tinc bills which lino its banUs aro many pretty villa rosidoncos and ricli intcrvalo lands. While at Sussex wc visited Mr. Arton's t'arnj ; ho has 30 cows in milk. We aUo saw Mr. Mc. VI on i kale's Ayrshires lie has a tine ono-yoar-old Jersey bull, a!ul a stud ot 22 hoisos. Wo also inspected the liirni of Major Arnold and Mr. J''airwoather. Wo then went to Sackville through tho Tantraniar Marsh. It is about 9 miles loniC by 4 miles wide, and there are others adjoining it. The land forms vory ri(!h jiasluio and yieltls immense crops of hay, and Mcemed to bo well a*iaptod for grazing purposes. The value of these lands (and I do not think I have seen hotter in Canada) varies from •*')(> to ;$15() per acre. At Fort Cumberland wo inspected Mr. Ktter's I'arn;, in Westmoieland parish. We wore shown u pair oi steers brod from tho (rov- ornment-imported bull " Harrington;" thoy weighed about 2,600 lbs. each; they had been grazing on the marsh lands. On our way Imck to Sackville I called at Mr. .losmh Wood's farm. lie hus about M50 acres ot this rich marsh land, and tells me that trom 1 1 uuros of 8Wodes ho e.xpeclod to have 10,000 bushels. He sells from 150 to 200 tons of hay every year; be has 50 capital three-year-old stoors in one herd, and said he was going to buy 40 more for winter grazing. While in this neighborhood wo went to see Mr. Wood- man's farm. Mr. Woodman is also one of tho largest timber merchants in the <'ountry, but is also a practical farmer. Jlis piggeries wore vory well constructed, and he had several fat pigs. We then made our way to Quebec, and took passage for homo on board the steam- ship Moravian, ot (ho Allan Line. The trip was a very enjoyable one, the aocom- moduti«)n being excellent. CO.NCLUSION. In concluding luy report 1 wish to say that from my experience, and from what 1 was told on good authority, the climate of Canada is hotter in summer and colder in winter than ihat of Kngland. The people seem to be vory healthy and temperate in their habits, and J consider tho climate to be a vory suitable one for Englisnmen. The inducements to a British farmer to settle in Canada are far greater than thoy used to be, for thoy need not. now go through the hard-hips of dealing tho forest, as improved farms can bo bought at such moderate prices. For those who wish to make their o->,n farms, fi-ee-grant lands can still bo obtained in Ontario, Quebec, Now Bruns- wick, Manitoba and the North-West Territories, (rovornment lands can also be bought in these districts for small sums. The number of farms tor sale is accounted for by tho fact that most of tho owners obtained the land pi-actically for nothing, and b}' hard work have made them to bo of considerable value; and they think there is a bettor chance of pi-oviding a competency for themselves and a good income for their sols in the fertile Provinces of Manitoba and the North-West Territories, which are now being opened up. It may be said that the same thing will apply to the British farmer also; but it seems to mo that Canadian farmers are more suited for pioneer life than Englishmen, and the latter, in taking up lands in the older Provinces, will find the life more like that they have beon.'iccustomed to. and they aro suited to bring the soil into a proper state of cultivation, which lias in many cases being neglected. 1 saw some exceedingly fine cattle in Canada, and some have fetched very high prices, particulai-ly those raised in the Province of Quebec by Mr. Cochrane, and those from the Bow lark Farm at Brantford, Ontario. The cattle trade is becoming I2n n what d colder mi)onito ishmen. an thoy [)rost, an to make Bruns- also be ouiited ng, and here is )me for which to the ted tor ivincew, aited to s being •y high ne, and coming a very injjM)rtant one in (he older I'roviuccH of Canada, and if projier caru in taken ill improvuig the Mt(x;k— and thif* appearn to Ikj receiving attention —1 Heo iu» reaHoii why hhe, with her large extent of land, nhould stop into tlu» fronl rank iim u cattle- exporting connliy. My impicHrtion iH tliat a farmer, with willing Ht>riM aiwl daughterH, wanting to improve hin nonition, could make more in Canada in two or three yoarw than he would all hiH lifetime under the nresent fttato of thirii^H in Kngland. 1 do not nieiiii to May he would got rich, hui he \v )Uid ho able to live comfortably and got something tiiat in valued (juite as much, j.('., inde- pendence, lie would provide a homo for hin wife and family that in not likely to l»c taken away from them, and there is no question of raisini; routs or tithes. What I have said applies, of course, more particularly to the older I'roviticos. Manitoba and the North NV est I have not seen, an(i 1 leave any remarks on that district to my fel- low-delegates. Largo quantities of cheese, butter, cattle, cereals, fV" = 's and eggs me being exportetl, and my reader will have noticed the quantity of . .lu > one man has being able to sell. Canada can truly be said to bo a country of peace and plenty, and the si^oncM I met there are far ditlorent to thoHO wo seo on this side. 'Pho country is giadnally rising in imnortancc, its financew aro improving, and it has a vast extent of land, calculated to liold !iO(),00 1,000 of people, and yet at the iireseni time tho population only am(»untrt to 4,000,000. There can be no doubt that many farmers in Canada have not ti'-ated the land a8 it deservwi, and it is surprising that so many should havo succoodod under the circumstances ; but it shows what the soil is capable of, and that the climate cannot be injurious in its effect upon the agriculture of the country. 1 cannot do bettor than conclude my report with an extract from an account of' a tour made through Canada some thirty-one yoars ago, uno which has in part beon fulfilled, and is beiiig more verified every year : " A country bo magnificent, a soil so prolific, water communication so abundant, and a people, moreover, in whose veins British blood flows, and who aro in the possession of the principles, freedom and laws of England safely planted in their soil, must rise to greatness and power. Our language, our institutions, and our religion wil' prevail. A mighty empire will rise up, enriched with knowledge and possesKCrise, with December : — I have lonths ago of Canada, 1. Before solely on -issibly be iv people, m among ve under- lart of the the freest his state- showing ccount of subject, 1 dismiss received thing as the good one rock, and, and d rapidly n the St. ks of the >d land, a arrived August 1 Quebec of very subsoil, od and a e passed ar. It is 131 01'' ht owned and cultivated by a French population. We arrived at Monti-eai about in the evening, and started again at ten o'clock for Ottawa. Ottawa is the capital of the Dominion and the seat of governtnont. It is a nicely situated city, mostly built of Drick and stone. It is surrounded by a fairly goiwi agricultural country, and there are iron and phosphate mines in the viciiiiiv. At Ottawa ilie delegates all met Mr. Lowe, the Secretary of the Department of Agricul- ture, and it was there arranged that Mr. Sagar and Mr. Curtis should stay in Ontario, and that Mr. Irvine, Mr. Anderson and myself should go on to Manitoba and the North-West Territories, which we did. My report will, therefore. I'efer mostly to that part of the countiy, as I spent the larger part (.f my time there. We arranged to go by steamboat through the lakes, but on arriving at Toronto we found that we htul a day or two to wait, so we filled in the time by going to Niagara Falls. The land for a g lod way along the north shoic of Lake Huron is settled, and is, 1 should say, fairly good land, but wo could not see much of it. At the north end there are a great many islands, some of them very pretty, mostly wooded. Wo passed from Lake Huroi^ through the Eiver St. Marie, passing the rapids into f^ako Superior. The north shore of this lake presents a hillocdty appearance, not ver}' high, but rocky, and almost devoid of soil, yet coverbd by small pine-wood which appears to grow in the crevices of the rock. This class of country seems to prevail along the entire length of the lake, except around Thunder Bay, where the hills are much higher, but still rocky and wooded. In Thunder Bay we called at I'rinco Arthur's Landing, a small town, and Fort William, the terminus of the Canadian Pacific Railway now in process of construction. There is some fair land about here, and there seems a fair pro.spect of a town growing up, as it is the neai'ost shipping port to Winnipeg on the new railway. Wo arrived at Duluth, an American town at lie exti-eme western point of Lake ^Superior, and took the train that evening on the Xorthorn Pacific Railway. It was ii mild, warm evening, and .>,3foro dark we passed some very fine and rugged scenery, through pine-clad valleys, ovei dizzy creaking wooden bridges, and rock}' streams, the rocks set on edge instead of horizontally. We then got to a level country, and came to some swampy flat land, rather peaty, but generally covered with small fir and j)oplar. Sometimes in the wettest pails the fir trees were not more than five or six feet high, with only a little bit of green on the top, and the branches hung with grey moss. Where the land is drier the wood is heavier. There wore occasional lakes, some with swampy shores, others closely fringed and overhung with wood. We travelled all night, and in the morning 1 had my first experience of praii-ie land. Wo changed at Glyndon on to the Manitoba Railway, and in an hour or two got fairly out upon the prairia. Look where 1 would, there was nothing but an almost trackless extent ot land almost as flat as a soa stretching away to the horizon, which fbrmofl a true circle all round us. There were a few settlements scattereme a second Chifigo before long. There are many very fine 1)0 at tf> vu brick and stone buildings, and private houses. A good many foitunos have been made already, and there ai-e many wealthy citizens. Building-grouial that was ten years ago bought for a more trifle per acre, is now selling by tiio toot at high prices. Thus in ton yoa-e a town has sprung up bigger and with more capital inveslei than all the towns of Wenslcydale put together. Before going fuilher, it may be well to give a brief geographical description of the Dominion. As you know, it consists of the northern half ot the great Americar> (continent. The eastern part, oi" the Provinces of Quebec, Nova Scotia, New Bruns- wick and Ontario, hjis been }>retty well settled for a long time. Settlement went on to the west of Ontario till it was stopped by a great barren rocky ti-act of land which stretches from about the east end of Lake Superior north towards the Hudson's Bay ; and reaches westward perhaps a thousand miles, till it is cut off the fertile Red Eiver Valley, of which I have spoken. This valley is, perhaps, 200 miles wide in some places. It roaclien from the great water divide of the continent which crosses Minnesota and Dakota to the Hudson's Bay, it is almost a dead level, and is supposed to have been an old sea or lake bottom. West of this again for nearly 200 mdes, to the Pacific Ocean, lies a more or loss fertile tract of prairie land, almost untouched by white men. Thus, you see, the country is, agriculturally speaking, divided into two distinct parts. From the older Provinces of Canada, as well t. from the Eastern States, for various reasons, there has been for a long time past a constant tendency on the pari ot many of the settlers to emigrate to the great western prairies, amJ, as the great fertile prairies of north-west Canada were not generally known or accessible to the public, the)' were obliged to go to the Wo.-'orn States. And hence the idea got abroad that the Canadians were dissatJMtiod WiUi this country, and were goinaj to the States ; but in reality there were as many leaving the Eastern States for the same reason. It is only within the last ten years that the British North-Weist has been brought prominently before public notice, and since that time quite a new state of things has set in. Numbers of Caitadians are selling their farms and going tber« instead of to the States. A great many are going fi*om England and Scotland, and even from the United States themselves. A railway hsw been made from the Northern Pacific Railway to Winnipeg, and another great railway, called the Canadian Pacific, is in process of construction, and will soon be made through to the Pacific coast, thoroughly opening up an imniei..->o tract of country ; several branch railways are also being surveyed. The result is, and is likely to be for a long time to come, an immense influx of immigrants. To return to my travels. I fii-st went down the new Canadian Pacific Railway to Cross Lake — the end of the line opened about 100 miles east of Winnipeg. For a good distance the land is good, but rather wet. Beforo we arrived at Cross Lake, Ave had got right into the barren rocky country I h.i' >. bofore referred to. it is not absolutely barren. There arc patches of fair land ilui: a;iy at some future time be sought out. There is a good deal of timber, and, it i- '■ pposed, a great deal of min- eral wealth. At Winnipeg, .Mr. Hespoler provided us with a team of horses and spring wag- gon, driver and camping equipments, and we t^et out for the West. We went by the Portage road along the north bank of the Assiiiiboine River. About Headiugly, and for a distance of about HO miles west, there is some very good dry land under fair cultivation, it is u thick, black loam on a clay subsr)il, and is drained by the Assini- boine and the numerous creeks that intersect it. After this we passed some 20 miles of swampy land, till we camo to Poplar Point; and from there to Portage-la-Prairie, a distance of 'JO or 30 miles, is, I think, about the best land I saw. It is no thicker or better soil, but it is drier than nmst of the Red River land. It is mostly pretty fairly cultivated, and there wore some really good ci'ops of wheat and oats. We called and looked over the farm of Mr. Brown, a very nice man, who came from Ontario about eight years ago. He said one of his fields had been cropped 17 years when he bought it. He grew the 18th crop, and it yielded 40 bushels of wheat per acre. The same field has not yet been manured, and this year had a fair crop of 133 aave been ; was ten gh prices. st,ei than ription of Amei'icarv )w Brutis- t went on and which ion's Bay ; Red Rivei- ) in some ah crosses H supposed ) miles, to untouched vided into States, for n the part the great ble to the e idea got >int( to the ' the same :; has been w state of oing there )tland, and e Northern an Pacific, cific coast, ways are come, an ic Railway >eg. For OSS Lake, It is not :e time be )al of min- jring wag- en t by the ugly, and under fair le Assini- 20 miles a-Prairio, JO thicker itly pretty oats. Wo ame from 1 17 years heat per crop of wheat. But he does not think his wheat has averaged quite 30 bushels per acre since he came. He thinks that by manuring, and with the high cultivation as practised in England, there would be no difficulty in averaging 40 bushel-- of wheat per acre. He had a few good roots, and a patch of clover which he sowed when he fii'st came, and which has grown ever since ; he thinks clover and timothy (our loxtail) will stand the climate very well. His soil is ivom 1 to 2 feet thick. We went on to Portage-laPrairie, and then on to Mr. McKenzio's at Burnside, where we stayed a day and a night. Portage- la- Prairie is a growing town on the Assiniboine, next in size to Winnipeg and Emerson, and is surrounded by very good land. Mr. McKenzio hns some good crops, and keeps a large herd of cattle. They feed on prairie grass in summer and prairit hay in winter, and most of them were nearly fat. He has sometimes had as many as 200 cattle at a time, but has not lost a beast since he came. One spring he sold 12 fat bullocks that had boen fed on nothing but prairie hay all winter. .Speaking of prairie hay leads me to a description of it. My first impression of the wild prairie grass of the Rod River Valley was that it was rathei' coarse, and what we should call soui". Where the land is dry it looks rather short, but on closer inspection it proved to have a considerable amount of good herbage amongst it. There is generally a great deal of yellow flower, giving it the appearance of a meadow full of buttercups. On the swamps and wet land it is certainly coarse, yet many people mow it for hay because the yield is heavier, but I did not think it nearly so good . s hay off drier land, and in this opinion 1 was supported by most of the best farmers. The quantity and quality vary very much in different parts. That part of McKenzie'sfarm which I saw is mostly dry, and on it there were some vory good meadows, which might yield two tons of hay per acre. Cattle turned out into these natural meadows have plenty to go at, and being good judges of land, choose the b««t herbage. This may account for their doing so well . Cows also give large quantities of very rich milk and butter on prairie vrass. Mr. McKenaie ^ells most of his cattle to immigrants. Gv>od two-year-old heifers, he says, are Worth from £5 to £6. Cows from £6 to £10 each. Beef about 4d. per lb. We were still in what is considered the Red River Valley, bat after going about 30 miles west of McKenzie's, or about 100 west of V^^innipeg, and cro.-'sing some swamp land, full of ponds, and willow scrub, and poplar, and over a bad road, we came to an abrupt rise, presenting every appearance of a sea beach, some 50 to 100 feet high , behind, and running parallel with this, is a belt of sand-hills, irregular in form, supporting very little grass, but with a few stunted oaks and pine, often half burnt through by prairie fires. In the hollows between these hills are occasional bits of good land covered with poplar, birch, hazel, etc. There are any number of hazel- nuts, wild chenies, wild rasps, and strawberries in their season. Among the brushwood wild hops and clematis twine in great profusion. On one of these patches Mi-. Snow, a son of one of the delegates who went out last year, has settled Beyond this we crossed what is known as the Big Plain. It is of more or less sandy black soil, supporting very little grass; it is rather to-; dry, I should say, though it grows fair good crops of wheat and oats. There is here a good deal of free- gi'ant land not taken up yet. Atler crossing tiome forty miles ot'ihis plain we came to what is known as the Rolling Prairie, from any point of which can be had an extensive view; it presents a kind of tumultuous, billowy appearaiieo. In some places it is very hillocky and irregular. In others ii is formed of gently sloping hills and hollows, ranging from a few hundred yai-ds to several miles in extent, very like some of the midland counties of Rngiand ; but through all its uuevennoss it main- tains a kind of general level. The particular part to which I am now referring, that between the Big Plain and the Little Saskatchewan River, about thirty miles across, is broken by an immense number of ponds. One could scarcely get a mile section without half a dozen ponds on it. The ridges are generally rich biack loam, suppoiting fairly good gra«8; the hollows are either marshy sloughs or ponds, which con 1 1 generally bo drained one into another. I believe a single drain into the bottom (d a slough would dry the whole of it, and if dry it would be almost unsurpassable land, as the fertility 12 9** 134 of the hillttidGH has been filtering into it for ages. Around the ponds there is gone rally willow HCiub, and scatte -ed about are small woods and clumps of pfjplar, giving the country a park-like appei »ance. On the j)onds are almost innumerable wild-ducks. 1 have sometimes counted or small ponds two or three hundred, and I could scarcely ever look up without seeing some in the air. They are generally very tame, and I could have shot scores out of our waggon as wo went along. We next came to Miniicdosa, a small place consisting of a few log-.^O'ises and stores, a stopping-house, a blacksmith's shop, and a saw and grist mill. It is about a year old. If the Pacific Railway iiasses through it, as the people hope, it may become a big town. There is a rival town called Odanah about a mile oflf. From hero we passed some fairly good land and pastures, then s.)rae widely nndulating land, till we came to Little Shoal Lake, where we stayed all night. Our road passed through a shallow corner of the lake, out of which a policeman was pulling largo jack fit«h with a very rude Ht^hin^'-rod. Around Shoal Lake there is some very good lanil, though rather broken by ponds and marshes. The scenery is very pretty and park-like. From here we went west again over some very good land to Birtle, on the Bird Tail Creek, a young town in a rather deep valley, but surrounded by very good land, of which most of the best free-grant sections were taken up last summer. 1 saw here a cattle dealer who had about eight cattle for sale. He had nine pure-bred Galloways, a young bull, and eight cows a'ld heifers, for which he asked £140. He was selling cows at about £10 each. We next went forward to Fort Kllice, a Hudson's Bay Company station, on the Assiniboine Valley, about 250 miles west of Winnipeg. It is about the head of navi- gation on the Assiniboine River. The valley is here about 300 feet deep, a mile and a half or two miles across; the sides are steep, the bottom fiat and very fertile, but apt to be wet. There is no rock in possession in the sides; the full depth seems to be cut through a bed of glacial drift composetl mostly of rounded granite bouldei-s and gravell}'^ clay. The country all the way from Winnipeg is thinly settled, and there is a good deal of free-grant land not taken up. We took a drive with Mr. McDonald, the chief factor of the fort, to the farm of Mr. Dawson, j; few miles to the north. Mr. Dawson went out from Lincolnshire last year; he has tiiken up two mile sections ot land, or 1,280 acres, and splendid land it is. It is fine fris.ble black loam two or three feet thick, gently undulating, and there is a great deal of wild tares or vetches among ihe grass which makes splendid feed. We went back to Fort Ellice, and there met Mr. Marcus Smith, the chief sur- veyor of the Pacific Railway. He has been six or eight times across to the Pacific Coast, and describes the land* as being very fertile nearly all the way, and especially in the north and Peace River district. The climate, he says, is much milder towards the West coast. Snow seldom lies long in the winter. From F'ort Ellice we wont norih to the Shell River, a tributary of the Assini- boine. The land all the way allter we lefl the banks of the Assiniboine Valley is very good. There is very fine grass and a great heal of wild tares all the way. 'rherewas an almost continual downpour of rain all the day, and it was beginning to get dark when we came upon the camp of Mr. Reifienstein's company of land surveyors, near a amal I stream, so we pitched our tent beside them. The cook had supper I'eady for them, and they pref^ently made their appearance, all drenched. Mr. Reiffenstein asked us to have supper with them, and Igot some of the best soup I think I ever tasted. They described the land to the north as excellent, and said they had been among wild tares that day through which it was difficult to walk. Ab^ut fifty families settled there last spring, though it is not yet surveyed. The tract of land which may be described as lying between the Assiniboine, the Shell River, and the Bird Tail Creek, is on the whole extremely good. It is of rich black loam, from one to three feet thick, and generally dry, but with occasional ponds. There is a fair amount of poplar wood scattered about, sufficient for fuel and building pui'poses. Its rich meadows and fields of tares make it a likely place for cattle-raising, I should say. 18 ji^ene *r, giving ild-ducks. 1 scarcely ne, and "l >'i3e8 and is about a ly become ne widely :bt. policomun ke there in jcenery is I the Bird jood land, L saw here ralloways, as sellirii; ►n, on file id ol'nuvi- i mile uiid 3rtile, but seems to a bouldei's ttled, and farm of icolnshire mdid land ting, and splendid chief' isur- 16 Paeitic (specially r towards |u As8ini- is very here was get dark rs, near a eady for 3in askee lird Tail one to a fair purposes, liwing, I 186 Wo came back by Fort EUice, u\d then down by a trail that runs nearer to the Assiniboine than the one by which we went. These trails are merely tracks over the prairies, made by the pasna^"-? of carts and waggons, and are in some places very good and in others verj^ bad. We made the acquaintance of Mr. Horcihmer, a gentle- man originally fnnn F^ngland. He is the Government Indian agent We went with him through two of the Indian reserves. These Indians are of the Sioux tribe, and the Government have given them i-eserves of land, pi-ovided them with oxen and agricultural implements, and are trying lo teach them to farm. Some have really ■ice plots of wheat, Indian corn, and all kinds of gai-den produce — some take extreme pains with their gardens and have them very neat. Mr. Herchmei* speaks highly of the honesty of the Indians when fairly treated. They are veiy loyal, and nearly always asked alter the t^ueen. We camped one night near the lower reserve, and next day Mr. Herchmet- left his tent and e([uipments till he came back at night. There were Indians ail round, and they might easily have gone with the whole thing; but he said he was in the habit of leaving it there, and he hatl never lost anything. :;ind said they were quite safe as lung as there were no white men about. The land for several miles back from the valley is sandy and gravelly — liable to drought. On the alluvial bottom of the valley it is very good land, but mostly wet. Our next stopping place was Eapid City, a thriving young town about two years old, on the Little Saskatchewan, lower down than Minnedosa and Odanah. There is good land all around, but rather broken. Most of the free grants are taken up. We uiext crossed the Assiniboine River at the Rapids, through Grand Valley, a tract of good land south-west of the river, and passed the Brandon Hills — some low wooded hills, but which can be seen from a gieat distance. We went on to Alillford, a small y)lace on the Souris River, a river that runs from the south west to the Assiniboine, then up the south side of the Souris, and calletl on Messrs. Calendar and Reed, two young gentlemen fiom Edinburgh, with whom Mr. Imrie was acquainted. They have taken up some good land on Oak Creek. From there we went forward o'or some uneven hilly country, and passed some very pretty lakes till we o -ae to Lang's Valley. It is a long deepish valley with flat bottom, but not very much good land in it. There is only one settlement, that of Mr. Lang, after whom it is named. Immediately south of this valley is some very good land. We left the trail and went west over the trackless prairie on the Souris Plain. This country, as its name implies, is very level, and there is a large quantity of good land. I remember one piece between two creeks, a little beyond Lang's Valley, some six or eight miles square, or twenty or thirty thousand acres — good soil supporting good meadow-grass nearly knee-deep, and the whole of it might have been mown with a machinr- or machines, 1 should say, as one machine would have been worn out long before it could have got through it all. The grass here is more like our coarser ineadovv-^rasse.-' without many flowers, or weeds as they are called out there. After going west into the bend of the Souris, we turned south to the Tuiv'o Mountains, and crossed an immeuse treeless plain of variable land. I noticed tno deserted tracks of the buffalo worn deep in the soil by the feet ol many generations of these bovine animals. The granite boulders, too, were polished on the corners by the buffaloes rubbing themselves, and there is a ti-ench around them, worn by the tramping of their feet. The buftaloes are nearly killed out now, and their bones are plentifully scattered ovei- the plains. Before we reached the Turtle Mountains we crossed an immense marsh, which suriounds White Lake at the foot of that hill. The Turtle Mountain is a long, gently sloping ridge rather than a mountain, but it can be seen a long way over the plains. There is some very good land on the slopes, and some good wood on the tcp. A groat many settlers have gone into this district during the summer. From here we went east by a trail running a little aorth of the United States boundary ; we passed through the Rock Lake and Pembina Mountain districts, whore there is a vast quantity of very good land, and many settlers. We got into the Red River Valley again, and passecl through a Mennonite reserve — very good land — and nhen on to Emerson, a thriving little town on the Red River, whei-e it crosses th» 12— 'JJ** 136 International Boundary. From there wo wont north, along the west bank of the rivoi', over a great deal of very rich land of deep black loam, tolerably dry and grow- ing good crops, to Winnipeg. We had thus accomplished a journey of about 800 miles. Mr. Imrie left next day to go to Nova Scotia, and I accepted an invitation from the Mayor of Winnipeg and the Premier of the Province (Mr. Norquay and Mr. Walker) to go with a shooting party to Meadow Lea, the then western terminus of the Pacific lia"'' ay. Our party had a special train placed at its disposal, and a Bpecial siding made at the terminus, through the courtesy of Mr. Ryan, the contractor. We had fair sport. On the way the road crosses some good dry land and a great deal of marsh. I met Mr. Cowlard, who went out from Cornwall, England, and ha» been farming out there about eight years. He considers that cattle-farming pays best. He had made butter all the summer, and put it down in pails; he was taking it to Winnipeg, where he had sold it beforehand for Is. 0-^. per lb. Not so bad, I thought, where good land can be had for nearly nothing. I saw the modus operandi of Canadian railway construction, which is really wonderful. I have not time hero to go into a description ; suffice it to say that it was being put forward at the rate of rcarly a mile a day with comparatively few men. From Winnipeg the Hon. Mr Norquay and Mr. Ross, M. P.P., drove Mr. Dyke, of Liverpool, and myself, down to Kildonan and St. Paul by the Red River side, then across the river to Bird Hill, a gravel hill from which a good view of the surrounding country is obtained. Kildonan and St. Paul were settled by Scotchmen sent out by Lord Selkirk about 60 years ago. The land is very good and dry, but badly farmed as a rule. Some of it has been cropped for 50 years without manure — this I quite believed, as I saw the manure lying in heaps, of unmistakeable age. Mr. McBeth, a gentleman of whom some of the delegates spoke ;last year, showed me a field otF which he had taken fifty crops without mauure, and wljich still continued productive, but he admitted that it would not grow the crops it did at first. He said he onco reaped 48 bushels of wheat per aure off his fai*m. To sum up then, before leaving this district — I considered the Red River land the most fertile. It is generally a soapy kind of black loam, and when '•ubbed between the fingers one cannot detect a grain of sand. It ma> average about two feet thick, aad rests on a clay subsoil of indefinite thickness, which is really of the same character as the soil, but has not been blackened and mellowed by atmospheric exposure. This rule does not hold good all through, as there are places where it is more or less sandy, and in some places even gravelly and sandy. But a great part of the valley is marshy, and for really profitable cultivation requires to bo drained, which means considerable expense, and on account of its extreme flatness it cannot, in many cases, very well be done by private individuals, and the Government nre already mailing extensive drainage works. When the soil is too wet it becomes so- sticky that the best steel plough will not clean itself, but when it is in proper con- dition it works very light and friable. But I must say that when the laud is dry as it is along the river banks and near creeks, it really cannot be surpa:..-ed for pro- duction. I believe that under a good English system of farming there would be little difficulty in growing 40 or 5U bushels of wheat per acre. However, when all things are considei-ed, I think I should prefer the Western prairies, where you can pick land of rich black loam two or three feet thick, that is naturally dry, and can be worked in any kind of weather save frost. The natural grass out there, too, is of better quality. Wood and water are things that an immigrant Avould require to consider. In some places, though this is generally only local, the water is alkaline and not fit for drinking purposes. This is most frequent in the Red River Valley. T have seen places where pools have dried that were quite encrusted with alkali looking like hoar-frost. But as a rule, fair water can be had by sinking wells ten or twelve feet deep, and in some places there are good springs. Wood is scarce in many parts of the Red River Valley and on some of the great plains, but along the ri\ ers and in many parts of the prairie there is a sufficiency. It is a great desideratum to have wood on or near a 13t k of Xhv ind grow- ibout 800 Lion from and Mr, •minus of lal, and a ►n tractor, d a groat , and ha» ing pays IS taking bad, I operandi ime hero 10 rate of r. Dyke, )ide, then rounding It out by / farmed I quite [cBeth, a field off oductive, i he onco ver land 1 ^ubbed )out two ly of the osphenc lere it is t part of drained, cannot, lent nre ;omes so- )or con- dry as for pro- ou!d be hen all you can and can 00, is of 9r. In t fit for n places r-frost. and in d Kiver of the near a farm, as it is the only fuel and building material available at first to the settler, though ill some parts of the Province they are beginning to build of brick. As wo are all grazing farmers here, and I was specially instructed to look to the cattle-raising interests, you may think I have dwelt too much upon corn -growing and arable cultivation of land ; but I have found it absolutely necessary, as almost every- body, and especially those intending to take up free grants, must go into ploughing to some extent, since it is one of the conditions on which the land is granted, that thirty acres be brought under cultivation in three years; and to get clover and the cultivated grasses it is necessary to plough, and it will pay well to take a crop or two of wheat before sowing down. But it would be quite possible tor a man to go into cattle-farming on the natural prairie grass, and if he keeps well to the front he can have the use of 1,000 or 50,000 acres, if he likes. I have talked with many of the best farmers on the subject of cattle farming, and they all agree that it will pay best for anyone who has sufficient capital to start it. The reason that this branch is so little gone into is because the great bulk of the immigrants are men without much capital. They therefore go to ploughing, as it does not require so much capital, and yields a quicker return. 1 believe that breeding horses would pay extremely well, that ip, fair useful, though lather light farm-horses, similar to wlif.t we have about heio, and they are just about as dear. The Canadian horses are lighter than the farm horses used in most parts of England. On account of the great immigration which is likely to continue fc/ a long time to come, there will jirobably be a strong demand for horses, which will keep up the price. 1 will give you a list of prices of cattle which was provided me by Mr. Burt, a horse and cattle dealer of Winnipeg: Fair grade two-year-old heifers, from £4 to £5 •each ; fair grade three-year-old heifers, spring down, £.5 to £7 ; cows in calf, or with calves running with them, £6 to £10 ; working oxen, £20 to £30 per span ; fair good horses, £20 to £30 each; ponies, £6 to £15 — average about £10. Beef is worth 3d. to 4d. per lb. in the carcass; mutton, about 5d. per lb. ; butter and cheese, nearly as much as they are here; milk sells in the towns at 2M. per quart. These prices agree with those given me by most of the farmers. Government land Q'.e. Eailway lands) can be bought at from 48. 2d. to £1 per acre, according to distance from the Pacific Railway. Good land near Winnipeg, Emorson, Portage-la-Prairie, can bo bought at from £1 to £2 per acre. Wages run about as follows : Good farm laborers, from £4 to £5 per month with board all the year round, or £5 to £6 in summer and harvest time. On the railway works they pay 6s. to Ts. per day for good hands. Carpenters and black- smiths get from 8s. to 128. per day. Good bricklayers and plasterers, from 128. to 14s. a day. Blacksmiths charge 2s. 6d. a shoe for shoeing horses, and Is. a shoe for resetting. All the laborers 1 talked with say that good men have no difficulty in getting work, but they have to work hard. With regard to the capital required to make a start in farming, it is generally considered that a man with a clear £100 when he gets there can make a good start on the free-grant lands, and instances are not unknown where men have started without anything — they have taken up grants, built houses, and cultivated a little to keep up their claim, and have worked for wages in the meantime. But I should certainly advise anyone to take all the capital he can lay hold of, the more the better, and if thej' have more than they wish to invest in farming, it can be let on good land security at 8 or 10 percent interest. A settler will find difficulties to contend with dui ing the first two or three years. Aftor that, and when he has got accustomed to the country and its ways, he may live as comfortably as he can .here. If he be a man without much capital and takes up tree-grant land, no matter how good that land is, it is in the natural state, without house or fences, and as there is really no money actually scattered about on it, it stands to reason that he cannot get anything out of it without spending a con- siderable amount of labor. There is a house to build, but this, at first, is built of wood, and is put up very quicKly, especially if he can get a native Canadian or two to help him, which they are always ready to do; they understand building wood 138 Lousef, and if tlioy have the wood g(»t to the place I hoy will erect a decent house in a week. The tiitit year he doea Dol get much erop ott' hin land, and he spends it principall> in hreaki.ig, that is ploughing the hod up two inches ihick in the wpring, mid backsetting about tour inches deep in tlie autumn ii he is going in (or ploughing. If'he is going to raise cattle he will be building cuttle-sbedH, stacking hay, etc. Hut when ho him been on hi.s larm three years, got a neat houye and cattlesheds with u good stock or a lot of land under crop, he nuiy live very comfortably, and will have no harder to work than here. His lUO acres ot land that he got for u £2 fee, and his It'O acre ])i'e-omption that he got for eight or ten shillings per acre, will in all probaljility be worth £\ or £1 lOs. per acre, and thus he will have made £320 or more, independent of his crops, in three years. His land is his own absolutely, ho has no rent to pay, and very light taxes. A man with more capital, ot course, can do greater things. Ail this depends upon the man himself. If ho is not prepared to face a few hardships and a little isolation at first, he will never like the ^North- West; butperhai)s he would never like j'nywhere. A requisite quality to fit a man for emigration to Canada is the power of adaptability to circumstances. Everything is a little dillei'ont to what it is at home, and there are many new things to learn. The best plan tor an immigiant is to make the acquaintance of a few old farmers, who will teach him anything he requires. One of the worst difficulties the immigrant has to contend with at first is the bad roads, which in spring are very soft, and in soiv.e places almost impassaltle; but it must be borne in mind that tliei-e are no highway rates, and that as the countiy gets settled and divided into municipalities, the roads are sure to be seen to now it is nobody's business. There ie a great difference of opinion as to which is the best time of the yeai- to go ; early spring would be the best but for tho difficulty ot transit : but, on the whole, J t'.iink August is the best, at ai:y rate for those that have money. The occasional visits of locusts is a thing that requires mentioning, but there wore none when I was there, and there have not been for about five years, and the farmers who have experienced them do not appear to fear them much, as their ravages arc generally only local, and at the worst are not nearly so bad as the\' are in the Western States of America, their natural breeding-place. They are not at present troubled b}- the Colorado potato beetle, the weevil in wheat, and the pea Deetle, which is found in the United States and Eastern Canada. The weather, while I was there, was very pleasant on the whole, though the settlers all said it wan unusually wet for that season of the year. The air was generally very dry, and I never enjoyed better health in my life. I was told that the winter commences in November and ends about the middle of April or beginning of May; it is generally continuous frost all through, and occasionally reaches an extreme degree of cold. During last winter, which was exceptionally severe, the thermometer once or twice got down to about 48'-' or 50* below zero ; but I saw a register which generally ranged from 10° above to \0° below zero. The summer oomes on very quickly, and is hot enough to grow any kind of gi-ain and root-crops, and will ripen tomatoes. I find I shall have to cut my re])ort much shorter than I had intended. I intended to have gone into the details of sheep- breeding, which I believe miirht be made lo pay extremely well. I might have spoken of the wild deer, the piairie chickens, and immense amount of game that I saw, and have described tho Bed River carts, which are made of w(Xk1, without a particle of iron about them. But I raxist proceed with my Journey. I left Winnipeg on the 27th September, at about seven o'clock in the morning; and to give you some idea of the vast extent of the Rod River Yalley, I travelled all that day and night, and well into tho next morning, in almost a straight line without noticing a rise of three feet all the way. I came by way of Chicago to Toronto in Ontario, where I stayed a few days. I visited Hamilton, lirantford, and the Bow Park farm; there is some good land about there, which is nearly all cultivated. Tho land around Brantford and Bow Park especially is good. The chief feature of interest about Bow Park is the world- lit hoiiso in i spoijils it tho Mprin^, pluiighiii^. hay, etc. •sheds with d will have £2 fee, imd , will ill all de £3i0 or olutely, ho course, can it proparod tlie North- <) fit a man Everything ■8 to learn. Id farniorH, I is the bad i»»le; hut it mntry got^ now it i» » tho hest ifliculty ot that have •;, but there 8, and the 1, as their 18 they are A'e not at id thi' pea lough the air was d that the ginning of Baches an evore, tlie I saw a e summer •oot-crops, «uded. I miirht be »e piairio led Eiver I must 3ut seven the Kod >rning, in came by ;ood hind and Bow he worid- 139 lamed herd ol' shorthorns, about 800 in number. I think wo have as good catilo in Kn^jaiid, and perhaps in Wenslcydalc, as any they have. But tho special fealuro of tlio Bow Park herd is their iinifori:i high quality. Looking through their lai-gc and commoiious sheds is like g<»ing thiMiigli a show yard. They have scarcely a iailiiro ill the whole herd. Their system ol niltivation, too, is an example to thesiinoun.liiig farmers, and shows what Caiiii(liiiii lind can do. I believe good land with buildings can bo bought in Ontario tor from £(! to £15 j)er acre. I shall not dvvoll long on this jmrl of the country, as some of the other delegates have been so tiioroughly over it. I next went on to Bellovillo, a small town on tho Bay of Quiiile, on Lake Ontario, and was there shown over a cheese I'lKitory by Mr. Graham, the President of the J>airy Association. They make some excellent cheese there, and it was selling at Has. por cwt Mr. (ilraharn thoroughly understands cheese-makinif. Thoy have daily associations in Canada, and each factory subscribes a certain sum of money, uuixmcnted by a subsidy from (iovornment, with which they engage men to study tho ]»rocess of cheese-making, and go through the factories to give instruction. Tho factory at Belleville is worked on the co-operative principle ; each tanner's milk is measured, and he receives a proportionate share of the profits of the cheese. Tho expenses of manufacturing amount to id. per lb., and the collection of the milk lays on anothor Jd. per tb., making the total cost Id. Oheese-making at 65s. pays very well. I next went on to Kingston, a town built principally of limestone, at the lower end of Lake Ontario. From there I went by boat down the St. Lawrence to Montreal. I went, this way for the purpose of seeing the Thousand Islands und the scenery of the river. The Tliousand Islands are at the head of tho river or the foot of the Lake, but their number is more like two or three thousand. They arc mostly covered with trees, tho foliage of which were in their bright autumn colors ; some of the smaller islands looked like pots of flowers set in the water. Some of them are rocky, and the oft'ect was very exquisite as wo went winding amongst them. Montreal is a city of about 150,000 inhabitants. It has some very fine limestone residences and buildings. The Windsor Hotel is almost equal in finish to any in the world. One of the chief features of Montreal is Mount Royal, a high hill that stands up almost perpendicularly behinn the town. From the top a view in every direction for 100 miles can be had ; it is a public park. 1 went on to Corapton, in the Eastern Townships of Quebec. It is rather a jirelty country, and there is some good land. 1 visited Senator Cochrane's farm, and saw his celebrated herd of shorthorns. He has some very good cattle. He has one cow the progeny of which has brought him £26,000. He has some very good Shrop- •hiro Down sheep, and says he likes this breed of sheep the best of any he has tried. 1 noticed some good turnips, and he says he can grow three tons of hay to the acre. I came back to Sherbrooke, still in the Eastern Townships. It is a prettily situated town, with some good residences. 1 was shown round by Lieutenant-Colonel^ Ibbolson. Good farms can be bought in the Eastern Townships at from £i to £(> per acre. 1 next wont to Halifax, Nova Scotia. I visited the districts of Windsor, the Annapolis Valley and the districts around Truro and Colchester. All these arc large valleys, up tho bottom of which the tide rises a long way. There has boon a great deal of land reclaimed from the sea, which is known as dyke land. It lies below high-watermark. The tide has been banked out. The soil is composed of a very- fine reddish silt of indefinite thickness, which has been deposited by the tide. It is perhaps equal to any land in America for production. The tide comes up tho river with groat force, and brings up a great deal of mud. Many farmers cart the mud into their higher land for manure. Adjoining the dykes is generally a belt of good dry land known as intervale. It is of a sandy red soil, very similar to tho red land in the Eden Valley of Westmoreland. Above this, on the mountains, is red sandj land, not 80 good, and generally covered with wood. Colonel Blair, M.r, Longworth and others, at the instigation of Dr. Clay, called a mooting of farmers at Truro, for the purpose of giving mo the opportunity of asking qucHiions and hearing their opinions about 140 C liirmhig in tlio district, tiud the proHpectH of immij^rnnts. Thore were ii "^rojit many cotiHictiiig 8tut(>iuc>i)ls made, t'l-om wliiiih I diew llio gciioral conclutiiuii that thu .suit- ing iH'ico o^dyle intervale land could be bought for from £2 to £IG or £20 per acre, according to <(uulity, and unclearerl wood land from 2s. to £1 per acre. It was generally agreed thai dyke land will grow from two to tour tons of hay er acre, and ha.s done it in some ca.sos for generations without manure. 600 to 1,000 xishels of turnips, and from 2l.O to 430 busl.ols of potatoes can bo grown to the acre, and fair crops of cereals. Apples grow to great perfection in some parts of the Pro- vince — as to this I can add my own testimony, having soon the trees almost hulcn down and the ground strewn with their fruit. They were selling at from 4s. to 8s. per barrel of 2^ bushels. It was generally agreed that a man should have consider- able capital to start farming in Nova Scotia, as it does not pay to borrow money at 6 or n per cent. It is C(Misidered that cattle-tarming pays best, especially since the Knglish market has become available for their beef. In this respect they have a groat advantage over Ontario and the Western States, the inland carriage \)vAi\<^ lighter. Beef sells in Nova Scx)tia at 4d, to 5d. per lb. in the carcase. I spentu few days with Mr. Sim|)son, the manager of the Drummond Colliery, at Wostvilie, Novu Scotia. 1 wont through the colliery; the seam is 1(1 feet thick of the very best K WAI>|ilN(rr«».\, NKAR CLITHBRdK, riAN(!.\SlIlllK, " Tlio I'cjMUl oC Mr. Su;j[ai', ul" Wmldiii^^ton, tlio ^I'titlomuri wlio in May hist wctil (o Cniiadii an tlio i-eproisentiiiivn of llii> Cliiheroo fiii'mers, was siihrnittcd to ii morliiii; ul't'unnerH and otlnMH, licld in llu' Swan and lioyai IIolol, on Monday. The moetini,'. at which thoro v/k^vv about liliy immsoiih prenciit, waH prosidcd over l)V Mr. \V. TomlinHOii, i'urnior, of li»no, who, aftoi' tiio roadin;,' oil he roport, invilcil J nesti«)nH bearing upon tho Mnl»i*.M'i ol' whii;h it. trontod. (^uoftions woro put by Mr. MckinHon, of liraon, the Uov. VV. L. Roburln, and otherH, all ol which were satisliu'torily answt'rod. Mr. ThonviN (rrahatno, A^ont oC iho (Canadian (lovoi'iimenl, wa.x present, and niado a short Hpuoch, and the nit'otin^ concdudod wilh u votlithei'ou, in May lust, at tin- instance of the (lovernnieiit of Canada, 1 hud the honor of being selected aw your delegate to proceed to that country to inspect its resources and U) report as to its Huitabililv for the Hettlenieni of British f'armorH. Before commencing my repoi't, ii may be weli ^<» mention the circumstances which. I understand, led to myself and follow^ ileiegatcH being appointed. Kor many yeari-' a large emigration has been taking place from England, Scotland atm lii-land. th(^ greater proportion of whit'h has gone to th*- United States. To account for this, several causes have been assigned. In the first place, many peoi>le have gone out to join theii- friends; and I have heard it stated that, of the exodus of this year to the United States, the ocean passages ot a very large number were prepaid in America. Then, again, people have got hold of the idea that the Canadian ( limate is one long winter. Ui presentations of its scenery are almost always wintiy in a ^oct ; and, again, until Manitoba and the North- West Territories were opened up 'itly, Canmla had no prairie land which could compete with the Western Stat il.jerica. But now all this is changed, and it is now certain that Canada possesses prairies greater in extent thua those in the States, and equally fertile. This is admitted by the Americans themselves, although many of them who are interested in the sales of lands describe Canada — in which they recognize a powei-f ul competitor — as a country to be avoided. It was, thorefoie, with a view to place the country in its i>ioper light before those who had thoughts of emigrating that the Government of Canada invited farmei's to visit the Dominion and report their independent opinions as to its agricultural position and capabilities. As t ' Manitoba and the North-West Territory I cannot speak personally, as I did not ^,o there— Mr. Curtis, of the Skipton district, and myself having confined our iiispection to the Pi-ovince of Ontario. Several delegates were selected, in different parts ; but as the country is so large, our party had to be divided, in order to admit of its being thoroughly investigated; and when 1 say that the Province of Ontario contains an area of about 200,000 square miles, it will be seen that we had a good deal of ground to get over. I understand that the reports on Manitoba, the North- West Territories, and the Maritime Provinces will be printed and published with my own, so that anyone interested can obtain copies at the Canatlian Government Offices in this country. I now proceed to give my ideas about Ontario, i may here say that 1 was allowed to go whore 1 liked, and that every facility was given to mo in the prosecu- tion of my inquiries. I left Liverpool on July 22nd, in the steamer Sannatian, belonging to tlie Allan Royal Mail Line ; and after a good passage arrived at Quebec on the 81st, three days of the voyage being in the comparatively smooth waters of the St. Lawrence. The accommodation on boai-d this steamer was excellent, and so was the living, and the trip was in every way an enjoyable one. I had a talk with some of the many steerage passengers on board. They seemed to be well satisfied with their quarters and tiieir food. 148 Tholniidoti (liof*lioM'f.()f till' Si. Ijuwitiu'o, lOO milo!> luilnw (^iiflu-cditl uui nci'lll In- ly hlKl went (» a mot'liiiii lio rnoetiiii;, l.\' Mr. W. HM't, itivitcil )Ut by Ml. Lhei'H, all i)t u Cuiiadiuh i-liidod will) i^^'lltO of til. JHHt, ill t lu- ted JIM ycMir I'l ttH to its ly rejiort, ii ['mid ttil low- liking place gone to the ind I huvo an passages vo got hold ition.s of il> bu and tlie land wliicli 18 changcil, Q thodo in lemHelves, anada — in ght befbit' ted farmers griculliinil nally, as I anfinedoui n ditterent to admit of Ontario id a good the North- [i with my ont Officot* that 1 was e prosecu- San)iatian, Quebec on s of the nd 80 wa.'i evrith some ified with mv to jMiHf-esB liny altiariivo li-jiiuii milt's from (^U'ber it asMiiiMMl u better appoaraiicf, „,nj | should siiy ibero !« soiiio fair land there, althoiiirli I could only judge by lht> view obtained "troni I be doc U of the steamer. We stayed in (^uebee over the Sunday, and then went ot» U» Montreal, the largest eily in the Dominion, with a po|iulatioii of al)out ir)0,(»(»o. It \H pictures(iuelysiMialed on an island on the St. Lawrenee, and at the baek of it rif steamers arrived at (he port, and ;-«2 I sailing veshcls, and thai during tlio present year the numbers have largely increased. Indeed, Mie poopio arc hoping that when the present system of canals is enlarged (the work is now iu operation) a large proportion (d' the grain ami other produce will tind its way from the Western States of America and of Oanada through lhi> port, for not only is the instance from Chicago to .Montreal less by 150 miles than from Chicago io New York, but there are l(i more locks and 8!»| teel more lockage by the latter route than the former; and the dislanco from Montreal to Liverpool is .UK) miles less (ban lioiii New York, which should mean theaper transit. • Wo went to Ottawa, the capital of the Dominion, and saw Mr. Lowe, the Sccie- tary of the Department of Agriculture. After some conversation, it was (Jecided that Mr. Curtii* and 1 should report iipcm Ontario, aH before .stated, Mr. Kroderick ,000. It is a bu.sy, thriving place, ixis.iosses many tine buildings, scdiools. colleges, and a public park, and the inhaoitants being principally f^jnglish by birth or by descent, it is more British in its characteristics than any of the cities in J'lastern Canada, where the populaliim is largely composed of French-(^'anadians, niostoftlKMu Mpoak the Fi'ench language and own adherence to the Catholic religion. During our stay in Toronto we made a tour of the country, 40 rr.lts north and ea>t thereof, and were conducted by Mr. William Kennie. a seedsniai. of that city, t«» whose kindness and assistance I was much indebted. We ins])ected the farms, roads, soils, crops and system of agricidture, and httd conversations with the leading faimers in the district. Our first visit was to Messrs. Leslio and Sons' nursery at Leslieville. Unfortunately the proprietors were from home, but under Mr. Kennies pilotage we examined the orciiai-d and shrubbery near the house. There was a mag- nificent collection of dab lijis: tin - trees were loaded flown with fruit, the weight of which was actually breaking th- ohes , h raaguiticent spruce hedge lo the west of the house interested me very nun. The ne.xl point of intorisst was Mr. Simoii Beattie's farm on the Kennedy Road, vrliere a tine crop of mangels and two or three varieties of turnips aiitl other root crops indicated the breeiler and I'cedor of c.ittle. Mr. Beattie is known all over Canada and the United States as an importer of liigli- class cattle. He imported some of the fine-st cattle and sheep at the Jloyal Agricul- tural Show at Carlisle this year for breeding purposes. Mi-. .Joiinson's farm on the same road also called forth favorable comment, a nice young orchard, with a >piuce^ hedge along the west side as a wind-break, being especially noticeable. The next farm was that of Mr. Glendinniug, the champion quoiter and bowler. One of our party remarked that superiority at these games did not make a perfect farmer. Some roots, with more than the average quantity of weeds, would have been improvetead about noon, we were invited in to dinner. This farm is worked by Mi'. S. Rennie, and is a credit to the township. To the west of the house, in what used to be his mother's duck-yard, is the spot in which are now raised most of the roots which he exhibits at the variou shows. The red and white carrots, mangels, sugar beet, etc., growing here were very tine. Two pumpkins (weighing over 35 lb. each, and not at full growth), mammoth squash (weighing at least 150 lbs. ajiiece, and likely to be ii75 lbs. before they stop growing, so it was said), and swede turnips of immense Kfize, wore indications of what can be done in fancy farming. A field of white carrots, mangels and potatoes, grown with ordinary cultivation, gave evidence of being a very heavy crop, in fact 1 never saw a better tield in all my life. Mr. Eennie shows some vevy tine Suftblk pigs from a prize boar and well-bred sow. He considers the 8uttblk the best breed for glass feeding iind running out. The grain crop is stowed away in his barn in excellent order, [n reply to questions, lie said that in 17 years' farming his smallest crop of barley averaged 38 bushels to the acre, whereas he had one year an average of 55 bushels. A splendid young (irchar ' planted to the north of the house, is sheltered on the north, east and west by u hedge of Norway spruce, which will not only protect the trees from the frost but also from the fall winds, which do so much damage to fruit by shaking it otfand breaking the trees. After leaving this farm, Mr. Thomas Hood's was next viewed. A hedge of wild apple trees was a novel featuie. We next passed the farms of Mr. John Gibson, a good farmer and a strong advocate of proper rotation of crops; of Mr. William Hood, jun., whose farm is a model wliich it would be well if the farmers of Markham would copy; ot Mr. W^illiam Rennie, who has within a couple of yeai-s planted out silver maples the whole way round his 1^0 acres, which are in an excellent state of culti- vation. We made some stay at Mr. R)bert Marsh's farm, where we viewed his flock of South Down sheep, of which he is justly proud. His sheep are all from imported rams and principally from imported ewes, and show in their faces, fleeces and form that they are pure bred. Mr. Marsh has been trying lucerne, and speaks favorably of it. He thinks that in rich land it might be cut three times a year, and that it would yield two to three tons per acre at each cutting. He took nine medals and nino f cereals ispection, cy of its by any by the of short- ppitality. olurabia 147 Wo also wont to Guolph to see the Ontario Agricultural College and Mode! Farm at that plate, which is supported by the Government. It is about 550 acres in extv^ut, and is presided over by Profetfsors Brown :iiid Mills. Its objects are to give a thoroughly practical agricultural education to persons who intend to adopt farmi'iii,', and to conduct experiments whiclj may tend to tlic advancement of agriculture, lis benefits uro largely availed of, so much so that an extension of the premises is being made. 1 may add that each student is paid tor hi-* labor on the farm, and it is said to be jx>s8ible to cover one's expenses of board and lodging in this way; the tuition is free . We next made a tour through the di-,tiict immm\ Jjondon, tho principal town in the County of Middlesex, Western Ontario. It has u population of 25,000, and is likely to beco'no a largo city. What strikes one here is the repetition of tho nuraos of our own Metropolis. It has its Ilyde Park and Kensington ; the river running through it is called tho Thames, and the bridges also bear familiar names. Our first di-ivo was through the Westminster district, and several farms were visited— tho land was of an excellent description and undulating— suitable for arable or pasturage purpose .. We then went to the Robson settlement and s(ivv good herds of tat cattle ; on one farm of 200 aci'os tliero were 80 head, and on anothor 50, in very good condition. Through tho western part of the Township of Westminster, and to Port Stanley, on Lake Erie, and from there to St. Thomas, was the next joui-ney ma[»ped out for us. We saw many tine farms throughout this district, and the houses were of a substantial description ; in fact, some of them might almost be called mansions. While in the London district I paid a visit to Peti-olia, in the Townsliipof Ennis- killen, the great mineral oil district of Canada. The oil is pumped out of the earth and is refined, and is already a great industry in these parts. We were driven through the township by tho Maj'or, Mr. Kerr, and saw some very good land. It would lie improved by better drainage, it is true; but in connection with this fact it should be observed that land can be bought for $10 per acre. A good deal of it is unclearetl ; Out this is not considered a disadvantage, as I was told that the timber often realises more than the price of the land. I consider it a good place for grazing farms. We continued oar journey to Sarnia, at the foot of Lake Huron. This is a groat fruit-growing disti-ict; apples, pear, plums and poaches, flourish luxuriantly, and are very cheap. During our stay here we had an opportunity of examining tho sysiom ■ ' ■ "" ■ ' ■ ■ ' ■ ' ■ ' niay 30s.. of registering tittles to land in Canada. It is very simple and complete, and I add that the cost of making a transfier is very small, and need not exceed including lawyer's foe. Our next trijj led us into the Counties of Kent and Essex. There are a good many French settlements in this distiict, where tho land was fairly good, though the farming did not come up to a high standard. Thei-e is some better land at Colchester, about eight miles from Kingsville, which is well farmed. Fine orchards and good farm-buildings meet tho eye, and I also noticed some good herds. At Morpeth we inspected a fine farm owned by Mr. Gardinci", consisting of 245 acres all in excellent order. The land a short time ago was considered a poor one, and the three former owners could not live on it, but by proper farming it has been brought into goixl condition. Ho u^iOs salt largely as a fortili/.er. Ho has some good cattlo, some (jf them imported animals. We also wont to the farm of Colonel Desmond, 245 acres, which is in still bettor order, having always boon well farmed. It has been in the Colonel's possession over sixty years. He is a hale old gentleman, and works on the farm himself. We then made oar way to Chatham, in the County of Kent, which is the centre of a fine farming district. This town is situated on the River Thames. We visited the farm of Mr. Doilson, which is in excellent condition and well drained. There are 26 acres of orchard attached to the farm, and fruit was so plentiful as to bo rotting on the ground. I think the land in this district among the best I saw in Canada. Tho County of Kent is second to none in the Province for its fertility or variety of itt* products. It stands perhaps first as a fruit growing district, apples, poaris, |)eachett, plums, cherries, quinces and grapes being pnxiuced in vast quantities. Grape 148 culture is made a Kpecialty by some perHons. While all the cereals yi-ow well, Kent is one of the few counties where a considerablo area is devoted to the growth of Indian corn. On the Lake Erie front the soil is a gravelly loam, further back clay loam is met with, and in the northerly and easterly parts of the county a sandy loam prevails. There is a good deal of very fine stock in the county, much attention having been paid to the breeding of improved animals during late years; this applies to horses, cattle, sheep and hogs. Prices of farms vary from $10 (£2) to SlOO (£20) per acre, depending mainly on locality and the extent of improvementH ett'ected. The lake supplies ample water navigation,and this is supplemented by the Great Western and the ('anada Southern Jtailways, which (u-oss the county from north-east to south-west, and a line is now being constructed from Rondeau to Chatham, thence northward to Dresden, and finally to Sarnia, not only intersecting in its course the two main lines already referred to, but also connecting at Sarnia with the Grand Trunk system. On our way back from Chatham to London we passed through a very fine farming district, the land in the last forty miles, nearing London, being especially good. 1 may state that the soil varies from a heavy clay to a sandy loam, and can be bought at from £7 to £20 per acre, including buijditigs. The average production of cereals and roots is said to be as follows : Wheat, ZO bushels ; barley, 30 ; peas, 12; oats, 35 ; potatoes, 100 ; turnips, 300 ; hay, lA tons per acre. The rent of farms varies from £20 to £80 per 100 aci-es. We next inspected the district between London and Wingham, Huron county. The view of the land one generally gets from a railway car is r.ot very good, as the lines seem to pass through the worst land, but in our present journey this will not apply, as the country we passed through seemed to be a fertile district. We weve driven around Wingham by the Mayor, Mr. B. Wilson, and Dr. Tarnlin, an old resi- dent in this part of the country. The land on our way to Teeswatei* has only recently been cleared, as we were told, but it appeared very good land. We visited the Tees- water Butter Fsuitory. The butter, it is said, commands a veiy high price in the Bi'itish markets. We were shown a large number of packages, ready for shipment, for which is. 2<1. per lb. had been i-efused. The butter is not touched by the hands during its manufacture. We also visited a cheese factory at this place controlled bj'^ Mr. Wilson. The cheese was of a very good and uniform quality, and ought to bring a good price. During my stay at Toronto a large agricultural exhibition was held, which 1 visited. The exhibits of cattle were very ci'editable indeed, some of the animals being equal to anything I have seen in this country. A white ox .ind a roan one paiticularlj' attracted my attention. The show of sheep also was excellent, and not- withstanding the winter, which necessitates housing, they seem to do very well. No disease is found amongst them ; no scab, foot-rot or maggot ; and this remark applies also to the cattle, which are allowed to enter England alive, while those from the United States have to be slaughtered at the port of debarkation — certainly a great advantage to the Canadian dealers. The pigs also were of good quality. The show of cereals, fruit.-* tind roots I have rarely seen equalled. I-Tiplements also formed an attractive feature at this show. They are lighter than those of English make, and easier to work. 1 went to see a trial of a binder and reaper, worked separately, and although it did not seem to act as well as was expected, it was considered to be satis- factory, and will doubtless be heard of again. The maker was John Watson, of Ayr. The mowing machines seemed to me to bo better than those we have; they are used both for hay and clover. As stated previously, I did not have an opportunity of visiting Manitoba, but 1 must not omit to mention the " Manitoba Exhibit" at this show. It gave a good idea of what that district can produce, and 1 shall be mistaken if my fellow-delegates have not something surprising to say about it. 1 had always understood that its climate was something to be avoided, but there cannot be much the matter if the country can pnxiuce such wheat, bJtrley, oats and roots as 1 saw in Toi'onto. well, Kent growth of oam is met 1 prevails, iving been to horses, ) per acre, The lake arn and the south-west. I'thward to main lines astern. a very fine especially m, and can production , 30 ; peas, nt of farms on county, ood, ab tho his will not We were an old resi- ily recently d the Tees- )rice in the shipment, the handt* ntroUed by t to bring , which I |he animals roan one [t, and not- well. No irk applies from the ily a great iThe show formed an lake, and )Iy, and to be satirt- I, of Ayr. are used •tunity of L" at this mistaken always be much 1 saw in U!» 1 also visited an agricultural sliow ut Hamilton, which was very much like that at Toronto, the exhibits of fruit and implements being larger, if anything. As' regards the price of land, improved farms can bo boiigiil tiiroughout tho Province at prices ranging from $40 to $100 ])er acre, according to tho ijuality of iho soil and the state of ihe buildings. Free-grant lands are also obtainable; atid as to these, full information can be obtained from the Canadian Government Ortices in this conniry. To start farming on cleared and improved land, I think a man ought to havo from £700 to £2,000 — the more the bettor. In some of the best districts farms of 100 acres are purchasable for from £1,000 to £1,200, such as would cost treble (ho price, or more, in England; but 1 should i-ecommend anyone to rent a farm in tno Hrt-t place, until he has time to look about him. No one should be in a hurry to buy. Oi courhc, on a free grant of land a very much smaller sum than th.'it 1 have mimed would suffice. I may mention here, as an instance of what can be done, the case of Mr. Coward, of Maple Grove, Brantford. He has an excellent farm, an;' as good a stock of cattle as I saw in Ontario ; he has twelve acres of orchard, from which he realized $U!0 in 1810; and grows good wheat and tine thin-skinned barley, lie is now well oft', but started on a very small scale. Mr. Stock, of Hamilton, too, started without means. He now owns a fine farm, which his sons work, he himself has retired. These are only a sample of many cases I came across; but, of course, this success is not obtained without hard work. I made enquiry as to why so many farms were for sale, and found that many reasons were assigned. Many ol" the farmers are the pioneers in their districts, and some, having a liking for that sort of life, wish to sell their farms a id go with their grownup families to now districts (many make tlieir way to Manitoba), where they can get a larger tract of land at a lower cost, and employ their capilul in developing new properties. Others havo got up in years, and wish to retire. Others, again, have their lands heavily mortgaged, and owing to the high rates of interest charged for money, have to sell out; while others have impoverished the soil, and do not care for the trouble of recuperating it. While on this subject, I may say a few words about the system of fai niing In the past, the idea seems to have been to get as much out of the soil as possible, and to put nothing back. Successive croppings of wheat have been resorted to, and havo naturally had the efi'ect of weakening tho land. Manuring has been a matter very little thovigiit about ; in fact, tho straw and stable manure has ovulently been deemed an incumbrance rather than a benefit. I am glad to say, however, that there is a likelihood of a better state of things prevailing. Ontario farmers ar^' beginning to see the importance of cattle-raising, and as a conscquoiu-e, m(»re roots and green fodders are being grown, and the straw utilized. This cannot fail to be productive of good results. The educational system of the Province is very complete, ami the luiliou is free. Taxes are light, ranging from about £.") 10s to £6 per 100 acros, including school- rates. The church is self-supporting, and consequently there arc lu. tithes. The roads are good, generally about GO feet wide, and tho mai kets are easily reached. The Province is very much like a district of E-igland, villa 'os and towns scattered about; but still it cannot be said to be thickly populated, the inhabitants only numbering about 1,800,000. There is a'good opening for agricultural laborers, who can got 4s. to 5s. a day, or £30 to £35 per year, and board. A careful, hard-working niiin has a good prf.s- pect before him. Domestic servants are in great demand, the wages ranging tVonk £10 to £15 per annum. The average crop of wheat, so far as 1 could learn, was from 20 to 31 bushels per acre; oats, 30 to 40; barley about the same ; Indian corn 40 bushels. Potatoes were excellent. I pulled up some roots on which there were from 10 to 13 tubers. The piisecl parts. But replanting and a second natural growth of timber are in progress. We have never had what may bo called a general failure in the wheat crops, even with all our carelessness ; so you ™^y jiitlge what skill and capital should do. if one ;U of Idle of ail -85°; br uiul ^nd 15 inage- I'owth |cau8e. the ;^and may you 151 . " I liave, in my own oxporionco, proved tiiat vyhut m called exhausted land can bo thoroughly recuperalod in iour yearn, by liberal treatment and systematic manage- mont. at actually no cont on an average of Hoas.>n« ; for the simple reason that much of this poor condition has been brought about by one chiKS of crops, and not a variety in any form. Land sick of wheat is not necessarily exhausted; we have but to deal properly with present unavailable fertility to bring out large productive powers. " Barley is invariably a sure crop, and is always a valuable one, whether for malting or animal food. From 30 to 40 bushels per acre is common. Oats, in quality of meal, are equal to your own, but lighter per bushel, being thicker skinned, as the result of rapid growth ; 40 to 50 bushels per acre. As a rule, the straw of the cereals is got at the rate of 3,000 lbs. per a(^i'e. Corn (maize) is not generally a common crop for production of grain, though very plentiful and valuable for groeii fodder, as elsewhere noted. Peas and bcuns arc impoi-tant farm crops, the grain and straw of the former being first class food for sheep; the yield is usually ^5 bushels per acre. " In the improved system of breeding and fattening stock, groon fodders are now taking an impoi-tant place. The climate is particularly suitable for successive rushes of vegetation during one season. Under liberal troatinont they can be so arrang.ni as to afford a continuous supply from middle of April to 1st of Xovembcr, Thus : 1. Lucerne, tour cuttings. 20 tons per aci-e. 2. Winter rye, two cuttings 4 " 3. Red clover, two cuttings (J « 4. Tares and oats, one cutting 3 » 5. Millet, two cuttings , 4 " G. Maize, one cutting 30 " 7. liape, one cutting 7 " 8. The thousand-headed kale and prickly corafrey have just been introduced with success. " In the cultivation of roots, Ontario has already made herself a name in the •world, even under the difficulties of more heat and the shortness of her autumn, in comparison with Bi-itaiii. We are graduall}' realising the facts that for a thoroui^h cleaning and inaiuiring, along with a crop unequallwi fijr a winter supply of health and feeding to ill animals, tui'nips, manyels and carrots are now indispensable. For size and quality they are almost equal to your own growing. Potatoes may be included in this character, in which we are supoi-ior, both in (|uaniitv and quality. Swedes, 18 tons; mangels, 2- tons; carrots, 15 tons; and pouitoos, 8 ions per acre on an average, " We have ditiicu.ty in establishing n variety of grasses, cither t'or rotation or , permanent pastures; but persistent trials are gradually addirg lo the number of those able to withstand the winters. Cultivated pastures invariably tax our best distribu- tion of animals to overtake the luxuriance of growtji, and though the same stamp of beef as yours is not always to be had from grass, we always find oui- stock in improved fl-osh as autumn comes. Hay is a staiulard of lai'go value, a^ it is often a cause of mismanagement, by reason of its prolificness — in inducing an over-continuance of the crop in the hands of the lazy and incautious,- not realising, as thoy should do, that grasses proper aie »bout as exhaustive as the other grasses called wheat, oats and barley. From 3 000 to 5,000 lbs. of hay per acre is common . The clovers, separately and in association with hay, are moat luxuriant and valuable, both as a cropper, a restorative of exhtiusied soils, and an improver of poor ones. We look to root and clover cultivation as a means of making good the past mismanagement in excessive wheat growing. " We can grow first-claas beef and mutton with the products ot our own soil, an fast and for loss than you can do. We can take a Durham or Hereford cross-bred steer from its milk, when six months old, ptit it upon the green and dry fodders, according to the season of the year, with bran and pea-meal or corn-meal, and within 24 months phice it on our seaboard at an average live weight of 1,400 lbs., and at a 12— iOA^!=* 152 cost not oxceoding £14. In this and all its connections there nocohsarily results j* large protit. " You have heard of the woodlands of this country, and the dltBcnlty io many eases of clearing and getting rid of the stumps and roots. This is true to th^se new to the axe, and as true that our hard-wooded lands give more choice of t^ite and noil than prairies, and certainly are more reliable for altei-nalo farming and more valuable as an investment. The tree crop itself in Ontario is as costly as the best arable, so that '.vhon you come to purchase, the desire will be for more ti'oo surface than ih gonernily to be had. Be sure of the long and dear-bought exporionco of our pioneers, that no land on this continent is so safe and so kindly as fi'om the primeval forests. Then, again, few Governments are so liberal as ours in the oncourugement to agriculture and arts. Our township, county and provincial exhibitions are a most important and inteiesting feature in connection with the progrons of agricultural industry. " Wo have also to offer you variations in your profession that now command the attention of our most enterprising capitalists. 1 refer to fruit-growing and dairying. Cheese and butter making it conducted here on a scale and by methods unknown to the average British farmer — a branch of our rural economy characterized by imme- diate returns on moderate capital. It appears as most unnecessary to noto ihat thu excellence in bulk and variety of our fruits take no second place in the world's com- petition. The farmer's orchard hero means one-sixth of the family keep. " While a very large country, Ontario is not thickly populated Oiitarioall over has only from 1,800,000 to ,000,000 souls, and as we plough some 10,000,000 acres, an estimate of our surplus may be made. That surplus, though not so large as it ought to be, will ere long be an immens*. one, even on the doubling of population. Our flour is well known in your own markets as of superior quality. The United States grade our No. 2 barley as equal to their No. I (cause, soil and climate), and take all we can aflford to send them. The riei-ds and flocks of Ontario are now looked up to by all on this continent as fountain-heads of excellence, purity and healthfulness. We are at the present moment unable to supply the demand for Cotswold sheep and Hei-eford cattle, and thus all over we are desirous of adding to our wealth and skilful management hy the accession to our ranks of those who have the pluck to endure a few years' personal labor with the certainty of success in the end. I purchased 1:20 acres for $5,280 (£4 18s. 6d. per acre), beautifully situated on the shores of a navi- gable lake, within five miles of a town, which is the jontre of a rising district of a midland county of Ontario, that soon became the junction of two railways. Soil, a rich clay loam, naturally dry, except ten acres, and abMit fifteen very stony; has been very poorly cultivated, is well sheltered (lake, south nnd east. excei)ted) by one-third of the area which is under a maple, beach and birch bush ; garden and small orchaid inditFerent, fences old and poor, houses fair, ro.-xds good ; a stream runs diagonally through the farm, and there existed no diflficulty to a good title and a well surveyed bound.iry. Here 1 considered that judiciously laid out money in permanent improve- ments, with better farming, and t^teady self-application to labor, would bring about a change. " 1 shall place in ju." that tho tvorld's com- tario all over 000 acres, an ) as it ought lation. Our nited States and take all ooked up to ["ulness. We sheep and 1 and skilful to endure a i-chased z2i} of u navi- istrict of a Soil, a has been )y one-third 11 orchai'd liagonally • surveyed \i improve- ng aoout a y years in res arable, les in well a husband, IS, railway >adow, 18s. 18s. ; lire . J interest 52 ; taxes, se annual ys IM coturnH, £6:55; surplus revenue during live yoais, .tSfi.'J ; realisation after five years, £2,:)50. S(!oU-h Tenantship : Sum invested, !C2,G00 ; rent and taxes, t255 ; annual maintonanee on;»rm, £274; household expenses, .C2G5 ; gross annual rentals, £1,308 ; hUrpluK I'ovenuo during five yeai-s, £305 ; realization after five years, £2,400. "It appears, then, that a capital of £2,600 invested in British farming takes fully one-third of itself for annual supjjort, of whirh one fourth is household; and that there is an annual gross revenue equal to half the invested sum, which sum does not always increase in value, but may be considerably lessened undoi- certain conditions. It also jippears that £2,152 invested in the purchase of land and the fiuiningof it in Ontario, requiios one-tburlh ot itself lor annual maintenance, ol' which one-half is household ; an J that there is a gross annual revenue equal to nearly one-third of the invested sum, which sum increases 22 per cent, in value during years untler special conditions. The return per acre is much larger in Britain; living i" not so different from your class as may be supposed, and the gieat difi^'ereoce of annual maintenance is largely in i-ent and I a Lor. " r could say much more that would be of interest to old countrymen and colonists, but a letter having to be a letter only, I must defer until a better opportunity for ileiails. I trust very many of you will at once take advantage of the present condi- tion of things, that is (1) your own ditticulties, and (2) the fact of land hero being 25 per cent, lower in pri(.'e than four years ago.'' And now just a few woi-ds as to Canada and particulaily Ontario, as a field for emigi'ation. This is a question which I approach with some caution. The country is undoubtedly a tine one, and I was very nearly bnj'ing some land for myself there. It, of course, has its drawbacks, as every place must have. In the first place, its winters are nearly five months long ; but from all I hoard, the piincipal inconvenience is that tho sheep, as well as cattle, have to be housed during that season. Then, the yields are not so great as on our English farms, and wages are higher j •but, to counterbalance this, neither the cost of land nor tho rent and taxes are so bigh us in this country, and cattle and the cost of living are cheaper. Those small yields, too, are in many cases accounted for by bad farming, an error a new settler need not fall into; and, as it has reduced the price of land, and as manure is cheap, it is not altogether a gieat disadvantage from an English settler's point of view. My advice is to people who ai-e getting on well in England, or who hope for better times and can hant! on, " stay where you are ;" but for men who are seeking new fields in which to employ their capital and farming knowledge, and especially those who have grown-up families, 1 believe that Canada olfers an opening which is second to none. One can i-each Canada much cheaper than any other colony, and land is at a lower price, with a better chance for selling the pioducts to advantage. There are many men in Canada who started as pioneers years aejo with no capital but an axe, but are now well of^'. This cannot but be regai-dod as hopeful. Anyone with a small capital need not, however, go through the hardships of a backwoodsman's .ife, now that cleared land is so comparatively cheap and can be rented at such a low pi-ice. Agricultural laborois get good wages, and, I consider, have a good prospect. But the Ontario farms could geta better and more satisfactory system of labor if they would establish a class of i-esident laborers on their land, similar to those we have in England, providing cottages for them, with small garden lots, which could easily be done. 1 have been asked, if Canada is so fine a country, why the people who have lands there and get on so well do not write for their friends, in the same way as is done in the States? As regaids this, in the first place, it must be remembered that the United States of America has a population more than eleven times as great as Canada, so that it is not astoriishing that emigration should be greater than the latter country. I 20,l»21 140,737 1870 27,U{8 163,4«(i 1871 24,i>64 150,7«« 1872 24,:)28 1873 2H,045 16 1, '(82 l«lfi,730 Excepting lust year (ISTPX)), the oinigiutioii duiiiijLi; thcho pi^iioils Hum boon the InrgCHt uver known, iind it will Ix; seen ihiit, acconiing to the rehpoc^tive populations^, Canada has f'ociircd a greater proportion of liritish finigiants than tho Unittid Status. But she not iinroaHonably wants to get Htill more to oc('nj)y the laigo tracts of country ■wh'ih are yet only very partially inliahitod, ami thinks, as a Uritish colony, >he hat- a greater claim to them. 1 now conclude my report. A PAPKU CONTKIBrTTKD BY MK. JAiMKS RiDDKLri, OF MIAMI, MANITOHA, FOHMERI^Y OK llUNltALEK, JKDBUHOII, SCOTI-A.ND, I'ORARILY SXAYINU AT THK LATTEH ADHHESH. WHO IS TEM- Tt has been suggested by tlie High (/ommissioners of the Dominion of Canudu that I might write a paper giving my personal experience of Manitoba and the North- West Territory tor the benefit of those who are intending to settle there. In doing must confine my remarks principally to Manitoba, where I have been for nearly so four years. Jt is impossible to enter into any detailed account (»f the country with- out going over much that haw already been written, but my remarks will be practical andtased on my own experience. Appreciating the difliciilties of the Scotch Tenant Farmers' Delegates in their hurried visit to the counti-y, I will tirst lake the liberty of corroborating generally the statements they have made. The class of people most likely to succeed in Manitoba and the North-Wost Terri tory are those who intend farming, as the country is almost piiiety agricultural. They would have gi-eater advantages if men of practical ex})erience, and willing to work themselves when necessary, Owing to the richness of the soil crops can be grown with little trouble; still, when farmed according to the rules of good husban- dry, it fully re-pays all extra time and care giveti to its cultivation. It follows as a certainty that the British farmer is, as a rule, capable of working the land of Western Canada to the best advantage to himself and to the country. The best time for settlers to arrive depends on their propo^ed line of action. By " arriving in the spring a difficulty arises through the absence ot guod roads, but this want is now being removed by railway e.v\ension westward, and by the Provinct being divided into municipalities, which hiuc the power to assess landholders for the construction of roads and bridges. The amount of assessmcfit on a ;-i20-acre farm ranges fi-om $6 to $8 a year, ard if judiciously expended will, within a few jears, make aubetantiai roads. To enter on unimproved land and begin work immediately for the purpose of cropping the following year, spring (notwith.standing the state of the roads) is certainly the be^t time. The roads become good in June, and remain so if the season is dry ; during the winter they are, of cour.se, excellent. But any season would be suitable for the arrival of young men who are in no hurry to begin farming for themselves, and wish to gain information from those who have been some time in the country. Those with families and who possess capital should allow the summer lo be pretty well advanced before going to Manitoba. There are lines of steamships to Canada, sailing from London, Bristol, Liverpool, Glasgow, Londonderry and Cork, and I can spt ak as to the comforts and attention to be obtained on board ihe Liverpool and Glasgow steamers. Through tickets can be had to Winnipeg ; the entire trip taking fifteen days. 7NH 7;{o huM boon Uk- population.x, iiittid Status, ts ot'coiiiuiy ;)ny, ^lle lla^ (VIIO 18 TEM )i\ of Can ad it jd the Nuitli- e. In doing m for nearly ountry witli- j be practical otch Tenant the lil»orty West TeiTi griculUiral. willing to ops can be )(k1 husbaii- bllowb aH a of WeBtorii action. % ' 8, but this ic Provinct era for the farm ranges ears, make itely for the tate of the smain so il any season ;in farming me time in he summer Liverpool, attention to cets can be 15.> I'ahMongerH by rail In Canada arc* allowed u oortftin amount lbs. woighl; all above tliat woigbt is charged extra. It i.s woll to tako out nor- tonal clothing, Huch as tweeds (wliuli will be found to be most pr< titable wean, flan- nels, blankets, cutleiy, or any liglit household articles, [•\iniiture and heavier goods can be bought in Winnipeg at rea^imablo )»rices. A few pair of Injots. not too lieavy. without iron, would be found us(ftiil. It is only in summer thiil bouts are worn, uh moccasins, a kind of shoe made of dressed moose and buffalo hide, are used during winter. On arrival at any «>l the ports, there are in waiting a staff of customs otHeials who do their duty agreeably, and all made up clothini; tor persoruil use, and set- tlers' etfects, are passed tree of duty. When once your Imggage is into the hands of the railway officials, you are relieved from furthei' care of it. as a "check " systetn is in use, which has been found to work satisthctorily. I'lvery pan-el is numboi'eil, u check with a duplicate number is given to the owner, and on presenting this at the end of your Journey y(uir baggage is handed to you. Now that the railway system is extended to Winnipeg, that lily is perhaps the best centre for settlors to make for. On arrival, ample accommodation can easily be found at moderate charges. Settlers should bo on their guard against persons "who have land to sell, and on no account should they make a purchase until the land ha-< boon viewed, as many have been disappointed under the cii-cumstancos. The selection of a location iloponds on the inclination fi' the settlor, as well as the amount of money at his disposal. It is necessary to tind out the piices of luml in the ditferent district's, which can be obtained on application at the (Jovernment Land Ottices at Winnipeg, and ol.sowliero, or from the [jand iiegulations issued by the Beptirtment of the Interior. The ('ana than 320 acres of homestead and pre-emption to buy a piece of the adjoir^- ing railway land. The railway lands adjacent to the line, although heM at 85 per acre, in many cases arc not so valuable as .some 50 or (lO miles away, for tho reason that nniess the land is dry and loamy it is not so easy to work. Those who settle at a distance from the Canadian Pacific iJailway may be fortunate enough to bo within oasj' reach of some of the Colonization Railway lines, which are being made to act as feeders to the main lino. The plan of the survey is so simple, that when anyone meets with land on wliich he may desire to locate, its position is easily determined. Tho whole country is divided into townships of rt mii.s square, each of these is divided into squares of 1 jnilo, which are again divided inio 4 sqmires of 160 acres. Around every square mile a road is laid of about 100 foot wide. All surveys start and are numbered from tho Intei-national boundary line. The land along the Eed and Assiniboine Rivers is heavy, strong clay, and in wot seasctns is difficult to work ; but with a dry spring and summer, good crops ca i be grown. It is unlike the rolling prairie to the West, and with its rose-bush and buffalo grass— unfailing marks of good dry, loamy land — where the soil is from 2 to 4 feet deep, and is neither more nor less than decayed vegetable matter, resting on a layer of sand, with a subsoil of heavy blue clay. These drv prairies are naturally drained by shallow ravines and small streams, which now and again spread themselves out. 166 lorinin^' a niar.'.li or hay niomlovv. On laml a«* doscriltod tiiiil)or i»* ^ouoially dcHrionf, but (hu (iovorninciit liit> takuii thu piucuulioii to i-umuivo liinbor luiuls with u viow lo holl lo HultlofM on lionii'ft h|)i'ing-wutoi' on tbo HurtUuu, but by sinirs attached, are chiefly in use, and have been found to m >P, witli lay, and I with in B8S than lie gi'jisH Ih about July- nth an other lime — a Icessive |d June, soon as spring, 8 or 9 ^und to TuiiUe a ^roiit saving in setu). The i|uanlilioN r«own with the i-cetlcr iiro : Wlcul, I hiihhcl and 1 |)e«-k porarre; ()atF<, 2 l>UNholH , and hatloy, ]\ l>u>liul. \'ogeiiili>Mi in I'upid, and harvent iri generally begun about the middle of AiigUNt. The reapers in uno are ftll Holf binding or Nell'delivering. They are lighter than the KngliKh make, but are capable ol' dmng a deal of heavy work. Wheat retpiiies In ho bound allnll^l aH rtoon as cut, the straw being dry and biiltle; but oats are usually allowed U> li<- a day before lilting. The Canadian nystem of lifting ;tnd binding 'v< u decided iinpit)V«(- mont on the Knglisb or Scotch style, one num makes ibc bund, lifts and binds Ins own sheaf. On a good average crop of wbt'al (say 25 bushels per acre), four men can lift and bind to a M-lf-delivering nnudiine, cutting 10 to 12 acnv- per day. Allei' June or July almoHl no rain falls, conseipiently grain slacks aiv not ihaUbeil. but are tlirashed a8 xuai as ploughing is stopiied by frosl. Travelling mai'liines, with liorse or steam-power, are for hire, and are paid by the bu-tbcl or the acre. Owing to the number of immigrants et)ming into the country, the towns and villages springing up, and the cr.nstruetion of railways, the ULirket for wheat is loc d ; t)ut by the time there is u surplus, railway communication will be opened so ns t(» admit of its being sent to (iroat Britain and elsewhere Wheat, at I'n: per bushel, would amply repay the grower in Manitoba, and, at pre.sent prices in Fiontloii oi- (.ila>gow for American wheat, would leave a large margin for freight and other expenses. I will here state the (h)sI of raising wlioat p evident Messrs. J^eiid and Pell havo Itoen led into erroi- in their Htutoincnts. Ameri- can wheat at the present time is worth 58s. per quarter in Glasgow, which »hows a large margin for the growers' profit in Manitoba. As soon as the (/anadian Pacific Railway and the Hudson's Bay routes are open, there cannot be a doubt that the cusi oi transit will .be reduced. Cattle-rearing is likely to pay well, as it is attended with little expense. Thej' keep their condition through the wintei- (where wind-brake-< are provided) on niarsli hay, and this can be had in abnndanco in almost any kind of season. It is cut in July (>r August, the earlier the better ftKlder it makes. The marshes are lovol, and mowing machines make good woi-k in the cutting. The expense of making this h;iy does not exceed $1 per ton, and the a^ual winter allowance per hoarne in mind that most of them have never experi- enced a winter in .Manitoba. 1 iiave noticed a letter in a Scotch news|tapor from a Mr. Lauder, Dunfermline, giving a mo>t alarming account of the climate and soil of Manitoba. I find that many of the statements he makes are quite incoi-rect, and no wonder, as he was only there for a very short time during summer on a hunting expedition. As an instance of his inaccuracy, he states that there are 8 months of winter and only 4 months of summer, instead of this there ar»* 4^ months of winter, and the rest spring, summer and autumn. I have no idea of entering into the comjtarative merits of Manitoba with Iowa, or any other country, but it would be an injustice if 1 did not add my testimony to the advantages of Manitoba as a field for immigration. It ha.-' been said that iMani toba and and the North-West Territory will be the granaiy of the world, and its rapid divelopment, the amount of cajMtal and skill which is being expended on the cultiration of its soil, and the towns and villages that have sprung up, are all strong evitlences of the progress that has been made. Winnipeg, in 1874, had a population of only 5,000 inhabitants, while now it i^ fully more than double. Kmerson, Portage la Prairie, Nelsonville and Rapid (^ity, and many other villages, have also become places of impoi'tance. With the privileges offered in Manitoba and the North-West Territory, where free grants of land are offered to the agriculturist, whei'c land can be purchased for less than is paid in Britain for merely occupying it, where all improvements are one's own, where education is free, and, in fact, where nearly all the comforts of the Old Countr}' are to be had, it is surpi'ising. at this time of continued depression in British farming, how few have availed themselves of such a favorable opening. ey are — it i> nts. Ameri- lich shows a adian Pacitic that the cusi )oiise. Thoy kI) oil marsh It is cut in re lovol, and :'ma; thi^ h:iy various ages 1 dining th. irasses. Tho e worlh 8.'{5 winter witli- nor thati th*' profitable us in. Ft must • is cioai' an(i the severity ever experi- apor fi'oui a i and soil of ■ect, and no )n a hunting months of s of winlei', with Iowa. 'stimony to that iViani ^-Id, and itN idod on the all St long- now it i> ^er villages, )ry, where rchased for are one's )f the Old in British 159 EXTRACTS FROM TIIK IJKI'ORT OF MI<:SSRS. C.^AJiK SEWJ-JLL REA!> AND ALBERT PKLL, MP., UPON CANADA AND THE UNITKD STATE.S, PRESKNTi:!) TO BOTU HOUSKS OF PARLiAMKNT BY COMMAND OF 11 KR MAJK8TY, IN AUGUST, 1880. CANADA. Upon the arrival of tho Citi/ of Montreal at New York, wo were waited, upon by the Hon. Kobert Road, Senator, with an invitation from the Canadian (iov- ernnaent to visit Ottawa, and make a prolonged tour in tho Dominion. We wero compelled to decline the gi-eiiter part of this kind invitation, but Mr. R Head courte- ously as-^isted us in our investigations in New York, and remainod our guide and companion till wo left Toronto. Many of the agricultural remarks that have been made apply equally to Canada and the United States, It will he only possib'o unv to say a few special words upon the farming of tho Dominion of Canada. W ; fi,' i .lot time to visit Lower Canada, nor dill we see very much of Ontario. Tho lable (arming around Toronto is deci- dedly in advance of anything we saw in the Imi'^"' States. Tho cultivation strongly resembled t'lat of Kngland, and for eleanlinefjs and produce would compai-e favorably with so»ne of its well-farmed districts. The soil is deep and fertile. The country has almost all been reclaimed from tho primevTl forest, and the laboi' that has con- verted that woody region into miles of smiling corn-Helds, must have been no easy task. But in the groat Norlh-V7est, the countiy so recently opened to the over-pojui- lated countries of the Old World, there is no forest to subdue, or scrub to uproot. The whole i one vast plain, more oi" less fertile, which can be converted into a grain- field by tho simple operation of two shallow ploughings. The soil around Portage la- Prairie is a rich black loam, light oft tillage, yet sufficiently retentive to with tantl severe drought. In many places there appeared lit'le or no variation to the depth ot thrte feet. In some spots the land is swampy and low, but a few main dykes would dry many hundred acres, an any permanent friendly relations between landloiii and tenant. Oar regret at not being able to describe more fully the agriculture of Canada is conBidemibly modifietl by the fact that in the autumn of last year, 1-4 farmers' dele- gates tif»ra Scotland aixl the north of England visited the Dominion, and have since written a series of most useful and exhaustive reports. Tiiese reports have been freely lirculalcd by the Department of Agriculture of the Canadian Goverum Mit, and their contents ai-e widely known. But there was one great feature ot Canailian farming, viz., its dairy produce, which seemed to us to reiiuire some special notice, and we have, therefore, to call attention to the separate report of Mr, John Clay, lunior, upon this subject, which will be found in the appendix. The following is a short summary of the land system of the different Provinces of the Dominion of Canada: In Manitoba and the North-West Territories free grants of 160 acres are given to any liead of a family, male or female, or to any peixni over 18 years of age (m <:ondition of 3 years' settlement from time ofentiy. For the necessary documents for tb* registration and taking up a free grant the fee is $10, ])ayable when the title is is)4a,id. A person entering for a homestead may also enter the adjoining quarter sec- tion (IHO acres), if vacant, as a preemption right, and enter into immediate po.sses- sion thereof, and on fulfilling the conditions of his homestead may obtain a patent for his prc-emj)tion right on jjayment for the same at the rate i $1 per acre, if outside the railroad bolts, but if within such bolts, at the price set forth in thu regulations, the maximum price being $2.50 per acre (10s.) Free grants of land are also made for the culture of foi-est trees outside the rail- way bolts, in addition to the homestead, but settlers cannot take up the pre-emption land as well as the u:rant for the cultui-e of u i. 161 It abund- inunirels h;inl iimJ ol"" rudo fih homo, it. The unci -iutl lie t'(>ar;i- jine that mil well- Luiie. It apecially 'lio has a 1 the best iitio. Rail- adju.-i'tl ont thitn id system ny farms toen irutn Mit, 'anadian notice, in Clay, i-xvinces |e uivou :igc. on leiits for title is Her sec- jiosses- Itont for I outside )nB, the Iho rail- Imption The Legislature of Manitoba, in 1872, pawsed a Homestead Exemption Law, which in addition to exempting from seizure for debt the debtor's goods, a-s follows : — furniture, tools, farm implements in use, 1 cow, 2 oxen, 1 horse, 4 sheop, 2 pigs, and 30 days' provender for the same; also enacts that his land, to the extent of 160 acres, shall be free from seizure, as also the house, stables, barns, and fences on the same, in the case of all writs issued by any court in the Province. Free grants of from 100 to 200 acres are also made in the Provinces of Ontario and Quebec on residential conditions, and they also have homestead exemption laws, but not quite so liberal as that of Manitoba. Lands can also be purchased in these Provinces at reasonable rates. There is also land available for settlement in Nova Scotia, New Urunswick and British Columbia on very leasonable terms. KXTEACTS FROM THE CHAPTER OF THE "COLONIZATION CIRCULAR" RELATING TO CANADA, ISSUED BY THE IMPERIAL COLONIAL OFFICE. DOMINION OF CANADA. The territory comprised in the Dominion of Canada contains about 3, ,500, 000 square miles, extending from the Atlan^^ic to the Pacific Ocean, and at its southern point reaching the 44th parallel of latitude. It possesses thousands of square miles of the finest forests on the Continent; widely spread coal-fields, extensive and productive fisheries ; its rivers and lakes are among the largest and most remarkable in the world, and the millions of acres of prairie lands in the newly opened-up North-West Territories are reported as i)eing among the most fertile on the Continent of America. Canada is divided into seven Provinces. Each Province is divided into (tountie* *nd townships, having their own Local Boards and Cou .cils, for regulating local taxation tor roads, schools and other municipal purposes. Religious liberty prevails. The educational system is under the control of the Governments of the various I'rovinces. I'ree schools arc provided, and facilities are afforded to successful pupils for obtaining the highest education. The jiopulation at the lastcensus (in 1871) was3,fi02,506. Among its inhabitants there were J 19,451 natives of Ireland, 144,999 of England and Wales, 121,074 of Scotland, ()4,447 natives of the United States, and 24,lb2 natives of Germany. The census will he taken again in 1S81, when the population will, no doubt, be loand to have much incieased. The following figures show the imports and exports for the fiscal year ending oOtti ,hine, 1880, and also the value of the exports to. and imports from, the United Kingdom during the same ]toi ,od. Valine of imports $86,489,747 Value of exports 87,911,458 Exports to the United Kingdom 45,846,0(52 Imports from t he fTnited Kingdom 34,461, "224 An examination of these figures, compaa-ed with those of the United States, shows that the imports oi Canada from Great Britain, in proportion to the population, lopresenrs :'rj.r-. per h--ad, as against 8s. 4(i. per head in the Unitod States. In a (ttintiy like the Dominion of Canada, extending northward from the 41° of laiitwif , the climate is naturally variable; but speaking generally, the summers are hotter than in England and ihe'winters cohler. However, if the climate of a country is to be measured by its prodiKJtions, then Canada, in the quality of her timber, grains, fruits, plants and animals, mu5t be accorded a front rank. The extremes of cold, though of short duration, and the winter covering of snow, have given Canada the reputation of having an extremely severe climate, and atten- 162 tion has not been aufHciently ilirected to the circumstaTiceH that by the warmth of the suniJiior months, tl»e range of |,roduction ia extended, in gi-aini*, from oats and barley to wheat and muizo ; in fitiits, from apples to poncliois, grapes, melons, nectarines and apricots; in vegetables, from turnips, carrots and cabbages, to the egg-plant and tomatoes. Snow anil ice are no drawback to the Canadian winter. To Cansula they moan not only i)rotection to hei- cultivated acres, almostas valuable as a covering of manure, but the convcision of whole areas, during several months in the year, to a surface upon which every man may make his own road equal to a turnpike, in any direction, over swamp or tield, lake or livor, and on which millions of tons are annually transported at the minimum cost, whereby employment is afforded for man and horse when cultivation is arrested by frost. Inionsity cf winter cold has little effect upon the agriculture of a country except the beneficial one of pulverizing the soil where exposed. High spring and summer tempciatures, with aburuhince of i-ain, secure the certain ripening of maize and the melon in Canada. The difference between the mean annual temperature of the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of Canada for the same latitude is very gi'eat, that for the latter being much higher, and thus wheat is raised with profit in lat. (50'' X., long. Ii2" 31' W. In Manitoba in lat. ur 30 N., long. 97° 30' W., wheat is f^own in May and reaped the latter end of August, after an interval of 120 days. The great prairie region of Canada has a mean summer temperature of 65°, with abundance of rain ; the winters cold and dry; cliniate and soil similar to that part of Russia where large cities are found. It is free from pulmonary complaints and fevers of every type, and the countiy <|ene:all3' is healthy. Tli't snow-fall in the west and south-west parts of the Territories is compara- tively light, and tattle may remain in the open air all the winter, subsisting on the prairie grasses, which they obtain by scraping away the snow where necessai-y. There .ire nearly 7,000 miles of railway in work in the Dominion, extending from the western jortions of Ontario to Halimx in Nova Scotia, and St. .John in New Brunswick, while its rivers and lakes forma highway during the summer months from the interior to the ocean. u ma\- I>e mentioned that Canada possesses the most perfect system of inland iiaviij;atioM in the world. At tlie present time vessels of 600 tons go from Chicago to Montreal by way of Lakes Michigan, Huron, J']rio, Ontario, and the River 8t. Law- rence, a distance of 1,261 miles. The locks on the Welland Canal (connecting Lakes Erie and Oniari<») and those on the St. Lawrence River are, however, in course of enlargement to '11'^ feet long and 45 feet wide, with a depth of 14 feet; and when this great work is <>^sos excellent postal arrangements: a post-office being found in almost (ivcry village, and every place of any importance is connecteil with the electric telciji-aph. The be.-t time to jinive in North America is early in May, when the inland navi- gation is open, and outdoor operations are commencing. The emigrant will then bo abb to take advantage ol the sjuing and summci- work, and loget settled before the winter sett in. 300 tons )ss than ti more a, thece- years, meriea, ^o«, the ork. und in electric id navi- Lhon bo ore the irS The voyage to Quebec occupies on an avoiage about ton dtiys by stouinor, and the journey lo the Noith-Wost four days longer. It is now proposed to ort'or a few remarkis on ea(;h of the ditl'oront Provincox of which the Dominion of Canada is composed. MANITOBA AND THE NORTlI-WB>T TKKKITORIES. The country now known as Manitoba and tiie North-West Territories was granted by charter to the Hudson Bay Company, in 1 070, dnring the reign of Charles II., as a bunting und trading ground, and was held by them and the North-West Company (these two corporations amalgamated in 1S21) until 1870, when their i-ights were transferred to the Dominion. These facts form an intelligible reason why this part of the country has only ncently become known as an agricultural rogioD ; for the disturbance of the lands would naturally have led to the intenujition of iliu staple trade of the company which controlled it for so man}- years. Manitoba, a Province which has been made out of the North-Wost Territory, is situated between the parallels 49*^ — 50° 2' north latituiie and 96° — !)9^ west longitude, in the very heart of the continent of America. It is 135 miles long and 105 miles wide, and contains in round numbers I4,0u0 square miles, or 9,000,000 acres of land. iJoughly speak ng, the North-West Territories belonging to Canada cover about 2,500,000 square miles, and contain about 200,000,000 aceans, is now i expected to f the line are I, and in 1882 h rough Mani- Jtinga saving w ofshipmerit g route from pass through ng settlor can the " all-rail led the Lake se by steamer le journey by lomical. By in Liind and Jnitftd States his intended 88i a line of nnipeg and ft' 8, both to le rivers and ens now ply^ 'idmonlon, a ig at Priiico l?o run i-egii- Thero is Rllico and nt from tlio gives con- goe« away, older Pro- rd, and the larvosted in ta to rapid November, ■ December, er months 1^5 are part of May, June, July, August, and part of September. In winter the ther- mometer sinks to 30 and sometimes 40 degrees below zero; but this degree of cold in the dry atmosphere of the North- West does not produce any unpleasant sensations. Tha weather is not felt to be colder than in the Province of Quebec, nor so cold an miWor winters in climates where the frost, or even a less degree of cold than frost, \b accompanied with damp or wind. The testimony is universal on this point. - Snow does not fall on the prairies to an average greater depth than eighteen inches; and buttaloes and horses graze out of doors all winter. Horned cattle also graze out of doors part of the winter, but in some states of the weather they require to bo brought in. Instances are, however, stated, in which horned cattle have grazed out all the winter. The following table represents the mean temperatures of Winnipeg, Toronto, and Battleford, for each month of the year ending July, 1879 : — Toronto. Winnipeg. Hattleford, August G()-38 67-34 67-79 September 38-18 5-J-18 47-10 October 45-84 35-84 34-52 November 36-06 30-66 28-66 December 25-78 11-97 6-48 January 22-80 —6-10 0-45 February f Jt-74 —12-32 —10-25 March '28-93 14-14 16-80 April 40-72 39-10 46-70 May 51-74 33-13 53-35 June 61-85 63-20 60-45 July 67-49 68-19 63-95 It will be noticed that from Toronto westward, the temperature rises during the eummer months, and as the average yield of wheat per acre in Manitoba and the North-Wost is equally as large (if not larger), both in quantity and in weight, as in the United States, it would .seem that in conjuoction with the fertility of the soil, this temperature is very favorable to cereal crops. The fall of snow is also less in the Western portion of the Dominion. In the first half of the year 1876 it was 28^ inches, and in the second half 29j inches ; but the snow is no drawback to the growth of the 'jrops, which are sown in April and May, and harvested in August luid September. The soil is a deep alluvial deposit of unsurpassed richness. It is mo.stly prairie, and covered with giass. It produces bountiful crops of cereals, grasses, roots, and vegetables. So rich is the soil that wheat has been cropped ott' the («ame place for Ibi'ty years without manure, and without showing signs of exhaustion. "Hie following extracts from the reports of the English anu Scotch farmers, selected by the farmers in their respective districts, who went out to Canada in 1879 to report upon the i-ountry, are interesting and reliable on this subject : — Mr. Bui oar. The Grange, Dalbeattie. " As a field for wheat-raising, I would much prefer Manitoba to Dakota. The ■first cost of the land is less ; the soil is deeper, and will stand more cropping ; the sample of wheat is better, and the produce five to ten bushels per acre more, all of which is profit." Mr. George Cowan, Annan, speaking of Mr. Mackenzie's farm at Burnside, says : " I was certainly surprised at the wonderful fertility of the soil, which is a rich black loam, averaging about 18 inches of surface soil, on friable clay subsoil, 5 and 6 feet in depth, beneath which 12-11** 166 is a thin layer of sand, lying on a stiff clay. The land is quite dry, and ia well watered by a tine stream which flows through it." :ic * ♦ * ♦ )K " The land between Bapid City and the Aseiniboino, which Hch to the southward, 26 miles distant, is a nice loam with clay subsoil on top of gravel. I was very highly impresseil with the fertility of the soil, some of it being, without exception, the richest I have ever seen, and I have little doubt it will continue for many years to produce excellent crops of grain without any manure, and with very little expense in culti- vation." Mr. John Looan, Earlston, Berwick, says, : " All the land round this district (Assiniboino) is very good, being 4 feet deep of black loam, as wo suw from a sandpit." Mr. John Snow, Midbthian. " Along the Rod River and about Winnipeg the soil is very strong black vegetable mould, and I have no doubt most of it would cu'. ry paying crops of wheat for thirty years ; but it is very flat, and I must say that 1 like the countrv bettor west of Win- nipeg, and the furthest point we reached, 150 miles west of Winnipeg, best of all. You have hero the Little Saskatchewan Riv^er, with fine sloping ground on each side ; the soil, and what it produced, was gooheln. ■'= '^ * Next duy wo drove ovor Moasrs. i»iddloV farm; their wliout has averaged fidly 30 ijunhols jier no re." Mi{. (tEciii IE Cowan, Gteidiwe, Win(litit)nB and proof of cultivation. The foe tor the neceMsary dccnments iv 810. No piM>oa can take up both u tree-phtnting ^rnnt and a preemption ; biit either one or th(^ otliov can bo »ecuriHl in conjunction with the tree grants. Farm lalorein can obtain from £110 to X4() n year and Itoard. Female donientic Horvai,t8 208. to 24i*. per month with board. MccluinicH eni'n from 8h to 12n. pi-r day. The following are the j)rictfB of horsen, cuilio, Jiiiming nnjilemcnit*, and eonv- rrjotlitiew generally : — lloi yes per jiaii. about jG(!0; oxen per yoke, £2fi to £.*J0 ; cow, £(> to £1 each; waggons, jL'Ki to £18 each ; oxcart, £.'} to £4 ; bicaking plough, and harrow, from £fito£y; common ploughn, about £3 12h. ; reapers, £2u to £30; mowers, £14 to £26; upades, 4s. Gd. ; shovels, 5s hay forks, 3s.; manure lorivs, 4s. IJccf, 5d. to 7d, per pound; flour, 24s. per barrel; butter, iti. per pound ; .ggs, Is. j)er dozen ; bread, 4^d. to 5d. per 4 lb. loat ; salt, 7d. to bd. per lb. ; jiotatoes. Is. 9d. to 2s. per bushel ; tea, 28. to 2s. 3d. per lb. ; sugar, 4d. lo6d.; cottee, lOd. to Is. b'd.; tobacco, 2h. to 28. 3d. Coal oil, Is. 9d. per gallon. Pails, three hoop, Is. 4d. each. Stout suit of clothing lor a nuin, £2 to £H; felt hats, from 48.; boots, Hs, to 12s.; grey blankets Ss. to 128. ])er pair. ONTARtO. Every head of u family can obtain a free i;rant of 200 acres of land, and any person 18 years of age may obtain 100 acres in the free-grant districts. The con- ditions are: — 15 acres in each grant of 100 acres to be cleared and under crop in five f^earH ; a habitable house at least 16 feet by 20 built; and residence on the land at east six months in each year. The patent is issued at the end of five years. Unclearoi' lands can also be purchased al i)rices varying from 2s. to 40s. per acre. Cleared and improve^! farms with buildings can be bought at from £4 to £10 per acre. The money can nearly always be paid in instalments covering several years. The soil of the country varies in different localities, but a large proportion is of the very best description for aon m-ilw othor ale donu'siic 12h. per diiy. iH, and com- o £7 each; arrow, I rem crs, £14 to •f, 5d. to 7d. /en; liread, per butihcl ; lucc'o, 2h. to Stout .suit ey blankets 1, an<] any Tho (^on- irop in tive lie land at rs. Lo 40s. per to £10 per >ral yearH. rtion iH of nion ; but at abund- tomatoes Wayn, and tS of ,10 1 C'*' ,'een Toronto, d, silver, nowii . re, hawn s, steam )lement8, exported th. with without r month. ProvinionH are mm chcMpoi- than in Hni^land or in tlio I'nitwi 8taloM. Hoof. voal, and nuilton are lu.ii, 'M. to o bo pui-ehascMi at 30c. to (JOc. an acre. Tlic Provint has a hotnc-*load law exemptinjjf from seizure, under certain con- i pai'ts of Canada. (fold, lead, silver, iron, cojtper, platinum, etc., etc., are found; but niinin;^' in this Province is only yet in its infancy. Phosphate miniun' is becoming an im- portant industry. Its value as a fertilizer is recognised in Kngland and France, and laige quantities are beini; exported. The fisheries arc abundant ind in 1,-<7B the yield was of the value of $2,097,(177. The principal cities are (Quebec and Montreal, and there are many large towns. The remarks nuvde in the case of the Province of Ontario will apply to (Quebec also. This is afforded by railways and by the River St. Lawrence. This Province con- tains the two great ports ot shipment — Montreal and Quebec, both ot which have extensive wharfage accommodation, and ocean going vessels nt 4,000 tons can be moored alongside the quays. NKW BRCNSWrOK. A grant of 100 acies nniy be obtained by any por>*on upon the l<)llowini;- condi- tions: — On payment of $20 cash to aid in construction of roads and hedges, or laboi' of the value of 810 per year for thri-e year.-. A house to be built within two years. Ten acres to bo cleared and cultivated in three years. Proof ot i-esidenco on the land. The soil is fertile, and produces all the fruits generally found in Kngland. Wheal averages about 20, barley 2!», oats 34, buckwheat, 33, rye 20, Indian corn 41, potatoes 22(s turnips 456, bu.shel.s to the acre. The jKjtatoes and fruits command good prices in the .English market. Shipbuilding is one of the staple industries of the Province, but its manufactories generally are increasing rapidly. There ai-e manufactories of woolen and cotton goods, boots and shoes, leather, carriages, wooden ware, paper, soap, hardware, etc., etc. NOVA SCOTIA. (rrants of land in this Province can be obtained tor $4-4 per hundred acres (about £9). The soil produces good croj»s of cereals and roots, and large quantities of ap]»lcs are grown for expoit. The value of the fisheries in Nova S .a in 1876 was upwards of £1,000,000 Bterling, consisting of cod-fish, mackerel, ha ,aock, heiring, Icjbsters, etc. Nova Scotia contains large tracts of woodland which produce timber for ship- building and lumber chiefly for export. Gold, iron, coal and gypsum are found in large quantities. no There ai« mcvwihI ruiUvnyM in tho I'roviiuo, ^iviii;,' it cctruiniinicutioii willi otiior ])nrts oI'l/umDlu. Ilulitiix, which iN lliu ( liiut city ot the L'roviiico, is the winlor port ot the Duniiiiioii. It iioHr^ert^eh u tliiu hurlur, and in roniiectiHi Uy railway with all parts of tho CuDtiiieiit. I'RINCB CnWAHIi IMLANl). Mont of the landh in thin Province are talv«;ii up, hut improved fnrinH can he obliiinod troni uhoiil X-i per acre. A iull deHcriplioii ot llii.s Province will he li»uiid in ProfcHsor Sheldon's report. BHITISH UOMMIIIA. Thin I'rovincc, which incliideH Vancouver's lshunl, is the most woetorn of the Provinces which constitute tiic Dominion of Canada, its boundaries being the Rooky Mountains on the east, and tbu Pacific Ocean on tlic west. It possesses many line harl)or8, one of which (Hurrard Inlet) will probably form the terminus ol the (fanadian Pacitic ^Railway when completed; and 1:^& mileH of the line in this Province are now under contract. Ileodu of uimilieti, widows or single men can obtain free grants of land from IHO to 320 acres according to locality ; the fee is about 87. Surveyed lands can l)e purchiwed at 81 per acre, payable over two years; and improved farms cost trom £1 to £8 per acre. Ui'itish Columbia hau a large extent of valuable tiutber land, productive tiHheries, which are increasing in value yearly ; gold and coal are also found in large quantities. The yield of tho gold from 1858 to 1876 was equal to about 840,000,000. 171 vitli other )i*t t)t the .11 piii-tN of IllH CUM 1)0 i report. rn of the ho Rooky ibly form ilea of the from 1«0 oarH ; and fisherieH, luiintities. A I) D E N I) A hOMIMON LAND UKfJl' NATIONS. {Drier in Coxnni) I>KI'.\UTMKNT 111' TIIK InTKUI >II, (Mtawa. '.'.'(Ill May, 1881, WllKIlKAS riltCCMSTANCKK IlAVi; UKNDKIIKD tT KXI'KDIKNT IM KII'K.( I' iKIlTAIN Cll AMIKS IN TlIK I'OMCY OK TIIK ( JoVKUN.MKNT lli:sl'K(rriN(l TIIK A HMINISTllATloN Oh' Dominion liANOs, I'l hi.k; Notick is iiKitrjiv oivkn : — 1. Tli(> l'('i,nil!iti(ins of Ww H'h OcIoIum-, iS-li, tu,. li nMhy r 'scindttd, ami tho lollowiii^' hV'n-iilaiions for tln.Mlis)»i)sal of a;4i'iciilliiial luiiils aro "Mil)-liliite(l tlu'ivfor : 2. Tlio ('vonnumlKM-cd sinrtions williiii tlio Canadian Pacilic Uailw.iy Holt— that is to 8!iy, lyin,;,' within 21 mikw on oacli ^'idn of tlio liiiu of iho saiil i{ailuay — oxooptini,' thoso wliudi rniiy lio ri'(iHii'(>(l for wood-lo's in coniioi'tio:! with sottlors on praii'io lands within tlio said hull, or which may ho oIIutwIno sjiocially doalt with hy tho (fovoi'noi' in Oomifil, shall ho hold ox'clu-ivoly fof hoinostoads and ])fo-om|ilions. Tho odd-riunilKTod sections M'ilhin the said liolt ai'o C!ariadian i'acilic Uiiilway JiJinds, and can onlv l»o acfpiii'od fi'on» tho Conioany. 3. Tho ]ii'e-empt ions cntcicd within the said Holt of 21 miles on each siilo ol tho Canadian racitio moiioy, with interest on the laltor at tho rate of six jtoi- cent, per aniiiiin, to he paid at the end of three years from tho date of entry, tho romaimlor t<) he p:iid in six e(iti:il instahnonts annually IVom and after tho said date, with interest at tho rate above montionod on siudi jiortioiis of the purchase money as may, from time to time, remain unpaid, to bo paid with each instalment. 4. Krom anil after tho 31st day of December noxt, tho price shall remain tho same, that is, $2.50 per acre, tor pre-emptions within the said Belt, or within the corresponding Belt of any Branch lino of tho said Pailway, but shall he paid in ono sum at the end of throe years, or at such earlier period as tiio claimant may havo acijuiied a title to his homestead qiiartor-scction. 5. J)ominion Lands, tho property of tho Government, within 2t miles of any projectetl lino of railway rocon;iu/.ed by the Minister of Ilailways, and of which ho has given notice in tho Otlicial (razotle as hoiiiii; a projocto I lino (;f railway, shall bo dealt with, as to price and terms, as follows; — Tho pro-emptions shall ho soil at the same price and on tho same terms as lixcd in tho^next preceding paragraph, and the odd-nuinherod sections shall be sold at $2.50 per acre, payable in cash, 6. In oil Townships 0]ion for sale and settlement within Manitoba or tho North-West Toi-ritorios, outside of the said Canadian I'a'ilic Railway Belt, tho ovon- nuniborod sections, excepting in tho cases provided for in Clause two of tlioso IJegulations, shall be held oxcinsively for homostoad and pre-emption, and tho odd-numbered sections for sale as public lands. 7. Tho lands described as public lands shall bo sold at tho uniform price of $2 per acre, cash, excepting in special cases where tho Minister of tho Interior, under the provisions of section 4 of tho amendment to tho Dominion Lands Act passed at tho last Session o.' Parliament, may doom it expedient to withdraw certain farming lands from ordinary sale and settlement, and put thorn up for sale at public auction to tho highest bidder, in which event such lands shall be put up at an upset price of $2 per acre. 12— 12=t'* R 112 8. Pre-emptions oiitsido of (lio Canadian Pacitic Railway Jk'lt shall bo Hold at llio nnifoim )>rico of'8^ I'lt aci-o, to bo paiil in oiio sum at. Uio end of throe yeai's from tho d:Uo of entry, or at siieh earlier porioil as the claimant may acquire a title to Ills homesten-l all apply ;;lso to settlors on prairie sections bouylii iVom the ('ana ban Pacific liuilw.iy (.Joinpa'iy, in cases whore the oidy wood lands available have been laid out on evcn-Jiumbercd sections, pro- vided tho Riulway C'ompany agree to reciprocate vfiere the oidy timber in the locality may be tounvci'nment ie>ervesthe right to gi-ant licen-es from time to time, under and in accoi'dance with the jirovisions of the '• Dominion .Laiuls Act," to cut mer- ehantable timber on any lands owned by it within suiveyed townships; and settle- ment upOTi, or sale id' any lands covered by such license, shall, for the time being, be hul'ject to the operalicui of the same. S.ALES Ot'^ LANDS TO rN'Dl VI DLT.Vl.S OR OORTOIlATtONS FOR CoI.OM/ATroN. 14. In ;.ny case whei'O a company or individual applies for lands to colonize, and is willing to cxiiond cajiiial to conli'ibute towards the construction of facilities fijr coninuinicalion lielwecn such lan' liom ?- laso ot' late of Ibcrod woctiins, and iiUo two on homesteads on oaeh of the emb^'aced in the sohomo of colonization. (b.) That should tho land api)lie 1 \'ov bo ,>itaatol wit Railway Beit, iho comijaii}- or itnlividual sliall, within tli agreement with tlie(Jovernnjent, phico two settlors on tho lia section jHircluiscd undoi' tiio |ifovi>ion contained in ijara^ra] settlor npui ouch of tiio two (jiiarter-soctions roinainirig av; such section. (('.) Tliat on tho ])romotcrs failing!: within tlio period fix niinibor ot settlors, the (iovrjrnor in Cinmcil may ca.ncol the I'oloni/.ation, and rosiimo ))ossossi<)ii of the lands not ^ot^lO( of liJ2 per acre, or Si.,")t) poi- aero, as tho case may bj, f)i doomed e\i>cdiont ovon-numbored sections lin the Canadian Pacitic roe years of the ilate of If of oacii even-iiumborod )h 14, al)ovo, and also one lilablc for homesteads in od tojilaco tho ])rosoi'il»od sale and the ])riviIogo of I, t>r chai'ge tho full ])rico such lands, ;is may i)e (i.) That it bo distini'tly understood that tiiis policy shall onlya])ply to schemes 'unds by Kmi<.;i'ant8 from ti real Hi'itain or tho Ivivopoan lor colonization of tlia ])ubli Continent. I>ASTri!.\(!E I, AMIS 1(5. The ]iolicy set foctli as fijllows shall L''overn applications for lands for :^razin'j^ ])nrposos, and ])i'ovious to entertainini; any aiijilication, tho Minister of tlie intoi'ior >ha!l satisfy himscK Of the ^^ood lailh and ability of the applieant to carry out tho undertaking involved in such application. 17. From time to time, as may bo (.leeme I oxpodiont, leases of such Town- ships, or portions of Townships, as may be available lor grazing ])urposes, shall In) put U]) at auction at a'l upset 1)1 ice to be fixed by the Minister of tho lniorit)r, atul sold to tlie higliost bidder — the premium I'or such lease to lie jiaid in cash at tho time of the sale. !>S. Such leases shall be for a period of twenty-one years, and in aeci>rdance other- v,i\ to place tho requisite stock upon tho land within three years iiom the granting of the lea,--,', or in sub-Joquently maintain- ing the jiroper latio (d '•■took to ihe area ol' the leasehold, ^)hall Juslily the (iovernor in Council in cancelling such lea-,e, or in diminishing proportionally the area coii- taineil therein. 20. On jilaeing the required jji-oportioii of stock within the limits of iho leasehold, the lessee shall have the i)riviloge of pureluHing and receiving a P.iient for a quantit\" of land covered by .such lease on which to construct tho buildings neces- sary in connection therewith, not to excctnl five i)er cent, of the area of the leasehold, which latter shall in no tingle case exceed lOO.UtJO acies. 21. The rental for a leasehold shall in all cases be at tho rate oi' $10 per annum for each thousand acres included therein, and the ])rieo of the land which may be |)urchased for the cattle station referred to in tho -'ext )>roeeding 'paragraph, shall be $1.25 per acre, paj'able in cash. PAYMENTS FOR LANDS. 22. Payments lor public lands and also for pre-emptions ma}' be in vash or in Bcrip, or in police or military b^iint}' warrants, at the option of the ])urc.'.t;s'3rs. 2;{. Tho aliove ]irov's'ons sh.'dl not apply to lands valuable lor town ])iots, or to coa' or other mineral larids, oi- to stone or marble quarries, or to lands having water power thereon ; and further shall not, of co'irse, all'oct Sections 11 and 2H in each Township, which are pablie school lands, or Sections 8 and 2(j, which are JItidsc n's JBay Comjiany's lands. J. S. DHNXrs. Deputy Mn'Ster of tin' Fntmor. 174 INFORMATION FOR INTENDINCt SETTLRRS IN CANADA. When it hits been decidi'.j to come to Canada, one of tlio Caiiiidian Steamship Lines, whoso advertiseinonts can be found in the nowspapons, should be written to. «o as to secure a berth. Thei-e are vosbels sailing fioni Liver|)ool, Jiondon, Bristol, Glasgow, Londonderiy and Cork. The ftire J'rom any <'f the places named lo (iuebop, the port of lamling in Canada, depends upon the chiss of passage that is takon. Tlio saloon I'aie i-anges from £!(> to £18; the intermediate is £S 8s.; and the ordinary steerage jjussage is £t) Gs., bat agriculturists and domestic servaTiti have the benefit of a lower rate, which can be ascertained from the steamship ollices, or at any of the Go.'crnment otiices, who will also supply the necossaiy forms to be tilled r.p; children under ten years arc charged half-fare, md infants under one year a nomui! 1 sum. The tares include a plentiful suj)])ly of food, and good sleeping accommodation on board. To Manitoba ihrouijh tickets are i..sued by all the steamship companies. The fare from London oi- Liverpool to Winnipeg r.mges from £'•• lOs. assisted steei-age to £28 the saloon i)as>age. rassengers are advised to take advantage of these tickets. To secure a berth in the steameis it is necessary to send a de])Osit of £.) for a saloon pass.ige; £l fur an intermediate or steerage passage. Twenty cubic ibet of luggage are allowed to each saloon passenger, ten to each intermediate, and (en to CAieh steerage. Any infoi'mation or advice its to the inost useful things to take to Canada, or upon anv other sul)jcct, may lie oblaincd at the ollices of the steamship cotnpanies, or at any of the Canadian tJovcrnnicni otiices. Steerage ]ias>ongcrs have to ]i:ovide bedding, and certain utensils for use on I'oard, which aie enumerateit in the b lis ot' the steamship corai)anies. They can be j)iirchu>cd at the fiort of embarkation, or hired fo!' the voyage, from some lines— for a few shilling.-— leaving bed covering only (a rug or blanket) to be provided by the passenger. (Jovernment a.^Mits are stationed at the principal })laee^ in Canaiia, and they should be inquired for on ai'rival. They will furnish information as to free grant antl other lands open for settlement in tiieir respective Provinces and districts, farms for sale, demand for lal>or, rate-t of wages, route of travel, dist.'inces, expons(>s of convey- ance; receive and forward letters and i-emittances for settlers, and give any other iiiforiuation th.'it may be required. Persons with capital should not be in a hurry to invest their money. They can get good interest for it by depositing it in the banks, antl can give themselvoa time to look around before sellling. There is good banking accomtnodation in most of the towns, and letters of credit can be obtained trom any of the English banks. The classes which may be recommended lo emigiate to Canada are as follows: 1. Tenant fnaners, wiio have sufficient caj)ital to enable them to settle on farms, may bo advised to go with safety and with the certainty of doing well. The same remark will a))ply to any ])er-on who, although not agriculturists, woukl bo able to ada))t ilicmselves to agricultural pursuits, and who have sidiieient means to enable tlicm t(^ take up farms. 2. Produce farmers and persons with capital, seeking investment. .^. Male and ftinalc fiirm laborers, female domestic servants and country mechanics. The classes warned against emigration are females above the grade of servants, clerks, shopmen and persons having no paiticiila,- trale or calling, and unaccustomed to manual labor. To this class Canada oilers b'Jt little encourageraent. The following arc the Government agencies in Great Britain and Ireland : — CHIP:F OFFICE: 10 Victoria Chambers, London, S.W., Mr. J. COL.MER. LIVERPOOL.. .Mr. John Dyke, 15 Water Street. GLASGOW Mr. Thomas Gkaiiame, 40 St. Enoch Square. 0.1 in ship on to. 80 Bristol, Canailu, rem £10 i (]■*., b'lt I can be who will chari^od plentil'ul s. Tho iera^e to icUots. £.) foi' a 1 to each I, 01' upon es, or at )r uso on cy can be inos — for ed hy the |and they J, rant and arms for f convey - ny othor They can )a time to )st of the (Hows : — on t'arnn, io earao able to ,0 enable countiy servants, customed di- ns BELFAST Mr. Cuarles Foy, 21) Victoria Place. DUBLIN Mil. TuoMAs Connolly, Xoitliumborland House. BlilSTOL Mu. J. W. Bow.x, Hath Brid,n(*. Interidinii: soLtiers .should communicale with tho>e officers if in want of any infor- mation 01' advice; and should arran^;c, if .s.iilini,' from any of the above places, to call upon the Government Aijent ijcfore tiioii" (lc|iarinre. The followiniij are the a,:^enLs of the Uana lian (rovernment in Canada: — QUEBEC AIr. L. Stafford, Voint Levis, (iucl.ec. OTTAWA Mr. W. J. Wills, St. Lawrence and Ottawa Railway Station, Ottawu Ontario. TORONTO Mr J. A. Donaldson, Strachan Avenue, Toronto, Ontario. MONTREAL. ..Mr. J. J. Daley, Montreal, Province of Quebec. KINGSTON.. ..Mr. R. Maci'HERson, William Street, Kingston, HAMILTON.. ..Mr. .Ioiin Smith, Great Western Railway Station, Hamilton. LONDON Mr. A. G. Smytiie, London, Ontario. HALIFAX Mr E. Clay, Halifax, Nova Scotia. ST. JOHN Ma. S. (Jardner, St. John, Now Brunswick. WINNIPEG.. ..Mr. W. Hespkler, Winnipeg, Manitoba. EMERSON Mr. J. E. Tetu, Emerson, Manitoba. DULUTH Mr. W. C. B. Graiia.me, Duluth. ROOTS AND VEGETABLES IN CANADA. The following certificate has boon given by Messrs. Sutton & Sons, Seedsmen of Reading, in i"»fercnce to the Canadian roots and vegetables exhibited on their stand at the Smithfiel 1 Club Cattle Show in December last. " Reading, 21st December, 1880. " We were honored by the Canadian Government forwarding for exhibition on our stand at the Smith Held Club Cattle Show, ISS.), a collection of roots, etc., grown in Manitoba and Ontario, of the following weights, when harvested. Squash 313 lbs. Long red mangel 75 Long yellow mangel 65 Yellow globe mangel 60 Field pumpkin 37 Citron 30 •' These enormous specimens proved objects of great interest to the British farmers, and wo believe the weights far exceed any on record. " (Signed) SUTTON & SONS." 12—13**