The forestry of the southern rivers is outside the scope of this report, and it need only be mentioned that large areas of pulpwood and merchantable spruce occur along the banks of these streams, awaiting a suitable outlet to market by way of Hudson bay and strait.
These undeveloped resources of the north will no doubt when developed add greatly to the annual shipping of Hudson bay, but the main increase to the fleet will be due to the products of the great plains of the Northwest, now rapidly filling with robust settlers. These products of the western farms, grain, butter, and cattle, will naturally seek the shortest road to the European markets; a road not only shorter, but owing to its cool climate, capable of landing perishable products and grain in a better condition than the more southern routes.
Taking Regina as a convenient centre for these northwestern farming lands, the distance from there by way of Prince Albert to Churchill is about 800 miles, or the same distance as from Regina to Fort William on Lake Superior, and a thousand miles shorter than the distance from Regina to Montreal at the head of sea navigation on the St. Lawrence. The distance from Churchill to Liverpool is almost the same as that from Montreal to Liverpool; consequently there is a saving in distance of a thousand miles of rail or river carriage in favour of the northern route.
The question of the storage of the grain until the season following the harvest, is at first sight a serious one, but when it is known that not twenty per cent of the grain at present reaches the seaboard before the opening of navigation of the year following that in which it is harvested, this objection practically disappears, for the grain may be as well stored on the shores of Hudson bay as in the elevators on the plains, or at Fort William. The question of storage is reduced to the length of time between the opening of navigation of Hudson strait, and the time required to transport grain from Fort William to Montreal after the opening of navigation on the great lakes, and this difference in time may be measured by days.
The country through which a railway must run to reach the port of Churchill is known to offer no serious difficulties, and although the local freights between the bay and the head of Lake Winnipeg may be small, the district traversed is equal in fertility and natural resources to much of that through which the Canadian Pacific Railway runs to the northward of the great lakes. Given a good harbour, such as that of Churchill, and an adequate number of tramp steamships, there will be no difficulty in removing from that port during the season of safe navigation all the grain and other supplies that can be drawn there by a single line of rails.
The object of this article on the navigation of Hudson strait and Hudson bay is to point out the period of safe navigation, and the advantages and drawbacks of this route to Europe; other problems of transportation and usefulness being left to those in a better position to judge and pronounce upon them.
APPENDICES
APPENDIX I.
Meteorological Observations taken on board Dominion Government Steamer ‘Neptune.’
(By Messrs. C. F. King, L. E. Borden and G. B. Caldwell.)