Area, census of 1881, 188,688 square miles. Total amount of land occupied, 12,625,877 acres; improved, 6,410,264 acres, of which 4,147,984 were under crop, 2,207,422 in pasture, and 54,858 in gardens and orchards. Population, 1,359,027: male, 678,175; female, 680,852.
While the climate is similar to that of Ontario, it is colder in winter, and warmer in summer. At Montreal the winters are very severe, the temperature often ranging from zero to 10° and even 30° below it, and in summer it is frequently 90° in the shade.
Public affairs are administered by a Lieutenant Governor, assisted by an Executive Council, a Legislative Council of 24 members, and a Legislative Assembly of 65 members. The Province sends 24 members to the Dominion Senate. Quebec is the capital; population, 62,446. Montreal the commercial metropolis of the Province, and also of the Dominion; population, 140,747.
The surface of the country is varied, consisting of extensive forests, large rivers, lakes and prairies, and bold, rocky heights. The Province abounds in numerous minerals.
Agricultural products for 1881: wheat, 2,019,004 bushels; barley, 1,751,539 bushels; oats, 19,990,205 bushels; rye, 430,242 bushels; peas and beans, 4,170,456 bushels; buckwheat, 2,041,670 bushels; corn, 888,169 bushels; potatoes, 14,873,287 bushels; turnips, 1,572,476 bushels; hay, 1,612,104 tons; grass and clover seed, 119,306 bushels; tobacco, 2,356,581 pounds; hops, 218,542 pounds.
This Province produces three times as much maple sugar as all the others combined; total amount produced 1881, 15,687,835 pounds; amount of honey produced, 559,024 pounds; apples, 777,557 bushels; grapes, 158,031 pounds. Value of fur product, $163,310. Butter produced on farms, 1881, 30,630,397 pounds; cheese, 559,278 pounds; wool, 2,730,544 pounds; cloth and flannel, 2,958,180 yards; flax and hemp, 865,310 pounds; linen, 1,120,301 yards.
Farm animals in the Province, 1881: horses, 273,852; oxen, 49,237; milch cows and other cattle, 900,096; sheep, 889,833; swine, 329,199.
Public instruction is under a Superintendent of Education. School pop., 209,623. Number of elementary public schools, 4,404; pupils, 170,858; colleges, 44; academies, 246; special schools, 18; normal, 3; model, 333.
The forests are extensive, and the lumbering and shipbuilding interests are large. Timber product, 1881: pine, 5,495,183 cu. ft.; oak, 59,587 cu. ft.; tamarack, 2,707,745 cu. ft.; birch and maple, 2,784,395 cu. ft.; all other timber, 14,612,669 cu. ft. Number of logs produced, 13,582,407; masts and spars, 104,248.
There are in the Province 293 steam vessels; tonnage, 132,097: 757 sailing vessels; tonnage, 110,356. The fisheries furnish employment to 14,744 men; there are 146 vessels and 6,761 boats engaged in this industry. Products of the fisheries, 1881: cod, 462,388 quintals; herring, 130,354 barrels; mackerel, 10,725 barrels; sardines, 4,360 barrels; canned lobsters, 517,734 pounds; all other fish, 101,861 barrels; fish oil, 263,374 barrels.