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As will be seen in
later chapters, forest management has almost from the beginning of
European occupation attracted the attention of the law-making
authorities of what is now the Dominion of Canada. Royal authority
was exercised to preserve to the uses of the Crown certain classes
of timber and to introduce, in a partial and inadequate way,
something like forest management. But so vast were the timber
resources of Canada that until comparatively recent years very
little public interest was taken in the subject of forest
preservation. The earlier efforts of Canadian authorities toward a
rational protection of their forest assets are recounted in the
chapters devoted to the Provinces of Quebec and Ontario, and in
those chapters relating to other provinces these forestry matters
find their proper place; but in 1900 was established the Canadian
Forestry Association, which since that time has by its educational
work among the people and by cooperation with the Government done so
much to promote these interests of the Dominion that the
organization is deserving of especial attention.
The primeval
forests of Canada have been noted for their extent and richness ever
since the first explorations were made; and this natural endowment
of public wealth has been the source of a large and constant revenue
to the Crown and to the Provincial governments, greatly lightening
taxation, and in some sections almost obviating the necessity of
taxation of any other form. The total value of the export of forest
products for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1904, was $36,724,445,
while the census of 1901 placed the total value of forest products
for the preceding year at $51,000,000. The annual revenue received
from the forests of Quebec and Ontario runs well up toward
$1,250,000. In 1893 the revenue from this source in New Brunswick
totaled $196,500, while in British Columbia an estimate made in 1905
for the year not then completed placed this revenue at $250,000.
Thus it will be seen that timber and timber products are of the
highest importance not only to the individual operators, but to the
welfare of the Dominion as a whole and to the Central and Provincial
governments as well. Yet, as in other new countries favored by a
heavy natural forest growth, the Canadians, for a long time,
considered their timber supply practically inexhaustible.
One of the most
important dates in connection with the Canadian movement for
intelligent forest control is 1882, in which year was organized, at
Montreal, the American Forest Congress. At this forestry congress
was present a large number of prominent representatives of lumber
interests of Canada as well as of the United States. Many of them
had prepared papers which they read and which led to discussions
that attracted a large measure of public attention.
In itself this
congress did not accomplish much for the cause of forestry, but it
opened the way for a quickening of interest in the subject and
helped to make further progress less difficult. Until that time, and
indeed later, forestry had to contend with the idea that the forests
were inexhaustible and, further, had to defend itself against a
widespread charge of faddism. The majority of people totally
discredited the idea that the supply of timber would ever be
inadequate to the demand, and of those who considered that such a
condition was a possibility, there were but few who were not content
to let the future take care of itself, believing that if the time
ever should come when lumber would be difficult to obtain because
the supply of timber had been unduly diminished, that day was so far
away from them and their needs that they were not called upon to
take any action to prevent its coming.
Operating lumbermen
also were to a certain extent offended and alienated from the cause
by the radical utterances by most of the few persistent champions of
forest preservation. Yet, in the light of later events, it is seen
that these radicals, who successively pleaded with, threatened and
abused those who did not agree with them, were doing the work of
agitation which history has proved to be the forerunner of almost
every reform. They stimulated the people to think along forestry
lines, so that when facts in their support came to the surface they
could be and were assigned to their logical place. And so annually
the cause of forestry gained ground, until early in 1900 was
organized the Canadian Forestry Association.
To Mr. E. Stewart,
Dominion Superintendent of Forestry, more than to any other one man,
is due the credit for the formation of the Canadian Forestry
Association, for it was he who, on February 15, 1900, called the
meeting at which the organization was recommended and as a result of
which the organization actually was effected on March 8,1900, in the
City of Ottawa. The following officers were duly elected:
Honorary president,
His Excellency, the Governor General; president, Hon. Sir Henri Joly
de Lotbiniere; vice president, William Little; secretary, E.
Stewart; assistant secretary and treasurer, R. H. Campbell. Board of
directors: Hiram Robinson, Thomas Southworth, Professor John Macoun,
Doctor William Saunders, Hon. G. W. Allan, E. W. Rathbun.
Of the above the
president, Hon. Sir Henri Joly de Lotbiniere, was
Lieutenant-Governor of British Columbia; E. Stewart, Dominion
Superintendent of Forestry; Hiram Robinson, president of the Hawkes-bury
Lumber Company and president of the Canadian Forestry Association in
1903; Thomas Southworth, director of Forestry for the Province of
Ontario ; Professor John Macoun, of the Dominion Geological Survey,
and E. W. Rathbun, member of the Ontario Forestry Commission.
The objects sought
to be obtained by the association, as set forth in a statement
signed by R. H. Campbell, of the Department of the Interior, were as
follows:
“The preservation
of the forests for their influence on climate, fertility and water
supply; the exploration of the public domain and the reservation for
timber production of lands unsuited for agriculture; the promotion
of judicious methods in dealing with forests and woodlands;
reafforestation where advisable; tree planting on the plains and on
the streets and highways; the collection and dissemination of
information bearing on the forestry problem in general.”
From the beginning
the Canadian Forestry Association has been closely in touch with the
Dominion and Provincial governments and especially with the Dominion
Forestry Branch. The association might almost be said to be a
department of the Government, so strong has been its influence upon
governmental policies and legislation.
The organization of
the American Forest Congress has been spoken of. Following the
congress there was distinct advancement, both in the understanding
of the necessities of the case and in the advocacy of remedial
measures applicable to admitted evils.
The history of the
forest had shown that fire was an enemy even more disastrous than
the operations of lumbermen and the destruction wrought by settlers,
wasteful as both had been, and every system of forestry has of
necessity incorporated provisions for protection against this very
serious menace. Beginning with Ontario, in 1885, all the Canadian
provinces, except British Columbia and Prince Edward Island, have
adopted laws regarding this hazard and have established special fire
ranging service. Experience has demonstrated this system to be
effective in proportion to the thoroughness with which it has been
operated. Before the installation of these fire warden measures
hardly a summer passed that the air of the cities in eastern Canada
was not fouled by smoke from vast forest fires, which destroyed an
almost incalculable amount of valuable timber; but since this system
has been followed fires have been comparatively infrequent and
isolated. It is not claimed by anyone that perfection has been
reached in guarding the forests from their greatest enemy, but
certainly enough has been accomplished to make the position taken by
those advocating this method of protection, unassailable. Ontario,
which expends the greatest amount upon this service, spent in 1903
only $31,237 in this manner, while the revenue derived from the
Ontario woods in the same year was $2,307,356. Thus, less than one
and one-half percent of the forest revenue was expended for
protecting the entire source of that revenue, which certainly is a
low rate of insurance.
The growing
recognition of the desirability of extending the Canadian forests
resulted in the adoption, in the ’80’s, of the Tree Culture Claim
Act. In 1889 experimental farms were established throughout the
western country and experiments in tree growing began. From 1889
also dates the inauguration of the Dominion Forestry Branch which
gave an added impetus to the forestry movement.
In all of these
directions the Canadian Forestry Association has been helpful and
influential. It has supplemented the work of public investigators,
has upheld the hands of administrators and not only stimulated the
Dominion and Provincial authorities, but inspired the people
themselves to a quicker and more intelligent interest in the work.
Since the organization of the association the protective force
employed against fire has been increased and improved methods of
management have been put in force. Rangers have been detailed in
many sections where previously there were none. The forest reserves
have been enlarged and increased in number. Through the medium of
the agricultural college a plan has been put into operation in
Ontario for aiding farmers to set out wood lots, the work of the
experimental farms has been aided and all over the Dominion an
interest has been aroused which has resulted in demonstrated
benefits.
While the
association does not claim that all these things have been done
solely through its efforts, it should have part of the credit for
them, inasmuch as it has lent its active support to each and every
movement for the furtherance of practical forestry work. The
meetings of the associations are held early in each year in the
leading cities of the Dominion. The officers for 1905 are as
follows:
Patron, His
Excellency, The Governor General; honorary president, Aubrey White,
Toronto, Ontario > president, E. G. Joly de Lotbintere, Quebec,
Quebec,* vice president, E. Stewart, Ottawa, Ontario;
secretary-treasurer, R. H. Campbell, Ottawa, Ontario.
Vice presidents for
the provinces: Rev. A. E. Burke, Alberton, Prince Edward Island;
Hon. J. W. Longley, Halifax, Nova Scotia; His Honor, J. B. Snowball,
Chatham, New Brunswick; Hon. S. N. Parent, Quebec, Quebec;
Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba; His Honor, A.
E. Forget, Regina, Assiniboia; William Pearce, Calgary, Alberta; F.
D. Wilson, Fort Vermilion, Athabaska; fton. H. Bostock, Monte Creek,
British Columbia; Hon. J. H. Agnew, Winnipeg, Manitoba; Hon. Nelson
Monteith, Ontario.
Board of directors:
J. R. Booth, Ottawa, Ontario; Hiram Robinson, Ottawa, Ontario;
Monseigneur Laflamme, Quebec, Quebec; William Saunders, LL.D.,
Ottawa, Ontario; Thomas Southworth, Toronto, Ontario; H. M. Price,
Quebec, Quebec; Doctor Robert Bell, Ottawa, Ontario.
Education in
forestry has not in Canada, as yet, taken the form of distinctive
forestry schools, but, nevertheless, a good deal is being done along
that line. Queen’s University, at Kingston, Ontario, has of recent
years supported a series of lectures on forestry, while the Mount
Allison University, of Sackville, has had a course of lectures on
forestry incorporated into its curriculum. The project of
establishing schools of forestry has been under consideration by the
University of Toronto and Queen’s University. Perhaps the most
practical work has been done by the Ontario Agricultural College, at
Guelph, Ontario. Since about 1884 forestry has been taught in that
school, there being open a special course in connection with the
fourth year. This is a degree course, authorizing the graduates to
entitle themselves foresters. The importance of schools devoted
especially to forestry was recognized by the Canadian Forestry
Association at its 1904 meeting, when the following resolution was
adopted:
“Resolved, That the
Ontario government be, and is hereby, requested to make a proper
grant for the operation of a school or schools of forestry.”
Perhaps the most
practical work has been done in connection with experimental farms
and stations. At Guelph, in 1904, was begun nursery work by growing
deciduous varieties of trees from the seed. At Ottawa, Ontario, is
an experimental farm and arboretum under the auspices of the
Dominion government. The first planting of forest trees at this
experimental farm was made in 1887. About twenty-one acres have been
devoted to the planting of forest trees in belts and clumps and
sixty-five acres additional have been used for the arboretum and the
botanical gardens.
The Federal
government has charge of the forests on Dominion lands proper. These
embrace the Province of Manitoba, the Northwest Territories and also
that part of British Columbia known as the railway belt, consisting
of a stretch of country forty miles wide—twenty miles on each side
of the main line of the Canadian Pacific railway—containing
altogether about 20,000 square miles. It is estimated that the area
of forest lands thus under the Dominion control, not including
Indian reserves and the old provinces, is 742,578 square miles,
while that under the control of the Provincial governments is
506,220 square miles.
The Dominion
Department of Agriculture has a well arranged series of experimental
farms, a feature of each of which is the study of tree growth. The
central farm is at Ottawa, Ontario. The branches are at Nappan, Nova
Scotia; Brandon, Manitoba; Indian Head, Assiniboia, and Agassiz,
British Columbia. The most important experiments in some respects
have been made at Indian Head. A shelter belt 100 feet wide has been
planted along the western and northern boundaries of the farm,
extending nearly two miles, while blocks of trees of from two to
five acres each have been established. This experiment demonstrated
the value of tree planting as a protection to crops and fruit trees
and also as to what can be done in the way of growing trees on the
open prairie in a comparatively dry climate. Furthermore, from the
experiment farms are distributed tree seeds, seedlings and cuttings.
The work of distribution to settlers was begun from Indian Head in
1899 and that is the headquarters for general distribution to
settlers in the Northwest Territories, while the experimental farm
at Brandon supplies those in Manitoba. The distributions up to 1904
to settlers in the northwest have been, from Ottawa, 600,000
seedlings and cuttings; from Indian Head, 290,000, and from Brandon,
610,000.
The Province of
Ontario and the Dominion have each established a forestry office as
a branch of the public service. The Dominion office was started in
1899. The officers consist of the superintendent, assistant
superintendent, inspector, several supervisors of tree planting and
a number of forest fire rangers. Any land owner desiring to avail
himself of the cooperation of the Government applies to its forestry
branch. The land of the applicant is visited by one of the
supervisors the following summer, when a plan of the proposed
plantation is made. The next season seedling trees are sent by
express from the government nurseries free of charge. The settler
enters into an agreement to set aside a certain portion of the land
as a permanent tree plantation; to prepare his soil carefully
according to the directions of the supervisor; to plant the trees on
their arrival and to cultivate them and keep the ground clean until
the trees are of sufficient size no longer to need such attention.
As stated above, seedling trees have been grown on the various
government farms, but in 1904 the policy was inaugurated of
centralizing the work, and 160 acres of land were obtained for a
forest nursery station near Indian Head and buildings were being
erected and preparations were made by which the supply for the whole
northwest country would be grown at that place and distributed from
thence.
CANADIAN FOREST
RESERVES.
Notwithstanding the
original immense forest wealth of Canada and the fact that that
wealth still remains untouched in many sections, the saw and the ax
have so well fulfilled their destructive mission—and that
practically within so short a period as a century—that the Canadian
government has recognized the necessity of setting apart national
parks and forest reserves for the purpose of conserving its forestal
wealth.
The denuding of the
forests is not only not harmful but is absolutely ecgnomic in those
sections where the soil is suitable for agriculture and where
settlement is desirable; but there are large tracts in Canada,
particularly in Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia, that are
totally unfit for agriculture, and upon these tracts the timber will
reproduce itself if given the opportunity. Therefore by restricting
lumbering and permitting the young trees to attain full growth, an
almost perpetual supply of timber may be insured. To this end
Ontario and Quebec have established provincial reserves, and the
Federal government has established national parks and reserves in
Manitoba, in the Northwest Territories and in what is known as the
forty-mile belt along the main line of the Canadian Pacific railway
in British Columbia. This belt was ceded by the Province of British
Columbia to the Federal government of Canada as a contribution
toward the building of the
Canadian Pacific
railway. With the exception of that in these provinces and
territories and the Indian reserves all the timber in Canada belongs
to the several provinces in which it is located.
The Federal
reserves in British Columbia are Long Lake Timber Reserve, Yoho Park
and Glacier Forest Park. Long Lake Timber Reserve occupies the
central part (considering the east and west direction only) or dry
belt of British Columbia, being eight miles southwest of the town of
Kamloops, which is situated on the Canadian Pacific railway and the
Thompson River. The mountains included in this reserve form a
watershed for the numerous small streams which irrigate the farming
lands of the surrounding valleys. This reserve contains a good
growth of Douglas fir and black pine. It was set apart by order of
the Minister of the Interior August 15, 1902, and has an area of
76,800 acres.
Yoho Park is the
natural continuation of the Rocky Mountains National Park, in the
Northwest Territories, but being on the British Columbia side of the
interprovincial boundary, that is, on the western slope of the
Rockies, it has a distinctive name. Its area is 530,240 acres. It
was set apart December 14, 1901, by order in council.
Glacier Forest
Park, a small reservation of 18,720 acres, set apart by order in
council October 11, 1888, is located in the Selkirk Mountains,
British Columbia, on the main line of the Canadian Pacific railway.
Glacier station, a favorite resting place of tourists, is located on
this reserve.
The Federal
reserves in the Northwest Territories are as follows: Rocky
Mountains Park, Foothills Timber Reserve, Waterton Lakes Forest
Park, Cooking Lake Timber Reserve, Moose Mountain Timber Reserve and
Beaver Hills Timber Reserve.
Rocky Mountains
Park is situated along the eastern slope of the Rocky Mountains in
Alberta, north of the Foothills Reserve, the southern end being
about 120 miles north of the international boundary. This park is in
the shape of a triangle, each side of which is about 100 miles in
length, with the town of Banff, a well known mountain resort on the
main line of the Canadian Pacific railway, in the center. The Bow
River runs through the middle of the triangle. When first set apart
by special act of the Dominion Parliament in 1887 this park was only
twenty-six miles long and ten miles wide; but it was extended by act
of 1902 and now contains approximately 2,880,000 acres. Together
with Yoho Park, on the western -slope of the mountains in British
Columbia, this reservation forms one of the most magnificent forest
parks in the world, the combined area being 3,410,240 acres, or over
5,328 square miles.
The Foothills
Timber Reserve, containing 2,350,000 acres, set apart by the
Minister of the Interior February 21, 1899, embraces the foothills
on the eastern slope of the Rocky Mountains, in the southwest corner
of Alberta, between the international boundary and Rocky Mountains
Park. It stretches northward, from the South Kootenay Pass on the
boundary, about 140 miles. The use of this reserve as a watershed is
of much more importance than its use for the production of timber.
A foot or
projection of 34,000 acres on the southern end of the Foothills
Reserve is formed by the Waterton Lakes Forest Park, which was set
apart May 30, 1895, as a tourist park, previous to the setting apart
of the Foothills Reserve. It forms a square, one side of which, is
the international boundary.
Twenty miles
southeast of Edmonton, northern Alberta, is the Cooking Lake Timber
Reserve, having an area of 109,000 acres, and having been set apart
June 6, 1899, by the Minister of the Interior.
Still following an
eastward course, Moose Mountain Timber Reserve is the next in order.
This is a small reservation in southeastern Assiniboia, about fifty
miles due north of the town of Portal, which is on the “Soo”
railroad at the point where it crosses the international boundary.
Moose Mountain Reserve has an area of 103,000 acres, set apart under
the same authority as the Foothills Timber Reserve.
In northeast
Assiniboia, twenty miles west of the town of Yorkton on the
northwestern branch of the Canadian Pacific railway, and about
forty-five miles north of Indian Head on the main line of the
Canadian Pacific, is the Beaver Hills Timber Reserve, which was set
apart August 20, 1901. Its acreage is 170,000.
The Province of
Manitoba possesses six timber reserves, namely, Turtle Mountain,
Spruce Woods, Riding Mountain, Duck Mountain, Lake Manitoba and
Porcupine Mountain.
Turtle Mountain
Timber Reserve lies in the southwestern part of the Province,
extending about twenty miles along the international boundary, at a
distance of twelve miles north of the town of Bottineau, North
Dakota, and fifteen miles southeast of Deloraine, Manitoba. It was
set apart as a reserve July 13, 1895. Its area is 75,000 acres.
In the central part
of the Province, lying for about twenty-five miles along the south
side of the Canadian Pacific main line, between the city of Brandon
and the town of McGregor, is the Spruce Woods Timbei Reserve, of
190,000 acres. It was set apart January 8, 1898, under the same
authority as the Foothills Timber Reserve.
Riding Mountain
Reserve is of irregular shape and extends about ninety miles from
northwest to southeast, lying southwest of Lake Dauphin and in the
fork formed by the main lines of the Canadian Pacific and Canadian
Northern railways. It has an area of 1,215,000 acres, and was set
apart July 13, 1895.
Directly north of
the Riding Mountain Reserve, west of Lake Win-nipegosis and lying
parallel with the Swan River branch of the Canadian Northern
railway, is the Duck Mountain Timber Reserve. It has a length of
fifty miles from north to south and contains 840,000 acres. On
February 5, 1902, it was set apart as a reserve.
A small reserve of
159,460 acres on the west side of Lake Manitoba is known as Lake
Manitoba Timber Reserve. It is situated a couple of miles due west
of the Hudson Bay Company’s post, Manitoba House, at the narrows of
Lake Manitoba, and a few miles northeast of the village of Laurier,
which is the nearest railway station and is located on the Canadian
Northern railway.
Porcupine Mountain
Timber Reserve occupies the extreme northwestern angle of the
Province of Manitoba, forming a parallelogram, the adjacent sides of
which are about forty and sixty miles, between Lake Winnipegosis and
the northwest corner of the Province. On August 24, 1900, it was
reserved from settlement only, timber licenses being permitted to be
granted. Included within this reserve are 1,382,400 acres.
The national parks
above described have been set apart on the lines of the United
States national parks for the purpose of preserving the natural
beauties intact, no cutting of timber being permitted. The reserves
on the watersheds, as Long Lake Timber Reserve, the Foothills Timber
Reserve and Waterton Lakes Forest Park, and some of the others to a
lesser extent, have been set apart in order to preserve the
forest-floor so that the water falling on the mountains may be fed
gradually to the rivers below to give them a regular water supply as
far as possible the year around. The remaining reserves have been
set apart with two objects: First, to keep settlers out of broken
and other lands unsuitable for farming, and, second, to preserve a
supply of timber for the settlers who will occupy the adjacent
prairie lands.
With these objects
in view and partly owing to the short time since they have been set
apart, no commercial lumbering has been allowed in them and
consequently no regulations therefor made. The only existing
regulations are those permitting settlers to secure licenses to cut
a limited supply of timber for fuel and building purposes. Some of
these reserves have been more or less burned and worked over, and
the object of the reservation and the employment of fire rangers is
to give the timber a chance to start growing again.
Outside of these
reservations the Federal government of Canada has large areas of
timber in Manitoba, the Territories and British Columbia, which are
leased to lumbermen on the usual plan of a bonus and ground rent.
The ground rent is $5 a square mile for a year except for lands west
of Yale, British Columbia, where the ground rent is five cents an
acre. The Crown dues are, on sawed lumber, 50 cents a thousand feet
board measure; railway ties, 1% cents each; shingle bolts, 25 cents
a cord, and five percent on the sales of all other products of the
berth.
The Provincial
governments of Ontario and Quebec have also set apart parks and
reserves for the preservation of their forests, the regulations
regarding which are made by the Provincial governments.
Sibley Reserve is
in the northwestern part of Ontario, on the north shore of Lake
Superior, and includes Thunder Cape and a portion of the township of
Sibley. It contains about 45,000 acres, and was set apart in 1900 by
order in council.
Situated in the
district north of Lake Nipissing, Ontario, is Algonquin Park, on the
height of land between the Ottawa River and its tributaries and the
Georgian Bay waters. This park, having an area of 1,109,383 acres,
was created by special Act of Legislature in 1893. It is not, in the
strictest sense, a forest reserve, as it was primarily designed for
a game preserve and much of its area is under license; but as no
settlement is permitted within its limits it largely partakes of the
character of a forest reserve. Permission is given to fish in this
park, but hunters are absolutely forbidden, the rules in this
respect being so strict that no man is even permitted to carry a gun
in the park. At the time when this park was set aside game within
its area was very scarce, but now it is fast becoming filled with
fur-bearing and game animals.
One of Ontario’s
reserves more recently set aside is Mississaga Reserve, created in
1904. It lies to the north of Lake Huron and com-jprises an area of
3,000 square miles, or 1,920,000 acres. The policy of the Government
in regard to the administration of this and Temagami Reserve is that
timber shall be disposed of by the thousand on the stump and cut
under supervision of officials of the Government.
Temagami Reserve,
containing 1,408,000 acres, was set apart January 11, 1901. Within
its boundaries is a beautiful lake of the same name. Most of this
reserve is still covered with virgin pine of great value. On
.December 16, 1903, an addition of 3,700 square miles was made to
the north and west, giving the reserve a total of 5,900 square
miles, or 3,776,000 acres.
North of the City
of Kingston, Ontario, is the Eastern Forest Reserve, which was
formed under the Forest Reserve Act in 1899 and which contains
80,000 acres. This area was lumbered over and afterward burned, but
now has a heavy growth of young pine.
The Laurentides
National Park, of Quebec, was created by Act of Legislature January
12, 1895, and contains 2,650 square miles, or 1,696,000 acres, lying
to the north of the City of Quebec. Its northern boundary is the
48th parallel; its eastern, the St. Urbain road; its southern and
southeastern, the rear line of the Seigniory of Beaupr6 and ranges
XI and XII of Stoneham and Tewkesbury; its western, the Fief Hubert
and an imaginary line running to a point west of Grand Lake Batiscan,
thence skirting the Quebec & Lake St. John railway a few miles east
thereof to the intersection of the 48th parallel. This park was
formed for the purposes of protecting the forests, fish and game; of
maintaining the water supply, and of encouraging the study and
culture of forest trees. Over a dozen large rivers rise in this
park, and it has been described as being “peppered” with lakes, the
waters of which are teeming with fish. A large portion of the timber
of this reservation is under license, some of the limits being
operated at present. Game is found here in abundance, and hunting is
permitted in certain sections, also fishing, both under regulations.
On April 10, 1902,
the legislative assembly of New Brunswick passed an act authorizing
the setting aside of “a tract of land in some portion of the
Province covered with forest, not exceeding 900 square miles in
extent,” to be known as the Provincial Park of New Brunswick.
However, no action has as yet been taken establishing this forest
reservation.
The following table
contains a complete list of both Dominion and Provincial reserves,
whether timber reserves proper or parks, with their respective
areas, as they existed at the beginning of 1905:
ADDENDUM.
Since this chapter
was prepared a new forest reserve has been set apart by the
government of the Province of Ontario in the western part of that
Province, called the Nipigon Forest Reserve. It is thus described:
"Commencing at the southeast angle of the Township of Ledger, east
of the Nipigon River in the district of Thunder Bay, thence due east
astronomically twenty-two miles, thence due north astronomically
ninety-eight miles, thence due west astronomically seventy-three
miles, thence due south astronomically ninety-eight miles, thence
dne east astronomically to the southwest angle of the Township of
Purdom, thence due east astronomically along the sonth boundary of
the Township of Purdom, and along the south boundary of the Township
of Ledger, a distance of fifty-one miles In all, to the place of
beginning, containing by admeasurement seven thousand one hundred
and fifty-four square miles.” According to this description the
southern boundary of the reserve is eight miles north of Nipigon
station, on the Canadian Pacific railway, and Lake Nipigon is
inclnded in its area. There are the nsual exceptions of lands
already patented, Indian reserves, etc. The total area of the
reserve, inclnding water, is 4,578,560 acres, making a total
reserved area In Ontario of 11,508,943 acres, including the
exceptions and the water area contained in the Nipigon Reserve, and
increasing the total acreage of forest reserves in Canada to
23,338,563 acres. The land in this new reserve is not especially
adapted to agriculture, with the exception of a few tracts situated
in the river valleys of the western part of the reserve, but is of
value as a timber preserve. Spruce, tamarack, jack pine and birch
are the principal trees. Large areas have been devastated by fire,
but are being covered by a second growth, which will, in time, be
valuable not only as pulpwood but as material for railway ties,
which will donbtless be in demand in this section in the near
future. On the Ombabika River, which, roughly speaking, bisects the
northeastern angle of the reserve, there is still good timber, the
pulpwood being estimated at 1,484,000 acres. In the vicinity of this
river are to be found birch, spruce, poplar, jack pine, balsam and
tamarack.
Nnmerous rivers
flow into Lake Nipigon, which occupies the central part of the
reserve, and will furnish power for manufacturing purposes when
needed. So also, in larger measure, will the Nipigon River, which
has a fall of about 250 feet within the reserve.
Large game is not
plentiful in the reserve, owing to the hunting of the Indians and
also to the fact that much of the country has been swept by fire.
Small fur-bearing animals, such as the mink, beaver, otter, marten,
muskrat and fox, are found in abundance.
Also, a reserve,
containing about 2,500 square miles, has been set aside by the
Province of Quebec in the Gasp€ Peninsula. |
