Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XIV.djvu/144

 136 QUEBEC (PBOVIXCE) The highest temperature observed at Montreal during the period was 96 '1 ; lowest, 28. The highest observed at Quebec was 94'4 ; lowest, 30 - 5. The annual precipitation of rain and melted snow at Montreal is 37'54 inches; at Quebec, 31-84 inches. The soil of the valley of the St. Lawrence and of the " east- ern townships " is generally fertile. The town- ships are a fine grazing country, and much attention is paid to the raising of cattle and wool. On either side of the Notre Dame moun- tains, W. of the Gasp6 peninsula, there is much good soil. The peninsula is generally rocky, but contains considerable arable land, particu- larly along the bay of Chaleurs. On the upper Saguenay and around Lake St. John there is an extensive region suited to agriculture, and the basin of the St. Maurice contains many fertile valleys. In the basin of the Ottawa also there are extensive tracts of good land. The Labrador portion of the province is rocky and sterile, and its climate too severe for agricul- ture. The greater portion of the province is covered with forests, the most common and important trees being the red and white pine. Other species are the ash, birch, beech, elm, hickory, black walnut, maple, cherry, butter- nut, basswood, spruce, fir, and tamarack. Hard wood is most common S. of the St. Lawrence. Lumbering is very extensively carried on, par- ticularly on the tributaries of the Ottawa, St. Maurice, and Saguenay. The timber lands are leased by the government for a term of years for a certain bonus and annual rents. Oats, potatoes, and hay are the largest crops. Wheat, barley, rye, peas, beans, buckwheat, Indian corn, turnips, tlax, apples, tobacco, hops, &c., are also grown. Except in the S. W. portions, the climate is too cool for Indian corn. The island of Montreal is noted for the excellence of its apples, and the island of Orleans for its plums. The wild animals are similar to those of other parts of British America. Fur-bear- ing animals are still trapped in the N. and N. E. portions of the province, where the Hudson Bay company has several posts. The manu- factures are of considerable value, though they have not yet been extensively developed. Among the principal articles produced are flour, lum- ber, furniture, leather, hardware, paper, chemi- cals, soap, boots and shoes, cotton and woollen goods, steam engines, and agricultural imple- ments. Ship building is carried on chiefly at Quebec. Home-made woollen and linen cloths are extensively worn by the rural population. (For statistics of agriculture, manufactures, &c., see APPENDIX to vol. xii.) The gulf of St. Lawrence abounds in fish, and the fisheries are extensively pursued on the Labrador coast, around the shores of the Gaspe peninsula, and at the Magdalen islands. The value of the fisheries for the year ending June 30, 1874, was $1,008,660 20. The chief items of catch were cod, herring, salmon, seals, mackerel, and lobsters. The value of fish oil preserved, in- cluded in the above figures, was $89,211 60, viz.: cod oil, $48,854 50; seal oil, $27,047 60; whale oil, $13,296 ; porpoise oil, $13 60. In respect to foreign commerce Quebec is the first province in the Dominion. The value of goods entered for consumption from foreign coun- tries during the year 1873-'4 was $51,980,870, including $32, 749,883 from Great Britain, $12,- 703,967 from the United States, $1,530,152 from France, $939,451 from the West Indies, $737,- 866 from Germany, $677,017 from China, $528,- 232 from Newfoundland, $452,486 from South America, $352,934 from Spain, $295,958 from Japan, $283,956 from Belgium, $243,782 from the East Indies, $204,581 from Holland, and $138,712 from Switzerland. The principal ar- ticles of import were manufactures, including cottony woollens, fancy goods, silks, iron and hardware, and machinery, besides sugar and molasses, tea, tobacco and cigars, wine, brandy and other spirits, coal, wheat, &c. The value of exports to foreign countries was $46,393,845, of which $36,099,441 were to Great Britain, $5,812,596 to the United States, $967,615 to South America, $813,888 to Newfoundland, $255,267 to the British West Indies, $237,259 to France, $229,480 to Belgium, $169,528 to Italy, and $169,150 to Portugal. Of the whole amount $9,405,600 represented goods not the produce of Canada, $901,703 coin and bullion, $053,869 the estimated amount not returned at inland ports, and $35,432,673 Canadian pro- duce, viz. : of the mine, $210,414; of the fish- eries, $778,672; of the forest, $13,115,106; animals and their produce, $8,18i,013; agri- cultural products, $11,256,057; manufactures, $917,404; miscellaneous articles, $102,732; new ships, $796,075. The number of entrances from sea was 1,501, tonnage 1,135,500; clear- ances for sea, 1,493, tonnage 1,087,151 ; en- trances in inland navigation from the United States, 2,793, tonnage 288,862 ; clearances in inland navigation for the United States, 1,487, tonnage 216,990 ; total entrances in the foreign trade, 4,294, tonnage 1,424,422; total clear- ances, 2,980, tonnage 1,304,141. The number of vessels built during the year was 63, with an aggregate tonnage of 22,189 ; belonging in the province at the close of 1874, 1,837 vessels, with an aggregate tonnage of 218,946. The following is a comparative statement of the foreign commerce for the six years ending June 30, 1874: YEARS. Import*. EnUrcd for conumptlon. Export!. 1869.... $90,940 341 $29 546 177 $28.228 268 1870 828S8 ( (16 8'2 1 66 2^8 "T ^>~ 46s 1871 48 094 412 40 108,120 3' 09 1 706 1872 49376 175 47 788 687 41 VS470 1878 53715459 M '! 1T>8 41 4H-- o:<3 1874. 51 557 072 51 9SO 870 46 398 845 The province is connected with Ontario and the United States by several lines of railway, the statistics of which for 1875 are contained in the following table :