:si
THE WEST BHOBE.
the nioviscB of unman Columbia.
BUITIHII Columbia i. one of the province! of the
Dominion of (Wk and iideitincd to occupy
the same iiiu.o with r-fence to her inter pro
Idom c the Atlwtic slop that Oregon, Washington
ar! California will to the itatei fait of the Rocky
nmutUina. IU great area, mil J and equable cli
nat, and vaat wraith of natural reaourcea, more
wiftl and more valuable than thoM of any other
Mirtin of tin dominion, will in future yean ren
Act it the rirheat and ami populoui of all the
province embraced in the confederation. These
thing Mn Uu- and there ia no diiputing the evi
dencm which jiiut to thrm by one who hai given the
qutttinn even a superficial e lamination -what an in
viution she extendi to young men to employ their
cajiUl, train and phyiical energy in building up the
great empire which muit mrely be developed on this
western ftxut! A generation hence, the youth of the
land will nt have thii grand opportunity noweffered
their father, to lgin life fur themselves in a new
cot try Uvming with the natural wealth that haa lain
dormant line the foundation of the world. Through
year of Ml and privation the pioneer o( thii region
hav prrjrr tlm ay, and the man who now coinoi
to the weatrrn ilojm will find ample acope for hii boat
Mtxvptio&i and Lii greatest effort.
The province embrace all that portion of North
America lying north of the I'nited State and weit
of the IWky mountain!, except the Alukan penin
tala and the imall atrip of Aluka lying along the
( u far aoulh aa latitude fifty-four degree and
forty minute, an empire aeren hundred milei long
ul fire hundred idr, containing about three hun
dred and forty one thousand naaro milei of territo
ry. It MtaUti of two Jiatinrt diviiioci, the coait re.
glo and the Interior, each having characteristic po
fuUar U iUelf. The farmer cotnpriin the fringo of
imalt Wand l,ir,g aWg the c.t, embracing a large
air in the aggregate and that jmrti.m of the main
la wet of the (t mountain. In thii region the
rainfall la larg and the cimtrt ii mild, equable and
ibrtrrMitly Urlj. The gtrat J.p cumB
m bMifU the Utnrtiir euu on the fr northern
shore of Alaaka. Le,e .,u if Ujgn influx to
it- fnlUt, and the rcu!t u cliIJuU, hm U
rary trUu. fall. Wo. ,U .Q
ctUc aUrva tinMy deg, itl
warn and pall, rain. Vu t!. gf0,th (lf
u. i. a. tuu-,,fth.:.wia iT(,
L M ao gtat, and the ,:tW r!,8.aU. U
Mrtaolow, ,L,Vt,rr
Ufcul. IU eWntrvu:.; tLc
The snowfall there ia not bo great as on the Atlantic
slope and the spring opens much earlier. In fact,
cattle graze on the open ranges all winter, subsisting
on the dried bunch grass, which is as nutritious u
the best cured hay.
The coast region, owing to its greater humidity,
is densely covered with timber of giant proportions,
chief of which are the Douglas fir and red cedar.
Here is a mine of natural wealth that will not be ex.
haustod for a great many years. Lumbering enter,
prises are carried on quite extensively, and have been
for many years, but the greater development of thii
business is one of the brightest outlooks of the fa.
ture. Heretofore the market has been chiefly a for.
eign one, but the development of the province is
steadily increasing the importance of the home mar
ket Certainly British Columbia offers unrivaled in.
ducements to the lumber manufacturer. The interior,
from the CoaBt mountains to the Gold mountains,
contains but little timber, but on the Qold, Selkirk and
Rocky mountains there are great ranges of splendid
forests, which, owing to the unsettled condition of the
region, are still practically untouched, though a few
mills have been nibbling at them for several years.
The agricultural interests of the province are des
tined to become very extensive, though they are but
slightly developed, except in a very limited area. Ia
certain districts on Vancouver island, along Fraser
river from its mouth some distance into the interior,
and in Nicola, Spallumsheen, Okanogan and a few
other valleys in the interior, much progress has been
made, and many as fine ranches as one would care to
see can be found in any of those localities. There
are, however, vast areas of most excellent agricultural
land, where the sod has never been turned by the
plow, which will, in the not distant future, support
large farming communities and send out their pro
ducts to the markets of the world. There are also
many choice locations to be had in the districts where
agriculture is already considerably advanced. As in
the better known region to the south of the interna
tional line, there is much fertile land which requires
irrigation to render it productive, but which is very
fruitful when tonched by the magic hand of water.
There is alio much land which is so situated that the
natural rainfall is sufficient to bring to perfection
moat marvelous crops of cereals. The slow develop,
ment of the agricultural industry has not been caused
"7 uy Uck of arable land, but more because of the
of adoqnate facilities for reaching market
i h the products of the farm. By the construction
m Canadian IVific this drawback has been par
7 '"d, agriculture has largely increased
inl T u dUtricU mediately tributary to that
iMh the provincial and dominion government!