THE WEST SHORE.
319
built up as the old street. In the older section, how
ever, the old, unsightly structure! are being replaced
with new ones, giving it a bright and enterprising ap
pearance. The business of the town is important, as has al
ready been indicated. Its mercantile trade with the
surrounding ranches and mining camps is a source of
considerable profit It has a large grist mill and a
saw mill, that do a good business. Timber is rafted
from Shuswap lake, A brick kiln is soon to be put
in operation near the town.
At Kamloops a good public school for girls and
one for boys are maintained, and an Indian school
to cost about $18,000.00 is soon to be erected. The
Episcopalian, Presbyterian, Methodist and Roman
Catholio congregations have neat and commodious
edifices, and the last also has a convent there. The
government has an Indian agency at Kamloops, and
there are also a provincial jail, a publio hospital, five
hotels, a branch house of the Dink of British Colum.
bia, and one of the best newspapers in the province,
the Inland Sentinel The town has a good water
works system, and more graded streets and sidewalks
than many more pretentious burgs.
In the neighborhood of Kamloops there are min
eral lodes of importance, including mica, iron, copper
and silver. A fine quality of red granite, and mar.
ble, and extensive coal measures also exist The cli
mate is dry and not very severe. In winter sleighing
lasts only a week or ten days, and there are a few days
when mercury goes below zero. As the principal
town in the Thompson river valley, and with such a
wide extent of valuable country tributary to it, Kam
loops certainly can not fail to have a most gratifying
growth.
THE TOWN OF ASIIOROFr.
ASHCROrr is one of the most important stations
on the Pacifio division of the Canadian Pacific
railway, and is located on the south bank of the
Thompson river, near its junction with the BonaparUv
Its great importance a a shipping point lies in the
fact that it is the trading post for the Cariboo, Clin,
ton and Lillooct districts, In the northern interior of
the province, and the point where all travel to those
sections leaves the railroad. Large quantities of
freight are taken into those districts in trains drawn
by oxen or mules. Some of the ranches are reached
only by trails, all freight to them having to be trans,
ported by means of pack mules. The first post in.
land from Ashcroft is Cache crook, only six miles
distant Clinton is thirty-two miles in the interior,
Lillooct fifty-two miles from Ashcroft, and Darker,
ville, whiob is in the heart of the Cariboo country and
the chief town of that region, is two hundred and
eighty-five miles from the railroad. The materials
and implements for working the mines, as well as the
supplies for the men employed, are taken from Ash.
croft where moat of the trading is done. Many mil
lions of gold from the placers of that region have
passed out to market through Ashcroft, and the ex
press company, whose stages afford the only regular
communication to that upper country, does a heavy
business there,
Ashcroft has about five hundred Inhabitants, many
of whom aro engagod in stock raiting in the vicinity
of the town, which has grown up sine the railway was
constructed through that country in 1M85. Bulllolent
grain for home consumption is raised in tho valley,
and there is a largo grist mill In operation at the
junction of the Bonaparte and Thompson rivers, whero
steamboats plying up the Thompson have a landing.
The British Columbia express company has its head,
quarters In the town, and its stage leave once ear h
week for Barkerville and three times a week for Clin
ton, where connections are made for Mllooet Three
good hotels afford ample accommodation for travel
era. There are a number of large mercantile eUl
lithments which have a thriving business, publio
school and church accommodations, and other ad
junct of a flourishing town. Besides being the trad.
Ing point for the mines, there are many tracts of
farming and grsilng lands in the tributary valleys
i that are lending Ashcroft an additional stability, and
as the country is fast being Improved the town has
proaect of even better prosperity than it has here
tofore enjoyed. As the country settle op it will U
the business center of a large population, for its cen.
tral location by the natural routes of travel must al.
ways maintain it as the chief town of that region.