{"http:\/\/dx.doi.org\/10.14288\/1.0417572":{"http:\/\/www.europeana.eu\/schemas\/edm\/dataProvider":[{"value":"CONTENTdm","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/alternative":[{"value":"Eye-witness accounts of the Peace River district of British Columbia","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/isReferencedBy":[{"value":"http:\/\/resolve.library.ubc.ca\/cgi-bin\/catsearch?bid=2672240","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/isPartOf":[{"value":"British Columbia Historical Books Collection","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/contributor":[{"value":"Western Development and Power Limited","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/creator":[{"value":"Bowes, Gordon Emerson","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/issued":[{"value":"2022-08-24","type":"literal","lang":"en"},{"value":"1959","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/description":[{"value":"\"On t.p.: For private use and study only and not for public circulation or sale.\"-- Lowther, B. J., & Laing, M. (1968). A bibliography of British Columbia: Laying the foundations, 1849-1899. Victoria, BC: University of Victoria, p. 221.<br>\"\"For private use and study only and not for public circulation or sale\": - t.p.\"-- Strathern, G. M., & Edwards, M. H. (1970). Navigations, traffiques & discoveries, 1774-1848: A guide to publications relating to the area now British Columbia. Victoria, BC: University of Victoria, p. 31.<br>\"Cover title : Eye-witness accounts of the Peace Ri ver district of British Columbia. On title page: For private use and study only and not for public circulation or sale. Bibliography: p.182-183. Mimeographed. The basis for his Peace River Chronicles (see no. 292).\"-- Edwards, M. H., Lort, J. C. R., & Carmichael, W. J. (1975). A bibliography of British Columbia: Years of growth, 1900-1950. Victoria, BC: University of Victoria, p. 24.","type":"literal","lang":"en"},{"value":"","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/www.europeana.eu\/schemas\/edm\/aggregatedCHO":[{"value":"https:\/\/open.library.ubc.ca\/collections\/bcbooks\/items\/1.0417572\/source.json","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/extent":[{"value":"x, 188 pages : frontispiece (illustration), illustration, facsimile (folded), maps (1 folded), tables ; 28 cm","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/elements\/1.1\/format":[{"value":"application\/pdf","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2009\/08\/skos-reference\/skos.html#note":[{"value":"       EYE-WITNESS ACCOUNTS\nfrom the first exploration in 1793 down to 1959\nof the\nPEACE RIVER DISTRICT\nof\nBRITISH       COLUMBIA\nincluding the Finlay and the Parsnip River Basins\ncompiled by\nG. E. Bowes\nTogether with Several Historical and Descriptive\nNarratives, Maps, a Bibliography, and an Index\nFor Private Use and Study Only\nand\nNotior Public Circulation or Sale\nWESTERN DEVELOPMENT AND POWER LIMITED\nVANCOUVER, B.C., July 1959.\n  PREFACE HI\nThe purpose of this compilation is to provide members of\nWestern Development and Power Limited and its associated companies a\nbackground for assessing the tremendous potential of British Columbia's\nPeace Riyer District.    The following eye-witness accounts arranged in\nchronological order are the prime records of history, and provide the\nlocal color and substance needed for understanding the past as well as the\npresent and the future development of this little-known region.\nNature has lavishly endowed the area,  not only with one of\nthe greatest water power sites in the world,  but also with untold wealth\nof natural gas,  oil,  coal, base metals,  gold, timber,  and millions of\nfertile acres for agriculture.    The only resource lacking isJ commercial\nfisheries.    The willingness of the salmon to avoid the Peace River and\nso leave it free for more productive use shows excellent over-all planning\non Nature's part.\nThe Peace River District has always had an enchantment and\nromantic appeal for Canadians.    The mere name of the majestic river calls\nup dreams of a Promised Land.    The wounded veteran of the First World\nWar was serious when he said that he was going to settle in the Peace River\nBlock,  not because he knew anything about it, but only because he liked\nthe name.\nAlthough this area is the oldest part of British Columbia,\nbeing the first,  other than the coastal areas, to be explored,  and the first\nto be brought under the permanent control of the fur traders, it has\nremained remote and comparatively untouched until recent years.\nThe fur traders of the North West Company, with headquarters in Montreal,  carried out the original explorations with men such\nas Mackenzie and Simon Fraser, and enjoyed a monopoly of trade almost\nwithout interruption from 1793,to 1821, when amalgamation was effected\nwith the Hudson's Bay Company.\nThe Hudson's Bay Company remained in undisturbed\npossession until the gold rush to the Peace and the Finlay in 1862.    Many\nof the miners turned to the fur trade themselves.    There was another gold\nrush in the years 1870-73, this time to the Omineca country.   Klondikers\npassed through the area in 1898-99 and some of them remained as settlers.\nIn 1908-09 there was another smaller gold rush to McConnell Creek on\nthe Ingenika River.\nDuring the boom era of railway surveys and construction in\nWestern Canada from 1872 to 1914, there were many plans announced for\nrailways to intersect the whole region.\"., but all came to nothing.    For\nexample,  Warburton Pike,, the explorer of the Yukon River, promoted the\nidea of a line from the Stikine into the Cassiar in the 1890's.    At the same\n IV.\ntime,  Mackenzie and Mann,  the builders of the Canadian Northern,  obtained\na Federal Charter for a second line into much the same area.\nIn 1913-14, the Welsh coal and munitions magnate,  D. A.\nThomas, to be known later as Lord Rhondda, with an eye to the enormous\nPeace River coal deposits,   spent one quarter million dollars in surveys and\nexplorations in the area.    He obtained a charter for his proposed Pacific,\nPeace,  and Athabasca Railway,  which was to follow the Nass and Skeena\nRivers eastward through Peace River Pass to Prince Albert.    Lord Rhondda\ngave up his plans on the outbreak of the first War.\nIn total, there have been 24 charters granted for railway\nlines to go directly to the Peace River Country or to pass through it\nenroute to the Coast.    The  prime objective of the Pacific Great Eastern\nRailway,  for many years a political football,  was to reach the Peace.\nEven Premier John Oliver,  who never had a good word for\nthe P. G. E. ,  advocated the development of the industrial potential of Finlay\nForks.\nWhen it became known in the middle twenties that the\nBritish Columbia Government planned to sell the P. G. E. ,  if the purchasers\nwould extend it to the Peace River,  several groups of promoters attempted\nto raise the necessary funds,  generally in England,  but without success.\nIn 1927,  for example,  General F. A.  Sutton, the famous\n\"one-Arm Sutton, \" who made a fortune in China and was later to die there\nin a Japanese prison camp,  announced plans to build a line from Peace\nRiver Crossing to  Qiesnel, to connect with the P. G, E.    Sutton,  at that time\na Vancouver resident,   spent some time on surveys in the area,   even to the\nextent of choosing a hydro-electric site near Hudson Hope.    On one of his\ntrips,  after being upset in his canoe near the Canyon, he lost his way and\nwandered for 20 hours in the trackless bush.\nAnother syndicate,  headed by L. W.  Huntington, a nephew\nof Stanley Baldwin,  and by Sidney Angell,  now a resident of Vancouver,\nmade their headquarters at Pouce Coupe and carried out extensive railway\nand mineral surveys throughout the area.    They proposed that the British\nGovernment should finance the bringing out of unemployed Welsh miners to\nthe Peace River Country.\nStill another group,  which included A. J. B.   Fell of Vancouver,\nalmost succeeded,  it is said,  in persuading the House of Morgan to buy the\nP.G.E.\nIn the thirties,   Consolidated Mining and Smelting were\nplanning to build a railway from Stewart on the Coast to Fort Grahame in\n order to reach the rich lead-zinc and mica deposits in the vicinity.    There\nwere also railway and highway surveys carried out in the Rocky Mountain\nTrench during the Second World War.\nLack of transportation has remained the chief obstacle to\ndevelopment.    Some settlers came in on the mere promise of a railway.\nB. C.  Government land surveyors were at work along the Finlay and the\nupper Peace in 1912.    In 1913, there were 40 settlers near Hudson Hope,\n30 along the Peace down, to Fort St.  John,  and about 400 in the Pouce Coupe\nprairie.    Even Finlay Forks had two general stores in 1913, Jmd hopes\nwere high.    The First World War pricked the bubble,  leaving deserted cabins\neverywhere.\nAfter the First War,   some veterans were encouraged by the\nSoldier Settlement Board to take up land in the Peace River Block, which\ncomprised 3,500,000 acres of fertile soil extending roughly for 35 miles\nboth north and south of the Peace River and for a distance of 74 miles west\nof the Alberta boundary.    It had originally been conveyed to the Dominion\nGovernment by British Columbia in return for aid in construction of the\nCanadian Pacific Railway.    It was held and administered by Ottawa until\n1930,  when it was restored to the Province.    (The term \"Peace River\nBlock\" is sometimes still used,  although no longer with any legal status.)\nThe building of what is now the Northern Alberta Railway\nfrom Edmonton in 1916 to Grande Prairie on the Alberta side of the Peace\nRiver Country facilitated some further settlement of the eastern half of the\narea.    The extension of this line to Dawson Creek in 1930 encouraged large\nnumbers of settlers to come in during the early depression years.    But\nwest of Hudson Hope down to the present day, the area,  including the\nnorthern section of the remarkable Rocky Mountain Trench,  has remained\nalmost entirely undeveloped.    It has been aptly called \"an untouched\nwilderness\".\nIn more recent years,  the building of the Alaska and the\nJohn Hart Highways and the long-delayed extension of the P. G. E.  through\nPine Pass to Dawson Creek and Fort St.  John,  together with the initial\nexploitation of the oil and gas fields,  were the next major steps in the\narea's development.    Can anyone doubt that this is only the beginning?\nProbably the best detailed present-day description of the\narea is to be found in two Provincial Government bulletins prepared\nprimarily for settlers by the Lands Service of the Department of Lands\nand Forests,  Victoria.    Vera Kelsey's \"British Columbia Rides a Star\"\npublished in 1958,   gives a good general impression of the Province and\nthis area.    These and other publications of particular interest are listed\nin the Bibliography,  page 182   The Alaska Highway News,  published once a\nweek in Fort St.  John,  provides up-to-date coverage of the area.\n VI.\nNo detailed history of the Peace River District of British\nColumbia has yet been written.    The nearest approach has been J. G.\nMacGregor's \"The Land of Twelve-Foot Davis,\" which deals primarily\nwith the Alberta side.\nBritish Columbia's Peace River Country is not only the land\nof Twelve-Foot Davis,  it is also the land of Bill Cust, who first\ndiscovered gold in 1861 on the Parsnip about 20 miles above its mouth,\nwhich triggered a gold rush that for a time threatened to rival the Cariboo.\nHe later turned to fur trading at the western end of Peace River Canyon.\nIt is the land of Pete  Toy, the Cornishman,  who made his\nfortune in gold on the banks of the Finlay,  married a squaw or two,  and\nengaged in the fur trade,  only to be drowned in the Black Canyon of the\nOmineca.\nIt is the land of that great moose-hunter of Moberly Lake,\nBaptiste Testerwich, the half-breed Iroquois,  descended from one of\nSir George Simpson's canoemen, who was so hardy and indifferent to cold\nthat he wore no socks in his moccasins,   even in the depth of winter.\nIt is said that his feet were so hot that the snow melted in his tracks.\nIt is the land of Capt.  Galloway, the English mining engineer,\nwho in 1912 could see Hudson Hope,  already re-christened \"Canyon City, \"\nas a future metropolis with a network of railways in all directions, and\nwith the magnificent water power in the Canyon harnessed for industrial use.\nIt is the land of - but enough of that!    In the following pages\nyou can read about these personages and others like them, who ventured\ninto this remote region over the last 165 years - a pageant of explorers,\ntraders, miners,   settlers,  and travellers,  many of them describing what\nthey saw in their own words.\nThis project began on a suggestion from Mr.  E.D.  Sutcliffe,\nwho,  knowing of my hobby of collecting any printed matter relating to British\nColumbia,  asked about the historical accounts of the area.    It has been a\npleasant,   self-imposed task,  conducted in my leisure hours.    I hope any\nreader of this booklet will find half the enjoyment I had in compiling it.\nMy warm thanks go to Miss Ethel Hill and Mr.  L.J.   Fuller,\nboth of the B. C.  Electric Office Services Department,  and their respective\n VII.\nstaffs,  for the production of this booklet,   done over a period of time as the\nnormal work of their sections permitted.    I am grateful also to Mr.   T. A.\nTill for his services as an artist.\nIn addition,  I am indebted to the following:\nMr.  W.A.  Dow,  Mr.  R.J.  Franklin,\nMr.  D.M.M.  Goldie,  Mr.  R. H.  Gram,\nCapt.   L.  Henry,  Mr.  F.J.   Pine,\nMr.  Bruce Ramsey,   and Mr.   E.D.   Sutcliffe.\nI should also like to thank Miss Doreen Taylor,   Librarian\nof the B. C.   Electric General Library for her generous help,  and Miss\nMcAfie of the Vancouver Public Library,  who gave me the run of the\nNorth West History Room for several evenings.    Finally, my wife assisted\nme in many ways.\nG.E.  Bowes\nVancouver,  B.C.\n8 July 1959\n  PART     I\nIX\nHISTORICAL ACCOUNTS\nPAGE\nJohn M. Imrie\nThe Valley of the Peace (1931)\n3\nJames G.  MacGregor\nHistory of the Area\n7\nR.M.   Patterson\nHistory of the Finlay River Area\n12\nH.H.  Bancroft\nEarly Gold Discoveries in the Area\nPART     II\n18\nEYE\n- WITNESS ACCOUNTS\nSir Alexander Mackenzie\nDiscovery of the Canyon\n23\nSimon Fraser\nFrom the Portage to Finlay Forks\nin 1806\n27\nD. W.  Harmon\nA Fur-Trader's Journal,   1810-13\n30\nSamuel Black\nDiscovery of Deserters' Canyon\n33\nSir George Simpson\nA Report on the Fur Trade,   1828\n36\nArchibald McDonald\nThe Peace River Canyon in 1828\n38\nJohn McLean\nUp the Peace to Fort McLeod in 1833\n40\nCharles Horetzky\nA Railway Survey in 1872\n41\nGen. Sir Wm.  F.  Butler\nAn English Traveller in 1873\n45\nA.R. C.  Selwyn\nRev.  Daniel M. Gordon\nThe First Geological Survey,  1875\n50\nThrough Peace River Pass in 1879\n51\nWarburton Pike\nAn Explorer's Visit in 1890\n57\nH.  Somers Somerset\nA Disparaging Appraisal in 1893\n61\nJ.S.  Leitch\nShooting the Rapids\n\u00a33\nCapt. Sir Cecil Denny\nBuilding the Police Trail in 1905\n65\nHulbert Footner\nTravelling Down the Peace in 1911\n66\nCapt.  C.F.J. Galloway\nPeace River in 1912\n70\nPaul L.  Haworth\nOn the Headwaters of the Peace in 1916\n82\nLewis R.  Freeman\nA Visit by Steamer in 1927\n93\nLukin Johnston\nA Journalist's Impressions in 1927\n95\nC. M. Sternberg\nDinosaur Tracks in the Canyon\n102\nLyn Harrington\nHudson Hope in 1950\n104\nR. M.. ^Patter son\nPeace River Passage in 1955\n110\nVera Kelsey\nDawson Creek and Fort St. John in 1957\n114\nAlaska Highway News\nHudson Hope in March,   1959\nPART     III\n121\nGENERAL DESCRIPTIONS\nHugh Savage\nA 1912 Description of the Country\n123\nFo C.  Swannell\nFinlay and Ingenika Valleys\n127\nJ.D.  Galloway\nA 1923 Description of the Area\n128\nF.H. Kitto\nA 1927 Description of the Country\n132\nJ.  Lewis Robinson\nThe Rocky Mountain Trench\n141\n Arthur V.   White\nJ. W. Bremner &\nC.R.   Crysdale\nWater Rights Branch\nGeo.  J.  Smith\nH.N. Whitford &\nR.D.   Craig\nB. C.  Forest Service\nM.Y.   Williams\nDouglas Lay\nA. F.   Buckham\nL.K.  Turner\nA.N.   Lucie-Smith\nPART     IV\nRESOURCES\nWater Powers of Upper Peace\nRiver System\nPAGE\n145\nWater Power Potential of the Canyon 151\nA 1954 Water Power Estimate 154\nProposed Diversion of Peace River 156\nA Forest Inventory in 1917 158\nForest Inventory,   195 3 166\nSome Mineral Resources of the Area 167\nA Mineral Report - Fort Grahame Area 169\nCoalfields Inventory in 1956 172\nNatural Gas in Northeastern B.C. 173\nB. C. 's Petroleum Industry in 1958 176\nMAPS\nMAP OF THE AREA At End\nMAP REPRODUCED FROM 1919 WATER POWERS REPORT 150\nMAP OF OIL AND GAS FIELDS IN NORTHEASTERN B. C. 178\nORIGIN OF CERTAIN PLACE NAMES\n179\nA RECOMMENDED BIBLIOGRAPHY\n182\nINDEX OF AUTHORS QUOTED\n184\nINDEX OF SUBJECTS\n185\n   PART\n1\nHISTORICAL\nACCOUNTS\n  THE VALLEY OF THE PEACE (1931) 3.\nJOHN M.   IMRIE\nTaken from an Illustrated article written In 1931 by the Managing Director\nof the  \"Edmonton Journal\".\nOnly those who have visited its far-flung stretches as well as\nits areas of present settlement can have any adequate conception of the\nPeace River country.    To an unique degree it is a land that defies\ndescription.    It unfolds itself in all its beauty,  magnitude,  productivity and\nreaction of almost human companionship only to such as penetrate its\ninnermost recesses.    There is more than a germ of truth in the old Indian\nlegend that he who tastes the waters of the Peace shall return eventually to\nmake his home within its valleys. . . .\nFormed by the confluence of the Parsnip and Finlay rivers,\nin a trench of the Rockies,   close to the centre of northern British Columbia,\nthe Peace pours its turbulent waters for a hundred miles through majestic\nmountain passes and canyons.    Emerging from the last of these at Hudson's\nHope,   B.C.,  it winds its way for another 700 miles through a rich\nagricultural plateau.\nSuperimposed on the St.   Lawrence,  and its course straightened\nin conformity therewith, the Peace would stretch from Lake Ontario to\nbeyond Gaspe Peninsula.    Nor is that comparison lacking in respect to the\nmightiest of Canada's rivers.    Warburton Pike,   explorer of countless\nstreams and lakes,  has termed the Peace the loveliest of northern waters,\nand that must be the verdict of all who travel long upon its bosom.    The\nriver varies in width from a quarter of a mile at Hudson's Hope to over a\nmile at Vermilion Chutes,  and at many points beyond.    It is freely\norientated by tree-crowned islands and for almost half of its course its\nbanks,  also wooded for the most part,  are 700 feet in height.    From these,\nbehind Peace River town,  may be had a panoramic view comparable in\ngrandeur with that from the citadel of Old Quebec.    None who have visited\nBattle River district will forget the first breathtaking glimpse of its\nprairie as the road emerges suddenly from its wooded borders on the crest\nof a high elevation.    As for broad sweeps of waving grain or wheat = stooked\nfields, few,  if any,  in the older agricultural districts of Canada surpass in\nextent and beauty those to be seen from Inspiration Point or Richmond Hill,\nto the east and west respectively of Grande Prairie.\nThe Peace River country is also a treasure house of historical\nassociations.    Its main waterway provided for 800 miles alike the direction\nand the means of transport for Alexander Mackenzie's memorable journey\nto the Pacific in 1792-93.    He and his party were the first white men to\nexplore the upper waters of the Peace.    Soon it became a main artery of\nfur trade and further exploration.    Simon Fraser ascended both the Peace\n if\nTHE VALLEY OF THE PEACE (1931)\nand its tributary the Parsnip,  on the journey that led to the discovery of\nthe river that bears his name.    David Thompson had his headquarters for\ntwo years at the fort near the junction of the Peace and Smoky rivers that\nMackenzie had occupied during the winter of 1792 = 93.    These are only\nthree - although the more notable - of a score of explorers and traders\nwhose association with the early history of the Peace River country gives\nto it a background of romance and glamour as well as high inspiration.\nIn the fullness of time,   still less than a quarter of a century\nago,  came the first trek of agricultural settlers.    Part went in over a long\nlaborious trail from Edson to what is now the Grande Prairie district; part\nthrough Athabaska and Grouard into the area north and west of what is now\nPeace River town.    Thus one is led to consider agricultural possibilities\nand the progress in their realization.\nFederal Government statistics put the area of Peace River's\nagricultural country at 47,000,000 acres.    That is almost double the\ncultivated area from which Ontario has an agricultural production averaging\nin value $500, 000,000.    In the three prairie provinces combined,  over\n500, 000, 000 bushels of wheat were cropped in 1928 from 22, 500, 000 acres.\nNor does the comparison end there.    Three world championships in wheat,\none in oats and one in peas,  attest the peculiar fitness of Peace River's\nsoil and climatic conditions for high quality production.    As to volume,\nPeace River usually passes all other large areas in yields per acre.    In\n1929, a short-crop year in western Canada,  its average yield in wheat was\nalmost double that of the prairie provinces as a whole. . . .\nIn the growing summer season there are but one to three hours\nof darkness in these northern latitudes.    Long days give added opportunity\nfor and hasten the ripening of the crop.    Comparatively low altitude and\nwell-timed precipitation are other beneficent factors.    But of these the most\ninexplicable and striking is a pronounced swing to the north after crossing\nthe eastern boundary of Alberta of the isothermal line of favorable summer\ntemperature.    It is a fact,  attested though not explained by meteorologists,\nthat the average summer temperature at the northern boundary of Alberta\nis identical with that of the Brandon and Portage plains in southern\nManitoba.    Through this combination of factors wheat matures in the Peace\nRiver country five to ten days earlier than in central Alberta.    With barley,\noats and vegetables the difference is even more pronounced.\nWho shall estimate the agricultural possibilities of such a\ncountry?    When its density of farm population has attained even the present\nlow average of Alberta,  it will be sustaining well over 1,000,000 people on\nits farms alone.    That comparison makes no allowance for concurrent\nindustrial,  mineral or other urban development,   nor for the much more\nintensive farm settlement of which Peace River country would still be\ncapable as is the rest of Alberta to-day. . . ,\n THE VALLEY OF THE PEACE (1931)\nWest of the British Columbia border,  in what is known as\nPeace River block,  another irregular penetration is under way.    It began\nin the spring of 1928 with the settlement of odd quarter sections in the\nimmediate Pouce Coupe,  Rolla and Dawson Creek districts.    It soon overflowed westward to Sunset Prairie and, north of the Peace,  it is spreading\naway beyond the limits of surveys,  out to Blueberry River and along the\nold Fort Nelson trail.    One thousand new homesteads have been filed on in\nPeace River block these last two and one-half years,  and many more are\nheld under squatter's rights.    The agent of the British Columbia government\nat Pouce Coupe is the authority for the statement that the resident\npopulation of this comparatively small section of the Peace River country\nhad increased from 4, 000 on January 1st,   1928 to 10, 000 on August 23rd,\n1930....\nMinerals,  water powers and timber are other natural resources\nof the Peace River country.    Dr.  Charles Camsell,  Deputy Minister of\nMines, has reported that \"the areal extent\" and \"high quality\" of the coal\nseams at the headwaters of the Smoky and adjacent rivers indicate \"one of\nthe most important coalfields of western Canada\".    Other coal deposits are\nlocated on the Red Willow River and at two points on the Peace River,  viz. ,\nin Rocky Mountain Canyon and below Peace River town.\nGypsum is exposed on both banks of the Peace River for a\ndistance of 15 miles,  commencing at Little Rapids.    In 1916 Dr.  Camsell\nestimated the extent of this deposit as \"at least 217, 000,000 tons\".    In\n1929,  following a more extensive examination,  Professor A.  E.   Cameron\nput the figure at 1, 000, 000, 000 tons.    Extensive salt springs and deposits\nare located 25 miles west of Slave River and extending from the northern\nboundary of Alberta.    Traces of natural gas,  crude oil and tar have been\nfound at various points on the Peace River,  and from its headwaters\nreports have come from time to time of indications of gold quartz,   silver\ngalena,  mica and other minerals.    The rapids of Rocky Mountain Canyon\nand Vermilion Falls and Rapids constitute the two main water powers of the\nPeace River country proper.    Both are on the Peace itself.    The former\nhas an estimated minimum capacity of 94,000 horsepower.    Two other\nlarge water powers are located just outside the boundaries of the Peace\nRiver country, but close enough thereto to be a possible factor in its\neconomic development.    These are Alexandra Falls on the Hay River and\nthe series of rapids on the Slave River between Fort Fitzgerald and Fort\nSmith.    The latter have a combined estimated capacity of 312,000\nhorsepower.\nThere are also large forest areas in several parts of the\nPeace River country, but accurate data in relation thereto is not available.\n 6. THE VALLEY OF THE PEACE (1931)\nIt is fitting that this article should close with a reference to\nthose potentialities of the Peace River country that are of the spirit rather\nthan economic in character.   As many have said,   Canada's main source of\nweakness is the narrowness of settlement along the international border.\nThat is the cause of many economic problems; it engenders also a\nhesitancy in national spirit and a lack of breadth in national outlook.    Peace\nRiver, fully developed,  will widen Canada's occupied territory to that of\nthe United States between Chicago and New Orleans.    That portion of the\nneighboring republic is \"no mean country\".    It provides breadth for\ncountless channels of vigorous national life.    The present movement into the\nPeace River country is bringing to the Canadian people the larger vision of\na Canada with equal breadth even in its agricultural area.\nAnother potential contribution is to national character.    There\nis something about the far north - partly definable,  partly inexplicable -\nthat develops strength:   not in body alone,  but in mind,  in purpose,  in\ninitiative,  in resourcefulness.    These elements of character soon become\ninherent in those who make their homes in the Peace River country and\nwith them that kindliness, hospitality and capacity for sacrificial service\nthat are so often found among pioneer people.    Thus two quite different\ntypes of qualities are already blended in a character that is individualistic\nand distinctively typical of Peace River.    Canada's national character will\ngain alike in strength and in tenderness through the infusion of this new\nspirit. . . .\n(\"The Valley of the Peace\", by John M.  Imrie,  in the Canadian Geographical Journal,\nVol.   II.,   No.   6,  June  1931.)\n HISTORY OF THE AREA\nJAMES G.  MacGREGOR\nThe following are extracts from an excellent history of the whole Peace\nRiver Country published in 1952 by James G. MacGregor, a former President of the Alberta\nHistorical Society and Chairman of the Alberta Power Commission.\nIn area the Peace River country comprises 25, 000 square\nmiles of arable farm land.    It is the last frontier of the white man's settling.\nIt is,  in itself,  an empire.\nKnown to the white man for only 150 years,  and settled by\nfarmers for less than forty years,  it is only now rising out of th\u00a9 mists of\nantiquity.    Each year carries it to new heights of achievements.    These\nachievements are spectacular to us who watch.    They are, however,  only\nthe fulfillment of the well-founded dreams of its determined and clear eyed\npioneers....\nThe river may be peaceful now. . . . but the Beaver Indians\nknew it as a battle ground.    Along its shores they had to fight the encroaching Crees,  who pushed in on them from the east and the south.    The warfare\nwas sporadic,  indecisive,  but more or less incessant, until the white man\ncame.    When he came, the Crees acquired guns and,  with them temporary\nvictory over the Beavers,  who fell back further west.    The white man,\nhowever,  played no favourites,  and in due time he traded guns to the\nBeavers too.    This put a new complexion on the warfare,  as once more the\nBeaver was the equal in battle of the Cree.    Then,  in 1782,  another of the\nwhite man's deadly gifts was bought to the Crees -- smallpox.    It\ndecimated the Crees and gave the Beavers numerical superiority along the\nPeace River front,   so that they were able to exact peace from their old\nenemies.    At a celebrated meeting at the Peace Point,  some fifty miles\nabove the rivers mouth,  peace was declared.    From then on the Beavers\ncall the river the Unchaga, that is, the Peace.\nThat name, Peace River, is the one that has come down to us;\nalthough it might more justly have been known to us as the Battle, which is\nnow the name of one of its tributaries. With the Indians these names were\nmore or less transitory, one name succeeding another as important events\nsucceeded each other down the ages. Names only became fixed when white\nmen with their maps and written records arrived. . . .\nAlexander MacKenzie leads the procession of white men.    He\nwas the first white man to winter near what is now the town of Peace River.\nAlter spending the winter of 1792-3 at the forks of the Smoky and the Peace,\nhe pushed on west the following spring, to win undying fame as the first man\nto cross the continent north of Mexico.    Hard on his heels come those other\ngreat explorers,  Fraser,  Thompson,  and Finlay. . . .\n ^r\nHISTORY OF THE AREA\nTramping firmly in the steps of the explorers - nay,   even\nbelligerently - came the Highlanders from Scotland who made up the North-\nWest Company.    These were powerful,  determined clansmen.    They were\na law unto themselves but were bound together in the spirit of the old fiery\ncross that flew from hilltop to hilltop at the approach of the hated\nSassenach.    The McGillivrays,  McDonalds,   Campbells,  McLeans,\nMcTavishes and that McLeod of Skye who built and named Dunvegan after\nthe storm-swept castle of his ancestors.\nBrooking no opposition, they put their heads together to chase\nthe hated English rival, the Hudson's Bay Company, out of the Peace River\nCountry, or rather to keep them from getting a foothold in it. For five\nyears they almost succeeded. In doing this they deliberately starved in one\nwinter alone sixteen out of a party of fifty Hudson's Bay employees and took\nthe rest prisoners.\nThey were defeated,  however,  by another Scot in the\ndiminutive person of Sir George Simpson,  at that time Governor of the\nAthabasca District of the Hudson's Bay Company.    His opposition and\nstrategy went far towards forcing them into an amalgamation with their\nrivals.    Simpson defeated them but they were not cowed,  as they showed in\nafter years when they followed him loyally for forty years,  when,  as\nCanadian Governor of Hudson's Bay Company he ruled the western half of\nthe continent.\nWith the traders came the French Canadian voyageur and the\nOrkney boatmen,  who paddled,  poled,  or portaged their boats,  past all the\nrapids and falls,  or poked the prow of their canoes up every stream in the\ngreat Peace River Counfery.    The combination of the Scottish traders and\nthe French voyageurs was a happy one.    Centuries of battles shared in\ncommon by the French and Scotch in Europe had built up a bond between\nthe two races.    This bond was strengthened by their common hatred of their\nrival, the English.\nWith the traders too came the Iroquois Boatmen,  who liked the\nPeace River Country.    They liked it so much that they adopted it and hunted\non all its great prairies.    Even today their descendants trap and hunt in the\nfoothills at the head-waters of the Smoky River. . . .\nGold miners,  too, joined the procession to the Peace River\nCountry in the 1870's when,  working across the face of the continent as\ng#ld seekers ever do,  they made a temporary halt on the banks of the Peace\nRiver.    From California came remnants of the Forty-Niners,  via the\nCariboo,  to the Omineca diggings at the head-waters of the Peace and\nfinally out to the prairies of the Peace River Country.    With them came\nBill Cust,   Twelve-Foot Davis and Nigger Dan,  who proclaimed his undying\nresolution not to be \"trod on by any man except Her Majesty Queen Victoria\"\n HISTORY OF THE AREA 9.\nAnd still others came:   the Klondikers of '98 - entering on the\nstage this time from the south,  leaving their gear and their bones scattered\nfrom Edmonton all the way to Hudson Hope, wintering at Flying Shot Lake,\nwhere they ate their horses or died of scurvy or starvation.\nOn and on goes the procession until it steps out of the shades\nof the past into the present,  and we see in the flesh the stuff of which these\npioneers are made:   the Reverend Gough Brick,  who,  at the Shaftsbury\nAnglican Mission in 1893,  was growing wheat that captured the world's\nfirst prize; W.D.  Albright,  who left a lucrative job in the East to devote\nhis talents to the cause of agriculture in the Peace River Country,   and\nbefore his death in the last few years had become the leading figure of the\nnorth; Percy Tooley,   of the air vision,  farmer,  mayor of Grande Prairie\nand booster of the Yukon Southern Airways and,  later of the Canadian\nPacific Airways; Frank Donald,  lumberman,  land millionaire,  honored\nalike over the northern half of the province for his wit,   enterprise and\nsilent charity; Colonel Jim Cornwall,   riverman,  trader,   adventurer,\nexplorer,   soldier and Empire builder. . . .\nThere were fewer than two thousand people in the Peace River\nCounty in 1911.    This figure includes the pitiful remnant of the once\npowerful tribe of Beaver Indians.    This was six years after Alberta had\nbeen made a province and 120 years after MacKenzie had been entranced\nby its beauties and charms.    For 120 summers it lay smiling and fair,  its\nvirgin valleys warm and waiting.    For 120 winters it lay clear and bright,\nits snow-girt hillsides cold and challenging.    Then,  when the rest of the\nWest had filled with eager settlers,  its invitation and its challenge were\ntaken up.    Only then did the Empire of the Peace come into its own.    By\n1950 there were 100, 000 well-fed and happy people in the Peace River\nCountry. . . .\nWe spoke of there being some 25, 000 square miles of arable\nland,  but this is only part of the Peace River Country.    The Mighty Peace,\nsome 900 miles long from Summit Lake to its mouth,  has a watershed of\n120, 000 square miles,   sixty per cent of which is in Alberta.    West of the\nRocky Mountains and parallel to them for hundreds of miles,  lies the\nRocky Mountain Trench.    In this trench the Peace River takes its rise as\nthe Parsnip and the Finlay Rivers.    The Finlay flows down this trench for\nabout one hundred miles in a southerly direction.    The Parsnip flows down\nthis trench also,  but in anortherly direction,  having risen in Summit Lake\nnot far from Prince George.    The two meet each other head on at Finlay\nForks,  and at the moment of impact the Peace is born. . . .\nHere we must not fail to take note of the Omineca River. It\nenters the Finlay from the west a few miles above Finlay Forks. Today,\nscarcely anyone knows where the Omineca is.    Nearly one hundred years\n ^\n10. HISTORY OF THE AREA\nago its name was on everyone's tongue.    Then it was the scene of the\nlatest gold diggings.    Hundreds of men poured in, following the lure of\ngold.\nAfter the meeting of the waters of the Finlay and the Parsnip,\nthe combined stream is known as the Peace.    It is already a mighty stream;\nyet it has 789 miles to go before it loses its identity in Slave River,  and as\nit flows it will pick up many a large tributary.    From the forks it flows\nseventy=two miles almost due east through one of the most charming\nmountain valleys.    Its current is swift,  with many rapids,  as it girds up\nits loins and gathers its strength for the leaping foaming run it is so soon\nto make through its famous canyon.    Suddenly,  it turns south and flows\ndeceptively quietly,  for a mile.    Then it lets itself go for a descent of 225\nfeet in the next eighteen miles.    Here is the famous Peace River Canyon.\nThere are many different ways of looking at a problem or of\nviewing a natural phenomenon.    The Peace River Canyon is no exception.\nIt is a great power site,  an impediment to navigation or a magnificent\ncanyon.\nRegarded as a power site it could develop 282,000 horsepower\nduring the summer months.    Whether or not it would be practical to\ndevelop,  is hard to say, but it would be very difficult.    The world is so\nfull of people who must \"harness\" waterfalls that it is not likely that it will\nescape.    Eventually it will have to go the way of all else and be hemmed in\nwith all sorts of restraints in the interest of progress. . . .\nHudson Hope is the extreme west end of the Peace River\nCountry.    It lacks some forty miles of being as far west as Vancouver.\nFort St. John lies some fifty miles downstream,  and the intervening\ncountry is rather too rugged to be considered good farming country.    Along\nthe river,  however,  and for some distance up such tributaries as Halfway\nRiver, there are some splendid flats under cultivation,  but there is little\nreal farming until Fort St.  John is reached.\nEven there,  if one were travelling down the stream,  he would\nnot realize that great wheat fields are only a mile or so back from the\nriver.    The site of old Fort St.  John is down on the river flat,  and viewed\nfrom it the scenery is magnificent.    But there is nothing to indicate that\nrich farming land lies a few miles to the north.    This area is a land as fair\nas Arcadie and as rich as deep black soil and a splendid climate can make\nit\t\nDirectly west the great Peace comes from out of the distance\ncurving around its gravel bars,  which are filled with gold now just as they\nwere in the 1870's when two thousand miners panned them between here\nand Hudson Hope.\n HISTORY OF THE AREA 11.\nBut the view in all these directions is merely scenery and\nromance, mystery and grandeur.    What lies behind to the north?   Ah',  a\ngently undulating plateau going back thirty miles to Murdale,  Montney and\nRose Prairie with their great wheat fields.\nNearer at hand, just three miles away,  is Fort St.  John,  a\ngrowing town of 2, 000 inhabitants,   coming into its own now that the Alaska\nHighway passes through it.    Off three miles to the east lies one of the large\nairports on the North West Staging Route.\nBeyond that lies the Beatton River racing away at the bottom\nof its great gorge one thousand feet deep.    It was named after Frank Beatton,\nwho entered the service of the Hudson's Bay Company along the Peace in\n1883 and spent much of his life at Fort St. John.    At its mouth,  where it\nenters the Peace,  are the ruins of the Fort St. John of 1823,  where Guy\nHughes and his four men were shot down by the Beaver Indians.\nThe Alaska Highway goes north-west from Fort St. John,  past\nCharlie Lake, which is about five miles away.    Thence it plunges into regions\nrelatively unknown and in three hundred miles reaches Fort Nelson.    From\nthere it pursues its way north and west,  past little clearings in the bush,\npast lovely lakes,  down wooded valleys and over bare mountain passes,  on\nand on, until it ends in Alaska fifteen hundred miles from Fort St.  John.\nFew realize that its westerly end is nearly as far west as Hawaii.\nIn the opposite direction from Fort St.  John, that is,  southeast, the highway soon comes to Taylor's Flats,  named after H.  Taylor,\nonetime Hudson's Bay Company trader at Hudson Hope, who retired in 1916\nand settled down on this flat.    All of the rich flats along the river were\nsimilarly taken up by old-timers in the country.    One goes straight on to\nthe famous Peace River Bridge from Taylor's Flats. . . .\nThirty-five miles south and east of the bridge lies Dawson\nCreek.    In 1939,  it was a pleasant farming village in the midst of an area\nof rich black soil.    It was the end of steel,  with all the prospects that holds\nfor the rapid growth of a town.\nThen the war burst on us all,  but it reserved its special\nimpact for Dawson Creek.    It was the end of steel nearest Alaska,  and when\nthe decision to build the Alaska Highway was made,  Dawson Creek became\nMile Zero on that famous road.    Overnight it swelled to a town of many\nthousands....\n(James G. MacGregor, \"The Land of Twelve-Foot Davis, A History of the Peace River Country,\"\nEdmonton, 1952)\n 12. HISTORY OF THE FINLAY RIVER AREA\nR.  M.   PATTERSON\nThe following extracts comprise a unique account of the history of\nexploration in the Finlay River area', written by a local author, now living in Sidney,\nVancouver Island, who has travelled over much of this area himself.  His book The\nDangerous River\" was published in 1954, which, together with numerous articles in\nperiodicals, has served to establish Mr. Patterson as an authority on Northern British\nColumbia and the North West Territories.\nUntil comparatively recently the identity of the explorer of the\nFinlay River,  and of that part of the Cassiar country traversed by the\nRocky Mountain Expedition of 1824,  had faded from memory. ...    It was\ngenerally believed that the exploration of \"Finlay's Branch\" of the Peace\nRiver was carried out by a certain John Finlay who appears to have been a\nNorth Wester who built a post on the Peace in 1792 for Alexander Mackenzie\nand who actually did travel some distance up the Finlay in 1797 - perhaps\nas far as the Ingenika River. . . .\nIt seemed curious that the John Finlay who conducted the\nexploration of Finlay Branch in 1824 was a man without a past and,\napparently, with no future - at least as far as the Hudson's Bay Company\nrecords were concerned.    For the John Finlay of 1792 and 1797 would,  by\n1824, have been too old a man to undertake such an arduous journey into\nsuch difficult country; nor had anything been heard of him in the intervening\nyears, whereas the leadership of an important expedition would fall more\nnaturally to a man of the moment - a much younger man of proved drive\nand energy who would not vanish from recorded history the moment the\njourney was over.\nMr.  J.  N.  Wallace was the first to point this out and to restore\nto his proper place Samuel Black. . . .      Following up various leads,\nMr.  Wallace established beyond all doubt that Black had been the leader of\nthis Rocky Mountain Expedition. . . .\nA century and a quarter of exploration,  surveying and map\nmaking has gone by since Black set out,  and results have proved that the\nroute he actually followed was the only one which could permit,  in one\nseason,  of a visit to the source of the Finlay and of a reconnaissance into\nthe country to the north-westward. . . .\nThe term \"Lower Finlay\" may be applied to that part of the\nriver which lies between Finlay Forks,  where the Finlay and Parsnip meet\nto form the Peace River,  and the junction with the Fox River - the\n\"considerable forks\" which Black passed on June 1,   1824.    The outstanding\nfeature of this part of the river is that it flows in the Rocky Mountain\nTrench,  which runs almost to the Liard River in the north-west and down\n HISTORY OF THE FINLAY RIVER AREA 13.\ninto the State of Montana in the south-east.    About nine hundred miles of\nthis valley lie within the boundaries of British Columbia,  and in it lie the\ncourses of major rivers.    Geologists are not in agreement as to the origins\nof this great valley - nor does it seem possible to apply any one set of\ncauses to its whole length.    It is usually considered to be related to the\nTertiary uplift which produced the Rocky Mountains, \". . . .  but it seems\ncertain that there has been faulting along the line of the Trench,   regardless\nof the effect of the Rocky Mountain uplift or the possible localization\nmarginal to an old land mass; the nature of the faulting is unknown\".\nThe nerth-westerly three hundred miles of the Trench lie\npractically in a dead straight line - as straight as a feature of this magnitude\ncan ever be - and in this straight,  wide valley flows the Lower Finlay.    The\nvalley floor is flat and composed of alluvium washed out by the river from\nthe glacial gravels and sand of the benches.    The Finlay meanders at will\nin these alluvial deposits,  changing its course with every June high water,\ntearing down its banks and with them the forest,  only to drop the gravel and\nthe silt and the trees in the first favourable place, thus building up its\ntremendous driftpiles and,  below them, more land on which to grow more\ntrees:   in this way the Lower Finlay creates the problems with which Black's\nparty had to deal - islands; monstrous piles of dead trees with the river\ndriving into them; fast,  sliding water,  and dangerous bends where the river\nraces through dead forests of snags and sunken,  waterlogged trees.    The\ngeneral course of the river here is parallel with the north-west-south-east\nstrike of the Rockies:   there are no rock exposures and no rapids except at\nDeserters' Canyon where Deserters' Peak flings a barrier spur of\nconglomerate across the path of the river.\nAt the mouth of Fox River the valley which contains the main\nstream of the Finlay turns aside from the Trench which is, from this point\nto Sifton Pass,  occupied by the Fox or Tochieca:   the traveller passes\nround the foot of Prairie Mountain and then turns once more north-westward,\nin a course parallel with the great valley.    \"The current gradually increases\nand twelve miles above the mouth of the Tochieca its (the Finlay's)\nnavigation,  except at very low water,  is practically stopped by a long\ncanyon\".    The Finlay here is cutting its way through the Cassiar Mountains,\nor their south-easterly extension, and is consequently involved with their\ncomplex rock system which is the cause of the canyons and rapids which\nBlack,  and ninety years later,  F.   C.  Swannell,  dealt with so successfully.\nAnd,  so far as is known, no other parties have ever gone by water round\nthe Big Bend of the Finlay.\nThe Fishing Lakes occupy part of an old lake basin:   the\ncurrent here slackens and the shores are flat and muddy.    From the lakes\nonwards the river is a fast,  clear stream,  flowing over gravel bars and\nwith many islands until the rock outcrops again and the falls and rapids\n 1 4. HISTORY OF THE FINLAY RIVER AREA\nbelow Thutade Lake are reached.    That lake is the true source of the\nMackenzie:   from it to the Beaufort Sea the water must travel 2, 362 miles.\nThe lake is 3, 625 feet above sea level and so,  in order to reach it from the\nRocky Mountain Portage Establishment,  where the Peace River is at an\naltitude of 1, 567 feet,  Black's men had to raise their canoe,  by pole,   line\nand portage,   some 2, 058 feet up the hill of water that lay between.\nThe country which Black was ordered to explore was the very\nbackbone of what is now the Cassiar district of British Columbia - the\nremote upland in which the Stikine,  the Finlay and the southern headwaters\nof the Liard take their rise. . . .\nExcept for the advent of the aeroplane and the fact that the\nIndians of those parts now have horses,  the Finlay Stikine upland is as\nremote today as it was in Black's time.    No road comes near it and no\ntrading post has ever been established there.    The Skeena being\nimpracticable,  and the Stikine barred by its canyons and cascades,  which\nbegin a short distance above Telegraph Creek and through which even the\nsalmon cannot pass, the only remaining route by water for canoes and goods\nto reach Thutade Lake is by the Finlay.    And,  the Finlay being what it is,\none is surprised,  not that it never became an avenue of the fur trade,  but\nthat its passage was ever effected at all.\nHowever,  by various shifts and devices,  in cold weather and\nbattling the full weight of the Finlay floods, the Rocky Mountain Expedition\nof 1824 somehow made its way.    Only skilled and capable men could have\ndone it at this stage of water:   numbers here were a help,  and the fact that\nthe comparatively light birch-bark canoe could be portaged round some of\nthe major obstacles also made for success. . . .\nThe results of Black's exploration were mainly negative and\nare well summed up in the following letter from Governor Simpson to the\nGovernor and Committee:\n\"York Factory,  September 1,   1825\n\". . . .  Rocky Mountain Expedition.    This Expedition under the command of\nMr.   Chief Trader Black,  assisted by Mr.  Manson,   Clerk and consisting of\nEight in all took its departure from Peace River on the 13th of May, having\nfor its object the exploring of the Rocky Mountains from the head of\nFinlays branch in a Northerly direction to,the Frozen Ocean.    In ascending\nFinlays branch the hardships of the Voyage disheartened two of the people,\nwho deserted; the loss of their support and assistance as also of the\nProvisions and other articles they took away with them excited much\nuneasiness,  rendered the labour great to those who remained,   subjected\nthe party to much inconvenience and tended to discourage their associates;\nthey however pursued their course as near as possible through perhaps as\n HISTORY OF THE FINLAY RIVER AREA 15.\nrugged a country as ever was passed until the 17th of August when they\nsupposed themselves in the Latitude of Fort Nelson,  Riviere au Liard when\nthe Season was too far advanced to risk the loss of time in searching for\nthat Establishment; and the country was so bare of the means of subsistance\nthat they could not proceed nor attempt to pass the Winter where they were;\nas starvation would have been the consequence of adopting either of those\nmeasures,  in short they had no alternative but to retrace their steps to\nPeace River where they arrived on the 29th September having made no\ndiscovery of importance.    Mr.  Black represents the country through which\nhe passed as Wild and barren in the extreme affording the means of living\nneither to man nor beast:   he saw very few Indians who barely existed on\nFish & Siffler.    There are a few Beaver but occupying such inaccessible\nplaces Embarras in piles of Drift wood that it is very difficult to work them\nand they are not sufficiently numerous to defray the Expenses of an\nEstablishment if it was even found possible to maintain one. \"   ....\nLater exploration has only confirmed the difficulties which\nBlack overcame.    Except for the Hudson's Bay Company's posts of Fort\nGrahame,  fourteen miles below the Ingenika,  and Fort Ware* between the\nKwadacha and Fox Rivers,  both on the east bank,  and for the post of one\nindependent trader at Finlay Forks,  the Finlay is today much as it was\nwhen Black saw it.    It has remained little known and difficult of access and,\nso far,  practically untouched by development.    An attempt was made to\nopen up a mica mine a short distance above Fort Grahame and there was\nsome dredging for gold on the Ingenika,  but both these prospects were\nforced to close down.    On the Upper Finlay there has been some gold mining\nactivity but this is now also at a standstill.    The few traplines owned by\nwhite men on the Finlay appear to be passing into the hands of the Sekani -\nand even they are finding it hard to make a living from them owing to the\nlow prices now prevailing for fur.\nThe history of exploration in this area is simple and brief.    In\n1862 the Cornish prospector,   Pete Toy,   struck a rich gold placer deposit\nat the head of Pete Toy's Bar at the present post of Finlay Forks.    This bar\nhas been worked for gold at intervals up to the present day:   the gold\nprobably came from the Omineca,  for in no other bar on the Finlay has\nanything but fine gold been found.\nIn the spring of 1873 Captain W.  F.  Butler came up the Peace\nand into the great valley.    He turned up the \"Findlay\",  as he calls it,  and\nthen up the Omineca,  meeting with Pete Toy at the Black Canyon on that\nriver.    He has left an excellent account of his wanderings in that classic of\nwilderness travel  The Wild North Land.\nFort Grahame was closed on May 31, 1949, and Fort Ware on May 31,\nBay Company, Fur Trade Department, Winnipeg.)\n 16. HISTORY OF THE FINLAY RIVER AREA\nIn 1891 a British Columbia government party got up the Finlay\nas far as Fort Grahame.    Then,  in 1893,  came R.G.  McConnell of the\nGeological Survey of Canada,  an experienced northern traveller and\nexplorer.    He ascended the Finlay as far as the Fishing Lakes,   caching his\ncanoes at the foot of the Long Canyon and travelling on from there on foot\nround the Big Bend. . . .\nThen came the discovery of gold on the Klondike River,  Yukon\nTerritory,  in 1896.    Various parties proceeded by various means of travel\nup the Finlay, headed either for the uplands of the Cassiar and from there\nnorth-westward,  or following the Rocky Mountain Trench towards the Yukon.\nIt was decided to cut and blaze a trail,  later known as the Police Trail,\nfrom Fort St.  John,  via Fort Grahame,  to the Klondike and the job was\nentrusted to the North West Mounted Police.    Accordingly,  on September 4,\n1897,  Inspector J.  D.  Moodie and his party left Edmonton.    They soon lost\ntheir guide - or he lost them - and they vanished from human ken at Fort\nSt. John.\nOn October 24,   1898, they reached Fort Selkirk,   Yukon\nTerritory,  at the confluence of the Lewes and the Pelly Rivers,  after\nenduring much hardship and privation.    Winter was on them already and\ntheir canoes were subsequently lost between Selkirk and Dawson:   they\nfinally reached the Klondike in zero weather after being thirteen months on\nthe way - and the sub-arctic forest soon effaced their trail.\nSome years passed by and it was decided to renew the attempt:\non March 17,   1905, Superintendent C.   Constantine,  Inspector J.  Richards,\n6 noncommissioned officers,  22 constables,  2 special constables and 60\nhorses left Fort Saskatchewan.    The plan was to cut 750 miles from Fort\nSt.  John to Teslin Lake,  following Moodie's old trail.    The new trail was to\nbe well blazed and the creeks bridged; rest cabins were to be built.\nThe year 1905 saw 94 miles completed.    In 1906,   134 miles\nwere added and the party reached a point 20 miles west of Fort Grahame;\nthey had arrived at the Fort just in time to save the Hudson's Bay Company\nmanager there from attack by the local Sekani.\nIn 1907 the British Columbia Government refused to take a\nshare in the costs and work was discontinued at Mile 357.\nThere is only one other recorded or known passage of the\nBig Bend of the Finlay up and down by canoe - that made by Mr.   F.   C.\nSwannell of the British Columbia Land Survey and three men in 1914.\nMr.  Swannell and his party used a dug-out Cottonwood canoe which they made\nat Fort Grahame:   in the high water,  and where there was no poling bottom,\nthey hauled themselves up by means of overhanging willow branches,  and to\n HISTORY OF THE FINLAY RIVER AREA 17.\nnegotiate driftpiles they stationed a man in the bow with a long pole that had\na hook bound into the end of it; by this means they were able to reach\nforward and hook on to some projecting log ahead of them and pull - an aid\nto navigation that Black does not mention.    Mr. Swannell1 s report is the\nmost modern description of the Finlay River.\nP.  L.  Haworth came in 1916,  by canoe with Joe Lavoie,  a\nwell-known riverman,  as guide.    They made their way,  on foot,   some\ndistance up the Kwadacha and got a sight of the glaciers there.    Then they\ntravelled by canoe and on foot part way through the Long Canyon and into\nthe neighbouring mountains to the north.    Haworth Lake at the head of the\nKwadacha   commemorates    this venture,  and Haworth has left a useful and\ninformative non-technical record of his journey.\nIn 1931,  Mr.  F.   C.  Swannell made a survey of the big lakes\nat the head of the Finlay - Thutade,  Tatlatui and Kitchener Lakes - and\ncarried his examination of the river as far down as his furthest point of\n1914.\nVarious other surveys have now been made in the district -\nespecially during the Second German War when the Rocky Mountain Trench\nwas under consideration as a possible route,  firstly for the Alaska Highway\nand then for a railroad to the Yukon Territory and to Alaska.    These\nactivities have left little mark on the country and it is still today what it\nhas always been - an untouched wilderness.\n(R. M. Patterson, in an introduction to nBlack*s Rocky Mountain Journal, 1824\" published\nby the Hudson's Bay Record Society, London, 1955)\n 18. EARLY GOLD DISCOVERIES IN THE AREA\nH.  H.   BANCROFT\nProbably the most detailed account of early gold mines in the Peace River\nand Omineca areas Is to be found in Chapter XXVIII of Bancrofts \"History of British\nColumbia\", published in 1887.\nThe first discoveries north of Fraser River basin were made\nduring the summer of 1861 on Peace River, between the source and the\npassage through the Rocky Mountains.    Two miners named Edward Carey\nand W.   Cust left Quesnelmouth in the spring,   simultaneously with the\nmovement upon Cariboo,  and proceeded by way of Fort George to Fort St.\nJames, thence following the Hudson's Bay Company's trail over the\nportage to McLeod Fort.    During the high water of June they descended\nPeace, .River for two hundred miles,  passing through the canyon.    Returning\nat low water,  they prospected all the bars and brought with them to McLeod\none thousand dollars indust, the result of a few days' washing at one point.\nThe largest day's work performed yielded $75 each.    After wintering at\nQuesnelmouth they repeated their journey in 1862,  accompanied by Peter\nToy,  Joseph Oates,  and Ezra Evans, and obtained from fifty days' washing\neach $1, 200.    Nearly all the bars yielded from ten t\u00ae fifteen dollars a day\nto the man, those on Finlay River for twenty miles from its mouth being\nthe best.    Five others followed them to Peace River the same season four\nof whom working together took out in twelve days nearly $1, 000.    The gold\nwas described as scaly surface gold,  somewhat heavier than that of the\nFraser River bars.    la January 1863,  Bell,  Gold-smith,  and three others\nleft Victoria for Peace River and obtained half an ounce a day to the man on\nalmost every bar down to the Junction of the Finlay River.    No excitement\nappears to have resulted from these discoveries,  owing chiefly,  no doubt,\nto the developments in the Cariboo country, which overshadowed everything\nelse for the time.    Influenced by discoveries on the main or southern branch\nof Peace River,  a party of Cariboo miners reached Fort St. James in 1864,\nand taking a different route,  followed the canoes of the Hudson's Bay\nCompany north, through Stewart and Tatla lakes, to a point opposite the\nhead-waters of the Omineca tributary; thence striking over the Peak or\nBlue Mountains, they entered the Peace River basin and mined till the\nfollowing year,  returning home with four or five thousand dollars.    One of\nthe men,  Micheal Foy,  remained behind and mined successfully for five\nyears,  remitting several thousand dollars to his daughter.*\nMeanwhile fur-tra4ers continued to report rich diggings in this region, and Davis and\nJohns, who in 1866 and 1867 traded through the country for furs on their own account,\nbrought with them to Victoria a considerable quantity of gold-dust which they had\nobtained. Victoria Weeltly Colonist, Feb. 23, 1870.\n EARLY GOLD DISCOVERIES IN THE AREA 19.\nIn 1871 the Omineca excitement attained its height.    By the\nmiddle of June,  it was reported that eight hundred animals had crossed the\nFraser River at Quesnel,  mostly with provisions,  and that nine hundred\nmen had arrived at the diggings, by the Fraser and Skeena routes.\nOperations were actively prosecuted,   and creek after creek along the\nOmineca achieved more or less notoriety for a time,  as Arctic,   Quartz,\nManson,  Slate,  Skeleton,   Lost,  and various others,  particularly Germansen,\nwhich now became the leading creek in the district.    It was named for  James\nGermansen,  who discovered the first gold on the creek in July 18,   1870.\nGood shallow diggings were found for three miles,  usually within four feet\nof the bedrock,  yielding twenty-five cents prospect to the pan in clean\ncourse gold lying on a layer of sand two feet beneath the gravel in the bed\nof the creek.    Cust reports that everybody on the creek was making from\n$10 to three ounces a day and by October $70, 000 had been taken out.\nLumps of silver were also found, the largest weighing $300,  and the\ncountry around was seamed with quartz.    Germansen Creek,  in fact,\nsurprised many by its superiority over the other streams.\nAt the junction of the creek with Omineca River rose a settlement spoken of as Germansen Creek town or as Omineca,  which during the\nwinter contained eighteen inhabitants, but by the summer of 1871 counted\ntwenty substantial wooden houses comparing favourably with those at\nBarkerville.    It was,like this town, the centre of trade for the district,\nsupplied partly by the Skeena River route, by way of Babine and Tatla\nlakes, but chiefly from Quesnelmouth through Fort St.  James, whence a\ntrail led direct to Germansen Creek,   skirting Nation Lake.    Competition\nbeing great, freight from Yale was only eighteen cents in 1875 and flour had\nbeen sold as low as twenty cents a pound.\nLife alone differed from Cariboo in being more isolated and\nremote.    Those who remained over winter were entirely cut off from the\nrest of the world,  since the season in temperature if not in duration\napproached the arctic in character.    The rampant life of the flush period\nin Cariboo and California found less congenial soil for germination in\nOmineca,  and although saloons and cards flourished, the hurdy-gurdies\nnever penetrated thither.   In 1871 most of the miners in the district\nconcentrated on the creek, and some good yields were reported.    Three men\nnear the mouth took out ten ounces a day to the man,  and Kelly's party,\nworking six miles above the Discovery claim in the bed of the creek,\nobtained one hundred dollars a day.    But the majority made little or nothing,\neither because the rich deposits were in patches which had fallen to the few,\nand were now nearly worked out,  or because the lead could not be followed.\nWhen in the course of the summer rich discoveries were reported on\nManson River,  fifteen miles farther down Omineca River,  a general\nstampede ensued.    Germansen Creek resumed,  nevertheless,  its position\nas the centre of the district upon the collapse of the rival excitement.\n 20. EARLY GOLD DISCOVERIES IN THE AREA\nHydraulic mining was applied to the thirteen claims in operation,  in 1875,\nhalf of the whole constituted number worked in Omineca.    Several of these\npaid fairly with the aid of wing-dams and bench-sluices, the best yielding\n$6,200 for the season,  but others suffered not only from exhaustion,  but\nfrom floods,  and then from a want of sluice water,  and were abandoned.\nManson Creek diggings,  fifteen miles east,  and running\nparallel to Germansen,  were discovered in July 1871 by R,  Howell,\nformerly of the Royal Engineers,  and yielded about twenty dollars a day,\nincluding nuggets,  some of them eighty and one hundred dollars.    Two\nhundred miners were engaged on the creek during the season, working the\nsurface of the creek-bed,  or sluicing of the hill and bench ground; but there\nwas also a deep channel like that on William Creek,  wherein two companies\nsank shafts to the bed-rock with profitable results.    On the north bank of\nthe creek,  near the mouth of Slate Creek, thirty lots were laid out by\nCommissioner O'Reilly as the nucleus of a town,  and several substantial\nhouses were erected by traders and others.    The creek proved patchy,  yet\nmanaged for some time to retain the second rank in the district as a gold-\nproducer.    In 1875 nine companies were working it,  four of which were\nlocated on the Slate tributary,  but the following season only two remained.\nFair prospects were found on the bars of Omineca and Finlay\nrivers near their confluence,  and the latter stream was in 1870 prospected\nby a party a hundred miles from its mouth,  revealing promising bar\ndiggings as far as they went,  some yielding seventy-five cents to the pan.\nAt the head-waters of Nation River from thirty to fifty miles south-east of\nthe central Omineca diggings lay a cluster of auriferous creeks, which had\nbeen visited at one time by Peace River miners,  and were supposed to be\nrich, but no developments worthy of note appear to have been made.\nParsnip River, further down,  and Peace River itself west and east of the\nRocky Mountains, were found to contain gold placers, though unremunerative\nso far as their accessible deposits were explored.\n(Hubert Howe Bancroft, \"History of British Columbia, 1792 - 1887\", San Francisco, 1887.)\n PART\nII\nEYE-WITNESS\nACCOUNTS\n  DISCOVERY OF THE CANYON 23.\nSIR ALEXANDER MACKENZIE\nTo Sir Alexander Mackenzie, a partner of the North West Company, goes the\nhonour of being the first white man to enter the Rocky Mountain Canyon. He and his\nvoyageurs passed this way in May, 1793, on their epic journey to the Pacific, the first\ncrossing of the continent north of Mexico.  Although he had been told of the Indian\nportage, Mackenzie refused at first to leave his canoe and attempted to continue up the\nCanyon, but was soon forced to take the overland route.\nMonday,   20 May,   1793   -   We now continue our toilsome and\nperilous progress with the line West by North,  and as we proceeded the\nrapidity of the current increased,   so that in the distance of two miles we\nwere obliged to unload four times,  and carry everything but the canoe;\nindeed,  in many places,  it was with the utmost difficulty that we could\nprevent her from being dashed to pieces against the rocks by the violence\nof the eddies.    At five we had proceeded to where the river was one\ncontinued rapid.    Here we again took everything out of the canoe,  in order\nto tow her up with the line, though the rocks were so shelving as greatly to\nincrease the toil and hazard of that operation.    At length, however, the\nagitation of the water was so great, that a wave striking on the bow of the\ncanoe broke the line,  and filled us with inexpressible dismay,  as it\nappeared impossible that the vessel could escape from being dashed to\npieces,  and those who were in her from perishing.    Another wave,  however,\nmore propitious than the former,  drove her out of the tumbling water,  so\nthat men were enabled to bring her ashore,  and though she had been\ncarried over rocks by these swells which left them naked a moment after,\nthe canoe had received no material injury.    The men were, however,  in\nsuch a state from their late alarm that it would not only have been\nunavailing but imprudent to have proposed any further progress at present,\nparticularly as the river above us, as far as we could see, was one white\nsheet of foaming water.\nThat the discouragements,  difficulties and dangers, which\nhad hitherto attended the progress of our enterprize should have excited a\nwish in several of those who were engaged in it to discontinue the pursuit,\nmight be naturally expected and indeed it began to be muttered on all sides\nthat there was no alternative but to return.\nInstead of paying any attention to these murmurs,  I desired\nthose who had uttered them to exert themselves in gaining an ascent of the\nhill,  and encamp there for the night.    In the meantime I set off with one of\nthe Indians,  and though I continued my examination of the river almost as\nlong as there was any light to assist me,  I could see no end of the rapids\nand cascades:   I was, therefore, perfectly satisfied, that it would be\nimpracticable to proceed any further by water.    We returned from this\nreconnoite ring excursion very much fatigued, with our shoes worn out and\n 24. DISCOVERY OF THE CANYON\nwounded feet; when I found that, by felling trees on the declivity of the first\nhill,  my people had contrived to ascend it.\nFrom the place where I had taken the altitude at noon, to the\nplace where we made our landing, the river is not more than fifty yards\nwide, and flows between stupendous rocks, from whence huge fragments\nsometimes tumble down,  and falling from such a height,  dash into small\nstones,  with sharp rocky projections.    Along the face of some of these\nprecipices, there appears a stratum of a bituminous substance which\nresembles coal; though while some of the pieces of it appeared to be\nexcellent fuel,  others resisted,  for a considerable time, the action of fire,\nand did not emit the least flame.    The whole of this day's course would have\nbeen altogether impracticable,  if the water had been higher,  which must be\nthe case at certain seasons.    We saw also,   several encampments of the\nKnisteneaux along the river,  which must have been formed by them on their\nwar excursions:   a dec idled proof of the savage bloodthirsty disposition of\nthat people; as nothing less than such a spirit could impel them to encounter\nthe difficulties of this almost inacessible country,  whose natives are\nequally unoffending and defenceless.\nMr.  Mackay informed me, that in passing over the mountains,\nhe observed several chasms in the earth that emitted heat and smoke,\nwhich diffused a strong  sulphurous   stench.    I should certainly have visited\nthis phenomenon,  if I had been sufficiently qualified as a naturalist, to have\noffered scientific conjectures or observations thereon.\nTuesday,  21 May,  1793   -   It rained in the morning,  and did\nnot cease till about eight,  and as the men had been very fatigued and\ndisheartened,  I suffered them to continue their rest till that hour.    Such\nwas the state of the river,  as I have already observed, that no alternative\nwas left us; nor did any means of proceeding present themselves to us, but\nthe passage of the mountain over which we were to carry the canoe as well\nas the baggage. . . .\nWednesday,  22 May,   1793   -    At break of day we entered on\nthe extraordinary journey which was to occupy the remaining part of it.    The\nmen began, without delay, to cut a road up the mountain,  and as the trees\nwere but of small growth,  I ordered them to fell those which they found\nconvenient,  in such a manner, that they might fall parallel with the road,\nbut,  at the same time,  not separate them entirely from the stumps,  so that\nthey might form a kind of railing on either side.    The baggage was now\nbrought from the waterside to our encampment.    This was likewise from the\nsteep shelving of the rocks,  a very perilous undertaking,  as one false step\nof any of the people employed in it,  would have been instantly followed by\nfalling headlong into the water.    When this important object was attained,\nthe whole of the party proceeded with no small degree of apprehension, to\n DISCOVERY OF THE CANYON 25.\nfetch the canoe,  which,  in a short time,  was also brought to the encampment; and as soon as we had recovered from our fatigue, we advanced with\nit up the mountain,  having the line doubled and fastened successively as we\nwent on to the stumps; while a man at the end of it, hauled it round a tree,\nholding it on and shifting it as we proceeded; so that we may be said,  with\nstrict truth, to have warped the canoe up the mountain:   indeed by a general\nand most laborious exertion, we got everything to the summit by two in the\nafternoon. . . .\nThursday,  23 May,   1793   -   The weather was clear at four\nthis morning, when the men began to carry.    I joined Mr.  Mackay,  and the\ntwo Indians in the labour of cutting a road.    The ground continued rising\ngently till noon,  when it began to decline; but though on such an elevated\nsituation,  we could see but little,  as mountains of a still higher elevation\nand covered with snow,  were seen far above us in every direction.    In the\nafternoon the ground became very uneven; hills and deep defiles alternately\npresented themselves to us.    Our progress, however,  exceed my\nexpectation,  and it was not till \u00a3\u00aeux in the afternoon that the carriers overtook us.    At five, in a state of fatigue that may be more readily conceived\nthan expressed, we encamped near a rivulet or spring that issued from\nbeneath a large mass of ice and snow.    Our toilsome journey of this day I\ncompute at about three miles; along the first of which the land is covered\nwith plenty of wood,  consisting of large trees,  encumbered with little\nunderwood, through which it was by no means difficult to open a road,  by\nfollowing a well-be a ten elk path:   for the two succeeding miles we found the\ncountry overspread with the trunks of trees,  laid low by fire some years\nago; among which large copses had sprung up a close growth,  and intermixed\nwith briars,  so as to render the passage through them painful and tedious.\nThe soil in the woods is light and of a dusky colour; that in the burned\ncountry is a mixture of sand and clay with small stones. . . .\nFriday,  24 May,   1793   -   We continued our very laborious\njourney, which led us down some steep hills,  and through a wood of tall\npines,  after much toil and trouble in bearing the canoe through the difficult\npassages which we encountered, at four in the afternoon we arrived at the\nriver,  some hundred yards above the rapids or falls, with all our baggage.\nI compute the distance of this day's progress to be about four miles;\nindeed I should have measured the whole of the way,  if I had not been\nobliged to engage personally in the labour of making the road.    But after\nall, the Indian carrying way, whatever may be its length,  and I think it\ncannot exceed ten miles,  will always be found more safe and expeditious\nthan the passage which our toil and perseverance formed and surmounted.\nThose of my people who visited this place on the 21st, were\nof opinion that the water had risen very much since that time. About two\nhundred yards below us the stream rushed with an astonishing but silent\n 26. DISCOVERY OF THE CANYON\nvelocity,  between perpendicular rocks,  which are not more than thirty-five\nyards asunder:   when the water is high,  it runs over those rocks, in a\nchannel three times that breadth, where it is bounded by far more elevated\nprecipices.    In the former are deep round holes,  some of which are full of\nwater,  while others are empty,  in whose bottom are small round stones,\nas smooth as marble.    Some of these natural cylinders would contain two\nhundred gallons.    At a small distance below the first of these rocks, the\nchannel widens in a kind of a zig-zag progression; and it was really awful\nto behold with what infinite force the water drives against the rocks on one\nside,  and with what impetuous strength it is repelled to the other:   it then\nfalls back,  as it were,  into a more strait but rugged passage,  over which\nit is tossed in high foaming, half-formed billows,  as far as the eye could\nfollow it.\n(Sir Alexander Mackenzie, \"Voyages Prom Montreal on the River St. Lawrence through the\nContinent of North America to the Frozen and Pacific Oceans in the Years 1789 and 179!\"\nLondon, 1801. Several reprint editions.) nd 1793\n FROM THE PORTAGE TO FINLAY FORKS IN 1806 27.\nSIMON FRASER\nSimon Fraser, who shares with Sir Alexander Mackenzie, the major\nachievements of exploration in this region, crossed the Rockies first In 1805 and founded\nFort McLeod. He wintered at another new establishment, Rocky Mountain Portage House,\nnear present-day Hudson Hope and in May, 1806, set out again for New Caledonia and\neventually, in 1808, accomplished the descent of the great river which bears his name and\nwhich he thought at first was the Columbia.  The following extract describes his journey\nfrom the lower end of the Peace River Canyon up the River to Finlay Forks and so to the\nParsnip.\nTuesday,  20th May,   1806   -   Early in the morning took an\naccount of all the property remaining at this place (Rocky Mountain Portage\nHouse) and closed the transactions of the year,   and after I had finished\nwriting my public and private letters we settled the canoe to be off with\nfive men.    Mr.  Stuart and I crossed the River with them after which they\ndeparted at 3 p.m.    Previous to our departure all the people that go above\nwith us crossed the River with the large canoe previous to its being\nloaded. ...    It was ten o'clock at night when we got to the upper end of the\nPortage, the road is amazing bad and the Portage is at least 14 or 15 miles\nlong.\nWednesday,   21st May   -    Fine weather.    Wakened all hands\nearly to prepare the canoes and everything else to be off in the afternoon.\nBut on account of one of the canoes from Trout Lake being small and our\nhaving a quantity of fresh meat over,   enough to conduct us to Finlay1 s\nbranch,  we could not embark all on board the two canoes without being too\nheavily loaded, therefore set La Malice and two others to arrange another\ncanoe that remained here since last summer.    La Malice appears to slur\nit so that he will set off from here with three men and canoe.    About sunset\nMr.  Stuart and I took our departure with the two canoes,  and encamped at\nthe first point.    La Malice will follow tomorrow as soon as the canoe will\nbe arranged.    Mr.  Stuart's canoe took a great deal of water and is so rude\nand ill-made that they were every moment in danger of over setting it,  for\nwhich reason we will be obliged to pass a couple of days at this place to\narrange it.    It is the worst made that ever I saw,  and is more like a trough\nthan a canoe,  and I am surprised how Mr.  McDougall who was present\nwould allow such a one to be made.    It would be more easy to make a new\none than to arrange it.    Mr.  Stuart takes the courses and charts of the\nRiver.\nFriday,  23rd May   -    Fine warm weather.    We were obliged\nto gum both canoes this morning before we set off, having arrived too late\nlast night to perform that operation.    A strong head wind all day. . . .\nLittle Gervais who steers Mr.  Stuart's canoe is not able to keep it straight.\nIndeed the want of a steerman will greatly retard our progress up this\nstrong current.    The water was rather low when we left the Portage but is\n 28. FROM THE PORTAGE TO FINLAY FORKS IN 1806\nnow rising faster, however though we seldom make use of the paddles the\nbottom being good,   it is good going by the pole. . . .\nSunday,  25th May   -   Set off early,  and soon after came to the\nfoot of the strongest Rapid we saw yet.    The canoes were towed up with the\nline,  but one of them struck upon a stem which broke a small hole in the\nbottom,  and it took us near an hour to repair it.    Afterwards we gummed\nthe three canoes, which operation took upwards of two hours. . . .\nMonday,  26th May   -    .... At one of my encampments of last\nFall I was surprised to find upwards of a foot of snow in the place of my\nTent.    The mountains are all covered with snow,  but it is chiefly dissolved\nnear the banks of the River,  and it is not a little curious of this late period\nof the season to see snow drifting on the top of the mountains which are of\nno great height,  while we are scorching with heat on the banks of the River.\nWe encamped about sunset and gummed all the canoes. . . .\nTuesday,  27th May   -   Fine warm weather, the water rises\nvery fast.    Indeed it has risen upwards of three feet since we left the\nPortage. . . .     We came to and encamped at the last Rapid which is about\n2 miles below the Forks on Finlay1 s branch.    La Malice,  who was before\nus,  attempted to ascend this Rapid with the pole,  but Mr.  Stuart who was\nnearest to him called to him to desist,  and I gave him a set down for risking\nthe property so much where it was unnecessary.    It was really difficult to\ncome up this Rapid and we were obliged to take out the load and carry it\nover a rocky point of 400 yards,  and the canoes were taken up light.    Had\nthe water been lower we could have gone up easily loaded. . . .\nWednesday,  28th May   -   Still fine weather.    It was 9 o'clock\nbefore the canoes could be prepared to be off.    Pouce Coupe1 s comrade\ncame to us with a couple of Indians that never saw white people before.\nThey are exceedingly well clothed in leather and though they never were at\nthe Fort, they have guns which they got from their relations. . . .    They\ngave us some information about their lands.    There is an immense number\nof beaver all along Finlay's branch. . . .    They seem to be well acquainted\nwith the Carriers with whom they live in amity and from whom I imagine\nthey got the most part of their Iron works and ornaments.    They desired us\nto be on our guard and beware of the At-Tan which is the name they give\nthe Atnah tribe whom they represent as more treacherous than really\nwicked,  and would likely if not aware shoot their arrows at us. . . .    We\ntraded with the Indians that came with Pouce Coupe's comrade,  and made\nthem a present of 10 balls and a little powder.    We informed them of there\nbeing a Fort established at Trout Lake (Fort McLeod) to which place they\npromised to go in the course of the summer,  it being nearer their lands\nand was more out of reach of their enemies, the Beaver Indians, than the\nPortage.    We left the main branch on the west and entered the other on the\n FROM THE PORTAGE TO FINLAY FORKS IN 1806 29.\neast at 11 a.m.    .... The current was so very strong that it was with much\ndifficulty we could advance.    No use can be made of the poles on account of\nthe depth of the water excepting sometimes against the banks and drift\nwood.    The current runs with such velocity that it cannot be stemmed with\nthree paddles and not easily with four, for we often help them ourselves.\nThe banks are so thickly interwoven with trees and shrubs that it is seldom\nthey can be approached,  so that there is no method left except that of going\nup by pulling the branches,  and the canoes are in continual danger of being\nbroken to pieces by the drift wood. . . .    The men are very much fatigued\nand some of them are very near given up.\n(Simon Fraser, \"First Journal* from 12th April to 18th July, 1806, published in the 1929\nReport of the Public Archives, Canada, Ottawa, 1930)\nNOTE: *2he Journal of Simon Frasernt  edited by Willard Ireland, is being prepared for\npublication by the MacMillan Company of Canada Limited, Toronto.\n n\n30. A FUR TRADER'S JOURNAL,   1810 - 1813\nD.  W.  HARMON\nOne of the most famous journals of the Canadian fur trade was written In\nthe years 1800 to 1819 by Daniel Williams Harmon while in the service of the North West\nCompany. He spent two years (1808-1810) at Dunvegan on the Peace River, and then nine\nyears in New Caledonia. For most of this period, he was stationed at Fort St. James\n(Stuart Lake) and Fort Fraser (Fraser Lake).\nOctober 17,   1810   -   Northwest end of Rocky Mountain\nPortage.    In the morning Messrs.  Stuart,  McLeod & Myself &c.  left the\nFort (which is at the other end of the Portage) to come here where we find\nsome of the People repairing four old crazy Canoes,  in which no one would\nwillingly embark who values his life much - but the others are still employed\nin bringing over the Goods.    Here we begin to see lofty Mountains at a\ndistance.    The men carrying goods across the portage were assisted. . . .\nby some of the Natives,  who are Sicannies.    They have just returned from\nthe other side of the Rocky Mountain,  where they go to pass the summer\nmonths.    During the winter season, they remain on this side of the\nMountain,  where they find buffaloes,  moose and deer.    On the other side,\nnone of these animals,  excepting a few straggling ones,  are to be found.\nThe Sicannies are a quiet,  inoffensive people,  whose situation\nexposes them to peculiar difficulties and distresses.    When they proceed to\nthe west side of the mountain, the Natives of that region, who are Tacullies\nand Atenas,  attack and kill many of them; and when they are on this side,\nthe Beaver Indians and Crees,  are continually making war upon them.\nBeing thus surrounded by enemies,  against whom they are too feeble\nsuccessfully to contend, they frequently suffer much from want of food; for\nwhen on the west side, they dare not,  at all times,  visit those places  where\nfish are in plenty,  and when on the east side, they are frequently afraid to\nvisit those parts,  where animals abound.    They are compelled,  therefore,\noftentimes to subsist upon the roots,  which they find in the mountains,  and\nwhich barely enable them to sustain life; and their emaciated bodies\nfrequently bear witness, to the scantiness of their fare. . . .\nOctober 22,   1810   -   Snowed & Rained by turns all Day.    Over\ntake a band of Indians,  who a few Days since left the Fort to go and hunt\nthe Beaver on the side of the Mountain.    They call themselves Sicannies\nbut it is supposed that formerly they belonged and were a part of the Beaver\nIndian Tribe  - who on some quarrel separated themselves from their\nCountrymen by leaving their lands to come higher up the River & who are\nnow as I am informed a pretty numerous Clan or Tribe.    We now find\nourselves in the heart of the Rocky Mountain,  whose summits on either\nside of the River appear nearly to reach the Sky,  and are by far the most\nlofty Mountains that I have ever     seen in this or any other Country.\n A FUR TRADER'S JOURNAL,   1810-1813 31.\nOctober 24,   1810   -   Although the Current has been\nuncommonly strong ever since we left the Rocky Mountain Portage,  yet\nuntil to Day we have met with no place where we were under the necessity\nof unloading our Canoes in order to stem the Current.    This afternoon we\npast Finlay's (River) or the North Branch,  which appears to be about the\nsame magnitude as the one we follow.    Those two Rivers (which unite at\nFinlay Forks to form the Peace River) as I am informed take their rises in\nquite different directions from this. . . .\nNovember 1,   1810   -   McLeods Lake and where we find\nMr.  J.  M.  Quesnel and Dallaire - the latter past the summer here but the\nformer has just arrived from Stuart's Lake.    After leaving the Rocky\nMountain Portage we have not seen a Plain or any place where the Country\nwas not covered with thick Timber, but since we left Finlay1 s Branch the\nCountry on the west side appears to lie low and level.    In coming here we\nalways followed Peace River (meaning the Peace River proper and then its\nsouth branch, the Parsnip River) until within about fifteen Miles of this\nwhen we left that to come up a small River (the Pack River) which is not\nmore than five or Six Rods abroad,  which runs through a small Lake\n(Tudyah Lake) a little below this.    The Indians who frequent this Establishment are also Sicannies,  and belong to the same Tribe as those who take\ntheir Hunts to the Rocky Mountain Portage.    Their dialect differs little\nfrom that spoken by the Beaver Indians - but they appear to be a wretched\nstarving People,  and as I am told are often drove to the necessity of living\nupon Roots,  as there are few large Animals in this part of the Country, and\nthe depth mi Snow is too great in the Winter (for they generally have from\nfour to Six feet) for them to kill many Beaver in that Season,  neither can\nthey at that time of the year take many Fish.    Yet they would not willingly\nleave this part of the Country to go anywhere else - which is natural,  for\nalmost every person is partial to the part of the World that gave him birth,\neven allowing it to be ever so difficult to procure a livelyhood there. , . .\nFebruary 21,  1813   -   Rocky Mountain Portage, where we\narrived this afternoon.    As the Mountains along the River on both sides are\nvery high for about three Days march there generally is a strong wind\npassing either up or down the current,  and at this Season renders it\nextreme cold and disagreeable travelling and on the 18th we were in the\nheart of those Mountains and had such a strong head wind that my upper lip\nbecame frozen even without my perceiving it at the time,  but it is now\nmuch swollen and very painful, that together with a severe cold I caught\n(as well as all those who are with me) the second night after leaving Stuarts\nLake renders me almost incapable of speaking loud enough to make myself\nunderstood.    Here we find only two Canadians, as Mr.  A. R.  McLeod who\nhas the superintendence of this Post is now absent to his Hunters Lodge,\nwhich is at a distance of fivp Days march from this,  as there are few or no\nAnimals hereabouts, which is owing as I imagine to the great depth of Snow\n 32. A FUR TRADER'S JOURNAL,   1810-1813\nthat always falls in this quarter it being so nigh the Mountains.    The people\nwho are here told us that last fall their Hunters had such difficulty in\nfinding Animals of any kind that they actually went five days without eating. . ,\nFebruary 25,   1813   -   St.  Johns (Fort St.  John),  having left\nthe Rocky Mountain Portage on the 22nd we reached this yesterday where\nwe found Mr,  A.  McGillivray &c.  who informs me that they do not want for\nthe Staff of life as Moose,  Deer & Buffaloe are tolerably plentiful hereabouts\nMy frozen lip and cold now trouble me more than when I left the Rocky\nMountain Portage and was it not absolutely necessary that I should proceed\nfarther down the River,  I most assuredly should not leave my Bed. . . .\n\u00a3il\u00a32 H^nn^:^!!^^ jjjft lDdlan \u00b00Untry' The JOUr\"al of D\u00bb^\n DISCOVERY OF DESERTERS' CANYON 33.\nSAMUEL BLACK\nChief Factor Samuel Black, on behalf of the Hudson's Bay Company, in\n1824 made the first real exploration of the Finlay (see extract headed \"History of the\nFinlay River Area\" by R.M. Patterson). Black's Journal describing the expedition ranks\namong the best writings produced by the fur traders.  The origin of the name '\"Deserters'\nCanyon\" is described below.\nMay the 26th,   1824   -    Left our Encampment as the Sun\nappeared,  the River Continual strong Current,  drift Wood points & Islands,\ngravelly Banks &c did not make more than 5-6 Miles straight before\nBreakfast.    We have been almost always at the Pole & some times the\nassistance of the Line & as much as we can all do to get on,   saw some\nBroken towering Mountains in the Ridges confining the Valley of this River\non which are sheep; the Mountains in general bordering the River are huge long\n& rounded backed detached Mountains often covered with Wood,  but\nthrough the Glens & over their Tops broken mouldering Mountains appear\n& some of their tops & Cones a considerable hight & distance some 30\nmiles at least,  indeed from all appearance We are as much amongst\nMountains as ever:   Beaver work today as yesterday in some abundance. . . .\nMay the 27th   -   Decamped, at the usual time,   got amongst\nMinor Mountains or hills rising in the Valley between the higher ranges,\nthrough which the River has made way forming high Gravelly Banks & at\nlast amongst Rocks & fairly stoped us,  at this place the River runs deep\nbetween perpendicular Rock very high, having cut one of these Minor\nMountains close to one of the Mountains of the higher Range,  rises on that\nside on the Right ending in a fine Cone,  truly Grand & Majestic.    This\nMinor Mountain the River had forced a Passage through appears wholy\ncomposed of petrefaction Rock,  Having been walking before with the Old\nSlave & in looking about the Rapid found a Carrying Place - a little before\nsun set, the Canoe after some tight Work to pass a Cap of Rock arrived at\na small Sandy Bay the beginning of the Portage,  the foreman thinks he is\nnot able to take up the Canoe Light at this place & the Portage has a steep\nhigh Hill at each end,  The Old Slave set the Lines here & took 3 Fine Trout\nFrom the large Fork We passed last evening to this place may.be about\n10-12 Geo: Miles straight - set the Men about puting their axes in Order to\nclear a Carrying place.\nMay the 28th   -   This morning I had the mortification to find\nthat in the course of last night Two of the Crew had deserted Viz Jean Marie\nBouche & Louis Ossin, the former an Old offender and the latter a simpleton\n& debauched by the other Scamp Bouche.    They were on the first Watch last\nnight & did not get themselves relieved by the others as usual but had set\noff in a small Canoe at the place.    These Vagabonds have stolen a good dale\nof the Companies Property,  4-1\/2 - 5 Tobacco 7 Ball & shot a 2 Gallon Keg of\n 34. DISCOVERY OF DESERTERS' CANYON\nSpirits (appropriated to give the Men a dram) & other articles,  also of\nIndividuals some of the Mens,  more over they have taken 1 Bag Pemican &\nother Provisions & shoes,  their Guns Pouches & Powder Horns with\nAmunition,  fully equipt for a long voyage which they will perform in the face\nof the concern seemingly from their behaviour without dread of consequences,\nthis I find something strange, but they may have a more correct Idea of the\nstate of things than I have; their desertion will be the more felt as from\nappearances we are getting into the difficult parts of the navigation & its\nrealy Vexing; their leaving us at this particular place I can attribute to no\nother cause than the Roaring of the Rapid through the Chasm before us &\nthe steep Hill to carry up the Canoe & Baggage & prelude to further Toil &\nharder duty,   &c - at one time owing to the state of things in Peace River\nthis voyage was in a manner given up for this year,  but set a going again in\nrather a Confused manner,  which obliged us to hire the men we could get\non the ground,   & this J.M: Bouche was recommended to me from his active\nappearance without being apprized of his character at the time, the other is\nsimple but rogishly inclined.    Not sure however how far the defection may\nbe extended amongst the others; Called them; deprecating such base\nbehaviour at any time & more particularly shameful on the present voyage,\nhinting at their having voluntary undertaken it & that I expected better things\nfrom those that remained; but if any Plot to put a stop to the Voyage,  they\nought now to declare themselves,  for that my determination was to get a\nsight of the Country pointed out by the Concern,  alone with the natives\nshould I be reduced to such an alternative,  but to prove the practical\nNavigation of this River was our first consideration.    They reprobated the\nconduct of the deserters & said they were as much surprised as myself at\nsuch treachery,  and Le Prise volunteering to take the place of one of the\nDeserters, they immediately set about clearing the Portage and the Old\nSlave taking an ax to assist.    Finished & left this Portage about 1100 Paces\nover a Woody point or Hill strip on each side about 4 OClock P:M: made\nabout 4-5 Miles & encamped late,  the Current very strong & some Rapids\nover Gravelly shelfs & banks always at the Pole but no more drift wood,  the\nRiver winding amongst high Banks of Gravel,  sand blu Clay in alternate\nstrata horrizontally following the curve line of the rise & fall of the Hills. . . .\n DISCOVERY OF DESERTERS' CANYON 35.\nHere abouts the Majesty of these Mountains have a fine\nappearance & a fine View from this end of the Portage a mixture of the\nGrand & Sublime, the higher Mountains bordering the Valley are lofty &\nMagestic mostly covered with thick Pines Poplars & small Birch in Verdure,\nalthough the tops of the Mountains are patched in snow on the left a fine\nMountain of Rock seen at a great distance & here presenting a high perpendicular front of a light blu whitish colour,  The Valley between these higher\nRanges is about 3=4 Miles broad varigated by Hills rising up in round\nknowls covered thickly with dwarf Firs the Canadians Call Cypres & Pine &\nthe occasional appearance of White Banks following the channel of the River,\nmade one view to the S after leaving the Portage after General Course West\nby N by Comps 3-1\/2-4 Miles straight,  saw two Beavers but not much of\ntheir vestiges,   saw the fresh track of a Rein deer & Old tracks of sheep &\nGoats.\n(Samuel Black, \"A Journal of a Voyage from Rocky Mountain Portage In Peace River To the\nSources of Finlays Branch and North West Ward in Summer 1824\". Edited by EJS. Rich, with\nan Introduction by R.M. Patterson, London, The Hudson's Bay Record Society, 1955.)\n 36. A REPORT ON THE FUR TRADE,   1828\nSIR GEORGE SIMPSON\nThe Governor of the Hudson's Bay Company's territories journeyed westward\nby canoe to Fort Vancouver on the Columbia River In 1828. He travelled up the Peace ana\nParsnip Rivers, which were by this time one of the main routes of the traders. Simpson\nmade a detailed report on fur trade conditions and prospects for the information of his\nHead Office in London.\nHaving completed my business at Fort Chipewyan,   I renewed\nmy Journey on the 14th of August,   1828,  reached Vermillion on the 20th,\nrested there the 21st,  got to Dunvegan on the 27th,   remained there the 28th,\nand arrived at McLeods Lake on the 11th of September.    Peace River\nestimated at about 1000 Miles in length,  occupying 29 Days in mounting its\nsteady current, and leading us through a vast extent of country,   remarkable\nfor the beauty and grandeur of its scenery, the fertility of its Soil, the\nnumber of its vegitable productions, the variety of its mineral appearances\nand for what to Indian Traders is beyond all its other properties and\ncharacteristics peculiarly interesting,  its riches in Beaver and other Fur\nbearing animals.\nNew Caledonia comprehends the Posts of McLeods Lake,\nStewarts Lake, Frazers Lake, Alexandria, Babine Lake and Connollys\nLake.\nMcLeods Lake,  which was established in the year 1805\nsituated on the West side of the Rocky Mountains, the Waters of which\nfalling into the Frozen Ocean by McKenzies River is frequented by about\n30 to 40 Seccanies, whose hunting Ground is the Mountanous Country in the\nneighbourhood of Finlays branch.    A great part of this Country was some\nyears ago closely trapped by Iroquois,  but it has since then recruited and\nis now in tolerable good condition.    The Hunts of the few Indians who visit\nthe Establisht.  amount to about 30 Packs Furs principally Beaver,  value\nabout \u00a32500.    The returns of this Post might be increased for a few years\nby employing Trappers in the neighbourhood of Finlays branch,  but that,  I\nfeel assured would be a very impolitic measure,  as it would not only be\nsacraficing the permanent advantage we derive from the regular hunts of\nthose Indians for the encreased temporary gain, but it would in my opinion\nbe highly injurious to the whole of Peace River,   by   cutting off the supply\nof young Beaver carried down annually from the Mountains by the high\nWaters,  which recruits the lower Country.\nIn regard to the means of living,  McLeods Lake is the most\nwretched place in the Indian Country; it possesses few or no resources\nwithin itself,  depending almost entirely on a few dried Salmon taken across\nfrom Stuarts Lake,  and when the Fishery there fails,   or when anything else\noccurs to prevent this supply being furnished, the situation of the Post is\nI\n A REPORT ON THE FUR TRADE, 1828 M.\ncheerless indeed.    Its compliment of people,  is a Clerk and two Men whom\nwe found starving, having had nothing to eat for several Weeks but Berries,\nand whose countenances were so pale and emaciated that it was with\ndifficulty I recognised them.\nConnolly's Lake,  or Bear Lake Post,   situated in a North\nEasterly direction,  and distant from Stewarts Lake about 200 Miles,  was\nEstablished in the year 1827.    It is frequented by about 30 Hunters of the\nSeccani Tribe,  who have rarely visited any Establisht. ,  and who make\ntheir hunts in the Mountanous Country about the head Waters of Finlays\nbranch.    The returns of the Post amounted last year to 14 Packs,  value\nabout \u00a31200,  and are likely to encrease,  as the Establishment will in all\nprobability draw other Indians inhabiting the Mountains further North,  who\nhave not yet had any dealings with Whites.\nWe have it likewise in view, to re-establish the Post of Fort\nGeorge,  which was abandoned in the year 1823 in consequence of the\nMurder of two of our people by the Natives; which may be expected to\nyield about 25 Packs Furs; 12 to 15 of which,  now go to other Posts,   so\nthat the re-establishment of this place will probably encrease the returns\nby about 12 packs, value about \u00a31000.\nThis District, comprehending the Six Posts already named,\nnow produces about 130 Packs Furs, gross value about \u00a312000; the Expences\namounting to about \u00a33000, and yielding about \u00a39000 profit will I expect in\nthe course of a year or two, be brought to realize between 10 & \u00a312,000:\nbeyond which, it cannot materially rise, as its Trade does not appear to\nme capable of further extension..\n(Sir George Simpson, \"Dispatch to the Governor and Committee of the Hudson's Bay Company,\nLondon, March 1, 1829\", edited by E.E. Rich, and published by the Champlain Society,\nToronto, 1947.)\n 38, THE PEACE RIVER CANYON IN 1828\nARCHIBALD McDONALD\nThe following extracts are taken from the journal of Chief Factor\nArchibald McDonald, who accompanied Governor Sir George Simpson in 1828 on his canoe\nJourney from Hudson's Bay to the Columbia River. Governor Simpson chose the best available\nIroquois canoemen and travelled with incredible speed, often making 90 to 100 miles In one\nday. This journey was also remarkable for the fact that the Peace River Canyon was\nactually navigated, for probably the first and only.time in history. The same canoemen\nalso descended the tremendous canyon of the Fraser River from what is now Lytton to Fort\nLangley. Where Simon Fraser walked or crawled along rough Indian trails above the Fraser\nCanyon, Sir George Simpson's party took their chances with the rapids and whirlpools.\nThis passage by canoe of the Peace River and Fraser River Canyons was a remarkable feat,\npossibly only accomplished safely because the rivers were not at high water at the time.\nThese daring achievements of Simpson and his party have not been sufficiently recognized,\nfor the statement is often made that British Columbia's two great canyons have never been\nnavigated. Simpson's party arrived in the vicinity of present day Hudson Hope on\nSeptember 2, 1828.\nTuesday,  2'nd,  September,   1828 - Current not so strong\ntoday.   Arrived at the portage at five a.m.    Immediately,  eight men with\ntwo canoes proceeded by water,, and with the remaining ten,  we made the\nfirst pose of the portage with something like forty pieces.    Encamped on\nthe first fine level above the water, and have the old Mountain House right\nopposite on the south side.    Near where we landed, the rocks in several\nplaces poured out spouts of water as if coming from the mouth of a gun.\nWednesday,  3'rd   =>   By four, the canoes were under weigh.\nReached the top of the last high bank and breakfasted at eleven.    About a\nmile of the worst road in Christendom.    After midday,  resumed the\njourney,  and with unspeakable misery to the poor men got to a small swamp\na little more than another mile.    Ourselves, however,  with the necessary\nbaggage,  pushed on to a little clear stream ahead,  not quite half a mile and\nencamped late.    No people having passed this way for the last three years,\nand,  of course, no clearance made in a road that at best must be an\ninfamous one,   (it) presented a horrible appearance to-day,   and whatever be\nthe fate of the canoes and men by water,  I think,  of the two evils, they have\nchosen the least; in fact, without considerable labour, the way would be\nimpracticable for passing the canoes. . . .\nThursday,   4'th   -   Returned early to men left behind last\nnight,  and got all on to Little Creek by eight,  without further delay to them\nthan in taking a good draught of water.    Carried on very well,   on tolerably\nclear ground, till we came to another watering place called La Vacelle,\nabout four miles on,  and breakfasted after midday,  although the whole\nproperty was not that length.    As we were contriving how to get to the next\nwater, the best way we could, the canoe men fortunately met us,  which\nenabled all hands to effect the pose completely; and here we are,  within\nthree short miles of the River. ...    It would appear that the canoe men had\na most miraculous escape yesterday.    The guide's canoe,  with himself and\n THE PEACE RIVER CANYON IN 1828 39.\nthree men, were within an ace of going to perdition over one of the most\nformidable cascades they had to encounter.    The navigation is excessively\nbad and hazardous.    We have been very fortunate in the weather of late.\nFriday,  5'th   -   Fine day again.    Without encountering anything\nremarkable, we all arrived at the upper end of the portage by eight; the\nroad was good,  and we had but three loads over and above the charge of\neach man.    The canoes requiring a complete overhauling, the men washing\nand mending their shirts and trowsers,  and otherwise much in want of a\nlittle repose, the Governor has given the rest of the day for that purpose,\nand he is himself writing a few letters. ...    In the afternoon we amused\nourselves shooting at marks,  playing the flute,  bag-pipes,   &c.\n(Archibald McDonald, \"Peace River, a Canoe Voyage from Hudson Bay to the Pacific by the\nlate Sir George Simpson In 1828,n  edited by Malcolm McLeod, Ottawa, 1872.)\nNOTE:  This feooklet was published In 1872 by Malcolm McLeod chiefly as a means to\npublicize the Peace River Pass as the best route for the Canadian Pacific Railway.\n 40. UP THE PEACE TO FORT McLEOD IN 1833\nJOHN McLEAN\nA chief trader of the Hudson's Bay Company described his journey westward\nto New Caledonia in 1833. John McLean was in charge of Fort George for several years.\nHe died in Victoria at the age of ninety In the year 1890.\nThe Rocky Mountains came in view on the 8th of October,   and\nwe reached the portage bearing their name,  on the 10th, the crossing of\nwhich took us eight days,  being fully thirteen miles in length,  and excessively\nbad road, leading sometimes through swamps and morasses, then ascending\nand descending steep hills,  and for at least one-third of the distance,   so\nobstructed by fallen trees as to render it all but impassable.    I consider the\npassage of this portage the most laborious duty the Company's servants\nhave to perform in any part of the territory; and,  as the voyageurs say,  \"He\nthat passes it with his share of a canoe's cargo may call himself a man\". . . .\nAfter passing the portage, the Rocky Mountains reared their\nsnow-clad summits all around us,  presenting a scene of gloomy grandeur,\nthat had nothing cheering in it.    One scene,  however,   struck me as truly\nsublime.   As we proceeded onward the mountains pressed closer on the\nriver,  and at one place approached so near that the gap seemed to have\nbeen made by the river forcing a passage through them.    We passed in our\ncanoes at the base of precipices that rose almost perpendicularly above us\non either side to the height of 3, 000 or 4, 000 feet'.    After passing through\nthese magnificent portals, the mountains recede to a considerable distance,\nthe space intervening between them and the river being a flat,  yielding\ntimber of a larger growth than I expected to find in such a situation.\nWe arrive at McLeod's Lake - Mr.  Fraser's post - on the\n25'th,  where a number of Indians were waiting their supplies.    They received\nus quite in a military style, with several discharges of fire-arms,  and\nappeared delighted at the arrival of their chief.    They seemed to be on the\nbest possible terms together - the white chief and his red \"tail\".    They are\nTsekanies,  and are reputed honest,  industrious,  and faithful.\nThe outfit for this post is conveyed on horseback from Stuart's\nLake.    A more dreary situation can scarcely be imagined,   surrounded by\ntowering mountains that almost exclude the light of day,  and snow storms\nnot seldom occurring,   so violent and long continued as to bury the establishment.    I believe there are few situations in the country that present such\nlocal disadvantages; but there is the same miserable solitude everywhere;\nand yet we find natives of England,  Scotland and Ireland devoting their lives\nto a business that holds forth such prospects'.\n(John McLean, \"Notes of a Twenty-five Years' Service In the Hudson's Bay Territory \"\nLondon, 1849)\nII\n A RAILWAY SURVEY IN 1872 41.\nCHARLES HORETZKY\nThe writer of this extract was sent by Sandford Fleming in 1872 to\nexplore the Peace River Pass and the Skeena Valley as a possible route for the Canadian\nPacific Railway, at that time a Federal Government project.\nIt would seem that the account of this journey, published in 1874,\ncontains the first printed reference to Hudson Hope. Possibly the miner referred to In\nthe following extract gave his name to the settlement. The only likely theory advanced\nfor the origin of the name \"Hudson1 s Hope11 Is one which states that a miner by the name\nof Hudson had laboured for many years on his claim in the vicinity, firm In the belief\nthat he would eventually win his fortune. Hence the ironic appellation!\nHoretzky apparently was a photographer by profession, but his book does\nnot contain a single Illustration. However, a rare volume of his photographs, taken in\n1872, entitled \"Peace River\", can be seen In the Vancouver Public Library.\nOn riding up from the river to gain the higher regions above,\nwe passed over some alluvial flats, which were very densely timbered,\nand we saw some magnificent rough bark poplars, three or four feet in\ndiameter,  and growing to a great height.    We were now twenty - two miles\nfrom the lower end of the Rocky Mountain Portage, where we arrived on\nthe morning of the 22nd October,  after following the northern slopes of the\nvalley for the entire distance.    Between the Riviere du Milieu and the\nPortage,  we crossed several deep ravines, the outlets of small rivers\nflowing into the main one.    The trail, though rough in occasional spots,\ncarried us over a very fine country, where the excellent soil and large\ntracts of fine land,  facing the south, would offer great facilities for farming.\nThere was,  however, a scarcity of wood, but the southern banks and the\nnumerous islands, being covered with dense timber,  afford unlimited\nquantities of that material for both fuel and manufacturing purposes.    As\nwe approached the foot of the Portage the soil became very light and sandy,\nand the cypress occurred in abundance.    Sandstone rock began to show more\nfrequently,  and we now saw indications of a decided change in the formation\nof the country.\nOn reaching the level and sandy terrace immediately opposite\n\"Hudson's Hope,\" the euphonious name of the Company's establishment,  we\ncould find no means of cummunication with the opposite shore; but,  after\nyelling ourselves hoarse, managed to draw the attention of a solitary miner,\nwho was camped close to the Company's house.    Carrying on a very trying\nconversation with this individual, the distance between us being about two\nhundred and fifty yards,  and a high wind blowing,  we found that Charlette,\nthe man in charge,  had gone down the river,  and had taken with him the\nonly canoe at the place,   so that we had to give up all idea of crossing. . . .\nHailing the miner again, he gave us the welcome news that there were\nseveral canoes at the head of the Portage, besides a large boat, the property\nof a prospecting party of miners, who had descended the Peace from the\nOmenica, and had left their boat there.    From this point they had gone down\n 42. A RAILWAY SURVEY IN 1872\nto the Riviere du Milieu on a raft,  and were there at this moment building\ncanoes, with which to ascendthat river      These miners,  our friend\ninformed us,  were bound for the \"Riviere aux Liards, \" where they\nexpected to find gold in great and paying quantities.    \"Who are ye?\"\ninquired our miner,  \"and where are ye goin'? \"   We replied,   \"We are\ntourists,   on our way to McLeod's Lake.\"   \"Weill\" he answered,   \"ye'11\nhave to hurry up; it's one hundred and sixty miles from here.    Have you\nplenty grub?\"   We assured him on that score,  and his answering yell was\nto the effect that we would likely get through all right, but it would be\n\"touch and go\" to take the boat so far at this late season.\nOur dinner being despatched,  we yelled a \"good-bye\" to our\nunapproachable informant,  and faced the steep ascent up which the Portage\ntrail led us.    While ascending, we got an excellent view of the country south\nof Hudson's Hope.    A level plateau immediately in rear of the Post was\ncovered with a thick growth of poplars; but beyond, the rising ground was\nhidden by a dense spruce forest,  in the midst of which nestled an outpost\nof the Company,  situated on White Fish Lake, and which enjoys the\nunenviable notoriety of being greatly frequented by \"grizzlies. \"   The\nferocious brutes are,  doubtless,  attracted thither by the fish,  which they\nare adepts at catching whenever the shoaliness of the water admits,  and\nthey have on several occasions devoured some of the Company's horses. . . .\nThe Portage road was passably fair, but the soil was sandy,\nsupporting a growth of spruce trees and cypress. . . .    The road must be\ntwelve or fourteen miles in length,  as we lost no time,  and trotted our\nhorses occasionally. . I .\nAbout a mile below our camp, which we pitched close to a\nruinous old log shanty,  owned (as a ticket nailed to the door intimated) by\n\"Bill Cust, \" a gentleman who combined the business of fur-trading with the\noccupation of a miner, the Peace River made the first step in the rapid\nsuccession of leaps which it takes during its course of twenty=five miles\nthrough the last barrier which the Rocky Mountains interpose between it\nand the Arctic Ocean.    It here narrows to about one hundred and twenty\nyards,  and,  dashing impetuously between two not very high sandstone\ncliffs,  disappears in the gloomy depths of the Canyon. . . .\nAt five,  p.m. ,  on the 28th,  we had cleared the Rocky\nMountains,  after passing some of the grandest and wildest scenery\nimaginable.    During our passage through the highest part of the range,  the\noccurrence of level terraces was not so frequent as farther east,  and in\nmany places the steep and rocky mountain flanks abutted upon the water.\nYet, with the advantages of an easily navigable river,  the construction of\na road through this valley would not be impossible,  and at some future\ntime may become an accomplished fact. ...\nII\n A RAILWAY SURVEY IN 1872 43.\nWe had now really passed through the Rocky Mountains,  in a\nlarge and unwieldy boat,  manned by Indians,  who had never handled an oar\nin their lives before.    During our passage through this pass we had\nencountered only one slight rapid, the fall of which could not have exceeded\nfive feet.    With this trifling exception, the whole river,  during the seventy\nmiles which take it from the western side to the eastern wall of the range,\nfalls very gradually,  and the mean descent does not,  I am sure,  amount to\ntwenty-four inches per mile of its course. . . .\nThe scenery all along the Parsnip was extremely monotonous,\nand by the time we reached McLeod-!S River we were heartily sick of it.\nTwelve miles before arriving there,  and on the 3rd November, while poling\nup along the banks, we were surprised to see a regularly organized white\nman's dwelling,  and on hailing it,  out stalked a solitary miner,   Pete Toy\nby name,  who shook hands very heartily with us all,  and expressed no\nlittle astonishment at seeing us.    Our first question was,  \"Whereabouts\nare we?\"   \"Well, \" said he,  \"you are now about fourteen miles from the\nlittle river,  and twenty-eight from the Fort,  which you ought to reach\nto-morrow night. \"   Pete was alone, but had a mate some six miles higher\nup.    They were both engaged in trapping,  and expected to make a good haul\nof beaver,  marten and mink*    They had abandoned their mining operations,\nwhich they could not follow up during the winter season,  and intended\ntrading with the few scattered Indians who usually frequented McLeod's\nFort.\nPete    was a fine specimen of the mining pioneer, tough as\nhickory,  and clad in blue shirt, with his unmentionables tucked into his\nboots.    His shanty was a pattern of neatness.    This very intelligent man\nfound perfect contentment in his lonely cabin,  around which were hung the\nspoils of the chase,  in the shape of beaver and marten skins, the latter\nmuch larger than those found east of the Rocky Mountains,  and a huge skin\nwhich only the day before had roamed the trackless wild on the back of a\ngrizzly.    Mr.  Toy gave us some delicious fresh bread,  made from British\nColumbia flour.    We,  in return,  presented him with a chunk of pemmican,\nmanufactured at Fort St.  John,  of which we had an ample supply.\nDeclining his offer to make use of his cabin for the night,  we\npushed on,  and camped a mile above,   Pete promising to join us next day,\nas he, too,  wished to go to the Fort.    \"Gentlemen, \" said Pete,  as we were\nshoving off,   \"you may consider yourselves very lucky to have got through\nas well as you did; but I see you are prepared for the worst, \" pointing to\nthe show-shoes and other paraphernalia requisite for winter travelling, with\nwhich we had taken the precaution to furnish ourselves.    \"And mark my\nwords, \" added he,   \"before three days, this 'ere river will be running ice;\nbut you are all right now.\". . . .\n 44. A RAILWAY SURVEY IN 1872\n. We had now done with the Parsnip,  and had navigated it for a\ndistance of seventy-five miles.    Its fall I estimate at eighteen inches per\nmile,  and the construction of a road along its banks could be easily\naccomplished.    But it is a very crooked stream,  and the densely-wooded\nwilderness through which it flows is,  owing to its rigorous climate,   ill\nadapted for farming.\nOn the morning of the 5th November we left our camp,  and\npoled up the little river for seven miles, when we reached a lake,  across\nwhich we pulled,  and entered another small and shallow river,  where we\nwere obliged to abandon our boat,  and transfer our baggage to a canoe,\narriving at the outlet of McLeod's Lake at four,  p.m. , when we soon made\nourselves at home in the Company's house.    The next morning,  with the\nassistance of Mr.  Sinclair, the Company's agent,  I paid off my four Beaver\nIndians, who had,  indeed, behaved very well; and after settling up with\nWilliam,  another most excellent fellow,  I started them all down to the\nboat, which they were to take back to the Rocky Mountain Portage.    This\nthey were unable to accomplish, being met by ice when half-way back;\nand I was told afterwards by Captain Butler,  author of The Great Lone\nLand, that the poor fellows had to \"foot it\" for the rest of the distance,\nfollowing the margin of the river,  and having a wretched time of it as far\nas the Portage, which they reached in a very emaciated state.\n(Charles Horetzky, \"Canada on the Pacific, being an Account of a Journey from Edmontc\nto the Pacific by the Peace River Valley\", Montreal, 1874.)     <^rney lrom Edmonto\n AN ENGLISH TRAVELLER IN 1873 45.\nGEN.  SIR WM\u201e  F.  BUTLER\nOne of the best-known accounts of early travel in Western Canada was\nwritten by W. F. Butler, then a Captain in the Imperial army. In 1870 he was sent as an\nIntelligence officer to Red River and obtained an interview with Rlel.  On Instructions\nfrom the Canadian Government, he made a 2,700 mile reconnaissance trip to the\nSaskatchewan Country, reaching the Rockies in February, 1871. His account of this\njourney was given to the public In 1872, under the title \"The Great Lone Land\".  Butler\nmade a further trip in 1872 and 1873 to Lake Athabasca and westward through the Peace\nRiver area, which resulted in a second book \"The Wild North Land\", published In 1874.\nBoth books were widely read and did much to bring Western Canada to the public's\nattention. Butler eventually reached the rank of Lieut.-General and was knighted,\nretiring from the British Army in 1905.\nMany months of travel had carried me across the great\nplateau of the North to this spot,  where from the pine-clad plain arose the\nwhite ridges of the Rocky Mountains.    Before me lay a land of alps,  a\nrealm of mountain peaks and gloomy canyons, where in countless valleys,\nunseen by the eye of man, this great Peace River had its distant source.\nIn snow that lasts the live-long year these mountain summits rest; but their\nsides early feel the influence of the summer sun,  and from the thousand\nvalleys crystal streams rush forth to swell the majestic current of the\ngreat river,  and to send it foaming in mighty volume to the distant\nAthabasca....\nWhen the river finally breaks up,  and the ice has all passed\naway, there is a short period when the waters stand at a low level; the sun\nis not yet strong enough to melt the snow quickly,  and the frosts at night\nare still sharp in the mountain valleys.     The river then stands ten feet\nbelow its level of mid-June; this period is a short one, and not an hour\nmust be lost by the voyageur who would gain the benefit of the low water in\nthe earlier days of May.\nSeventy miles higher up the Peace River stands a solitary\nhouse called Hudson's Hope.    It marks the spot where the river first emerges\nfrom the canyon of the Rocky Mountains,  and enters the plain country.    A\ntrail,  passable for horses, leads along the north shore of the river to this\nlast trading-post of the Hudson's Bay Company on the verge of the mountains.\nAlong this trail I now determined to continue my journey,   so as to gain the\nwest side of the Great Canyon before the ice had left the river,  and thus\nreap the advantage of the low water in ascending still farther into the\nmountains....\nSome fifty miles west of St.  John, the Peace River issues\nfrom the canyon through which it passes the outer range of the Rocky\nMountains.    No boat,  canoe,  or craft of any kind has ever run the gauntlet\nof this huge chasm; for five-and-thirty miles it lies deep sunken through\nthe mountains; while from its depths there ever rises the hoarse roar of\n 46. AN ENGLISH TRAVELLER IN 1873\nthe angry waters as they dash furiously against their rocky prison.    A\ntrail of ten miles leads across this portage,  and at the western end of this\ntrail the river is reached close to where it makes its first plunge into the\nrock-hewn chasm.    At this point the traveller stands within the outer\nrange of the mountains,  and he has before him a broad river,   stretching\nfar into a region of lofty peaks,  a river with strong but even current,\nflowing between banks 200 to 300 yards apart. . . .\nAbout the middle of the afternoon of the 25th of April we\nemerged from a wood of cypress upon an open space,  beneath which ran\nthe Peace River.    At the opposite side a solitary wooden house gave token\nof life in the wilderness.    The greater part of the river was still fast\nfrozen,  but along the nearer shore ran a current of open water.    The\nsolitary house was the Hope of Hudson'. ....\nNOTE: In crossing the river in a small canoe, Butler was upset and almost drowned.\nOn the 27th of April I set out from Hudson's Hope to cross\nthe portage of ten miles, which avoids the Great Canyon, at the farther\nend of which the Peace River becomes navigable for a canoe.\nWe crossed the river once more at the scene of our\naccident two days previously; but this time, warned by experience,  a large\ncanoe was taken,  and we passed safely over to the north shore.    It took\nsome time to hunt up the horses,  and mid-day had come before we finally\ngot clear of the Hope of Hudson. . . .\nOn the 29th of April the ice in the upper part of the river\nbroke up,  and came pouring down with great violence for some hours;\nblocks of ice many feet in thickness,  and weighing several tons,  came down\nthe broad river,  crushing against each other,  and lining the shore with\nhuge crystal masses.\nThe river rose rapidly,  and long after dark the grating of the\nice-blocks in the broad channel below told us that the break-up must be a\ngeneral one; the current before our hut was running six miles an hour,   and\nthe ice had begun to run early in the afternoon.\nAll next day the ice continued to run at intervals,  but towards\nevening it grew less,  and at nightfall it had nearly ceased.\nDuring the day I set out to explore the Canyon.    Making my\nway abng the edge of what was,  in ages past, the shore of a vast lake,   I\ngained the summit of a ridge which hung directly over the Canyon.    Through\na mass of wrack and tangled forest I held on,  guided by the dull roar of\n AN ENGLISH TRAVELLER IN 1873 47.\nwaters until I reached an open space,  where a ledge of rock dipped suddenly\ninto the abyss:   on the outer edge of this rock a few spruce-trees sprung\nfrom cleft and fissure,  and from beneath,  deep down in the dark chasm,  a\nroar of water floated up into the day above.    Advancing cautiously to the\nsmooth edge of the chasm,  I took hold of a spruce-tree and looked over.\nBelow lay one of those grim glimpses which the earth holds hidden,  save\nfrom the eagle and the mid-day sun.    Caught in a dark prison of stupendous\ncliffs (cliffs which hollowed out beneath,  so that the topmost ledge literally\nhung over the boiling abyss of waters), the river foamed and lashed against\nrock and precipice,  nine hundred feet below me.    Like some caged beast\nthat finds escape impossible on one side,  it flew as madly and as vainly\nagainst the other; and then fell back in foam and roar and raging whirlpool.\nThe rocks at the base held the record of its wrath in great trunks of trees,\nand blocks of ice lying piled and smashed in shapeless ruin. . . .\nAnd now,  ere quitting,  probably for ever, this grand Peace\nRiver Pass - this immense valley which receives in its bosom so many\nother valleys,  into whose depths I only caught a moment's glimpse as we\nfloated by their outlets - let me say one other word about it.\nSince I left the Wild North Land,  it has been my lot to visit\nthe chief points of interest in Oregon,  California, the Vale of Shasta,  and\nthe Yosemite.    Shasta is a loftier mountain than any that frown above the\nPeace River Pass.    Yosemite can boast its half-dozen waterfalls,\ntrickling down their thousand feet of rock; but for wild beauty,  for the\nsingular spectacle of a great river flowing tranquilly through a stupendous\nmountain range,  - these mountains presenting at every reach a hundred\nvaried aspects,  - not the dizzy glory of Shasta nor the rampart precipices\nof Yosemite can vie with that lonely gorge far away on the great Unchagah.\nOn the 9th of May we reached the Forks of the river, where\nthe two main streams of the Parsnip and the Findlay came together.    A\ncouple of miles from their junction a second small rapid occurs; but,  like\nthe first one,  it can be run without difficulty.\nAround the point of junction the country is low and marshy,\nand when we turned into the Findlay,  it was easy to perceive from the\ncolour of the water that the river was rising rapidly.\nSome miles above the Forks there is a solitary hut on the\nsouth bank of the river.    In this hut dwelt Pete Toy,  a miner of vast repute\nin the nothern mining country.\nSome ten years ago Pete had paddled his canoe into these\nlonely waters.    As he went, he prospected the various bars.    Suddenly he\nstruck one of surpassing richness.    It yielded one dollar to the bucket,  or\n Jfff\n48. AN ENGLISH TRAVELLER IN 1873\none hundred dollars a day to a man's work.    Pete was astonished; he laid\nup his canoe,  built this hut,  and claimed the bar as his property.    For a\nlong time it yielded a steady return; but even gold has a limit - the bar\nbecame exhausted.    Where had all his gold come from?\nAh, that is the question'.    Even to-day, though the bank has\nbeen washed year after year,  \"it is still rich in colour;\" but the \"pay-dirt\"\nlies too far from the water's edge,  hence the labour is too great.\nWell,   Pete, the Cornish miner,  built his hut and took out his\ngold; but that did not satisfy him.    What miner ever yet was satisfied?\nPete went in for fifty things; he traded with the Indians, he trapped, he\ntook an Indian wife; yet, through all, he maintained a character for being\nas honest and as straight-forward a miner as ever found \"a colour\" from\nMexico to Cariboo.\nMy little friend Jacques expected to meet his old brother\nminer Pete at his hut, but,  as we came within five miles of it,  a beaver\nswam across the river.    We all fired at him, and when the smoke had\nvanished,  I heard Jacques mutter,  \"Pete's not hereabouts,  or that fellow\nwouldn't be there. \"    He Was right,  for,  when we reached the hut an hour\nlater,  we found a notice on the door,  saying that Pete and two friends had\ndeparted for the Ominica just six days earlier,  being totally out of all\nfood,  and having only their guns to rely upon.    Now this fact of Pete's\nabsence rendered necessary new arrangements, for here the two courses\nI have already alluded to lay open - either to turn south,  along the Parsnip;\nor north and west, along the Findlay and Ominica.\nThe current of the Parsnip is regular; that of the Ominica is\nwild and rapid.    But the Parsnip was already rising,  and at its spring level\nit is almost an impossibility to ascend it,  owing to its great depth; while\nthe Ominica, though difficult and dangerous in its canyons,  is nevertheless\npossible of ascent,  even in its worst stage of water.\nI talked the matter over with Jacques,  as we sat camped on\nthe gold-bar opposite Pete Toy's house.    Fortunately we had ample supplies\nof meat; but some luxuries,   such as tea and sugar,  were getting dangerously\nlow,  and flour was almost exhausted.    I decided upon trying the Ominica.\nAbout noon,  on the 10th of May,   we set out for the Ominica,\nwith high hopes of finding the river still low enough to allow us to ascend **\nit.\nTen miles above Toy's hut the Ominica enters the Peace\nRiver from the south-west.    We reached its mouth on the morning of the\n11th,  and found it high and rapid.    There was hard work in store for us\n AN ENGLISH TRAVELLER IN 1873 49.\nand the difficulties of passing the Great Canyon loomed ominously big.    We\npushed on,  however,  and that night reached a spot where the river issued\nfrom a large gap in a high wall of dark rock.    Above,  on the summit of\nthis rock,  pine-trees projected over the river.    We were at the door of the\nOminica canyon.    The warm weather of last week had done its work,  and\nthe water rushed from the gate of the canyon in a wild and impetuous\ntorrent.    We looked a moment at the grim gate which we had to storm on\nthe morrow,  and then put in to the north shore,  where, under broad and\nlofty pines,  we made our beds for the night.\nThe Findlay River,  as it is called,  after the fur-trader, who\nfirst ascended it,  has many large tributaries.    It is something like a huge\nright hand spread out over the country,  of which the middle finger would\nbe the main river, and the thumb the Ominica.    There is the North Fork,\nwhich closely hugs the main Rocky Mountain range.    There is the Findlay\nitself,  a magnificent river,  flowing from a vast labyrinth of mountains,\nand being unchanged in size or apparent volume,  120 miles above the Forks\nwe had lately left.    At that distance it issues from a canyon similar to that\nat whose mouth we are now camped; and there is the second South Fork,  a\nriver something smaller than the Ominica, from whose mouth it is distant\nabout a hundred miles.\nOf these rivers nothing is known.    These few items are the\nresult of chance information picked up from the solitary miner who\npenetrated to this canyon's mouth,  and from the reports which a wandering\nband of Sickanies give of the vast unknown interior of the region of the\nStickeen.    And yet it is all British territory.   It abounds with game; its\nscenery is as wild as mountain peak and gloomy canyon can make it; it is\nfree from fever or malaria.    In it Nature has locked up some of her richest\ntreasures - treasures which are open to any strong,  stout heart who will\nventure to grasp them.\nI know not how it is, but sometimes it seems to me that this\nEngland of ours is living on a bygone reputation; the sinew is there without\nthe soul'.   ....\n(General Sir William EMtncis Butler, \"The Wild Northland, being the Story of a Winter\nJourney, with Dog, across Northern North America\", London, 1874. Several later editions.\n 50. THE FIRST GEOLOGICAL SURVEY,   1875\nA.R.C. SELWYN\nThe Director of the Geological Survey of Canada entered the area In 1875.\nThe route followed was from McLeod Lake down the Parsnip and the Peace to Smoky River,\nalso up the Pine River to Pine Pass. Dr. Selwyn spent some time at Hudson Hope and made\na side-trip to Moberly Lake.\n12'th September,  1875   -   The hills around Moberly Lake,\nespecially the lower slopes and the intervening valleys are richly grassed,\npea-vine and various nutritious grasses standing above one's knees on\nhorseback.    There are large areas of open prairie land,  and more which\nis only wooded with willow, aspen and alder coppices.    On the higher slope\npine prevails,  and,  in the low grounds,  spruce, tamarac and poplar. . . .\nOn some of the open sandy ridges, blueberries and cranberries were\nplentiful.    Charlette tells me that the snow fall is comparatively light and\nthat horses do well through the winter amongst these hills.    I consider it a\nregion far fitter for settlement than much of the Saskatchewan country.    We\nare now in the middle of September, the thermometer has only once\nreached 32\u00b0, and potato tops at Hudson Hope are still green.    As a contrast\nto this,  it will be seen,  in my report on the Saskatchewan country in 1873,\nthat in the region about Edmonton and Victoria, two degrees further south,\nand about the same elevation, the thermometer fell on the 4'th of September\nto 20\u00b0, and again to 20\u00b0 on the night of the 23rd.    At 6 p.m. we reached\nHudson's Hope, having been walking and riding on the roughest of horses\nand over the worst of roads for eleven hours.\n1Vth September   -   Making preparations for crossing the\nportage,  ferrying baggage to the other side,  etc.,  a large party of \"freetraders\" are now competing very energetically with the Hudson Bay Company\nfor the fur-trade on Peace River,  and this morning we learnt that they were\ndaily expected to arrive at the other side of the portage with three large\nbatteaux laden with 35, 000 lbs. of goods for the winter trade with the\nIndians.    To transport this across the portage they had sent in a train of\nfourteen mules; the first horses or mules that had ever travelled along\nthese shores of Peace River.    The bell-horse and one mule were drowned\non the journey at one of the crossings of the river. . . .\n15'th September   -   6 a.m.,  thick fog, thermometer 36\u00b0.    At\n9 a.m.  we bid adieu to Hudson's Hope and started for the other side of the\nportage. ...    At 2 p.m.  we reached the lower landing place and camped.    In\nthe afternoon,  I explored the canyon; the rocks are now much better exposed\nthan they were in July, the water being fully fifteen feet lower. . . . Just as I\nreturned to camp, the free-traders arrived with four large batteaux, two\ncanoes and a number of men.\n(Alfred R.C. Selwyn \"Report on Exploration in British Columbia In 1875\", Report of\nProgress for 1875-76, Geological Survey of Canada, Ottawa, 1877.)\n THROUGH PEACE RIVER PASS IN 1879 51.\nREV.  DANIEL M.  GORDON\nThe writer of these extracts travelled through the region In 1879 as a\nmember of a Government party sent out to examine Northern British Columbia from the\nSkeena River to the Prairies, with a view to determining the suitability of the country\nas an alternative route for the Canadian Pacific Railway. The author was ordained in the\nPresbyterian Church in 1866. He served as chaplain during the Riel Rebellion of 1885,\nand was principal of Queen\u00bbs University from 1902 to 1917.\nOn Tuesday, the 8th July, we left Fort St.  James for Fort\nMcLeod,   seventy miles distant, where our journey down Peace River would\nbegin.    This portion of the country,  with the exception of the gold-mining\ndistrict of Omenica,  a little to the north,  is probably in much the same\ncondition as it was when these fur-trading posts were established.    The\ntrails may be a little better and more frequently traversed; land has been\ncleared here and there by forest fires; but the habitations of white men are\nstill confined almost exclusively to the Hudson's Bay Company*s forts.    The\nIndians shift their wigwams as frequently as ever, not growing,  it would\nseem, nor declining,  in numbers; the foliage comes and goes unobserved;\nthe silence of hill and forest is little more disturbed than if the voice of man\nhad never broken in upon their primeval repose.    Even yet the facilities of\ncommunication are few,  though somewhat improved of recent years.  A\ngentleman still living in Victoria,  who was clerk at one of these northern\nposts in the days of Napoleon,  did not hear of the battle of Waterloo until\ntwo years after it had been fought; but although the only white man in the\ndistrict, he took down his old flint-lock and fired a feu-de-joie.\nThe only route connecting Fort St.  James and Fort McLeod\nis a bridlepath which leads sometimes over low hills,  or by the margin of\nsmall lakes,  sometimes through thick woods,  or over treacherous swamps,\nwhere we were frequently delayed by the necessity of \"brushing\" the trail,\nthat is,  of laying large branches crosswise upon the path, to afford sure\nfooting for the mules that carried our supplies,  and for the horses that\ncarried ourselves. . . .\nThe country presents few features of interest.    It seems here\nto be utterly unfit for agriculture,  both from the character of the soil and\nfrom its altitude,  which ranges from 2, 200 feet to 2, 700 feet above sea\nlevel.    The timber where it has been spared by fire,  is of a poor quality,\nand there are few signs of mineral resources.    There is still,  however,\na considerable annual yield of furs,  bear and beaver being the most\nabundant. . . .\n 52. THROUGH PEACE RIVER PASS IN 1879\nFort McLeod is beautifully situated at the   lower end of\nMcLeod Lake,  whose waters are emptied by the Pack River into the Peace.\nThere is abundance of excellent pasture on the plateau around it, and it\nboasts a small garden that seems capable of raising anything that can\nwithstand occasional summer frosts.    Indeed there is sufficient good land\nin this immediate neighbourhood for a large farm,   if the climate were only\nsuitable. . . .\nThe snow-fall here is heavier than at Fort St.  James,\naveraging about five feet, and gardening is about three weeks later.    The\nlake usually freezes about the middle of November, and opens about the\nmiddle of May.    All the traffic between Peace River and Fraser River\npasses this way,  as the route from the Parsnip by the Pack River,   Lake\nMcLeod,  Summit Lake,  and the Giscombe Portage to the Fraser,  is much\nshorter than the route by the head-waters of the Parsnip and the headwaters of the Fraser....\nThe name \"Fort\" applied to these posts of the H.B.   Company\nis frequently imposing in more ways than one.    It naturally suggests walls,\nbastions,  loop-holes,formidable^gateways, a fortified residence,  palisades,\netc. ; but frequently,  as in the case of Fort McLeod, the reality is very\ndifferent from the vision.    A small single-storied dwelling made of hewn\nlogs,  little better than the rude farm-house of a Canadian backwoodsman,  a\ntrading-store as plain as the dwelling,  a smoke-house for curing and\nstoring fish and meat, and a stable constitute the whole establishment.\nThis Fort is said to have had its days of greatness,  when it was\nsurrounded by a palisade, and had other visible signs of importance, but\nit is now one of the smallest posts in British Columbia.    The manager, a\nyoung English gentleman, who has whiled away some of his lonely hours by\nsketching for the Graphic, has named it \"Fort Misery, \" a name indicative\nof many a dreary day.    Indeed it is difficult to discover what attractions\nmany of the agents of the Hudson's Bay Company find in their secluded and\nlonely life. ...\nPassing from Lake McLeod down Pack River,  which is about\nseventeen miles in length,  we entered the Parsnip, the great southern\ntributary of the Peace, whose sources lie near the upper waters of the Fraser\non the western slopes of the mountains.    It was by way of this river that\nMcKenzie's course lay when,  after reaching its head waters,  he carried his\ncanoe,  as Simpson did half a century later, to the great northern bend of the\nFraser, a route much more circuitous than that which connects the two\nrivers by way of Lake McLeod,  Summit Lake and the Giscombe Portage.\n THROUGH PEACE RIVER PASS IN 1879 53.\nThe Parsnip,   so called from the abundance of cow-parsnip\nthat grows near its banks,  maintains pretty evenly a width of about five\nhundred feet,  and a current of about three or four miles an hour.    It is\ndotted by numerous islands,  at the upper end of which it sometimes divides\nso evenly that it is difficult to distinguish the main channel,  while at the\nsame time there are many sloughs,  or \"slews\" so-called,  where part of the\nriver flows by some devious and half-hidden course, that might,  when they\nblend again with the main current,  be mistaken for tributary streams.    The\nbanks are sometimes bare and steep,  with exposures of sand,   clay and\ngravel,  and with occasional croppings of sandstone and of limestone;\nsometimes they are pleasantly varied by levels of pasture land,  or by low\nwooded hills.\nThe voyageurs observe changes in the river,  from year to\nyear.    The soil being light and sandy is easily washed down by the current\nin the spring,  when the river rises fifteen or twenty feet above its lowest\nsummer level; the shores are cast into new curves; bars of sand and gravel\nare removed from one locality, and built up in another; the islands are\nworn away above,  and increased by deposits further down; and the slopes\nand bushes along the banks have,  in some places, been stripped by fire of\nmuch of their foliage,  while in others they have been covered by new\ngrowths of bush or tree.\nBorne steadily and pleasantly along by the current we met some\nfur traders,  struggling up stream with their cargoes en route to Victoria,\nengaged in the precarious task of competing with the Hudson's Bay Company.\nSuch competition is no safe nor easy work unless one can bring large\ncapital into it,  and conduct business at many different stations,  for the\nCompany may gain largely at some of its posts although losing at others,\nand can thus average a fair rate of profit, whereas r,free traders, \" as\ntheir rivals are called,  if dependent only on one or two posts,  may be\nruined in a single season.    Besides, the Company have usually to pay less\nfor their furs than others do, as the Indians are not readily seduced from a\nservice which has always been faithfully and honestly conducted, and which\nhas witnessed the rise and fall of many rivals, while it still remains a strong,\nsuccessful and useful corporation. . . .\nThe Nation River joins the Parsnip from the west aboutsihirty-\ntwo miles below the mouth of Pack River,  after receiving the waters of\nnumerous lakes that lie to the south of the Omenica district,  between Lake\nBabine and the Parsnip,  a region not yet surveyed,  hardly even explored,\nand little known except to the Indians.    From the mouth of the Misinchinca,\ntwelve miles above Pack River, to the mouth of the Nation, traces of\nlignite have been found. . . .\n ^fff\n54. THROUGH PEACE RIVER PASS IN 1879\nBetween the Nation and the Finlay we passed bars where gold\nhas been found year after year,  though not in very large quantities,\nprobably borne down from the rocks in the neighbourhood of Omenica. . . .\nOn approaching the \"Forks\" where the Finlay and Parsnip\nmeet,   some seventy-seven miles below Pack River,  we caught to the\nnorth-east the first glimpse,  high up among the hill tops,   of the gap between\nthe mountains through which the Peace River carves its way.    The hills are\nhere rugged and densely massed,  with occasional snow-peaks glistening,\namongst them. . . .\nThe Parsnip,   ere the two rivers blend,  has flowed nearly as\nfar as the Finlay,  by many a curve from the uplands where its sources lie\nnear the head-waters of the Fraser.    As they meet, their waters broaden\ninto a small smooth lake,  and then rush down in a rough and stormy current,\nnearly half a mile in length and some two hundred and fifty yards in width,\nknown as the Finlay Rapids.    Here the names Parsnip and Finlay are\ndropped,  and from this onward until it meets near Fort Chipewyan the waters\nthat empty Lake Athabasca,  a thousand miles away, the united river is known\nas the Peace.    The Sicanies of northern British Columbia call it the\nTsetaikah,   ~- \"the river that goes into the mountain. \"   The Beavers,  who\nlive east of the Rocky Mountains,  call it the Unchagah,   -- that is,  \"the\nPeace\" -- for on its banks was settled once for all a feud that had long been\nwaged between them and the Crees.    About a mile below the rapids the\nriver,  with its forces now united from the south and west, turns suddenly\neastward.    At this bend it is fringed on both banks by gentle slopes and\nirregular benches,  beyond which rise the hills,  at first not more than 2, 000\nto 2,500 feet in height,   some scarped by ravines,   some castellated with\nregular strata of rock,  but for the most part lightly wooded.    This is the\nbeginning of the Peace River Pass. ...\nNearly opposite Mount Selwyn the Wicked River,  a stream\nclear as crystal and noisy as a cascade, falls in on the left bank through\na gorge between the hills.    To the right and left,  alternately,  sweep the\nbroad curves of the main river,  which is here from 200 to 250 yards in\nwidth,  while the ridges,  between which it winds,  appear to be dove-tailed\nas you look down the Pass.    The view changes with each bend of the\ncurrent.    Here a rugged shoulder bare and hard as adamant,  butting upward\nfor recognition,  there a frowning precipice,  with no trace of vegetation,\nor a wooded knoll,   solid beneath but with a fair green surface,  here a wild\nravine,  there a great shell-shaped valley,  while stretching far up are the\npeaks that form a resting place for the eagle and the cloud.\n'SiiL\n THROUGH PEACE RIVER PASS IN 1879 55.\nThe Canyon of the Peace River,  which at its upper extremity\nis about fifty miles east of the Rocky Mountains,  is about twenty-five miles\nin length,  and the river is here a wild broken torrent,   some 200 feet in\nwidth,  which,  as far as known,  has never been navigated except by the\ndauntless Iroquois crew that accompanied Sir George Simpson on his\nexpedition to the Pacific,  in 1828.    Its rocky sides have been rent and\npeeled by the current,  here scooped into great pot-holes, there seamed\nwith broad fissures,  now broken into jagged edges,  now worn into smooth\ncurves....\nWe were forced to abandon our boat at the head of the Canyon,\nbut were fortunate enough to procure the horses of some Indian hunters\nfrom Hudson*s Hope to convey our supplies,  baggage,  etc. ,  across the\ntwelve mile Portage to the foot of the Canyon.    At the Hope as elsewhere\nthroughout these northern districts the agent employs two hunters to supply\nthe Post with provisions.    These men, accompanied by their families and\nby two grown lads who go with them to bring home the game, are employed\nduring most of the year in hunting.    They confine their attention almost\nentirely to moose and bear,  and scorn such small game as  ducks and\nprairie chicken, however abundant.    Each hunter gets ten dollars worth of\nammunition in spring,  and the same in autumn,  a pound of tea,  of sugar\nand of tobacco each month, and he is paid from five to ten \"skins\" for\neach moose, according to size, the \"skin\" being the chief currency of the\ndistrict,  equivalent here to about $1. 50. . . .\nThe trail leads up to a broad terrace which skirts the base of\na hill known as the Buffalo's Head.    The hill takes this name from a\nfavourite camping ground close by, which has, for many years, been marked by the head of  the last buffalo that was shot in this part of the Peace\nDistrict.    From its summit a wide sweeping view may be had of the valley\nof the river westward to the giant peaks that girt the Pass, and eastward\ntowards Dunvegan where it flows through fertile plains. . . .\nWhen we reached Hudson's Hope we had completely passed the\nMountains,  even such outlying spurs as the Portage Mountain and the\nBuffalo's Head; and here,  still following the Peace, we entered on the great\nPrairie Region, for the river carves its way through the upper portion of\nthis vast fertile triangle in its course to the Northern Sea.\nThe Hope is an outpost of the Hudson's Bay Company station\nat Fort St. John, forty-three miles further down the river, and is the most\nwestern post of the Dunvegan district.    The agent,  Charlette Dumas,  an\nactive,  sinewy, kind and trustworthy half-breed,  with a guest of his,\nBob Armstrong,  gave us a cordial welcome when we visited them soon after\nour arrival*.. .\n J0^\n56. THROUGH PEACE RIVER PASS IN 1879\nWhile dependent for food on the precarious supply of the chase,\nthey might at this trading-post,  as at every other throughout the Dunvegan\ndistrict,   raise abundance of stock and excellent crops with very little\ndifficulty.    The soil of the broad river flat on which the house is situated is\nof the richest loam,  and in the little garden attached to it wheat and\nvegetables grow to perfection.    On the elevated plateaux,  far above the river\nlevel,  the grass is so abundant that horses and cattle can feed in large numbers.\nThe horses can winter out,  and sufficient wild hay could,  with no great\nlabour, be cut for winter feeding a large number of cattle.    Dumas informed\nus that sometimes frost occurs late in the spring,  although potatoes are\nusually planted by the first week in May.    It had occurred,  for instance,  on\nthe 15th May preceding our visit,  but they rarely have any frost from that\ntime until September, the river being usually open until the beginning of\nDecember.\nIndeed,  we had already observed the marked change that there\nis between the climate on the east,  and that on the west  side ofthe Rocky\nMountains,  that on the east being drier and much warmer. . . .\nHere,  at Hudson's Hope, the climate is as conducive to life and comfort\nas it is in Ontario,  ten degrees further south, while,  throughout the\nNorth-West Territory, with its dry air,  its bright sunshine, and its cool\nsummer nights,  fevers and bronchial affections are almost unknown, and\nthe conditions for health and labour are peculiarly favourable.\nAt Hudson's Hope the fertile part of the Peace River district\nmay be said to commence,  for above the Canyon the land suitable for\nfarming is very limited. . . .\nIn a wide bend on the northern bank of the river where the\nvalley broadens to nearly a mile, backed by grassy and lightly wooded\nslopes,  nestles the little post of Fort St.  John.    An older building than the\npresent one stood,  some years ago,  on the opposite bank, where the garden\nof the Fort is now; and still older Fort St.  John once stood about   fifteen\nmiles below this,  at the mouth of the North Pine River.    The present Fort\nis of the usual pattern of the smaller Hudson's Bay posts,   --a very plain\nbuilding of squared logs,  with store and out-houses attached.\n(Rev. Daniel M. Gordon - \"Mountain and Prairie, A Journey from Victoria to Winnipeg,\nVia Peace River Pass\", Montreal, 1880.)\nU\n AN EXPLORER'S VISIT IN 1890 57.\nWARBURTON PIKE\n. Jhe noted English explorer and big-game hunter Warburton Pike, who died In\nVancouver in 1915, made a long and hazardous trip through the Barren Grounds of the North\nWest Territories in search of the musk-ox. His classic account of the \"journey was\npublished in 1892, and, along with a subsequent volume \"Through the Sub-Arctic Forest\"\ndescribing his exploration of the Yukon River through Canada and Alaska to the Bering Sea,\nremins one of the best narratives of northern travel.  On his return from the Barren\nGrounds, he ascended the Peace River, reaching Hudson Hope late in October, 1890.\nAt St.  John's we found Mr.  Gunn busy with a band of Indians\nwho were taking their winter supplies,  and I had a chance of hearing their\naccounts of the wilderness to the north in the direction of the Liard\nRiver; they described it as a muskeg country abounding in game and fur,\nbut a hard district to reach,  as the streams are too rapid for canoes and\nthe swamps too soft for horses to cross.    They occasionally fall in with a\nsmall band of buffalo,  but have never seen them in large numbers.    Sometimes by ascending Half-way River,  a stream adjoining Peace River\ntwenty-five miles above St.  John's, they meet the Indians from Fort\nNelson on the south branch of the Liard. . . .\nSnow was falling heavily when we left St.  John's,  and it\nlooked as if the winter had set in,  but next day the ground was bare again,\nand a west wind from across the mountains blew warm as a summer's\nbreeze.    We camped for a night at the mouth of Half-way River,  heading\ntowards the north through a wide open bay which seems to invite exploration\nA considerable quantity of gold dust has been taken out of some of the\ngravel-bars along this part of Peace River, and Half-way River is supposed\nto be a paradise for the miner and hunter, but I could not hear of any white\nman having ever penetrated far up this valley.    On the afternoon of Sunday,\nOctober 26th,  on rounding a bank in the river,  we caught our first glimpse\nof the snowy peaks of the Rocky Mountains that I had travelled so far to\nreach....\nHudson*s Hope is a small unpretentious establishment, a\nmile below the wild canyon by which this great stream forces its way\nthrough the most easterly range of the Rocky Mountains.    The Indians\nwere all encamped in their moose-skin lodges on the flat close to the\nfort waiting for the trade to begin,  and I was surprised to hear how few\nrepresentatives of the once numerous tribe of Beavers are left.    It is the\nsame at St. John's and Dunvegan,  and the total Indian population of the\nUpper Peace River cannot exceed three hundred,  an immense falling off\nsince Sir Alexander Mackenzie first crossed the mountains by this route.\nThe biggest lodge was occupied by Baptiste Testerwich,  a half-breed\nIroquois,  descended from the Iroquois crew left here many years ago by\nSir George Simpson,  formerly Governor of the Hudsonfs Bay Company.\nBaptiste had a house at Moberley's Lake twelve miles to the south,  and\nis well known as the most successful and most enduring of moose-hunters.\n if\n58. AN EXPLORER'S VISIT IN 1890\nA remarkable point about the man is his hardiness and indifference to cold;\nin the dead of winter he wears no socks in his moccasins,  which to any\nother man would mean a certainty of frozen feet, and the Indians say that\nhis feet are so hot that the snow melts in his tracks in the coldest\nweather. . . .\nI decided to wait a few days for the trader, and we had a very\nfestive time at Hudson's Hope; a ball was given every night,  and the\nmoose-dance,  rabbit-dance,  and duck-dance were kept up till the small\nhours.    A ball is not an expensive entertainment at an out-of-the-way\ntrading-post; no invitations are necessary, but a scrape of the fiddle at\nthe door of the Masters house fills the ball-room in a few minutes.    If\nthe master is in a liberal state of mind,  a cup of tea is provided for his\nguests,  but in any case the river is close,  and if anyone is thirsty there\nis plenty of water.    On the third night the ceremonies were interupted by\nthe sound of a gunshot on the opposite bank,  and an Indian came across with\nthe news that the trader had arrived at the west end of the canyon with two\nsmall scows,  and that some of his crew were going back to Quesnelle,\nBaptiste lent me a horse on the following day,  and I rode over\nto interview the new arrivals.    A fair trail,  twelve miles in length on\nthe north side of the river,   leads to the navigable water above the canyon,\nwhile the stream runs a circuitous course of probably thirty miles.    I\ncould get little information as to the nature of this canyon; even the\nIndians seem to avoid it,  and,  though accounts of it have been written,\nnobody appears to have thoroughly explored this exceptionally rough piece\nof country.    I went down a few miles from the west end,  but found the\nbluffs so steep that I could seldom get a view of the water,  and could\nform no idea of the character of the rapids and waterfalls.    There is some\nquiet place in the middle of the canyon where the Indians cross on the ice,\nbut beyond this they could tell me little about it. . . .\nAt the far end of the portage,  on the bank of the river,   stand a\nrough shanty and trading-store.    Here I made the acquaintance of Twelve-\nfoot Davis, who acquired this name,  not from any peculiarity of stature,\nbut from a small though valuable mining claim of which he had been the\nlucky possessor in the early days of British Columbia.  A typical man of\nhis class is Davis, and his story is that of many a man who has spent his\nlife just in advance of civilization.    Born in the Eastern States of America,\na 'Forty-niner in California,  and a pioneer of the Caribou Diggings\ndiscovered far up the Fraser River in \"Sixty*one,  he had eventually taken\nto fur-trading,  which has ever such an attraction for the wandering spirit\nof the miner.    Here among;the mountains and rivers where formerly he\nsought the yellow dust he carries on his roaming life.    There is a\nstrong kinship between the two enterprises; the same uncertainty exists,\nand in each case the mythical stake is always just ahead.    No failure ever\nIL\n AN EXPLORER'S VISIT IN 1890 59.\ndamps the ardour of miner or fur-trader,  or puts a stop to his pleasant\ndreams of monster nuggets and silver foxes.\nDavis was making all possible haste in packing his cargo\nacross the portage with horses; an Indian and a half-breed were going back\nto Quesnelle,  and would gladly enter my service as guides.    A small\nstock of goods was to be left at the west end of the portage, and Thomas\nBarrow, the only white man who had come down with Davis, was to remain\nin charge of the trading-post during the winter.\nNOTE: Intending at first to wait for the freeze-up and then to travel over the Ice,\nPike and his party camped at the head of the Canyon. The weather remained fine,\nhowever, and on the 26th of November he took a canoe and set out for Port McLeod with\nfour men, three of whom professed to be familiar with the route. What followed is an\nepic in wilderness travel, simply and graphically described by the author, but at too\ngreat a length for reproduction here.\nPaddling, poling, and tracking, they made fair progress for a time, but\nfalling temperatures soon filled the river with floating ice. After a week of great\neffort, they managed to reach Finlay Rapids, but had to abandon the canoe at the Porks\nand proceed up the Parsnip by foot, as the river was entirely blocked by ice.\nIn order to travel as JJLghtly as possible, Pike left their guns, some\nequipment, and a quantity of flour behind. For days they floundered through deep snow,\nuntil, hungry and exhausted, they reached the Nation River, flowing into the \"Parsnip\nfrom the west. Both guides declared this stream to be the Pack River, the route to\nMcLeod Lake. They followed the Nation for many miles until the sight of a swift rapid\nconvinced them that they were last. Afraid to try longer to reach Fort McLeod, they\nturned back towards Hudson Hope. For ten days they were without food except for a few\nscraps and some bits of moose hide.  On reaching Finlay Porks, they retrieved the flour\nthey had left, but it did not go far among five starving men with ninety miles yet to\ntravel. Delayed by blizzards and unable to kill any game except one grouse, with the\ntwo guides stealing the remnant of the precious flour, Pike stated he marvelled that\nthe party toad not resorted to cannibalism.\nOne whole month after leaving the Canyon the five men returned.  Here is\nhow Pike describes fcfeeir condition:\nSoon the roar of the canyon was heard,  and at seven o'clock\nwe crawled up the steep bank and stood in front of the cabin.    I pushed\nopen the door,  and shall never forget the expression of horror that came\nover the faces of the occupants when they recognised us.    We had become\nused to the hungry eyes and wasted forms,  as our misery had come on us\ngradually, but to a man who had seen us starting out thirty-two days before\nin full health the change in our appearance must have been terrible.    There\nis no doubt that we were very near the point of death.    For my own part I\nfelt a dull aching in the left side of my head; I was blind in the left eye\nand deaf in the left ear; there was a sharp pain on each side just below\n 60. AN EXPLORER'S VISIT IN 1890\nthe ribs; but my legs, though not well under contol,  were still strong.    We\nhad all completely lost the use of our voices,  and suffered greatly from the\ncracking of the skin on hands and feet, which always results from starving\nin cold weather; to say that we were thin conveys no idea of our miserable\ncondition.    It is needless to go into the details of our recovery; but under\nBarrow's careful nursing,  and restrictions as to the quantity of food\nallowed,  we all came back to health, although for some days our lives were\nhanging in the balance. ; . .\nIn a week communication was opened with Hudson's Hope,  and\nWalter Macdonald did everything he could to   help us; but the same thing\nhad happened to him.    A band of Beaver Indians had been caught by starv -\nation at the mouth of the Pine River Pass, and had suffered the same\nexperiences as ourselves.    Many had been left by the way,  but I think there\nwere no deaths,  as provisions were sent out so soon as the news reached\nBaptiste at Moberley's Lake. . . .\nWhile staying at Hudson's Hope,  Macdonald and I walked over to\nMoberley's Lake, twelve miles to the south, to pay old Baptiste a visit.\nThe house stands within view of the big peaks of the Rockies close to the\nedge of the lake, but the appearance of the country is rather spoilt by the\nabundant traces of forest fires that have taken place of late years.    The\nlake is a beautiful sheet of water, ten miles in length,  drained by the\nPine River,  which falls into the Peace a short distance above Fort St.  John.\nBaptiste has a fruitful potato-patch,  and his women were catching plenty\nof rabbits; there was moose-pemmican, too,  and dried meat,  for the\nFall hunt had been successful.    The Iroquois gave me a pair of snow-shoes\nornamented with tassels of coloured wool, as well as a pair of beaded\nmoccasins which he made me promise not to eat, and came with us to the\nfort to see us off.\n(Warburton Pike, \"The Barren Ground of.Northern Canada\", London, 1892, republished\nIn 1917.)\n I\nA DISPARAGING APPRAISAL IN 1893 61.\nH. SOMERS SOMERSET\nA wealthy young Englishman, with several companions and three native\nguides, made his way in 1893 from Dunvegan across country to the Pine Pass and so to\nFort McLeod. They suffered great hardships and came close to starvation, being forced\nto eat one of their pack-horses. It was an unusually wet summer and everything\nconspired against them.  Somerset refers to the Peace River Country as \"one vast morass\",\nand then warns intending settlers as follows:\nThe notes to be found on the maps of the country are emphatic\nin their praise of the soil,  which is undoubtedly fine; but if the experience\nof the inhabitants is to be relied upon,  the whole area fit for  cultivation\nonly comprises a few small river-side flats in many thousands of square\nmiles.    There has lately been a great 'boom' about the Peace River. . . .\nIt is a dreadful thing to think of the wretched emigrants who toil to this\npromised land only to find a useless country,  and who are often unable\nto return to civilization,  but are forced to endure all the severities of the\nwinter in the latitude where the temperature has often fallen to sixty\ndegrees below zero. . . .\nThere is a conspiracy of silence about worthless British\npossessions.    One remarks with wonder the notes of 'fine soil' and 'open\nrolling country' on the maps of a territory where the casual traveller can\nfind nothing but muskeg and sludgy swamp.    Now and again, hidden away\nin a corner,  one may find a tiny 'marshy, ' and a few infinitesimal tufts of\ngrass marked upon a Government map,  as though the conscience of the map-\nmaker had pricked him,  and driven him to fill up some neglected corner.\nBut of the miles of worthless country,  of the useless rotting timber and\nthe bare,  barren mountain, there is never a word or a sign.    Of course\nno one can expect to find definite information about unexplored country,\nand it were folly to condemn a district because so many others are bad,\nbut if the maker of maps were honest he would use the dotted line in many\nplaces where he now fills in with a bold stroke,  as though he knew the\nsurface of the country and the lay of the land.    It is natural that he who\nmakes a map or writes a book about the land of his birth should smooth\nover many little deficiencies, and should draw a little on his imagination\nin depicting advantages which may have accidentally been omitted in the\ncreation.    The vanity seems a harmless one, and, to judge from present\nevidence,  it has been freely indulged.    But when one considers that men\nwho know the true state of affairs actually pass it over, thus consciously\nenticing the unwary emigrant to strike out from the borders of civilization\nand starve in a hard and cruel country,    the. vanity becomes a crime,  and\na crime of no mean magnitude.\n 62. A DISPARAGING APPRAISAL IN 1893\nFor the unfortunate settler cannot know if the land be good or\nworthless when the maps say that all the land is good.    But happily, as a\nmatter of fact,  few emigrants have as yet pushed beyond the fertile\nplains of the Saskatchewan and the Edmonton district,  for the truth about\nthe North is leaking out, and men are beginning to realize that the vast\nterritory from the Athabaska to the Barren Grounds and on to the Arctic\nOcean is practically worthless for agricultural purposes.    There is,\nhowever,  a little gold in the rivers,  which,  with improved machinery,\nmight be worked to some small profit in spite of the short summer season.\nGold will draw men into any country; and so it has happened that,  from time\nto time,  a few,  more adventurous or more foolish than their fellows,\nhave penetrated to the Peace River country. . . .\nThe Indians themselves suffer fearful periods of starvation,\nand I have even heard of cases where men have been driven to devour\neach other.    In a land where the native starves,  what chance is there for\nthe white man?\n(H. Somers Somerset, \"The Land of the Muskeg\", London, 1895.\n111^\n SHOOTING THE RAPIDS 63.\nJOHN STRICKLAND LEITCH,   C.  E.\nFrom a diary kept by a young R.M.C. graduate while a member of a survey\nparty looking for coal In Peace River Canyon In 1903. The possibility of the Grand\nTrunk Pacific Railway being built through Peace River PasB lent attraction at this time\nto the coal fields in the vicinity of the Canyon. When the Yellowhead Pass was chosen\nfor the Railway's route through the Rookies, interest in these coal deposits practically\ndisappeared except for a few small operators who kept working the seams from time to\ntime to meet local needs.\nThe raft journey down the rapids began from Johnson Creek, about halfway through the Canyon near the Gething coal mine.\nThe day of departure has arrived.    We put in a great day's\nwork from 4 A.M.  till 9 A.M.  when we finished our loading operations,\nand with a great cheer we turned the bow of our raft homeward.    The\nriver is ten feet higher now than at low water and current is running 8 miles\nan hour in front of our creek.    Alexis was put in command and took the\nsteering sweep with Bob to assist him the rest of us manned the oars.    We\ngot under way all O.K.  and in a few minutes we were tearing along at a\ngreat rate.    Everybody thought we were going to have a great run until we\nstruck the first rapid.    It was a pretty fair one but Alexis handled our\nunweildy craft in the most approved fashion,  and in such a manner as to\ngive the whole bunch confidence in his ability to bring us through in fine\nstyle.    However we were not out of the woods by any means yet.    The\nfirst rapid swept our raft with immense swell and ourselves and goods were\nsimply soaked.    After the first rapid was Safely passed,  Alexis gave us\nthe word to go to it and we went as hard as we could.    The heavy sweeps\nbent like whips but we couldnM: do it.    I saw what the Indian was trying to\ndo make an inside channel to pass a regular green wall of water however\nit was no use so he put us straight for it and yelled to \"Grab a root\"\nwhich we were not slow to do.    The old Captain got greatly excited in the\nshuffle and managed to get his boots untied and nearly fell overboard in\nhis desperate dives to grab a rope.    It was quite laughable however he was\njust in time to catch one of the sleigh bobs which like the rest of all\nmovable articles was well lashed down.    Before we struck I saw Alexis\nshake his head and I realized the danger.    The wall of water turned out\nto be the result of a fall of at least ten feet but of course to our excited\nimaginations it seemed at least fifty feet high.    I am wandering from the\nsubject, and must come to or the trip through the Canyon will never be\nfinished.    We went over the fall like a shot out of a gun and for a few\nseconds,  hours it seemed, we were completely under water,  and hanging\non like a lot of half drowned wharf rats.    It was cold so cold that we were\nall chilled to the bone.    The raft was not buoyant enough to rise after\nwe went over the falls, and consequently when we went over the brink,\nthe nose of the raft was shoved through the wall of water and foam below\nthe falls.    Immediately below this the rapids were terrifying,  and our\ncraft got in the trough of the mountain-like waves for a few seconds and it\n 64. SHOOTING THE RAPIDS\nlooked exceedingly blue for us and I imagine fifty cents would have bought\nthe outfit then.    Alexis never lost his nerve or head for a minute,  and\nyanked our craft into line in a few seconds.    The two dogs who would\nhave been washed off had they not also been lashed on now started to howl\nand whine.    I suppose both with fear and cold.    Needless to say the \"whining\nof the dogs sounded very dismal,  and made the whole bunch feel quite\ndoleful.    The next three miles was one long succession of fierce rapids\nroaring and whirling as if they were trying to tear our raft to pieces.\nMore than half the time, the waves swept over our raft and simply buried\nus with water and made us cling on for dear life.    We passed probably the\nmost dangerous part of the trip where two cross currents met in fine\nstyle.    The Indian struck the centre of the maelstrom,  and we were\nthrough in less time than we could think,  but he shook his head over it\nand looked rather serious.    The remainder of the second rapid was not\nquite so bad as the beginning,  and our hopes began to rise that we had the\nworst over.    Now the craft was rushing like an express train to the\nnarrowest part of the canyon which on account of several pillar like columns\non each side we had named the Pillar Gates.    The whole body of that mighty\ncurrent was passing through this narrow channel at the rate of probably\n30 miles an hour,   so it is little wonder that the water seemed to us to be\nheaped up in the centre fully four feet higher than at the sides.    The water\nwas not rough except for a long  deep swell which we rode nicely,  and\npractically for the first time since starting our raft was not washed by the\nwaves.    The Gates were probably half a mile long,  and we simply tore\nalong like a greyhound.    We ran into a succession of rapids below the\nGates which lasted until we were opposite to Hudson's Hope,  a H. B.   outpost of Fort St. John.    The last five miles of the canyon could not be\ncompared to the beginning,  but they were just rough and choppy enough to\nkeep us all sticking to a rope like a pot of glue.    Altogether it only took us\nto run the estimated distance of fifteen miles 11\/4 hours,  so that speaks\npretty good for the current.    So far as I could learn from H. B. men and\nold voyageurs we are the only white men who ever ran such a length of\nthe Canyon.    Some Klondikers are reported  to have explored part of it,\nbut for only a few miles and that was when the river was at its lowest\nwater.    Our Indian is quite a hero amongst his tribe.\n(Coal-Seekers on Peace River, 1903 a diary by John Strickland Leitch r  I  .hu^ K\nirzr*\u00abiiT- QsU&gBrmsh ool\u2122Ma Hlstorioa\" ^pW^i.-w*\nMIL\n BUILDING THE POLICE TRAIL IN 1905 65.\nCAPT.  SIR CECIL DENNY\nThe writer of the following extract was a member of the R.N.W.M.P. party\nof 30 men who cut a 7-foot wide pack-horse trail from Fort St. John overland to Fort\nGrahame In 1905 as part of an access route to the Yukon. Several years earlier,\nduring the Klondike gold rush, the police had blazed a rough trail through the same area.\nFrom Peace River Crossing to Fort St.  John was not bad\ntravelling,  as this part of the country had been travelled before; but the\ntwo hundred miles from there to Fort Grahame was,  I can tell you,  pretty\nwild and rough,  across high mountains and very bad rivers. . .    The route\nlay through thick forests,  through beautiful park-like stretches,   over many\nrivers,  and across two ranges of mountains.    No one but Indians had gone\nover it before,   and we had to employ an Indian guide to show us the way.\nWe cut the trail seven feet wide,  but I doubt if it has ever been used\nsince,  and it must now be all overgrown again,  and blocked with fallen\ntrees.\nIt took us from March until the middle of August to go from\nFort St.  John to Fort Grahame.    I enjoyed the journey; there were all\nkinds of game -- moose,  deer,  caribou, and we saw whole bands of\nbear,  both black,  brown and grizzly.    Where they had been feeding on the\nberries,  which were most plentiful, they tramped down the bushes so you\nwould think a drove of hogs had passed through.    We also killed for meat\na number of mountain goats as we trailed through the mountains.\nWhen we reached Fort Grahame,  it was determined to remain\nthere for the winter and build log houses to live in.    Fort Grahame was\nonly a small collection of log cabins right in the heart of the mountains on\nthe Finlay River.    It boasted a Hudson's Bay trading store; and the only\nwhite man living there named Fox, was in charge of the post.    He was\nmarried to a Beaver squaw,  had several children, and had lived there for\nfourteen years.\nHe had to take his furs down the river in canoes to the mouth\nof the Parsnip River, and then up that river to Fort McLeod.    From there\nthey were taken by canoe and pack horse to Vancouver.    He obtained his\ngrub and trading goods for the next year at Fort McLeod,  and then took\nthe long journey back home with his boats.\nFort Grahame is situated in a deep valley between two\nmassive mountains, with the river (which is much wider than the\nSaskatchewan at Edmonton) running near.\n(Capt. .Sir Cecil Denny,  Bart.,  *Down the Peace in a Dug-0utw in wThe Beaver,  a magazine\nof the North\", March,  1943.)\n 66. TRAVELLING DOWN THE PEACE IN 1911\nHULBERT FOOTNER\nFrom an account of a canoe trip made by two Americans In the summer of\n1911 along the headwaters  of the Fraser,  down the Parsnip and the  Peace,  and over to the\nHay river and Alexandra Falls.\nBelow the Finlay rapids the river widened into the majestic\nproportions we expected of the Peace.    We swept around a great bend,\nand the gateway of the Rockies lay immediately before us.    We welcomed\nthe mountains like old friends.    It was a superb sight,  and our exclamations\nof wonder and delight sounded feeble in our own ears.    There was nothing\nof the terrible in it,  as of a dark cleft or gorge; the mountains seemed to\ndraw courteously back on either hand,   and through the royal avenue they\nopened,  the river moved graciously and unhurried.    \"Noble\" was the word\nthat continually recurred to us.    The wide green river fringed with pines\nhad an unspeakably noble air; the mighty,  far flung-up rock masses were\nno less noble.\nThe first great eminence on the right is Mount Selwyn.    We\nhad eagerly looked forward to the sight of it,  first on account of its reputed\nmagnificence which caused the matter-of-fact report of the original survey\nto burst into eloquence; secondly because of the romantic name it has since\nacquired.    Throughout the north,  Selwyn is known as the mountain of gold.\nThe lesser height that buttresses its base so far as it has been explored\nis entirely composed of metal-bearing quartz.\nMount Selwyn is 6, 200 feet high,  which in figures is nothing\nto speak of in comparison with the monarchs of the Yellowhead pass that\nwe had doffed our hats to.    But the pass itself here is fifteen hundred feet\nlower.    Selwyn is of a very distinguished and beautiful contour,  and it rises\nsheer from the water,  revealing itself wholly to the view with an effect of\ngrandeur equal to peaks of twice its size. . . .\nFrom the beginning of the trip we had been promising ourselves a try for the summit of Mount Selwyn,  and now even though we had\nsuch need to hurry we could not bear to give up the plan.    So we decided\nto devote the next day to it. . . From our camp an old trail led inland and\nthis we followed next day.    It presently brought us to an interesting and\nmelancholy memento of a former expedition to Mount Selwyn.    This was a\nlog shack with the roof fallen in and the contents rotting and rusted with\nthe damp.    There was the bed on which they had slept fifteen years before,\nwith the remains of the spruce boughs that had been their mattresses.\nThere were the little furnaces falling to pieces,  the melting pots,  and the\nporcelain molds,  and there were many moldy sticks of dynamite that we\nhandled gingerly. . . .\nlilt.;_\n TRAVELLING DOWN THE PEACE IN 1911 67.\nBeyond the hut the trail began to climb,  and it brought us in\nturn to all the little excavations they had made in the mountain side.    The\nclean splintered rock lay about as if the blasts had been set off but the\nday before,  and we saw more than one hammer that had been carelessly\ndropped at the end of the day's work,  never to be picked up again.    At\nintervals we came to square posts driven into the earth,  with inscriptions\nin lead pencil to the effect that so-and-so hereby gave notice of his\nintention to file a claim,   etc. ,   etc. ,  with dates thirteen years old and\nupwards.    Many of the pencil marks were astonishingly fresh.    It is said\nthat every foot of the lower slopes of Selwyn has been claimed and\nreclaimed.    Some day when transportation becomes feasible,  no doubt\nthere will be a great battle fought for possession of the mountain of gold. . . .\nThe upper slopes have been largely burned over long ago,  and\ngetting over the bleached fallen trunks was like climbing hundreds of tangled\nfences.    By and by we got above the timber. . . . The apparent summit is an\noverhanging cliff of dentated rocks. . . .The actual summit is a blunt rounded\ncone lying behind it.    It was like the roof of a medieval castle with two\nturrets connected by a battlement.    We reached it at one o'clock.    The view\ntook our breath away.    It was as if the whole world was spread before us,\nan empty world without a human sign.\nAt our feet lay the Peace River,  nearly a mile below.    To the\nleft was the wide, misty valley of the Finlay,  bounded far away by the\nsnow-capped Omineca range.    Beginning at that point and turning three\nquarters of the way round the horizon,  there lay below us a strange,  troubled\nsea of mountain peaks.    Peaks,  peaks,  peaks thrust up in reckless\ndisorder.    It was like a fantastic papier mache decoration.    Deep between\nsome of the nearer heights we had glimpses of wild and beautiful valleys\nprobably never trodden by man.    Hidden in a bowl behind Mount Selwyn was\na jewel of a lake that was neither sapphire or emerald,    but more vivid\nthan either. ...\nWe had now passed through the main chain of the Rockies,\nthough the great canyon still lay before us.    Ever since the first white\nman saw it,  it has been called Rocky Mountain canyon, though the Rockies\nare fifty miles away.\nThere was no danger of mistaking the canyon.    Long before\nwe reached it,  we saw a significant wall of rock blocking the river's\ncourse,  and from under it issued an ominous hoarse roar none but the\ndeaf could ignore. . . . We hastened over the rocks to look into the fearful\nhole   that swallowed the river entire.    The sight provided us our keenest\nthrill hitherto.    The mighty river that filled a whole valley above here\ndisappeared through an opening not more than seventy yards wide,\nand roared down out of sight between the walls below.    It is an incredible\n 68. TRAVELLING DOWN THE PEACE IN 1911\nsight.    They say the water has a rise and fall of fifty feet within the canyon,\nand certainly we saw great trees cast upr on the rocks at least thirty feet\nabove the present water level. . \\ t The impressive feature is not the height\nof the walls,  but the frightful force and volume of the torrent that sweeps\nthrough.    In this respect the Peace River canyon suggests only the\nWhirlpool rapids below Niagara.    We cast the biggest tree trunk we could\nmove over the brink.    It fell into a whirlpool,   stood straight on end,  and\nslowly disappeared.    It did not reappear while we watched.    Across the\ngorge there was a fissure in the rock into which another tree trunk had\nbeen horizontally driven up to the butt by the force of the current.    The\nwater had since gone down,  and there it stuck like a nail driven into a\nboard.\nThe canyon is twenty-two miles long.    No one has ever descended\nit alive,  but there is a tradition that a party of Iroquois Indians in the\n\"company's\" employ once lined a boat up.    The water must have been at a\nlower stage than when we saw it.    There was no footing then on the\npolished walls of the canyon,   even for an Iroquois. . . .\nThe trading-post at Hudson's Hope is opened only in the winters\nfor convenience of the fur-trade.    When we were there the little store was\nboarded up and a sign gave notice that trespassers would be \"persecuted. \"\nAll the old company posts throughout the North were erected with an\nunerring eye for a romantic and impressive effect,  and this one was no\nexception.    It stands in a wide,  grassy esplanade on top of the bank,  which\nis here some two hundred feet high.    Save for the canyon itself it is the\nnarrowest point on the river,  and one of the few spots where a railway\ncrossing is feasible.    The view down stream is very fine.\nAt five o'clock we hove in view of Fort St.  John,   sixty miles\nfrom the Hope,  and landed with less than enough grub on hand for our\nsupper.    It was Sunday (August sixth) and we feared lest the trader might\nhave scruples against selling us anything,  but on the contrary he hastened\nto open the store. . . . The trader,  Mr. Beaton,  was one of the  old order of\nHudson's Bay men.    He has been thirty years \"in the service. \"   He was not\nthe grim tyrant we meet with in popular fiction,  but a single-minded,\nunassuming Scotchman,  with a straight look and a hand-grip that inspired\nconfidence.    This summer for the first time the outside world was\nbeginning to straggle in.    Mr.  Beaton contemplated this irruption with a\nshake of the head and spoke wistfully of other days.    He guessed he was too\nold to change, he said.    Later we heard that he had resigned his commission,\nwith the idea of retiring farther into the wilderness to raise horses.\nFort St. John is the headquarters of the main body of the\nBeaver Indians.    They were all \"pitching about\" to the north when we passed\nthrough.    The Beavers are said to be of the same stock as the Sarcees,\n TRAVELLING DOWN THE PEACE IN 1911 69.\nwho are now on a reservation near Calgary,  five hundred miles southwest, and the story is still told of how the division occurred.    It cannot be\nso long ago because   a gun figures in it.    It is related that when they were\nall one tribe,   during one of their annual gatherings near the Rocky\nMountain canyon,  a dog belonging to one family fouled the gun of a\nneighbor.    A woman laughed,  and a terrible battle resulted in which many\nwere killed.    Everybody took sides with the result that the tribe split into\ntwo,  and the one part went south.\nMr.  Beaton deserves to be known as the father of the Beavers.\nAll these years he has been their mentor and their guide.    He was warm in\nhis praise of their good qualities,  their scrupulous honesty in trade, their\nskill in the chase,  but he confessed with a shake of the head that physically\nthey were sadly degenerate.    Their isolation as a tribe has probably forced\nthem into too close inter-marriage.    Such is now their lack of stamina\nthat the mildest disease rages among them like a pestilence.    During the\nwinter of 1910.they were attacked by the measles, and of a hundred and\neighty members of the tribe,  sixty died.    Mr.  Beaton,  who fed,  and\ndoctored and cheered them as best he could,   said that their demoralization\nwas pitiful.    They simply lay down and died. . . .\n(Hulbert Footner,  \"New Rivers of the North,  The Yam of Two Amateur Explorers,11\nNew York,  1912.)\n if\n70.\nPEACE RIVER IN 1912\nCAPT.   C.   F.  J.  GALLOWAY\nOne of the most entertaining descriptions of various parts of B.C prior to\nWorld War I was published by Capt. Galloway, an English mining engineer and Boer War\nveteran. He exemplifies the spirit of unbounded optimism during the last days 01  wild\nreal estate speculation resulting from the construction of the Grand Trunk Pacific and\nCanadian Northern Railways. He considered that Quatsino on Vancouver Island s west\nCoast might one day be a greater ocean port than Vancouver.  He must have been impressed\nby the sale of hundreds of city lots in the wilderness surrounding Prince George, towards\nwhich at that time no less than ten railways were being built, chartered or planned  No\nwonder he could see Hudson Hope as the future metropolis of Canyon City ~ perhaps he\nwas a better prophet than he realized. Commissioned by the Provincial Government to\nexplore some of the coal deposits along the Peace River, Galloway combined business with\na tourist's pleasure in viewing the country.\nThe Peace River'.    What fascination there is in the mere\nmention of the name of that great mysterious river of the unknown north!\nIt is the first to break through the barrier of the Rocky Mountains,  and it\nfollows its majestic course from west to east in a deep valley through a\nstrange and silent land full of mystery and charm. . . .\nIn comparison with the Mackenzie the Peace is quite a\nsouthern river; it does not belong to the desolate wastes of the extreme\nNorth,  but to a country which will one day be thickly populated,  and that\nday is not very far distant. . . .\nThe Peace River country will be one of the great granaries of\nthe world,  wheat will be shipped frm the Peace to the Thames via the\nPacific Coast ports and the Panama Canal; settlers are going in already by\nthe hundred, two railways are being built from the Alberta side,  and one\nwill soon be started from British Columbia; in a very few years one will\nbe able to admire the grandeur of the Peace River Pass from a comfortable\nseat in an observation car,  or from the deck of a tourist steamer!\nAt present there are two ways of getting into this country,\nfrom above and from below; one may go to the headwaters of the Peace in\nCentral British Columbia and descend in a canoe,  or one may approach the\nriver five hundred miles lower down,  in Northern Alberta,  and travel\nup-stream.\nThe most interesting and least laborious way is to do as I did,\ngoing in from above and coming out below, travelling with the stream all\nthe way down. . .\nOn the morning of the third day we reach Giscome, where\nwe have to leave the Fraser and portage across the intervening seven and\na half miles to Summit Lake,  one of the headwaters of the Peace River.\nThis short distance separates the waters which flow to the Pacific from\nthose which flow into the Arctic Ocean.    This being a regular canoe route,\n 1\nPEACE RIVER IN 1912 71.\nthere is a wagon-road across the portage,  and they have specially\nconstructed wagons to take canoes over.\nThe flies are very troublesome during the day at this season,\nso they are only working the teams by night,  and we have to wait until\nevening before getting across. . . .\nThe tramp across the portage in the late evening is pleasant,\nand that night we sleep in the warehouse on the shore of Summit Lake,\nsurrounded by hanging hams,   sides of bacon and sacks of oats,  and\naccompanied by lots of mice.    But it was not worth while opening up our\ndunnage and pitching camp in the dark.    |\nFrom here on it is to be all down-stream,  and we are\ncontent. . . .\nIn the morning we start out on our hundred-mile paddle down\nthe Crooked River to McLeod,  and never has a river so well deserved its\nname as this one,  for the distance is a little over fifty miles as the crow\nflies; in places,  after a detour of several miles you come back within a\nfew yards almost of the same trees you saw an hour before! .\nSummit Lake is a delightful sheet of water of irregular shape,\nabout six miles long,   surrounded by undulating hills,  densely timbered.    In\nthe distance is Teapot Mountain,  our landmark in finding the outlet from\nthe lake. . . .\nAt one point on the shore we see smoke,  and on landing it\nturns out to be a camp; the fire warden is coming up this way to attend to\nseveral reported forest fires.    He has a large area to look after, and it is\na pretty hard job after a long dry spell,  for fires get started somehow or\nother in all sorts of places.\nKeeping Teapot Mountain on our left we pass out of the lake into peaceful little Crooked River, a hundred feet wide, with reeds and\nwater-lilies growing in abundance in the still water.    An idyllic spot this\nfor a summer holiday resort, and no doubt there will be a tourist hotel here\nwhen the railway comes.\nThe trip down Crooked River is worth living for; it can be\ndone in three days, but more comfortably in four.    In places the stream\nis not more than six feet wide,  a little brooklet with rapidly running water,\nand one has a job to keep the nose of the canoe from jamming in the bank.\nFrequently one has to bend double in order to avoid the overhanging\nbranches of the willows and alders which nearly meet above.    It is a tricky\nthing guiding the canoe past snags in the stream and watching that one is not\nswept overboard by a trailing branch. . . .\n Jlpp\n72. PEACE RIVER IN 1912\nThe river is generally from thirty to fifty feet wide in this\npart, but one has to watch the channel,  as there are lots of boulders and\nmany riffles and bars.    In many places the stones have been taken out from\nthe channel and ranged along either side of it as a guide in low water.\nThen,  at the sharp bends,  it is impossible to prevent the nose of the canoe\nfrom charging the bank.    Then look out for your head while you prize her\nout!    The branches come sweeping down close to the water; sometimes you\nhave to seize a branch and pull on that.\nIn these narrow parts there is a good current and we go\nmerrily along,  but watch the channel well!    If her nose sticks between two\nrocks and she swings round,  then it is all up:   our stuff will all be in the\nwater in a jiffy unless we jump out and hold her in time.    In these places\nthe paddles are laid aside and the poles are used.\nBut in some places this tiny little streamlet spreads out\nover a width of two or three hundred feet in a beautiful flat meadow.    The\nbanks are generally lined with willows, and sometimes the bottom land is\ndensely overgrown with them.    In these parts the water is dead; it is a\ncase of constant paddling for miles and miles.    What a place for a lazy\nholiday!\nSometimes the river divides up into several sloughs,  and it\nis impossible to tell which is the channel; one may follow a slough for a\nmile or more, and then have to turn back and look for another way.    By\ncarefully observing the direction in which the long grass under the surface\nis bent it is generally possible to discover the course of the stream, but\nit is often impossible to detect any deflection at all in the grass.    One\nmight easily get lost among the sloughs.\nOn the second day we meet three large boats being rowed\nup-stream.    They are Hudson's Bay boats coming up from McLeod to the\nportage for supplies.    That is how everything goes into that remote country.\nThese boats go backwards and forwards between the two points throughout\nthe season.    They make the round trip in a week; there is not much difference\nbetween the trip down-stream and that up-stream, there is so much dead\nwater, but it must be rather a job to take those big boats over some of the\nriffles.\nBeyond these we see no human beings until we reach McLeod,\nfor this glorious country is entirely uninhabited. But most of the land along\nthe river has been taken up within the last few years.\nA. number of lakes are strung along the course of the river,\nand navigation on these is not always a picnic,  for a wind is liable to\nspring up,   raising a swell in five minutes sufficient to swamp a canoe.\n PEACE RIVER IN 1912 73.\nOne has to follow one shore,  crossing over as rapidly as possible from one\npoint to the next,  and where a bay is a couple of miles wide it is necessary\nto paddle hard if there is any sign of wind.    If one gets caught in the open\nthe only thing to do is to keep her nose well into the waves; a little water\nshipped can be bailed out, but if she gets caught broadside on it is a bad\nlook-out!\nIn the lakes, again,  it is easy to get lost; one may go down a\ndeep bay and search about among the reeds for the outlet for hours,  and\nfinally have to come back a mile or two and try another bay.    We were told\nof two men who spent four days trying to find the outlet of one of these\nlakes!\nThe scenery is simply glorious; here is a broad sheet of water\nwith golden water-lilies and bulrushes fringing the side,   rich green\nmeadows stretching back from the bank to where the tall poplars and\ncottonwoods form a fitting background to the peaceful scene; then we come\nto a steep bank covered with rich dark green jack-pines,  the yellow green\nof this spring's growth tipping each bunch of needles and giving a\ncharming effect,  and the paler green of the tamarack adding variety; the\nbank closely lined with willows, here and there a great cottonwood with\nits rich grey bark and shining leaves.    Then we pass through a narrow\ngorge and see nothing but the luxuriant growth of the alders above us on\neither side.    Again we come to a broad meadow, an ideal pasturage,  with no\nliving thing to pasture there - at least no creature shows itself to us.    In\nmany of these meadows there is a profusion of wild oats,  an earnest of\nwhat this fertile valley will produce when it is brought under cultivation.\nAt intervals along the banks camping-grounds are seen,  but\nthese are best avoided,  especially the Indian ones.    We choose a level\nspot and make our own camp at dusk,  pitching our 7 by 7 oiled silk,\nmosquito-proof tent,  and cooking our supper, which we eat before we\nunroll our blankets,  as these serve for seats at mealtime.    Wood and water\nwe always have in abundance.    Then we sleep the sleep of the just,  and\nrise at 5:30, make our breakfast,  pack up,  and get off by 7:30 for another\nday's enjoyment.\nThis is a bad country for mosquitoes and black flies,  but,\nowing to the exceptionally dry season,  we are troubled very little by them.\nOn the fourth morning out from Summit Lake we rise at four\nand make a start by six o'1 clock, for we want to reach McLeod,  and the\ngreater part of our journey to-day is along McLeod's Lake,  which means\npaddling continuously with no stream to help us.    The lake is some sixteen\nmiles long,  and in crossing one bay four or five miles wide we are overtaken by a sudden squall; great waves are lashed up in a moment,  white tops\n 74I PEACE RIVER IN 1912\nall round.    We head into the bay as much as we dare and paddle for all we\nare worth,   cutting through the waves.    We must be two miles from the\nnearest shore,  and we dare not head any more into the bay or we would\nget the waves broadside on and the canoe would be swamped in an instant.\nIt is a ticklish position; the length of the canoe is so great that she cuts\nthrough several waves,  and a good bit of water comes in over the bows.\nWe paddle on for dear life, without respite, and it certainly is hard work,\nwhen you are not used to it,  to paddle! hard for a long time without a spell.\nPresently the wind abates a little,  and after a few minutes there is an\nappreciable improvement in the water; the white tops begin to disappear,\nbut the waves are still running pretty high.    Cautiously we edge a little\nfarther into the bay,  and after another twenty-five minutes' paddling we get\ninto sheltered waters and can at last take a spell.    My back is aching,  and\nit is a blessed relief to be able to sit down again and rest,  for when paddling\nhard we rise off the seats,   erect on our knees in the bottom of the canoe so\nas to get a better purchase.\nThen McLeod is reached at last; we see the Hudson's Bay\npost with its flagpole,  the native village and the little church,  for the\nJesuits have been all over this Northern country for many a year.    This is\none of the oldest Hudson's Bay posts in British Columbia; it is over a\nhundred years old. . . .\nA strange life, that of a Hudson's Bay factor,  living alone with\nonly a few Indians for company.    Most of them marry klooches,  many dispensing with the sanction of the Church on the union, but this man is still a\nbachelor.    There is another white man in the place,  the priest,  but he\ntravels about a lot in his large parish,  and is not very much at home here.\nIn any case he is a French-Canadian who speaks imperfect English,  and the\nHudson's Bay men,  who are generally Scotchmen,  have little dealing with\nthe priests at any time.    Some of them are regular cranks,  preferring their\nsolitude, and resenting the intrusion of other white men into their domains,\nbut. most of them are glad enough to see a white face now and then, and to\nbe able to talk about the great world outside which seems so far away.\nMuch has taken place in the world since this post was\nestablished here over a hundred years ago,  but here it is very much the\nsame as it was then - the strong log building with its outhouses, the\nvegetable garden enclosed by a rail fence, the flagstaff upon which the\nUnion Jack is hoisted on Sundays,  the native village with its little church,\nthe priest travelling around in his canoe over hundreds of miles,  visiting\nhis scattered flock - all these must be very much as they were a century\nago.\nBut it will not long be so quiet,  for land is being taken up\nall through the North country; a railway will soon pass through here on the\nway to the Peace River,  and the fertile valleys will come under the plough.\nBiff.\n \"I\nPEACE RIVER IN 1912 75.\nEven now there is a survey party encamped on the opposite side of the Pack\nRiver; they have been away up the Finlay,  whose broad valley will afford\nhomes for many thousands in a few years.\nIn the afternoon an Indian comes to us with samples of ore\nwhich he has brought from somewhere away to the east,  beyond the Parsnip\nRiver,  apparently across the divide; he wants us to go and examine the\nplace,  which he says is rich in mineral,  but we have no time,  and we have\nheard such tales before.    The samples are nothing out of the way.\nThe Pack River flows out of McLeod1 s Lake; it is a good-sized\nstream,  but in many places there are riffles over which the canoe has to\nbe dragged,  wading in a shallow water.\nAnd what beautiful green meadows we pass through, lightly\ntimbered with poplar and birch; one looks in vain for the Jersey cows to\ncomplete the scene.    But these too will come soon.\nThen we come to Tootage Lake; on the nearer shore there is\na splash and a rustle,  and a fine black bear disappears into the bush.\nBy the evening we reach the confluence of the Pack and\nParsnip Rivers.    The latter is a large,  rapidly flowing stream with turbid\nwaters,  running north-west in the great valley which parallels the Rocky\nMountains for six hundred miles, being occupied successively by many\ndifferent rivers.    The Parsnip,  flowing north-west,  and the Finlay,  flowing\nsouth-east,  unite to form the mighty Peace River,  which breaks through\nthe Rockies, flowing due east.\nWe make good time,  paddling with the stream, averaging forty\nmiles a day, and two more days bring us nearly to the fork of the Parsnip\nand Finlay Rivers.    Once we see a camp,  and find it is two prospectors\nwho have run short of supplies and are going out to McLeod to replenish\ntheir stock.    They are laboriously lining their canoe up-stream, and one\nman has hurt his foot,  so they have to lay off for a couple of days. . . .\nAs we approach the head of the Peace River,  Mount Selwyn\ncomes into view.    It is not very high,  something over six thousand feet,\nnot even the highest peak in the immediate neighbourhood, but it marks\nthe portal of the Peace River Pass.    We have to paddle all round two sides\nof it, and our next camp will be on the bank of the Peace under its shade.\nThere are two great rapids on the Peace River -- Finlay\nRapids,  where it enters the mountains,  a mile below the confluence of the\nParsnip and Finlay Rivers, and Parle Pas Rapids, where it leaves the\nmountains,  forty miles lower down.\n 76. PEACE RIVER IN 1912\nSweeping round past the mouth of the Finlay,  on this rapidly\nmoving sheet of water, half a mile wide,  one begins to feel anxious about\nthe swirling rapids so close below.    But Gus is there, and'he knows the\nriver,   so all is well.\nNow the roar of the rapids ahead becomes more distinct;\nfrom a distant murmur, hardly distinguishable above the rush of the\nwaters close by,  it grows imperceptibly to a loud roar,  drowning all other\nsounds.\nGreat jagged rocks are seen ahead all across the river; woe\nbetide the luckless canoe that is swept down there!    We must be careful,\nand make the shore before it is too late; if we once get among the first\nrocks we will be swept on irresistibly like a straw,  and no boat could live\nin those waters; if she was not dashed against the rocks she would be\nswamped before going fifty yards. . . .\nThat afternoon we only make about eight miles, and camp\nearly under the shadow of Mount Selwyn.    We are now in the Pass,\nsurrounded by steep mountains rising three or four thousand feet up from\nthe river.    The peaks have all been rounded by glacial action; there is\nnone of the ruggedness which is characteristic of the mountains in Southern\nBritish Columbia,  no sharp points,  no glaciers,  no snow except a small\npatch or two here and there,  for the altitudes are not great here.    The\nPeace River Pass  is only two thousand feet above sea level, whereas the main\nline of the C. P. R.  passes through the Kicking Horse Pass at an elevation\nof five thousand five hundred feet,  and farther south,  in the States,  the\npasses are very much higher still.\nBut,  in spite of its less rugged character, the scenery here\nis magnificent.    What could be more awe-inspiring than to float down this\ngreat river,   smooth and peaceful now,  with no trace of its recent fury,\ngreat blue-grey mountains on either side, with yellow-green patches of\ngrass shining in the sun wherever the surface is flat enough for soil to rest?\nHere and there a clump of trees, a solitary pine clinging to an inaccessible\nprecipice; one wonders where it can get a hold for its roots.    And in the\nvalley bottom,  wherever there is a little flat ground, a magnificent grove of\ncottonwoods.    Afcove all the deep blue sky,  and the reflection of the whole\nscene in the placid waters of the river.\nAnd to think of the untold ages during which the river has\nflowed in solemn majesty through this great cleft in the mountain range,  to\nthink of the millions of years it has taken to cut this pass out of the solid rock\nwhich barred its way:   what a pigmy man is in comparison!\n1\n PEACE RIVER IN 1912 77.\nBut man has been scratching the face of the earth even here;\non the flank of Mount Selwyn are the remains of an abandoned mining\nprospect.    During the Klondike rush in 1898-9 many parties went in by the\noverland route from Edmonton, travelling up the Peace and Finlay Rivers,\nand away across the wilds to the north.    Many never reached the Yukon;\nhow many perished on the road will never be known,  but some found an\nattractive proposition on the way,  and went no farther.    Those who located\nthe auriferous mass on Mount Selwyn did a lot of work, bringing elaborate\nassaying plant in,  but that plant is all that is left now; the prospect never\npaid--it was one of the many white elephants scattered all over British\nColumbia.\nA magnificent view of this end of the Pass is obtained from\neven a little way up the mountain,  but the atmosphere is very hazy on\naccount of forest fires throughout the country,   and our view is limited on\nthat account.\nOn the opposite bank is a limestone mountain with a large\ncavern near the top,  known as \"Hole-in-the-Wall Mountain. \"   On the river\nbank at the base of this we formed, a cache and left some provisions for the\nuse of my two companions on their return journey; for they are coming back\nup-stream,  and it is no use carrying things all the way down and then up\nagain--it is hard enough work taking a canoe up-stream in any case,  without carrying any more weight than is absolutely necessary.\nThe cache is formed either by building a platform across the\ntree boughs ten or twelve feet from the ground,  and placing the goods on\nthis,  well covered over,  or else by hanging them in sacks at a sufficient\nheight from the ground to be out of reach of bear.    In either case it is\nimpossible to be quite safe from that persevering and ubiquitous pest, the\nwood-rat; nothing but canned goods are safe from that,  as we found later on.\nThe passage through the Pass is one of the finest parts of the\ntrip.    One day there will be excursion steamers taking sight-seers up as\nfar as the foot of the rapids, possibly past them, for a liberal use of\ndynamite may make a channel even through both the Finlay and Parle Pas\nRapids.    The trip is far grander than anything on the Rhine or the Elbe.\nThis will surely be one of the most famous tourist resorts in the West; one\ncan imagine the Mount Selwyn Hotel thronged with visitors from all parts\nof the continent!\nThe Parle   Pas Rapids are not quite so furious as the Finlay--\nthere is a channel of a sort along the left bank--but their great danger lies\nin the fact that they give no warning; you do not hear their roar until you are\nclose upon them,  hence the name Rapide qui ne Parle Pas (\"The  rapid which\ndoes not speak\").\n 78. PEACE RIVER IN 1912\nWe camp above the rapids,  and examine them in the evening.\nIn the morning we manage to line the canoe all the way down,   only portaging\nthe most valuable part of our dunnage as a precaution.    Then we paddle downstream all the rest of the day between rounded foot-hills which rise to a\nheight of one to two thousand feet above the river,  for the rapids mark the\nend of the mountains.\nThe river is not swift here,   and numerous eddies and\nbackwashes greatly retard our progress,   so that it is late in the evening\nbefore we have covered the forty-five miles to the head of the Canyon of the\nMountain of Rocks,  as the Peace River Canyon is called.    At one place the\nriver widens out to a couple of miles in width,  but it is generally three to\nfour hundred yards wide.\nThere has once been a great lake here, the progress of the\nriver being barred by a mountain chain,  but a deep canyon has been cut\nthrough this,  over twenty miles along,  with a fall of 250 feet in that distance.\nThe first nine miles is between vertical walls, three hundred feet high in\nplaces, then comes an interval of comparatively open country, and below\nthat about eight miles more of canyon, not quite so deep as the upper part.\nWhen the river is in flood it must be a sight for the gods\nto see the mighty torrent raging down between those walls; the water at the\ncanyon head rises to a height of forty feet above its present level.\nBut,  high water or low,  no boat has ever passed through\nthe canyon; if a canoe drifts into it,  nothing but matchwood comes out at the\nother end.\nThere are a few places where it is possible to scramble down\ninto the bottom of the canyon,  and, in the present very low state of the\nwater, we can walk for miles along the rock ledges and coarse gravel\nbeaches in the bottom.\nAt one place two little islands stand in the middle of the\nstream, with vertical sides, their tops densely covered with spruce and fir.\nA scene of strange fascination, those two islets--or I should say three,  for\nthere is a smaller one, almost bare, just below--holding their own with the\nmighty torrent rushing past them, the cliff on the far side rising sheer\nthree hundred feet.    The tall fir-trees down there on the islands look like\nlittle toy trees out of a Noah's Ark!\nAt the canyon head we cache our stuff,  and take what we want\nfor a few days at a time,   packing it on our backs--grub,  cooking apparatus,\n^instruments,  and our blankets and tent.    During our absence the wood-rats\nare busy; they have a special predilection for leather,  and invariably gnaw\nstraps or belts  in two,   spoil one boot out of each pair,  and do all the\n PEACE RIVER IN 1912 79.\ndamage they can in a given time.    They also break into as many different\nsacks as possible,  and take a nibble at everything-beans,   rice,  dried\nfruits,  candles.\nMy geological investigations necessitate following some of the\ntributary creeks for a number of miles.    Travelling is not always easy.\nOne comes to a fall of twenty or thirty feet,  and cannot get up except by\nretracing one's steps for half a mile,  clambering up the side of the gully,\nwhich may be three or four hundred feet deep,  and making a way through\nthe timber,  across ravines and through dense brush in places,  until some\nplace is discovered where it is possible to descend into the gully above the\nfall.    Perhaps after getting nearly down into the bottom we come to a\nvertical drop off of fifty feet,  and have to clamber up again and look for\nanother place to make the descent.\nThe first time we return to the canyon head we have the luck\nto meet a settler from Hudson's Hope who owns a number of packhorses,   so\nwe make arrangements for the transport of our dunnage across the portage\nwhen we have finished at this end.    It is a .fairly good pack trail,  and only\nfourteen miles across, the river making a detour of twenty-seven miles\nbetween this and the Hope.\nOn the day fixed we meet the settler, who is accompanied by\nhis klooch, a picturesque-looking copper-faced lady riding astride a mule\nand smoking a corncob pipe.    But she strongly objects to the camera.\nHudson's Hope consists of two pairs of log buildings,  belonging to the Hudson's Bay Company and Revillon Freres respectively,  but\nneither occupied at the moment.    The Indians are all away hunting, and the\nfactors are sometimes withdrawn from some of the smaller posts during\nthe off season.    A few settlers have taken up land here within the last\ncouple of years, and, although there is a good bit of clearing to do anywhere\non the north side of the river, they have been industrious and have already\nthe tidy beginnings of ranches.    On the south side of the river the flat\nvalley bottom extends back for a couple of miles,  a splendid townsite, which\nhas already been seized upon by speculators,  a number of whom have\n\"squatted\" on land and built log cabins,  remaining on it long enough to\nfulfill the legal requirements for a homestead, for this is in the \"Dominion\nBlock, \" where settlers can get land free by complying with the requirements.\nA number of fine sites have been taken up along the lower part of the canyon,\nand these will make magnificent residential locations when there really is\na city here.    It has already been re-christened Canyon City, the old name,\nHudson's Hope,  not being considered sufficiently classy.\nFrom here down the river is navigable for 550 miles, to the\nVermilion Falls away down towards the northern boundary of Alberta,  and\nit is conceivable that grain may in future be shipped up the river from all\n df$\n80. PEACE RIVER IN 1912\nthe great lower Peace River country as far as here, and thence by rail to\nthe Pacific Coast.    Canyon City is certainly in an important position,  being\nat the head of a stretch of 550 miles of navigable river passing through a\nland which will before many years have passed be literally \"flowing with milk\nand honey. \"   There are moreover Extensive deposits of excellent coal in\nthe neighbourhood.    It is not impossible that the Finlay and Parle Pas\nRapids may be rendered navigable,  and the narrow and shallow portions of\nthe Crooked and Pack Rivers widened and dredged so as to form a continuous\nwaterway from the head of the canyon to Summit Lake,  a distance of three\nhundred miles.\nGreater things than this have been done elsewhere; who\nknows what developments will take place here during the next hundred years?\nWe will not live to see it,  but one day Canyon City may rank among the\nforemost cities of the Great West.\nIn imagination I see this place a hundred years hence; a\nbeautiful city spreads out over the valley,  rich in architectural beauty, for\nthe day of the hideous sky-scraper is over, and the monotonous,  interminable,\nrectangular block system has also disappeared, the streets being laid out\nin a way that takes advantage of the natural configuration of the ground,\nparks and gardens being a prominent feature.    To the east are numerous great\nfactories,  for the immense power of the water in the canyon has been\nharnessed.    The coal-mines on Johnstone Creek, twelve miles away,   supply\nhalf the prairie provinces.    Steamers ply busily on both the lower and the\nupper stretches of the river,  and railways radiate from here in all directions;\nthe Peace River country is a network of railway lines,  which collect the\nharvests and bring the grain to the point of shipment.    Electric cars convey\nthe tourists to the brink of the canyon,  and they can see all its wonders for\nten cents,  passing on the way the beautiful residences dotted along the lower\ncanyon.    The fine hotel at the foot of Mount Selwyn is a favourite resort for\na summer holiday or a week-end jaunt.    A non-stop aeroplane runs daily\nto Winnipeg,  another to Chicago,  and another to Vancouver,  besides those\nwhich stop at intermediate points.    To Prince George,  formerly called\nFort George,  there is a frequent and rapid service.    There are many other\nlarge cities in this northern country,  and the rivalry between Canyon City\nand Dunvegan is great.\nBut we must return from these dreams to the present.    There\nare two steamers now running on the river, one belonging to the Hudson's\nBay Company,  and the other to the \"Diamond P, \" the company which owns\nthe flour-mills at Vermilion.    We are told that the former is expected to\nmake one more trip up to Hudson's Hope about the middle of the month\n(August).    It has been making three or four trips a season in recent years.\nSo I arrange to be ready for it; that will greatly simplify the problem of\ngetting out from here.\nliL...\n PEACE RIVER IN 1912 81.\nWe make one more trip out for four days, taking two packhorses.\nThat is much better than packing the things on our backs,  and there is a\ntrail for about twelve miles in the direction we want to go.    The trail is\npretty good,  but the horses frequently stumble over roots,  and sometimes\nthey step right on a hornets' nest,  when there is liable to be trouble!\nThe flat valley bottom,  and many patches among the hills\naround the lower part of the canyon,   consist    of beautiful meadow-land,\ndotted with small poplars and birches; long grass, breast high very often,\nbeautiful flowers,   cranberries in profusion--a delightful country,  like one\nvast park.    On the high ground beyond the valley, which is from seven\nhundred to a thousand feet deep,  from here on right down into Alberta,  there\nis a prairie--beautiful,   endless,   rolling prairie, the country upon which all\neyes are now turned as the country of the future.    The prairies of the\nUnited States,  of Manitoba,  Saskatchewan and Southern Alberta are\nbecoming gradually filled up,  and people are already beginning to look farther\nafield.    This vast country alone remains in North America,  in very truth\nthe Last Great West.\nAnd the climate, what of that?    There is an impression that\naway up here in the North the climate must be very severe.    But it is no\nworse than in the present settled areas, for the isothermal lines bend\nnorthwards as the Rocky Mountains are approached, and the Peace River\ncorresponds roughly to Southern Manitoba in climate*   It is well known that\nthe finest wheat in the world is the Manitoba Hard,  a variety which has been\nproduced by growing wheat as near to the Northern limit of its cultivation\nas possible,  and this has been grown experimentally with great success on\nthe Peace River.\nAway down at Vermilion,  it is true, the crop is very often a\nfailure,  but there is a vast area of country much farther south than that.\nThe worst thing i's not the cold,  but the fear of insufficient rain; it may\nhappen that in exceptionally dry years such as this there may be a drought.\nThat is the only drawback,  and it is one which this country shares with many\nothers which are thriving wheat producers. . . .\n(\"The Call of the West - Letters from British Columbia\" by C.P.J. Galloway, Capt.\nR.M.R.E., New York, 1916.)\n dm-\n$2. ON THE HEADWATERS OF THE PEACE IN 191 <\nPAUL LELAND HAWORTH\nAn interesting description of a canoe journey from Summit Lake to the\nnorthern reaches of the Finlay River and its branches was published in 1917 by an\nAmerican traveller and author, who chose this region because it gave him an opportunity\nto set his foot where no other white man had been.\"\nWe were now passing over the divide to a region draining into\nthe Arctic,  and this gave added zest to the walk.    The portage-trail rises\nseveral hundred feet and does not descend Bo far on the north side,  with\nthe result that Summit Lake is about two hundred feet higher than is the\nFraser at the other end of the portage.    So far as I discovered from a\ncursory survey* there is no considerable change in vegetation,  though the\nwoods on the Arctic slope seem more open and the trees smaller.    There is\na decided difference in the finny denizens of the two river systems,  and\nmuch the better fishing - with a rod - is to be found on the Peace River side.\nThe greatest food fish of the Northwest - the salmon - does not,  however,\noccur in the Arctic waters,  and the Indians who live on these waters lead a\nmuch more precarious existence than do those who frequent good salmon\nstreams on the Pacific side of the divide.    Salmon,  fresh or dried,  is the\nstaff of life to the Pacific coast Siwash,  but the natives of the Arctic slope\nhave no such recourse and must sometimes eat the sap of the jack-pines. . . .\nSummit Lake, though twelve or fifteen miles from shore to\nshore in places,  is chiefly made up of a labyrinth of islands,  arms,  and\nchannels.    It is very easy for travellers unacquainted with the lake to\nbecome lost on it, and one party is said to have spent four days searching\nfor the outlet.    Those who know the lake steer toward a conical hill of rock\nthat goes by the name of Teapot Mountain,  the outlet lies by this at the\nend of a narrow arm.    There are several of these conical hills farther on;\none of the most notable bears the name of Coffee Pot Mountain. . . .\nMeasured by the amount of water it carries, the outlet of Summit Lake is no\nmore than a small creek.    In places it contracts until it is only a few feet\nwide and very shallow and swift; in others it broadens out into long\nstretches of water so dead that even by dipping your hand down you cannot\ntell which way the current runs.    In these quiet stretches the current is\noften nearly blocked with yellow water-lilies.    The stream is rightly\nnamed the Crooked,  for it winds here and there in a seemingly most\npurposeless and aimless manner,  though the general direction is north.    The\nlow banks are cut by numerous arms and sloughs,   and in many places are\ncovered with a growth of willow so thick and matted together as to be\npractically impenetrable.\nm\n ON THE HEADWATERS OF THE PEACE IN 1916 83.\nIt was plain that originally the stream had been less navigable\nthan now,  for along many of the shallows there lay,  on either side,  a line\nof boulders that had evidently been rolled out of the way.    The channel thus\ncreated is known to navigators as the \"Wagon-Road. \"   Just who did this\nwork is uncertain,  but one tradition says that it was done by a certain\n\"Twelve-Foot\" Davis,  who was once a well-known character on these watercourses. . . . He was for years a \"free trader\" in the Peace River country,\nand at one time had a little fur post at the west end of the great Peace River\nCanyon.    Subsequently he died at Slave Lake and was buried on a high hill\noverlooking Peace River Crossing.    I saw the grave on my way out.    The\nepitaph on the newly erected tombstone states that \"he was every man's\nfriend and never locked his cabin door. \". . . .\nHere and everywhere else along the Crooked I was repeatedly\nstruck with the great abundance of fish.    Dollies and rainbows we generally\nsaw in swift water,  but every quiet pool was full of \"suckers\" or \"carp\",\nmany of them big fish of several pounds' weight.    They swam leisurely along\nin vast schools,  and in places literally hid the bottom.  I doubt not that with\na pound of dynamite one could have killed a wagon-load.\nFarther on the stream widens out and winds for miles through\na vast willow flat.    The current here was practically dead,  and in many\nplaces the water was fifteen or twenty feet deep.    The stream then flows\ninto Davie Lake, a body of water five or six miles long and in places two or\nthree miles wide. . . . Toward the northern end of Davie Lake there is a\nnarrows,  and on the slope of a hill on the right-hand side we saw a\ndeserted cabin and the lonely grave of a young trapper named Allen Harvey,\nwho in 1913 accidentally cut his knee with an axe and died soon after. . \u201e .\nShallow riffles were now a thing of the past on the Crooked,\nand from Davie Lake onward the river would be navigable by boats of a\nconsiderable size.    The country from Davie Lake to McLeod Lake is\ngenerally more broken and is,  in places,  heavily timbered,  for the most\npart with spruce,  but with some small birch and poplar and little fir, the\nlast-mentioned tree,  it is said,  not being found north of Fort McLeod.    The\nspruce is generally larger than that about Summit Lake.    Estimates have\nit that the timber about Davie Lake would run thirty thousand feet to the\nacre.\nRealizing that this timber will become valuable when a railroad\nis built through this country, a great lumber company bought up a vast\nstretch of it.    As I understand it, the tract was not bought as timberland,\nbut as low-grade land at a cheap price.    Before making the purchase the\nlumber people sent in a party of \"cruisers\" who sought out one of the few\ngrassy flats in the whole region and took pictures of themselves; first,\nstanding in the grass; the second, kneeliaag in the grass,  and, third,\nsitting in the grass; the object being to have evidence that the tract was not\n 1\n84. ON THE HEADWATERS OF THE PEACE IN 1916\nvaluable timber-land!    There must have been collusion somewhere,  but,  if\nso, the guilty officials have these prairie pictures to use in their defense.\nThe Hudson's Bay trading-post,  known as Fort McLeod,\nstands above the spot where the lake empties into Pack River.    Incredible\nas it may seem, this post is the oldest settlement west of the Rocky\nMountains north of New Mexico and California.    At present it consists\nmerely of two or three log buildings belonging to the Company and of the\nIndian village.    The residence cabin is surrounded by neat fence, and in\nfront of the store there stands the usual flagpole.    There is a garden in\nwhich some fine vegetables were growing.    The man in charge of the post\nwas an Englishman recently come with his family from Victoria.\nThe Indians belong to the Sikanni tribe.    In view of the fact\nthat they have been under white influence for more than a century,  one\nmight reasonably suppose that they would have made considerable progress\nin the arts of civilization, but they still prefer to lead a primitive\nexistence.    Though they are fond of potatoes and other products of the soil -\nwhen they can beg them of white people (t they have made little effort to raise\nthese desirable articles themselves.    For the most part they are still meat-\neaters and hunt and fish the year round.    Big game is now scarce around\nthe lake,  but they still find an abundance on the headwaters of the Parsnip\nand in the Rockies to the eastward.\nThey kill a considerable number of bears each year,  some\nof them in midwinter when the animals are hibernating.    Through long\nacquaintance with the country they know many holes and caves into which\nthe animals are likely to retire for their winter sleep,  and by visiting such\nplaces they find some bears.\nDisease and the fact that the squaws are adepts in controlling\nthe birth-rate has gradually reduced the number of the McLeod Indians until\nthere are less than a hundred of all ages and ^exes.\nOn a memorable afternoon,  when a high wind was kicking up\nthe river so heavily that we were forced to keep in. sheltered water near\nshore,  we floated down the final stretch of the Parsnip beneath the towering\ncliffs of Mount Wolseley,  fought the broad,   racing current of a new river\nthat came dashing down from the north,  and tied up under the bank   at\nPeterson's at Finlay Forks.    As the \"Forks\" may in course of time make\nsome noise in the world,  I shall describe a bit in detail how it appeared that\nafternoon.    To the west of the Forks and for a short distance on the east of\nthe Finlay there lies a level plain,  heavily overgrown with timber and\nconsisting of rich alluvium capable of growing splendid crops,  as the\nluxuriant cabbage and potatoes in Peterson's garden bore witness.    Around\nthis plain,   rising like the seats of an amphitheatre,  tower the mountains.\nThose to the west and southwest, the Ominecas,  are distant,  but those on\nm\n ON THE HEADWATERS OF THE PEACE IN 1916\nthe north,   east,  and southeast stand right over the Forks.    A mile down the\nPeace are Finlay Rapids,  and their roar can be heard with great\ndistinctness at the Forks.\nIt is the fond hope of the inhabitants that theirs will one day\nbe a great city,  and they keep their eyes strained ever southward looking\nfor the coming of a railroad.    The place undoubtedly enjoys some\nimportant strategic advantages, and I could give several good reasons why\nthe promoters who   are behind the projected extension of the Pacific Great\nEastern to the plains country of Peace River would do far better to come\nby way of the Forks than to take the somewhat shorter route by way of\nPine Pass.    Ultimately there will probably be a railway that will follow the\nPeace to Hudson's Hope,  and another that will run up the Finlay valley to\nAlaska,  but how soon these roads will become realities is problematical.\nAlready there exists strong rivalry as to which side of the\nriver the town site shall be.    If a railroad does come through there will\nundoubtedly be town sites on both sides!    But the palatial residences of\nthe nabobs who make millions out of real estate, timber and mines,  will be\nlocated on the heights to eastward.    At present the place has three centres.\nFirst, there is the government house,  a new cabin standing on an island in\nthe Parsnip a little above the mouth.    Second,  Mr.  Staggy's store on the\neast side of the junction.    Third,  Mr.  Peterson's new cabin and store on the\ntimbered flat opposite. . . . As for the population of the region,  being averse\nto disclosing the nakedness of friends,  I shall merely say in passing that\nthere must have been almost a score of men roundabout when I was   there -\nincluding a party of surveyors, whose strength I decline to state.    The\nwinter before the Forks boasted of the society of two ladies,  but it boasts\nno more.    If all the men who have taken pre-emptions should return, the\npopulation would be increased a dozen or so.    But some grew tired of\nwaiting for the railroad, while others became inflamed with a desire to\nhelp reduce the surplus population of Germany. . . .\nFor a few miles up the Finlay the choicest bits of land have\nbeen pre-empted,  and a few cabins have been erected.    Most of the pre-\nemptors,  however,  had either abandoned their claims in disgust or had\ngone to the war. ... It was certainly a long way to go to fight.    To reach\nPrince George, the nearest recruiting-station,  is a matter of about two\nweeks of hard and exhausting effort.    And even Prince George is a bit\ndistant from the fighting front.    One of the contingents,  on leaving that\nplace,  displayed a banner bearing the inscription,   \"Seven thousand miles to\nBerlin!\". ... As I passed these deserted cabins and gazed through the open\ndoorways at the litter within I felt like reverently lifting my hat in honor of\nthe gallant fellows who had answered the distant call.    A finer thing than\nthis rallying from the ends of the earth the world has never seen. . . .\n 1\n86. ON THE HEADWATERS OF THE PEACE IN 1916\nThat afternoon we passed Pete Toy's Bar,  where years before\na giant Cornishman and associates are said to have washed out seventy\nthousand dollars' worth of gold-dust.    Toy was long a celebrated character\nin this region,   and tradition says that he had two klooches to do his packing\nfor him.    He was finally drowned in the Black Canyon of the Omineca,  and,\nof course,  there is a story that he left a great hoard of buried \"dust\".\nHis bar still exercises a fascination for prospectors,  and it would seem\nthat some time or other everyone who visits the region takes a whirl at it.\nThat spring some hopeful soul had thought well enough of it to square the\nstump of a small poplar and set down in pencil that he meant to file a claim\nthere.    Evidently he had a sense of humor,  for he called the claim the\n\"Perhaps Placer.\"\nThe gold in Pete Toy's Bar probably came originally from the\nOmineca River,  and years ago there were some rich camps up this stream\nsuch as \"Old Hog'em\" and \"New Hog'em. \"   But the cost of bringing in\nsupplies was almost prohibitive,  and even now it costs ten cents a pound to\nget freight from Prince George to Fort Grahame.    When a railroad reaches\nthe country,  it may prove profitable to work over the bars with steam-\ndredges. . . .\nAt noon next day,  after a hard struggle with the current, we\nreached the mouth of the Omineca, a wide,  shallow,   swift stream,  which\ncontributes about a fifth of the water of the Finlay,  and is its largest\ntributary from the west.    Immense gravel-bars extend up and down the\nFinlay on both sides of the Omineca's mouth. . . . Looking up the valley of\nthe Omineca,  we had a fine view of the distant Omineca or Wolverine\nMountains.    This range,   some of whose rugged peaks rise high enough to\nbear patches of perpetual snow,  has never been thoroughly explored,  but\nthe course of the river itself is fairly well known,   and there were formerly\nsome mining-camps on its tributaries.    About seven miles in a straight\nline above its mouth the Omineca cuts through a rocky ridge of gneiss and\nmica-schist,  forming the gloomy Black Canyon.    To the west of the\nheadwaters there is said to be a glacier covering three miles square of\nterritory,  and there is also a peculiar natural curiosity known as the\n\"Big Kettle. \"   This \"Kettle\" is at the top of a conical mound about\nfifteen feet high,  and from it strong puffs of a sulphurous gas escape.\nSmall birds,  bushy tailed rats,  and even owls have been found dead at the\nbottom of this vent or furmarole.    The Indians assert that the \"Kettle\" is\nthe habitation of evil spirits,  and they declare that birds flying over it are\nmysteriously killed in mid-air.    One of the white men who has seen it reports\nthat \"About an acre around the 'Kettle' is built of a spring-deposited rock\nresembling travertine.    Many mineralized springs seep out,  forming\nstagnant pools and oozy patches of reddish and yellow mud. \". . . .\nIn a rather wide experience with rivers,   I have never seen\none so profusely furnished with log-jams as is the Finlay,  and neither do I\n ON THE HEADWATERS OF THE PEACE IN 1916 87.\nknow one that is in the same class with it as regards sand and gravel bars.\nMuch of the vast floor of the valley is an immense bed of sand and gravel,\nand the stream in its constant shifting digs this up in immense quantities\nand deposits it in bars of perfectly enormous extent.    In places,  also,  the\nriver has cut a deep channel down into the gravel,   so that one passes\nimmense gravel cliffs,  hundreds of feet high and even miles long. . . . The\nhistory of the Finlay and its valley is a story of endless change,  of\nceaseless destruction,  construction,  and again destruction.    In some places\nthe stream was split into half a dozen channels,   surrounding numerous\nislands,  and it was often difficult to determine which channel we ought to\ntake.    Log jams and bars were ever present,  and we encountered rapids that\ncould be surmounted only by lining the  canoe up or by springing overboard\nand walking the craft up.    To cross from one side of the river to the other\ninvariably provoked a fierce battle,  and not infrequently it was only by\nusing our last ounce of strength that we managed to cross above some\ndreaded log-jam. ....\nOften we had magnificent views of mountains rising high on\nboth sides of the stream.    On the left lay the gneissic ridge which begins\nat the Black Canyon of the Omineca and runs northward along the Finlay,\nfinally culminating in some fine rugged peaks that tower a full mile above\nthe river.    On the right the main Rockies rose chain after chain,  and\nthrough passes in the outer range we now and then caught splendid\nglimpses of rugged white peaks which seemed to challenge us to come and\nclimb them.    Far ahead the mountains pinched in upon the river,  while\nsummit upon summit,   each seemingly taller and more rugged than the one\nbefore it,  burst into view.    Of scenic wonders there was assuredly no\nlack. . . .\nFort Grahame stands in a small clearing on the east bank of\nthe Finlay,  with a background of Rockies rising up behind it.    Although\ndignified with the name of \"fort, \" it consists merely of a rough log store,\na log storehouse,  and a couple of smaller cabins.    Scattered here and there\nbehind it stand three or four log shacks built by more enterprising Indians,\nand there are usually a few Indian tents pitched in the neighborhood.\nHalf a dozen Siwash and several snarling dogs had gathered\non the bank to watch our approach,  and we were cordially welcomed to the\npost by the man in charge,  Mr.  William Fox.    Except for a short interval\nof about three years Fox has been stationed at Grahame since 1893,  and\nhas been associated with the Finlay region much longer than any other\ncivilized person who now resides there. . . .\nA trail cut out by the Royal Northwest Mounted Police in the\ndays of the Klondike rush passes Fort Grahame on the way from Fort St.\nJohn on Peace River, two hundred and eighteen miles distant, to the\nTelegraph Trail and the Skeena River,  but it has not been kept cleared and\n 88. ON THE HEADWATERS OF THE PEACE IN 1916\nis now practically impassable.    The trail was at one time practicable for\npack-horses,  but there are now no horses in the Finlay country.    The\nIndians of the region have never had horses,  but depend wholly on canoes,\ndogs,   and shank's mare for transportation  purposes.\nAt the time Fox first took charge at Fort Grahame these\nIndians numbered about two hundred,  but some of them have removed to\nBear Lake,  while others have died, and there are now only about seventy\nbucks, klooches,  and children.    Physically they are a better-looking lot\nthan either the McLeod Lake Siwash or the Beavers at Hudson's Hope and\nFort St.  John,  though some of them are afflicted with tuberculosis and\nother diseases. . . . These Indians are still strictly in the hunting stage.\nFox told us that a few had tried raising potatoes,  but they had lost interest\nbefore the crop was made.    They live almost entirely on meat,  eked out by\nwhat supplies they obtain at the post.    From the store they expect to buy\npart of their clothing,  a little flour and other luxuries,   and they  mean to\nkeep themselves supplied with guns, ammunitions, tea,  and tobacco,  in\nexchange for skins and fur.    As the cost for bringing supplies to the fort\nis ten cents per pound,  and even flour sells for twenty-two cents a pound,\nit is clear that the Siwash cannot buy \"white man's grub\" in any very large\nquantities.\nThe supplies are brought in by a freighter named Ross, who\ndoes the work with a long,  wooden boat.    As we descended Parsnip River\nwe had met him and his crew - one white man and a Siwash - returning from\ntheir second and final trip of the year.\nBear,   sheep,   goat,   caribou,  and whistlers are slain\noccasionally and lend variety to the aboriginal bill of fare,  as do berries of\nvarious kinds,  but moose is the staff of life,  with rabbit standing Seconal.\nFox estimates that twenty years ago these Indians killed fully three hundred\nmoose a year,  but there are fewer Indians now and also fewer moose,   so\nthat the annual kill is much smaller.    In winter the squaws snare great\nnumbers of snow-shoe rabbits,  and it not infrequently happens that a camp\nhas nothing whatever to eat except rabbit meat.    This state of affairs is\nconsidered the next worst thing to starving,  as rabbit is not very toothsome\nas a steady diet and seems to have little sustaining power.    Still rabbits are\nbetter than nothing,  and when they are scarce, which happens about every\nseven years,  both lynxes and Siwash are likely to be frequently on short\ncommons. . . .\nThe hunting-ground of these seventy Fort Grahame Indians\nis a region of enormous extent.    They have subdivided it among the various\nfamilies,  like the principalities of a feudal kingdom.    Thus old Pierre and\nhis son Aleck hunt and trap the Ackie country; a younger brother of Aleck\nhas the region about the mouth of Fox River \"my country, \" he later told us. .\nm\n ON THE HEADWATERS OF THE PEACE IN 1916 89.\nWe lunched next day on a bank opposite the mouth of the\nIngenica,  a considerable stream that empties into the Finlay,  about\ntwenty miles north of Fort Grahame.    An Indian trail leads up this river\ntoward Bear Lake,  and there are said to be bars that will yield a fair\nreturn to the miner. . . .\nFrom the way the hills pinched in ahead, from the great rock\nmasses in the river,  and from the increasing height of the walls that hemmed\nthe river in, we judged that the canyon could not be far distant,  and so the\nevent proved.    First came a narrow passage with steep conglomerate cliffs\non either side,  but through this passage, though the current was swift,  we\nwere able to make our way with the canoe.    Beyond, the walls spread out\nagain,  forming a considerable basin,  at the upper end of which there was\nanother yet narrower passage,  where the real canyon begins.    There were\nindications that at the time of the spring thaw the lower passage is sometimes\nchoked with ice and trees,  forming a jam that raises the water fully fifty\nfeet in the basin.\nOn the west,  at the lower end of the canyon,  there is a wide\nsandbar,  which forms a convenient place of approach to the portage.    We\nlanded here and began the work of transporting our stuff round the canyon\nto the navigable water above.    Fortunately, there is a good Indian path,\nhalf a mile or a little more in length, that leads around the canyon, but as\nwe had much stuff and the way runs over a hill probably three hundred feet\nhigh,  night drew near before we had all the loads across.    Doubtless,  it\nwas dread of this portage and of dangers beyond that caused two of Finlay's\ncanoemen to desert him - hence the name \"Deserter's Canyon. \". . . . While\nresting from the work of portaging,  I examined the lower and upper ends of\nthe canyon and took several pictures.    The river contracts to a width of\nperhaps a hundred feet,  and the water rushes through with racing speed.\nThe canyon walls are of hard conglomerate and sandstone,  and through\nthis the stream has cut its narrow gorge. . ! .\nNOTE: After exploring several tributaries of the Finlay north of Deserter's Canyon,\nthe author returned to Finlay Forks and then journeyed eastward along the Peace River.\nFor thirty miles or so beyond Mount Selwyn the river flows\nright through the main chain of the Rockies,   and the scenery on either hand\nis grand and gloomy beyond description.    The peaks are extremely steep\nand ragged,  and many of them rise a mile right up from the river.    In the\nface of a great cliff, thousands of feet up, we noticed the black mouth of\na mighty cave.    I am convinced that in time the ride through this gorge will\nbe widely known as one of the great scenic wonders of America.    Just let\nsome enterprising company get a railroad built through it,  and then you\nwill hear of it!    Even after so many weeks of wandering among mountains I\nwas strongly impressed by the spectacle.    With the exception of the Liard,\nthe Peace is the only river that breaks its way through the Rocky Mountains,\neither in Canada or the United States. . . .\n 90. ON THE HEADWATERS OF THE PEACE IN 1916\nWe came in sight at last of the famous Peace River Canyon.\nThe stream is swifter than usual far above the entrance to the gorge,   and\nthough one hears much talk of the danger of being carried down,  only a\ndrunken man or a half-witted fool would ever disregard the abundant\nwarnings the stream gives of danger.    There were two or three canoes and\nboats,  one of them old and rotten,  on the beach or on the bank above,  and\nJim Beattie,  who has charge of the portage, has a good'cabin and a stable\nhere.    No one occupies the place permanently, however,  and the traveler\nwho reaches this end of the portage must walk overland fourteen miles to\nHudson's Hope in order to procure a wagon.    Across the river from the\nhead of the portage there is a coal exposure,  into which someone has dug\na short shaft. ... In old days the portage began only a little distance above\nthe canyon,  and at different times the Hudson's Bay Company,   \"Twelve-\nfoot Davis\",  and perhaps other fur-traders had small posts here for the\nIndian trade.\nThe river contracts greatly before entering between the rock\nwalls, and for over twenty miles it is a foaming torrent of turbulent water,\nthe total descent in that distance being about 243 feet.    So far as known\nthere is no very high fall, the river flowing in a series of rapids and chutes\nbetween perpendicular and often overhanging walls of sandstone.    No one has\never explored the whole of the canyon,  and the task would be very difficult,\nthough it might possibly be done when the stream is frozen,  a feat that\nJim Beattie tells me he contemplates doing some day.    Tradition says that\ntwo parties - one composed of two Chinamen, the other headed by a missionary - ignorantly attempted to run the canyon in years gone by.    Of course,\nnothing more was ever heard of them.    A British Columbia surveyor a few\nyears ago tried the experiment of sending through a very heavy,   strong\nboat,  well braced.    Only a small battered piece was observed to float out at\nthe lower end!\nThe time will probably come when this canyon will be\nharnessed to great turbines.    The power that could thus be created would\nexceed that of several Niagaras.    A quarter of a century from now the whole\nof the canyon may be lined with great manufacturing establishments.\nStranger things have happened.    Would that I had all that power within\ntwenty miles of Chicago or New York! ....\nI returned to the canoe about eleven o'clock,  ate a light\nlunch,   stuck a couple of pieces of chocolate and a duck sandwich in my\npocket,  picked up my rifle,  and set out on my fourteen-mile hike for Hudson's\nHope. . . .As I hurried along,  I had a consciousness that I was following a\nhistoric highway.    For a century this has been the path followed by Indians\nand trappers on their way to and from the mountains.    Mackenzie had\ntrodden it,    and McLeod and Finlay and Butler and Pike and other\ncelebrities whose names are associated with the \"great lone land\" of the\nfar north.    To the left rose a high rocky hill that earlier travelers,\n ON THE HEADWATERS OF THE PEACE IN 1916 91.\nfamiliar with buffalo,  called \"the Bull's Head\" and the resemblance was\neasy to be seen.    On some later maps the name is given to a mountain\nacross the Peace,  but this is due to a surveyor's mistake, . . . During the\nfourth hour I walked a long distance through stretches of tall,   slender\npoplars that had been killed by fire a few years before.    There had been a\nheavy wind the night before, and scores of the poplars had fallen across the\ntrail.    People travelling along the portage with horses and wagons carry\naxes with which to clear such windfalls out of the way.\nFinally the trail ran out upon the edge of a bluff whence,\nfar below me,  I could descry the deep gorge of the Peace once more,  and\nthe dozen or so cabins that I knew must constitute the famous settlement of\nHudson's Hope.    Before one of the most considerable of these structures\nrose the inevitable flagpole that marks a Hudson's Bay post.\nBeattie's and McEwan's cabins stand upon the edge of the\nbluff overlooking the Peace and command a noble prospect of water,  valley,\nand hills.    The valley,  or rather gorge,  of the Peace is here several\nhundred feet in depth.    A little way down the hill from the cabins a\nsplendid spring bubbles out and furnishes an abundant supply of the finest\nwater.  On a flat across the river and some distance farther down-stream\nlies the old site of Hudson*s Hope,  and it is wo rth remarking that on most\nmaps the post is still placed on the south side of the Peace. . . . By noon next\nday I knew most of the prominent citizens of the Hope,  and had seen the three\nbelles of the settlement,  daughters of a French-Canadian pre-emptioner;\nin fact, was beginning to feel like an old-time resident.    These girls, by\nthe way,  were the first white women that I had beheld since leaving Hansard,\nfor though there is a white woman at McLeod,  I did not happen to see her.\nThe winter before there had been two white women at the Forks, but the\nloneliness had proved too much for them. . . . Like practically every other\nplace in Canada, Hudsonls Hope has had its real-estate boom,  but things\nwere now properly described as \"very quiet. \"   I believe that the boom did\nnot reach the stage of platting land into town lots,  but several men came\nthither to file on land in anticipation of realizing big returns.    Hard times\nin the Dominion had caused some of the settlers to become discouraged,\nand the population at the Hope was smaller than it had been two or three\nyears before. . . .\nOne heard remarkable stories of the number of bears that are\nkilled by the Indians.    Listening to such stories,  one is likely to form an\naltogether erroneous notion about the number of bears, and particularly\nof grizzlies.    In reality,   seeing and killing a grizzly in any country is\nlargely a matter of chance. . . .Jim Beattie has been hunting and trapping in\nthe Canadian Rockies for ten or a dozen years,  and has killed many bears,\nbut not a single silvertip. . . .Each year,  however,  a few grizzly hides are\nbrought into Hudson's Hope.    Osborne has a fine,  large skin,  with splendid\nclaws, which he bought of  an Indian for five dollars!    Last spring Beattie\nbought a perfectly enormous skin from another Indian,  and I saw it in the\n 92. ON THE HEADWATERS OF THE PEACE IN 1916\nHudson's Bay store.    Unfortunately the claws were not kept on,   and this\ngreatly detracts from the value and interest.    It is very difficult to get the\nIndians to leave the claws on a skin,  and it is said that the reason is their\nfondness for bear paws and bear-paw soup!\nThese Indians are of the Beaver tribe,  and nearly every account,\nfrom that of the earliest explorers down to the present day,  makes them out\na low-down,  degraded set.    They are blear-eyed,  polygamous,  incestuous,\nrotten with tuberculosis,   scrofula,  and syphilis,  and are fast dying out. . . .\nThe Beavers,  like the Sikannis up the Finlay,  are meateaters,  but though\nthey often go hungry,  they have no idea of \"conservation\".    They will kill\ngame    as long as they have a chance.    Some time ago a bunch of them\nlocated a lot of caribou somewhere in the Moberly Lake country.    They\nkilled and killed until their cartridges gave out; then,  though they had no\nuse for half the animals already slain, they sent to the Hope after more\nammunition!\nIn the old days the Hudson's Bay Company employed the squaws\nto pack goods across the portage.    It is said - probably with some exaggeration - that a squaw would pick up a hundred-pound pack and march the whole\nfourteen miles without once setting it down.    They are still used as beasts\nof burden by their male lords and masters.    I saw one band come into the\nHope from a trip in the bush.    Dashing ahead on ponies came several bucks\nof various ages carrying nothing except their rifles; behind plodded a long\nline of squaws bent under heavy burdens.\n(Paul Leland Haworth, \"On the Headwaters of Peace River, A Narrative of a Thousand-mile\ncanoe Trip to a Little known Range of the Canadian Rockies\" New York, 1917.)\nm\n A VISIT BY STEAMER IN 1927 93.\nLEWIS R.   FREEMAN\nThls extract is taken from an account of travel in Canada's Northland.\nThe author came up to Hudson's Hope by the H.B.C. Steamer \"D.A. Thomas\".  He made an\nattempt to penetrate the Canyon by means of canoe and outboard motor, but soon had to admit\ndefeat.\nThe fifty miles from St.  John to Hudson's Hope is the\nswiftest water on the navigated Peace,  as the ever narrowing and deepening\ngorge of that section is the finest scenically.    There was a hard fight for\nthe steamer all the time,  but especially where it breasted the current in the\nrestricted channel called \"The Narrows\" a few miles below the Hope.    In\nthe sheer black cliffs which wall the river here there is just a suggestion of\nthe imposing ramparts of the lower Mackenzie, though on a somewhat reduced\nscale.    We touched once or twice in the straggling shallows below the\ndefile, where there are considerable stretches that must be very difficult\nto navigate in the low water of spring and the late summer.    As the swift\ncurrent has carried away all the sand and mud,  leaving only boulders and\nbedrock at many points,   striking the b6ttom with a wooden hull is not a\nthing lightly to be courted. . . .\nMountain peaks and mountain pines,  a loftier-lifted plateau\nand broken white water ahead signalized our approach to the head of\nnavigation at Hudson's Hope.    The red flag of the Hudson's Bay Company\nwhipped above the yellow clay-washed buildings of the old post which crowned\nthe rim of the plateau above a steep bank streaked white with the tumbling\nwaters of many springs.    The smoke-wreathed tepees of an Indian encampment sprinkled the flat on the opposite side of the river where the original\nfort had stood.    Canoes were drawn up from the waterside on either bank,\nwith one overloaded craft breasting the current under the power of a\npopping outboard.\nThe steamer moored against the bank at the foot of a road\nwhich probably follows the identical course of the ancient Indian portage\ntrail around Rocky Mountain Canyon.    For the lower end of the famous gorge\nwas just around the bend above now.    With a two-day halt in prospect there\nought to be opportunity to see something of it at both ends,  perhaps even to\ngain some faint idea of the odds the indomitable Mackenzie had faced in\ntrying to breast its rock-torn torrents with his pitifully inadequate birch-\nbark canoe....\nMy first inquiry at the Hope revealed the futility of gathering\nreliable historical information from the natives.    The trapper-hunter of\nwhom I asked if he knew where Mackenzie had left the river,   replied that\n\"he ain't never left it at all. \"   In fact,  he was living right over there on the\nflat with Mackay's Cree squaw,  which would be the makings of a heluva\nfracas when Mackay got back from Prince George.    But he didn't twig what\n 94. A VISIT BY STEAMER IN 1927\nIivartted of a lousy 'breed anyhow.    'Twasn't fair to hire a 'breed when there\nwas a white man to do the job.    Was it a guide I wanted?\nWhen another month in the North had revealed to me that for\nevery one of the original Scotch partners of the Hudson's Bay and North-\nWest Companies there are now a thousand half-breeds bearing the same\nhonored name,  I learned to frame my historical inquiries niore explicitly-\nTo the last, though,  I never did quite get over the shock of having an\napparently unmixed squaw-of-squaws,  with a wailing papoose in the slack\nof her blanket,  introduced as Mrs.  Mary MacTavish,  or a shuffling buck\ncome up and announce that he was Alexander McLean.\n(Lewis R. Freeman, \"The Nearlng North\" New York, 1928.)\n A JOURNALIST'S IMPRESSIONS IN 1927 95.\nLUKIN JOHNSTON\nLukln Johnston, a Vancouver journalist on the staff of The Daily\nProvince, travelled through British Columbia's Peace River Block in 1927 and later\npublished this and other travel accounts in book form.  He then became Southam Press\nEuropean correspondent, obtaining an interview with Hitler in 1933.  On his way back to\nEngland, Johnston mysteriously disappeared without trace from the deck of the steamer\nPrague on November 17, 1933.  A son, Derek Lukln Johnston, lives in Vancouver and is a\nresident partner of Price, Waterhouse & Co.\nMid-afternoon found us suddenly emerging from the river\ninto Davie Lake - five miles below Long Riffle.    This lovely sheet of water\nis about six miles long,   covered with water lily pads,  and you have to watch\ncarefully to strike the right path through them.    As it was,  our propeller\nwas constantly getting tangled up with weeds.    Around the shores of this\nlake was the first good timber we had seen.    Here there are fine stands of\npulp-spruce as far as the eye can see on the slopes of the hills.    Old Teapot\nMountain,  in Summit Lake,  still looks abominably close,  but,  owing to the\nendless twisting of the river,  we are not more than forty miles from Summit\nLake landing as the crow flies. . . .\nIn Kerry Lake we came up with a couple of trappers on their\nway to the Missinchinka. Of course we stopped to pass the time of day.\nThey were loaded to the gunwales with grub and stuff, and the inevitable\nmongrel dog on top of the load. The day was uneventful otherwise. We\nfished occasionally with fair success, but Seymour will not be satisfied\nuntil we hit the Parsnip where, it is alleged, there are oodles of large-\nsized Arctic trout waiting to greet us.\nWe came out of the Crooked River into McLeod Lake about\nfour o'clock and by six landed on the beach down below the fort.    It is a\npicturesque spot, this.    The lake is fourteen miles long and at the north\nend of it stands the old Hudson's Bay post, the white walls conspicuous\nfrom a long way off.    To the west is the wretched-looking rancherie where\nthere are   three score Indians - mostly squaws and children,  for the men are\naway hunting and getting ready for the trapping season by this time. . . .\nI couldn't help thinking,  as we heard tales of murders and\nunexplained mysteries of the woods, that it would be well if some police\nofficer or other official with police powers were to be stationed in these\nparts.    Between Prince George and Hudson's Hope there is no police post.\nThe result is that in case of some untoward happening, there is delay\nwhich may make it impossible to solve these cases. . . .\nYou can't blame the Provincial police,  for they can only send out\npatrols once in a while,  and by the time a message has reached the Prince\nGeorge station by some chance trapper going to town,  and they have\n 96. A JOURNALIST'S IMPRESSIONS IN 1927\ncommunicated with Prince Rupert,   and Prince Rupert with Victoria to get\nauthority to outfit an emergency patrol - why it  is hopeless to find out\nanything worth while. . . .\nOne might think it easy to evade capture in this vast wilderness,  but the fact is that while a man can live almost indefinitely on very\nlittle \"civilized\" grub,   it is extremely difficult for him to get \"out\".\nEveryone is known and the only \"exits, \" so to speak,  are by way of this\nchain of rivers and lakes,  by Manson Creek overland to Fort St.  James,\nor down the Peace past Hudson's Hope - at any of which places the passage\nof a stranger would at once be remarked. . . .\nGoing down river, for many miles the only living souls we\nsaw were a few Indians camping on the river bank with their \"sapi\" (big\ntrout) hanging on poles to dry for winter supplies.    At the north end of\nTudyah Lake we saw what I think was the biggest moose that I had ever\nclapped eyes on. . . .\nLater in the day as the river got wider and more pretentious,\nwe passed some splendid stands of spruce towering upward from the water's\nedge.    There are cutbanks, too,   showing where in years gone by huge\nchunks of the banks have slipped into the river.    The banks in some places\nare a blaze of gorgeous autumn gold of  poplar,    birch and alder.\nWe are camped to-night about ten miles above the mouth of\nthe Nation River.    Good spot in very thick forest.    On the sandy river bank\nare tracks of big moose,  and of deer. . . .\nLater we  spied a boat coming towards us up stream.    We\nmet it at Dave Leclair's cabin.    All went ashore to pass the time of day.\nIn the custom of the woods,  Dave had pinned a note on his\ndoor before leaving.    \"Gone to Summit Lake, June 7,\" it read.    We\nrecorded our call below,  for  such messages constitute the   \"visitors' books\"\nof the North.\nHere were Ernie Burden,  a well-known surveyor and engineer\nwith Jim Mcintosh on the way south from Jim's claims on the Ingenika Rrv\nWe offered hospitality (which was not refused) and they told us of the vast\nbodies of copper and silver-lead on the Ingenika.\n\"There's as big a body of ore up there as there is at Anyox,\nsaid J3urden.     \"It is not of very low grade either, \" he added,   \"and only\nawaits transportation to make it of enormous value.    The ore lies eleven\nmiles from the mouth of the   I,ngenika River. \"\ner.\n A JOURNALIST'S IMPRESSIONS IN 1927 970\nSome day,  no doubt,   a railway will tap that northern mineral\ncountry,   but it is a long way off the beaten track at present.\nAt six miles down stream from the mouth of Nation River we\nboiled a pot of tea and caught our first Arctic trout - that is,  Seymour caught\nthem - big fellows,  four and five pounds.\nFrom now on to Hudson's Hope we shall be traversing the\nroute followed by poor Warburton Pike when he and three companions tried\nto make their way in winter from Hudson's Hope to Fort McLeod.    The\nguides took them up the Nation River in mistake for the Pack - and they\nwere hopelessly lost for many days.    Eventually,   starved to the last stages\nof exhaustion, they staggered back to Hudson's Hope.    The tragic tale, told\nin Pike's book,   \"The Barren Lands of Canada,'1 is one of the simplest but\nmost gripping tales of the trail ever written.\nWe reached Finlay Forks without further mishap, about\n6:45.    Ole Johnson's cabin is high up on a terrace - marvellous view - but\nthe dickens of a climb when you have a big bedroll to carry.    We found the\nraspberries O.K.   <- great improvement for supper.    The cabin is spotless -\nnone of the usual junk and truck one finds in a trajpper's cabin.\nOne of the most glorious panoramic views I have ever seen\nat sunset from this terrace, two hundred feet above the water. Northward\nyou look up the broad Finlay River; eastward up the Parsnip and westward\ndown the Peace - all of them great rivers. The junction is right at this\npoint. The northern horizon, all streaked with red and gold of the sinking\nsun, was broken by tier upon tier of peaks, stretching away into the\nshadowy distance.    A never-to-be-forgotten sight. . . .\nSorry to leave this lovely spot.    When we're all dead and\nforgotten, there will be a mighty city here,  when Sir Richard McBride's\ndream of Alaska linked with British Columbia and the United States by\nrailway comes to pass.    It is the strategic centre of the North - three\nmighty rivers -oceans of power from Finlay Rapids,  whose roar we can\neasily hear,  natural level town-site and the natural distributing points for\nall the great northland as Prince George is for Central British Columbia.\nAt the moment, however,   Ole Johnson's shack on this side and Louis\nPetersen's far below,  across the Peace, are the only inhabited cabins\nvisible,  although there are some deserted shacks on the terrace and a\nProvincial forester's shack half a mile up the Parsnip.\n\"Lining\" down Finlay Rapids presented some excitement.\nThe rapids are a mile or two below the forks.    The river is half a mile or\nmore wide and is a seething mass of white-foamed water,  with great\nrocks sticking up here and there.    Some \"ride\" the rapids,  I believe.    We\ndid not.    We unloaded the heavy stuff,  including,  of course, that infernally\n 98. A JOURNALIST'S IMPRESSIONS IN 1927\nheavy bedroll of mine.    Then we \"lined\" the boat through. . . .\nLeft Ottertail Camp at 7:45 this morning.    By 9:30 we were\nopposite the mouth of Carbon River - so called because of large coal\ndeposits some miles up the river.\nWe went ashore and took a trail through the bush leading to\nthe cabin where Mr. and Mrs. Charlie Jones live. They are known as the\n\"Carbon\" Joneses.\nPretty lonely spot for a white woman.    It is many miles down\nriver to the Beatties' place,  and in the other direction there is no white\nwoman between here and Prince George. . . .\nCharlie Jones was one of a party on the way to open up some\nclaims on Mica Mountain, up the Ingenika,   some years ago.    The expedition\nwent smash and Charlie, knowing of the great coal deposits and feeling sure\nthat the railway would eventually come to them,  located at Carbon River and\nalso took up a soldier's grant.    He came back to this spot after the war.\nWell, the railway is nowhere in sight - but Charlie and his\nwife face the situation philosophically and make the best of it.\nCharlie is postmaster of Gold Bar Post Office.    No one\nexcept he and his wife get maiLthere, as far as I could gather, and the\nmail has to be fetched as occasion offers from Hudson's Hope,    forty miles\ndown river.    Theoretically they got it six times a year,  but they can't\nalways spare time for such details,   so as like as not their little mail-bag\nwill come on by stages - some chance trapper or settler taking it to his\ncabin west of the Hope and trusting that someone else will pass by to take\nit a stage farther.\nIn winter Charlie is away a good deal on his twenty-mile\ncircular trap-line.    One can imagine that for a woman to be left absolutely\nalone in the heart of this wilderness must have been a nerve-wracking\nexperience at first.    The woods are full of moose,    bear and other animals,\nof course - not that there is actual danger,  but one could forgive a slight\ntendency to nervousness,  to say the least. . . .\nNightfall found us at Jim Beattie's place,   eight miles or so\nfrom the Rocky Mountain Portage.    Mrs.  Beattie is known far and wide as\na cook without superior.    We did her cooking full justice.    Three youngsters\nwere on hand,  but Louise and Mary, the two eldest,  twelve and ten\nrespectively,  were ten miles away in the hills,  finishing the building of a\ntrapping-cabin for their dad.    They were quite alone and no one seemed a\nbit worried about them.\n A JOURNALIST'S IMPRESSIONS IN 1927 99.\n\"They can look after themselves, I said Mrs.  Beattie.    \"Why\nLouise can handle a team on the plough and can drive a wagon to the Hope\nlike a full-grown man. \"   Of such material are fine citizens made!\nJim Beattie has a farm of 155 acres,  and thirty to forty head\nof stock.    He is farmer, trapper,  trader and guide,   and general \"Pooh-Bah\"\nof the district.    He is by way of being a scientific trapper.    He told me that\nsince the trap-line registration had come into effect it was worth his while\nto \"farm\" his beaver,  for instance.    Before this Act came in there was no\nobject in a trapper trying to conserve the fur; some other trapper would\ncome along and jump his line and he had no redress.    The result was that\nevery trapper took all he could get without regard to conservation.\nIt is twenty miles to the Hope,  and Jim has made and\nmaintained this road without any assistance from the Government. ... .\nLeft the Portage two days ago and walked across the fourteen\nmiles with Jim Beattie,  past the ruins of Twelve-Foot Davis's cabin down\nby the canyon.    Reached Hudson's Hope at 5:30 p.m.  and supped at\nMrs.  Gething's restaurant.    Her husband,  Noel Gething,  is chiefly interested\nin the Hudson's Hope coal mine,   down in the canyon six miles away.    He\nhangs on in the hope that some day it will be opened up by transportation.\nThey told me that some years ago an appropriation was actually put\nthrough the Ottawa House for $30,000 to blast out some rocks in the canyon\nso that scows could reach the mine.    Change of Government prevented\naction.\nThis is the first settlement of any pretensions we have seen\nsince Prince George.    There are about thirty people here.    I was in luck\nin falling in with John McDermott,  Hudson's Bay man,  who took me to his\nvery comfortable home and put me up in royal style on a spring-bed and\neverything. . . ,\nIn the days that followed I left behind this wild,  grand\ncountry.    West of Hudson's Hope we had travelled for hundreds of miles\nthrough a vast land,   silent and unpeopled as yet.    Rich it is beyond the\ndreams of man,  in mineral and timber and fur.    At Hudson's Hope,  down\nin that vast cauldron of the Peace River Canyon,  where tens of thousands\nof horse-power run to waste,  there is coal of finest quality and in unlimited\nquantity.    It has been pronounced finer than any anthracite coal produced in\nPennsylvania and can be mined for $4. 50 a ton.\nThere is bog iron in the valley of the Halfway River,  twenty-\nfive miles to the north,   and in the valleys of the Halfway,   Nelson and Pine\nRivers,  galena,  grey copper and copper pyrites have been found.    There is\nstill placer gold in the gravel-bars of the Peace,  both above and below the\ngreat canyon,  although the dredging concern, whose derelict plant still\n 100. A JOURNALIST'S IMPRESSIONS IN 1927\nstands at Branham Flats,  has lost many thousands of dollars in the efforts\nto find gold in paying quantities at that particular spot.\nFarther west,  on the rugged slopes of Mount Selwyn,  where\none of the first discoveries of gold in British Columbia was made,  there is\nsaid to be a great reserve of low-grade ore.    West again,  across the\nFinlay River,  towards Manson Creek, there are the vast stores of silver\nand lead in the Ingenika country.    Here is a land enormously rich in\nminerals and teeming with game of every kind that this continent affords.\nFrom the unspoiled splendour of this virgin land,  where the\nfreedom of the life and the glory of wild nature seem to be more to the\nfrontiersmen and women than the mere love of money,  we came to Fort\nSt. John.    We entered another country, with different outlook,  different\nstandards,  different aims.    Here were settlers who,  despite their present\nremoteness from railroad or town,  were taming the wilderness in the sure\nbelief that the day is coming soon when they will hear the shriek of the\nlocomotive whistle alongside their farms.    Then they will \"cash in\" on\ntheir labours.\nThey have read that Canada's greatest need is a large\naddition to her population.    Thousands of the country's best citizens have\nbeen emigrating to the United States because they could find no opportunity\nfor progress in their own country.\nHere, they argue,  in this vast unpeopled empire,  lies the\nmagnet which will draw the land-hungry in tens of thousands as the now\nwell-settled plains of Saskatchewan and Alberta attracted settlers from all\nparts of the world twenty years ago.    Here are resources, not in agriculture\nalone,  which can provide the youth of Canada with ample scope for all its\ntalent and energy and with unlimited opportunities for living happy and\nprosperous lives.\n\"Give us a railway outlet to the Pacific Coast and all Canada\nwill feel the effects of a great new wave of prosperity, \" they say.    This has\nbeen the cry of Peace River for ten years and more.    And it is the railroad\nquestion which led,   some few months ago to the demand for a tenth   province\nfor the Dominion - the province of Peace River.    Long before the Great War\nput an end to the grandiose dreams of the railroad builders of the Dominion's\ngreatest era of expansion,   settlers rushed northward to take up homesteads\nalong the route of projected lines.    Along the Edson trail for 350 miles\nnorth and west from Edmonton they trekked with their ox-carts and cattle.\n\"Why,  I can remember,\" said an old-timer of Pouce Coupe,\nBritish Columbia,  to me \"How in 1912 the early settlers actually raced\nback from here to Edmonton to file on their homesteads.    The railroad was\npromised then in the immediate future.    And to-day,  fifteen years later,\n A JOURNALIST'S IMPRESSIONS IN 1927 101.\nthe 1500 homesteaders around Pouce Coupe and Rolla still must haul their\ngrain seventy miles to railhead at Spirit River. \"\n(Lukln Johnston - \"Beyond the Rockies, Three^ Thousand Miles by Trail and Canoe through\nLittle Known British Columbia*, London & Toronto, 1929.)\n 102. DINOSAUR TRACKS IN THE CANYON\nCM.  STERNBERG\nThis extract is taken from an illustrated magazine article written\nafter a visit to the Canyon in 1930 by a member of the Geological Survey of Canada, and\nauthor of several books on fossils.\nThe Peace is a remarkable river in that it rises to the west\nof the main range of the Rocky Mountains and cuts its way through the heart\nof this mighty ridge at about two thousand feet above sea level.    In descending the rivers from Summit Lake,  near Prince George,  British Columbia,\nto the town of Peace River,  one encounters two rapids both of which can be\nrun by experienced canoemen.    The only real obstacle on the whole of this\nwonderful trip through the mountains,  foothills,  and rolling prairies,  is the\nRocky Mountain canyon,  where a 14-mile portage must be made.\nPractically the only signs of man from the head of the Peace\nat Finlay Forks to Hudson Hope,  about 100 miles,  are occasional trappers'\ncabins and odd prospector who is seen panning for gold on the head of a\ngravel bar.    Four-footed inhabitants,  however,  are common and it is not\nunusual to see black bears, moose, mountain goats,  big-horn \"sheep,  and no\nend of grouse and other feathered friends.    Also,  a short side trip up\nWicked River or Clearwater Creek will satisfy the most ardent followers of\nIzaak Walton.    In these fishing holes one can choose the kind of trout he\nwishes to catch,  for on the sunny side he can hook beautiful rainbow or Arctic\ntrout,  from 12 to 18 inches long,  almost as fast as he can bait the hook;\nwhile if he prefers the Dolly Varden he need only move over to the shady\nside of the pool and his catch may run to more than two feet and furnish\nsupper for the whole party.\nFrom the head of Peace River Canyon to Hudson Hope,   14\nmiles by way of the portage road,  or about 25 miles by the canyon,  the\nriver drops 272 feet.  Throughout,  the canyon is virtually one series of\nrapids after another and the upper part has never been successfully run.\nIn many places it is very narrow and the walls are precipitous.    The old\npreglacial channel of the Peace probably occupied a position similar to that\nof the present portage road.    This part of the channel was evidently filled\nwith glacial drift,  during the ice age,  and the river was forced to cut a\nnew Ghannel which makes a horseshoe bend around the southern edge of\nBullhead Mountain.    The head of the canyon is a little more than two miles\nnorth of parallel  56,  and Hudson Hope,  which is almost due east of this\npoint,  is at the lower end of the canyon,  in the south-western corner of the\nPeace River Block.\nDinosaur tracks,  in Peace River Canyon,  were first observed\nin 1922 by Dr.  F.H.  McLearn of the Geological Survey of Canada.    Later\nMr.  Neil Gething,  of Hudson Hope,   British Columbia,   reported other tracks\n DINOSAUR TRACKS IN THE CANYON 10 3.\nfarther down stream.    During the summer of 1930 I was sent,  by the\nDirector of the Geological Survey of Canada,  to investigate the dinosaur\ntracks and collect such specimens as could be successfully exhibited in the\nNational Museum at Ottawa.\nWhen Sir Alexander Mackenzie ascended the Peace,   on his\nway to the Pacific Ocean,  in 1793,  he was told that the Indians never went\nthrough the canyon,  but that there was an Indian carrying place or portage\nfrom near where Hudson Hope now stands to the head of the canyon.    As\nit was said to be a hard day's journey across this portage and as he did\nnot care to come in contact with the Indians,  Mackenzie would not take\nthe advice of his informers,  but tried to work his way up stream through the\ncanyon.    He camped for the night near the present site of Hudson Hope.\nAfter two days of strenuous labour he found it was impossible to complete\nthe trip through the canyon so his men cut a trail through the woods and he\nsays   they warped the canoe up the mountain side.    A careful study of\nMackenzie's narrative shows that he must have left the canyon at the point\nwhere the dinosaur tracks are most numerous and best preserved.    However,\nas nothing was known about the dinosaurs in his day, the tracks would not\nhave been recognized had he seen them.    A few years later dinosaur tracks\nwere found in the Connecticut valley and were referred to as the tracks of\n\"Noah's raven. \"\nAs already mentioned,  the canyon is much younger than most\nparts of the Peace channel.    In the upper half the river has cut through\ncoal-bearing beds of Lower Cretaceous age.    The rocks are largely\nsandstone,  shale,  or clay-ironstone.    Many seams of splendid,  hard,  semi-\nbituminous,  coal from an inch to six feet in thickness are interspersed,\nand many of the sandstone strata are beautifully ripple-marked.    On the\nripple-marked sandstone strata and on the clay-ironstone and shale beds are\nto be seen numerous tracks, from six to 25 inches in length,  which were\nmade by at least five different species of dinosaurs as they wandered through\nthis region millions of years ago.    The strata dip from seven to fifteen\ndegrees to the south or southwest,  and at low water,  in many places, the\nshelving rock is exposed,  for a hundred feet or more, from the edge of the\nprecipitous bank to where it is covered by the river.    During the early part\nof the summer, when the water is high, these rock shelves are all covered\nby the river.    On some of the shelves dinosaur tracks are numerous while\non others only an occasional track is seen.\n(\"Prehistoric Footprints in Peace River\", by CM. Sternberg, in the Canadian Geographical\nJournal, Vol. VI, No. 2, February, 1933.)\n 104. HUDSON HOPE IN 1950\nLYN HARRINGTON\nThe Harringtons,  Lyn and Richard,  the well-known photographer, motored\nfrom Fort  St.  John to Hudson Hope and Gold Bar in the summer of 1950.\nThe road in to Hudson's Hope is one of the friendliest and\nloveliest in the north country.    Seven miles outside Fort St.  John,   it\nleaves the Alaska Highway to twist and climb fifty-three miles to \"The Hope\".\nNarrow,   curving,  and unblessed with gravel,  it has many a switchback and\n\"fiddler's elbow\" too slippery to negotiate in wet weather.    The drive is a\npicturesque variation of river valley with cleared farmlands,  wormwood\nand tumbleweed on baked clay slopes,  and moist forests of cottonwoods\nstanding in ravines below dry parks of jackpine.    It presents a series of\nmagnificent views out over the Peace River and its lateral ravines, over the\nsilt-islands crowded with spruce,  and beyond, to the snow-capped Rockies.\nWe motored in comfort where the explorers had struggled\nupstream against the powerful current of the Peace.    Alexander Mackenzie\non his way to the Pacific Coast in 1793 was the first white man to penetrate\nthe Rocky Mountain Range by the Peace River.    Other explorers - Finlay,\nFraser,  Thompson - followed in his wake.    They later found other passes\nto the south more practicable for the country's development.    But the Peace\nremains the one river which flows right through \"the backbone of the\ncontinent. \"\nTheir highway was the river.    First by land was William\nFrancis Butler, journeying through the \"Wild North Land\" in 1872.    He made\nhis way along the north bank and many a tourist has followed him.    As settlement developed along the fertile benchlands of the river, the Indian trail\nhe had followed became a pack-horse trail,  then a wagon-road,  and today\na road adequate for motors. . . .\nOur ears popped as we descended the steep grades to Bear\nRiver Flat with its cultivated fields of registered alfalfa seed,  and with\npurple bergamot rioting beside the road.    The vegetation changed constantly\nas the road rose and fell.    Clumps of purple asters garnished the roadside\nhere,  sweet-smelling clover there,  and aromatic sage beyond.    Tiny chipmunks high-tailed it across the road,  intent and earnest.    Mule deer paused\na moment,  then sailed gracefully over a barbed-wire fence,  and disappeared\ninto the trees.    Hereford cattle moved lazily off the road to permit us to\npass.\nThen miles ahead and below, we saw the village of Hudson's\nHope.    There were the red-and-white buildings of the Hudson's Bay Company,\nthe brown log hotel,  dozens of rooftops sheltering about 150 souls,  and\nfinally nestling in a poplar grove, the tiny Anglican log Church of the Assumption.\n HUDSON HOPE IN 1950 105.\nThe Hudson's Bay Company buildings are strictly modern,\nhaving been built in 1942.    A log garage is the sole survivor of the older\nbuildings constructed on the north bank about 1882.    No one could tell us\njust when they had been set up on the south bank.    When Alexander Mackenzie\nmade his epic journey of 1793,  only the framework of Indian teepees stood\nthere.\nIn 1806,  a trading post was erected here,  at the foot of the\nPeace River Canyon,  on the low south bank of the river.    It was established\nby Simon Fraser and John Stuart of the North West Company,  not only for\nits own trade, but as a supply base for posts which Fraser built beyond\nthe Rockies.    It was the third post in what is now British Columbia.    The\nfirst two were  Rocky Mountain House (1797) later moved to Fort St.  John,\nand McLeod's Lake (1805).    The place was named Rocky Mountain Portage\nHouse,  because here the ten-mile portage led overland to the head of the\ntumultuous Peace River Canyon.\nWhen or why the name was changed to Hudson's Hope none\ncould say.    Butler refers to it at times as \"The Hope of Hudson, \" but gives\nno explanation of the name.    Local residents had a far-fetched theory that\nMackenzie had named it thus in reference to Henry Hudson's hope of\nreaching the western sea by water.    A more plausible explanation came\nfrom an old riverman:   \"Most likely that was the name of some hopeful\nminer panning the gravel bars of the Peace for gold. \"\nHudson's Hope,  once designed as a trading post exclusively\nfor the Sikanni Indians,  has no Indian residents nowadays; most of its fur\ncomes from white trappers whose traplines run far back to the headwaters\nof the Peace.    But high on a plateau above the village are the remnants\nof Indian graves, with decaying picket fences,  crosses, and weatherbeaten\nsmall gravehouses of wood and canvas.\nThe village exists as a centre for a farming community,  for\nthree small coal mines,  for a small lumbering industry and as outfitting\ncentre for hunting parties.    One enterprising individual has made use of the\nlimestone cliffs on which Hudson's Hope stands.    In his arched kiln stacked\nwith wood,  Jack Pallon burns limestone to produce lime.    Contractors in\nDawson Creek and Fort St.  John use all he can supply.    Some of it,  mixed\nwith flour and water, is applied to his own attractive white-and-blue log\nhouse halfway down the slope.    He has something unique in the village in\nthe way of running water in his home.    A part of the cold clear stream is\ndiverted beneath his kitchen,  and he merely dips under a trap door for all\nthe fresh water he needs.\nThe boat landing below his home was long used by steamers\non the Peace,  for Hudson's Hope,  because of the rapids above,  was the\nhead of navigation.    Settlers and supplies were freighted in from Lake\n jttiM*\n106. HUDSON HOPE IN 1950\nAthabasca at first,  then later from Peace River Crossing when the railway\nreached that point.    Steamers such as the H. B. C. 's sternwheeler D. A.\nThomas plied between there and Hudson's Hope.    In 1931,  when the railway\nwas continued to Dawson Creek,  a wagon road was pushed through to the\nPeace,   and the freight went on by long,  narrow river boat.\nOne of these boats is maintained by the provincial government\nas a local ferry between Hudson's Hope and the south bank.    It is preferable\nto a method in use until several years ago,  when a \"ferry basket\" strung on\ncables served to carry passengers across the cold grey current to the\nMoberly Lake trail,  and to the former site of the Hudson's Bay Company\npost.\nThe clearing showed excavations for cellars, foundations\nand chimney stones.    But all was overgrown with grasses and horsemint.\nYoungsters from the Hope who crossed in the long ferry boat with us\nscrambled to pick wild strawberries deep in the grass.    We strolled up the\ngravel bars of picturesque Maurice Creek with a couple of fishermen,  and,\nlike apprentice clerks of a bygone day,  tried our luck here and there.    In\nthe shady pools beneath overhanging trees,  or at the foot of several small\nfalls,   rainbow trout and grayling rose to the fly.\nOn our return to the sandbar at the mouth of the creek,  we\nfound a band of horses milling on the sandy shore, herded by Beaver Indians\nfrom Moberly Lake.    They had come over the little-used trail to meet a\nbig-game hunting party at Hudson's Hope.    The ferry could take passengers,\nsaddles,  curved panniers,  blankets, tents and other gear.    The horses had\nto swim,  following the lead of one horse tethered to the boat. . . .\nOutfitting and guiding big-game hunters is an important\nsideline around Hudson's Hope.    It requires a very considerable investment\nin equipment and horseflesh,  and a thorough knowledge of the country and\nits resources.    Many a young farmer or trapper in his off-season thus\nsupplements his income,   either conducting the trips himself,  or guiding.\nOn our return trip to the post,  we found Leo Rutledge buying provisions\nfor the hunting party he would guide in a few weeks.\nCertainly the most spectacular \"dude\" Hudson's Hope ever\nsaw was Charles Bedaux of New York and Paris.    His hunting trip in 1932\nfurnished him with a remarkable collection of trophies,  a thoroughly fine\ntime - and a brand new project.    Fort St.  John residents declared the\nPeace River Block needed an outlet to the Pacific Coast.    Bedaux,  using\nspecially designed Citroen cars,  had been the first to cross the Sahara\nDesert by motor,  and now he determined to cross British Columbia to the\nAlaska Panhandle.\n HUDSON HOPE IN 1950 107.\nTwo years later he was ready.   A party of forty-seven,\ncomplete with packhorses,  cameras,  geological instruments,  cases of\nchampagne,  folding bathtubs and unwieldy Arab tents,  set out with the six\nCitroen-made vehicles.    They toiled from Dawson Creek,  end of steel, to\nthe Halfway River, where the cars could go no further.    The party went on\nby horseback.    Well up in the mountains, the packhorses developed foot-rot,\nand the expedition was abandoned.    Defeated, but far from dispirited, the\nBedaux party boated and rafted down the Peace River to Rocky Mountain\nPortage,  and crossed to Hudson's Hope.\nThe village has one tangible souvenir of the Bedaux' visit.\nOn the expedition, he took a dislike to a picture frame in the attractive log\nhotel.    A woodland scene,  even though merely a calendar lithograph,\nshould be framed in birchoark, he declared.    The entire party was held up\nhalf a day, while he re-framed the print to his satisfaction.    By such\nincidents he gave the impression of being a wealthy playboy,  who threw\nmoney around like the breeze.    His adventures into the mountain accomplished little beyond a few survey records a but he left nearly half a million\ndollars in equipment and wages in that area during a time of depression.\nNeither Bedaux nor anyone else could navigate the rapids of\nPeace River Canyon.    Hudson's Hope was head of navigation for steamers\nbecause of the twenty-mile Peace River Canyon with its swift tumultuous\nrapids, which fall 270 feet. . . .Even in   the days of the big canoes, the canyon\nformed an impassable barrier,  and a portage trail led from Hudson's Hope\nto the head of the canyon.. . .\nWe drove the four miles west of Hudson's Hope to the lower\nend of the canyon, the Glen.   Several islands in midstream had been carved\nby water and ice into, \"flowerpots\" - rock islands standing on narrow bases.\nHundreds of purple martins flew ceaselessly about the crannied limestone.\nWe climbed one of the islands across a dry channel,  and sat listening to\nthe roar of the rapids.    There was a sudden movement below us,  and we\nlooked down to see a young black bear ambling through the woods,  overturning rotten logs,  and scooping up frantic ants.    We shouted, but he\ncouldn't hear us over the noise of the water.\nBeyond was the rocky spit where Mackenzie's voyageurs\nhauled out their 25-foot birch-bark canoe,  and repaired it yet once more.\nMackenzie,   ignoring the portage trail,  had attempted to force a way up\nthrough the canyon,  but even this intrepid explorer had to call quits when\nhe discovered that \"the river,  as far as we could see, was one white sheet\nof foaming water. M\nA narrow, twisting trail climbed the bank along the river,\nand this we followed for several miles to reach Box Canyon.    Here the river\nfunnelled roaring between rock walls not more than fifty feet wide.    Chunks\nof rock fell from time to time, just as in Mackenzie's day.    Above this\n 108. HUDSON HOPE IN 1950\nstretch,  which the boatmen navigated with their hearts in? their mouths,\nMackenzie  had the men haul the provisions and canoe up the face of the\ncliff,  and cut a road through to the portage trail.    Yet even in that perilous\nposition, he observed \"along the face of some of these precipices, there\nappeared a stratum of bituminous substance which resembled coal. \"\nIt was coal.    Three coal mines supply fuel for the village,\nfor Fort St.  John,  and for camps along the Alaska Highway,  and the\nestimated tonnage reaches fabulous figures.    That owned by King Gething\nis a few miles beyond where Mackenzie hauled out his canoe.    The seam\nthere is eight feet thick.    It is semi-anthracite,  as good as any in the world\naccording to scientists,  and leaves only a three percent ash.    A hundred\nyears ago,  it is said,  voyageurs of the Hudson's   Bay Company taking the\nold brigade trails southward to New Caledonia,  carried this blacksmith\ncoal in small barrels.    At the Peace River Coal Mine,  a few miles upriver,\nwe picked our way through a worked-out seam,  and emerged on thin air.\nThe steep bank dropped straight down three hundred feet to the churning\nriver.    Towering cliffs frowned eight hundred feet high from across the\nstream.\nIn the hardened shale of the river shore near the Gething\nmine are deep footprints which may be seen at low water.    Six inches\ndeep, and three and a half feet long at the middle toe, they are the tracks of\ndinosaurs which once roamed these parts.    Several tracks are still to be\nseen there; others have been removed to the National Museum in Ottawa.\nThe portage trail \"of the Canyon of the Mountain of Rocks\"\nonce trod by moccasined feet,  is today a truck road.    It winds steeply up\nout of Hudson's Hope,  past the old graveyard and the new cemetery.    Its\nblue vistas out over the western ranges are abruptly cut off as the road\nflattens out back of Bullhead Mountain.    We followed it when a few days\nof rain had made the clay extremely slippery,  but it was a beautiful\ncontinuation of the Hudson's Hope road.\nTwo miles beyond the road leading to the second coal mine\nis a little side road,   scarcely noticeable.    It is the two-rut trail to the\nhead of the canyon,  and Cust's Landing,  according to old maps.    The narrow\nover-grown road twists back parallel with the river,  and we had to walk\nthe last half-mile.    Where Cust's House once stood,  the river makes a\nsweeping right-angle before it funnels down through perpendicular rocks.\nAt the canyon entrance, the Peace is only thirty-five feet\nwide at low water.    The waves rush through in complete tumults, foaming\nand boiling and dashing against the imprisoning rocks.    It is spectacular\nand awesome to see that volume of water pour in zigzag procession down\nthe chasm chiselled out by water and weather.    Big kettles or potholes\non shore witness the thousands of years the Peace has risen in flood and\nLi?!:\n HUDSON HOPE IN 1950 109.\nswirled around that corner.    We were as amazed as Mackenzie had been\nover these \"natural cylinders. \"\nThe great riverbend above the canyon would almost seem to\nhave been a lake at one time,  for the Indians told Mackenzie he \"should\nmeet with a fall equal to Niagara. \"   The belief was that a rock fall once\ngorged the mouth of the canyon,  creating both lake and spillway.\n\"It's just the place to drop a dam, \" said our guide from the\nmine.    \"That's a quarter-million horsepower you see going to waste there. \"\nUndoubtedly this canyon will be harnessed for hydroelectric\nenergy at some future date, to serve local industries and those far away.\nThe dam will drown out the picturesque rapids and riffles on the river\nabove, the rapids \"Qui ne parle pas, \" the Finlay Rapids,  and the BLa ck Rocks.\nImmediately above the canyon, the Peace is lakelike,  placid\nby comparison,  and wide.    What lies upriver?   Unlike Mackenzie, we\ncould consult maps.    Like him we wanted to see for ourselves.    Back on the\nroad then,  we followed the bank of the Peace River,  fording small creeks,\nskirting benchlands where cattle had cut their parallel paths on steep slopes,\npast Rainbow Rocks,  and finally at the end of the road,  Gold Bar,  ninety-two\nmiles farom the Alaska Highway.\nAt Twelve-Mile Creek,  we waded across to find the depth of\nthe water, then drove through with doubt in our minds*    We caught sight of\na handsome buck mule deer, with antlers in the velvet..   And on the baked\nhillside,  a cinnamon bear lurched off over the skyline.    Nearer, a black\nbear rammed ripe purple saskatoons into his maw.\nThe Beattie Ranch at Gold Bar,  with its beauty and\nhospitality,   seemed then,  and seems still, the sort of thing to be found at\nthe end of a rainbow.    It was a place of enchantment,  with its horses,\nits children, its wonderful vegetable garden,  its meals, the crystal creek\nflowing through the yard,  its solemn goslings. . . rthere is a golden aura\nabout it in retrospect.    Best of all,  it was quite real, the perfect end to\nthat road which is one of the loveliest in the north country.\n(Lyn Harrington, \"Hudson's Hope\" in \"The Beaver, a Magazine of the North,\" September,\n1950.)\n 110 PEACE RIVER PASSAGE IN 1955\nR.M.   PATTERSON\nThe well-known British Columbia writer, prospector, and explorer,\nR.M. Patterson, author of \"The Dangerous River\", describing a .Journey into the so-called\n\"Headless Valley\" of the South Nahannl River in the North West Territories, made a trip\nthrough Peace River Pass In 1955.\nIn the whole stretch of the Rockies there is only one water\npassage through the heart of the range--that of the Peace River.    Its two\nmain heads are the Finlay and the Parsnip Rivers.    They,  flowing in the\nRocky Mountain Trench from the northwest and southeast respectively,\nmeet in head-on collision at Finlay Forks--and in that moment the Peace\nis born.    The Peace immediately turns away from the wide valley of the\nTrench that bounds the mountains on the west,  and flows straight at the\nRockies.    It dives into the mountains and cuts its way through to the eastern\nplains; it followed that course ages before the Rockies rose across its path,\nand as they rose it cut them down,  refusing to turn aside for them.    One\nwould expect the whole passage through the mountains to be barred with transverse reefs and cascades, but the river is amazingly tranquil.    Two sets\nof strong rapids and numerous riffles have to be dealt with but that is\nall.    The main barrier comes,  not in the mountains, but almost forty miles\nto the eastward,  in the last ridge of the foothills--the Butler Ridge.\nThere, beneath that last spur of the Ridge which in 1875\nSelwyn, then Director of the Geological Survey, named Portage Mountain,\nthe Peace passes through a \"gate\" in the rocks so narrow that one can fling\na stone across it.    That gate marks the plunge into the Rocky Mountain\nCanyon through which the river becomes impassable, falling 225 feet in\nlittle over twenty miles.    The portage trail follows what may have been a\npreglacial course of the Peace between Portage Mountain and Bullhead\nMountain,   rising high above the river.    Mackenzie calls it the Portage de\nla Montagne des Roches.    Selwyn explains carefully and somewhat\npedantically in his report for 1875-76 that this name should be rendered\n\"Portage of the Mountain of Rocks\" and that it has nothing to do with the\nRockies.    But the misnomer was too old for him and Rocky Mountain\nPortage it has remained.\nSuch is the lay of the land and such the main obstacles on a\nriver trip that must be unique in Canada.    It must be a rare thing anywhere\nto be able to put one's canoe in the water beside a main highway,  disappear\ninto the wilderness and pass through a mountain barrier,  and then,   after\n250 miles of downstream travel,   return to a main road once more.\nOn Sept.   10,   1955,  my wife and I loaded our canoe at\nMelville's on Trout Lake where the Hart Highway swings away towards the\nPine Pass and the Peace River country,  leaving the rivers of the Rocky\n PEACE RIVER PASSAGE IN 1955 111.\nMountain Trench.    We ran across the four miles of lake under power,\nhaving brought with us a 3 h.p.  Johnson for the few bits of upstream\ntravel we might wish to make.    People were rude to this small machine in\nthat land of big riverboats and 20 and 25 h.p. kickers--they called it an\negg-beater and burst into laughter at the sight of it.    Nevertheless it did\nall we asked of it--which was not much,  as we had only burdened\nourselves with five gallons of gas.    Arrived in the lagoon at the outlet of\nTrout Lake,  we shut off the outboard and shipped it so as to be able to\nenjoy the peace of this perfect autumn afternoon.\nThe eight miles or so of Pack River between Trout Lake and\nthe Parsnip ranked high in a trip that was full of beauty.    No mountains were\nin sight,  but this small,  brown and very clear river winding over gravelly\nshallows and tumbling down small boulder riffles was a lovely thing to see.\nWe took it lazily,  delighted with the fall colours of poplar and Cottonwood\nand the scarlet of the small brush along the banks.    Ahead of us,  down\nquiet reaches under the dark spruce, flew a family of brown-headed ducks;\nwe never quite caught up with them and we must have chased them for\nmiles.    Towards evening we slipped out into a Parsnip River that was low\nand shrunken and racing between wide shingle bars --a very different\naffair from the rolling flood that I had last seen in July,   six years before.\nOn our right the foothills and the mountains began to appear. . . .\nWe made no effort to hurry over that first hundred miles.\nNevertheless we came,   in the end,  to the last reach of the Parsnip River\non an evening of flaming sunset with crimson feathers of cloud floating\nhigh above the mountains of the Peace River Gap, and a riot of golden\nbirches reflected in the quiet water.\nIn the morning we turned the egg-beater loose to see what it\ncould do against the current of the Finlay.    It did well: against some strong\nwater it drove the 20-foot canoe up the four to five miles of river that lie\nbetween the actual forks and Pete Toy^s Bar where the McDougalls ' post\nis situated. . . .\nThe Finlay Rapids on the Peace River occur one mile\ndownstream from the junction of the rivers,  but the roar of them can be\nplainly heard from the McDougalls' post.    We ran down to the head of the\nrapids on an afternoon of fantastic clouds that swirled around Mount Selwyn\nand boiled up in the Gap.     We planned to run the rapids close in to the\nrocky south shore as we had run them in 1949,  but snow squalls appeared in\nthe Gap,  trailing down from black storm qlouds,  and a cold northeast wind\nbegan to blow.    We pulled in and made a well-sheltered camp where we\ncould weather the storm--and from that camp we prospected the north shore\nin the morning.\n 112. PEACE RIVER PASSAGE IN 1955\nP. L.  Haworth and Joe Lavoie went down that way in 1916 and\nthis time we followed in their trail,  slipping behind an island and then\nlining, wading and shoving the canoe down between rocks, through reefs\nand over falls.    The last reef was impossible either to line around or\nrun,  but a magnificent sandy beach presented itself,  over which we shoved\nthe part-loaded canoe on rollers.    This rapid is not difficult to run keeping\nclose to the south shore,  but on this occasion we had too much of a load and\nthe wrong type of canoe.\nWe camped at the foot of the rapid in order to get some good\npictures of Mount Selwyn which was now partly snow-covered from the\nnight's storm.    This was the finest sight of the trip for me--the green and\ngold slopes of the \"mountain,  leading up to the snow line and reflected in\nthe river; and, to the westwards, the flashing water cascading over a\nhalf-mile of reefs, with the blue peaks of the far-off Wolverines as a background,    Haworth found these rapids unimpressive.    I cannot agree with\nhim:   the drive and uproar of the great river pouring across these barriers\nof schist was a memorable display of majesty and power. . . .\nWe loaded up and hit the river.    The roar of the Finlay\nRapids faded and we turned in to the mountains.    We ran on,  past Wicked\nRiver and past Barnard Creek to the Clearwater.\nIn this short stretch of thirty miles we had passed through\nthe main range of the Rockies. . . .\nWe ran on down to the Parle Pas Rapid which marks the\neastern edge of the mountains proper and the entrance into the foothill\ncountry.    The full style and title is La Rapide qui ne Parle Pas,   so named,\nsays Warburton Pike,   \"from the absence of the roar of waters which usually\ngives ample warning of the proximity of a rapid. \"   That may be so when\nthe prevailing west wind is blowing; at other times the noise of the water\ncan be plainly heard.    The rapid consists of three reefs with actual falls on\nthe south shore; the north side is a boulder chute with a very strong and\nvery rough eddy at the foot.    As before,  we lined down the north shore--a\nproceeding that is apt. to produce the sort of remarks that later on,   sitting\nin amity by the camp fire,  both parties secretly regret.    Little harm,\nhowever,  has been done,   since the noise of the water in the Parle Pas\nmakes it quite impossible for the one on the line to hear the frantic directions\nand objurgations of the one on the pole--and vice versa.\nA couple of miles below the rapid the Ottertail River comes\nin from the north and, just above the junction and in the bank of the Peace,\na dinosaur skeleton can be seen.\nWe went on, through the Little Parle Pas, which is a series\nof powerful eddies,  past lonely trapping cabins,  past the Tepee Rocks,  to\n PEACE RIVER PASSAGE IN 1955 113.\nBeatty's Landing close to Beatty's ranch.    There we came upon that rarest\nof creatures on this wild stretch of river--a man.    He was leaning against\na gate in the pouring rain,   carrying a rifle and with a large dog at his heels.\nWe pulled in and spoke with him., and arranged for Bob Beatty to be warned\nthat two Voyageurs begged to be freighted over the portage road in three\ndays' time.    And then we ran on down to Twelvemile Creek.\nFrom this point it is twelve miles down to the head of the\ncanyon.    We ran down on a morning of deep blue sky and summer clouds;\na powdering of snow lay on the Butler Ridge and the hills were lit with the\nflaring gold of the poplars.    Portage Mountain loomed ahead, the landmark\nfor the canyon,  and the river increased its speed.    We put ashore at\nCust House, the old buildings of the Cust and Carey post where the old\nportage road comes down to the Peace.    Below that the river has scooped\nout of the high cutbanks an amphitheatre which must be an eddying tumult\nof waters in flood time, though safe enough in the fall.    We dropped down\ninto it and came to the \"gate\" at the head of the Rocky Mountain Canyon, to\nthe place of the narrowing of the river and to the fantastic pot holes in the\nrocks....\nBob Beatty turned up at Twelvemile Creek at the appointed\ntime and in his capable hands we made a safe passage over a portage trail\nthat had been freshly muddied by yet another rain.    We decanted ourselves\nand the outfit on the beach below Hudson's Hope,  slung the stuff into the\ncanoe and paddled across the river to camp on the site of the old Rocky\nMountain Portage establishment of the Hudson's Bay Company on the south\nshore.    All that can be seen now is the faint excavations of old cellars,  a\nfew corner rocks and the half buried mounds of chimney stones.    The forest,\npioneered by young cottonwood saplings,  is doing its best to take back its\nown.    It is the beaver,  appropriately enough,  who is working overtime and\npreserving the site for the Bay.    We tripped over his cuttings as we made\ncamp and several of him came to the edge of the firelight and banged loudly\nand resentfully on the darkly gleaming waters of the Peace.\nFrom that camp a long track of nearly two miles takes a\ncanoe to the head of the strong riffle above \"the Hope\" and into the qu*eer,\nnarrow based,  rock islets that guard the lower end of the canyon.    There\nwe spent a day,  returning to camp in the October dusk with the canoe leaping\nover the waves of the long riffle and the lights of Hudson's Hope already\ntwinkling on the cliffs of the north shore.    And in the greyness of the\nmorning we departed from that place, bound for the Lower Gates of the\nPeace and the fifty-mile run downstream to the Alaska Highway bridge. . . .\n(R.M. Patterson, \"Peace River Passage\" in the Winter, 1956 issue of \"The Beaver,\nMagazine of the North\", published by the Hudson's Bay Company, Winnipeg.)\n 114. DAWSON CREEK & FORT ST.  JOHN IN 1957\nVERA KELSEY\nVera Kelsey, a Winnipeg newspaper woman, foreign correspondent, ttnd\na^fch-or of several books of travel, takes a look at British Columbia. The result is a\nSrilil-written and informative description of the Province.\nPrince George vanished the moment the Northern Stage bus\ncrossed Fraser River to turn north on Mile Zero of the John Hart Highway.\nTrue, this 260-mile link between the Alaska Highway and the Cariboo to\n. the south is paved for some miles and along them small suburban homes\nand broods of tourist cabins rise out of newly cleared land.    Others come\nand go at intervals.    Dirt roads lead off to \"Sawmill\" or \"Campsite. \"   But\nfor all the impression they make on the immensities of sky and forests\nthey might be paper cutouts the first breeze will blow away. ... In the valley\nbelow the rising,  dipping, but steadily mounting highway,   small lakes\nglistened.    One of them,  Summit Lake, marks the divide between waters\nflowing into the Arctic and those that prefer the Pacific.    Everywhere\nbrooks ran down to join a vagrant stream which incessantly disappeared\natnd reappeared, always a little wider and swifter, to attain identity as\nCrooked River. . , .\nAt Fort McLeod,  established in 1805 by Simon Fraser,\nIndian men, women and small fry,  wrapped in shawls or blankets,\nsquatted on the floor of the porch,  backs to the wall, while they waited for\nthe agent to pick up the cartons of supplies our bus disgorged,  or perhaps\njust waited.    Sekanis of the Athabaskan nation that once roamed all north-\ncentral and north-interior British Columbia, they still continue their\nseminomadic life of hunting, trapping, fishing,  in the Parsnip,    Finlay\nand Peace River Valleys.\nNot far to the west lay Stuart Lake,   since 1806 the site of\nFort St.  James and of the small field of potatoes, turnips and barley with\nwhich,  in 1811,  David Harmon founded the Province's agricultural history.\nSoon we crossed the Parsnip River, which Alexander Mackenzie ascended\nin T793 on the last,  near-fatal lap of the expedition which won him the\nhonour of being the first white man to traverse the continent overland to the\nTiorth Pacific. . . . During the next hour we stopped at intervals beside\nunbroken bush where no house,   road or even path showed. . . . A road sign\n^tipping by announced \"Peace River Block\"--so named in 1883 when the\nProvincial Legislature granted the Dominion government three million\nnorthern acres in exchange for southern land needed for construction of the\nCanadian Pacific Railway.    In 1930, the Dominion returned the Block to\nBritish Columbia.\nThe sign really announced the beginning of Peace River\nElectoral District of which the Block is a part.    But,  too interested to\n DAWSON CREEK & FORT ST. JOHN IN 1957 115.\nremember that the Block lies east of the Rockies,  I thought this is the\nbeginning of British Columbia's breadbasket,  producer of 70 per cent of\nits small grains and most of its forage crops. . . . We were on our way to\nPine Pass, the 3,800-foot elevation around Murray Range,  one of the\nnorthern-most spurs of the Rockies.\nSoon the hills grew so high they shut out all but a blue baby\nribbon of sky from the windshield view.    Not one,  not two,  but dozens of\nlacy waterfalls,  sprayed out of evergreens high on their slopes to cascade\nfrom one granite ledge to another before plunging straight down into long,\ndark-jade green Azouetta Lake. . . . Like an answer to prayer,  Halfway\nHouse appeared,  a rough, two-storey lodge overshadowed by spruce and\npine. . . . But before it dawned on me that the narrow valley between us which\ngave them almost full perspective must be part of the fabulous Rocky\nMountain Trench,  the driver was sounding his horn. . . .\nShortly we began a long descent,  escorted by bluebirds,  into\nEast Pine's Valley.    There the river,  as tranquil as West Pine had been\nturbulent,  wandered through fields of plum-brown soil beautifully\nharrowed or faintly green. . . .\nThe bus rushed on across wide,  sunny prairies, patchworked\nwith rich black or greening fields, toward a rounded rise that but for a\nsingle, low cluster was treeless, too.    An imposing skyline of eight red\ngrain elevators towering above a crisscross of youthful-looking buildings\nand homes identified it as Dawson Creek.\nHalfway down Dawson Creek's main street,  Hart Highway\ncomes to an end at a stocky, white-winged pillar which, for the benefit of\nthe tourist,  begins Mile Zero of the Alaska Highway.    The official\nbeginning is a concrete cairn at the eastern end of Alaska Avenue.\nJapanese bombs bursting over Pearl Harbor on December 7,\n1941,  focussed a white glare on the immediate need for this 1, 523-mile\nthoroughfare through northern British Columbia and Yukon Territory to\nAlaska.    Three months later,   United States Army engineers with \"coyote\ninstincts\" were blazing a route through or over muskeg, mountains,  forests,\nhundreds of rivers and streams.    To clear,  grade and bridge it, fifteen\nthousand American troops followed. . . .\nDespite a climate that can range from 70 degrees below zero\nto 95 above,  the great distances from supplies,  and the plagues of insects,\nwith mosquitoes in the starring role,  eight months later \"a pioneer road\"\nlinked Dawson Creek and Fairbanks,  Alaska.    One year more and the\n\"Alcan\" Highway was ready for thousands of trucks to roll over it\ncontinuously.    Renamed \"Alaska\" Highway,  it came under Canadian jurisdiction in 1946.    Two years later it was opened to tourists.\n 116.      DAWSON CREEK & FORT ST. JOHN IN 1957\nAs a military measure it did not justify the $139 million\nspent on it.    But to British Columbia it was worth all that and more.    The\nfirst artery of communication and transportation through the almost\nunknown northern half of the Province,  it opened the present era of\ndiscovery and development.    It \"built Dawson Creek, \"  started Fort St.\nJohn on its way to becoming the second city in the north,   established Fort\nNelson (an even more remote trading post) as a river port and outlet to\nthe Pacific as well as to the Arctic Ocean.    Above all,   it joined north and\nsouth British Columbia in geographic,  economic and political unity. . . .\nWith northern British Columbia bursting out all over as the\nsource of minerals,  oil, natural gas, hydroelectric power,  Dawson Creek,\nnow linked with it and all the continent by plane, two railways and three\nmain highways,  has become the major transportation,  distribution and\ntourist centre of the northeastern interior.\nCasual conversations bristled with startling figures.    Of the\nestimated 250, 000-500,000 h.p. , to be had by harnessing the Peace.    Of\nthe estimated three trillion cubic feet of natural gas to be exploited along\nthe Peace.    Driving about the town I saw more than $20 million in new\nconstruction, just completed or about to be.    The United States and\nCanadian Armies' Anchor for Mid-Canada's Warning System, for one.    The\nImperial Oil buildings which represent but a fraction of that company's\n$90 million investment in the area.    New schools, public and office buildings,\nand street after street of new homes.\nMost British Columbia communities trace their birth to the\nearliest possible date or event.    Not Dawson Creek!    It grows progressively\nyounger as it discards the year of one significant beginning for another even\nmore so.    1912,  when the fertile lands south of the Peace were opened to\nhomesteaders.    1931,  when the Northern Alberta Railway arrived from\nEdmonton to make it Canada's northernmost \"end of steel. \"    1942,  when,\nbecause of that distinction,  it was designated as the southern terminal of\nthe Alaska Highway.\nPeace River District is a pie-shapped,   75-mile-long plateau.\nRising from the Alberta border,  it tapers north and south of the Peace to\nthe spruce and pinfeclad uplands and foothills which bring the Great Plains\nto an end at the Rockies.    Small rivers carving their way through rock and\nglacial drift cut it to pieces with narrow,  arid valleys.    But the Peace,  while\ndeepening its channel from five hundred to eight hundred feet,  left bottomlands and terraces deep in black,  alluvial soil.    These and the silted basins\nof departed glacial lakes provide the fertile lands.\nLong before their fertility was realized, trickles or streams\nof men flowed in and out of the plateau. Each left behind one or two rugged\ncharacters who found Paradise in lone command of lakes teeming with fish,\n r\nDAWSON CREEK & FORT ST. JOHN IN 1957 117.\nwild ducks and geese and of forests rich in game and berries.    Following\nMackenzie's and Fraser's expeditions,  fur traders and trappers.    After\n1862,  when gold was discovered on the Peace,  prospectors.    After the\nKlondike strike in 1896,   stranded goldseekers.\nIn homesteaders from the Prairie Provinces and farm youths\nfrom the United States,  where free land no longer was available,  Edmonton,\nalready fat from its exploitation of the hallucinated Klondikers and Alberta's\nown landseekers,  found a new lode.    Nevertheless, with their shoddy\nequipment and spavined nags, the Peace River pioneers trekked the five\nhundred miles to Dawson Creek's prairies.\nThere they cleared their aspen-coated claims, built log\ncabins, barns and split-rail fences,  sowed their raw young fields. After\nWorld War I,  veterans and European immigrants joined them in the belief\nthat the Northern Alberta Railway would follow on their heels.    It did--\nfourteen years later when each fall saw freight trains hauling sixty thousand\nbushels of grain a week over the rough,   100-mile trail to Alberta elevators. . .\nBy 1930, tension gripped the sixty-seven hundred pioneers\nwhose grainfields rippled the prairies,  including the rise of ground on which\nDawson Creek stands.    The Northern Alberta Railway at last was coming in.\nSeven miles from the rise,  Pouce Coupe (Cut Thumb), the local trading\ncentre tucked into a tree-lined curve of the river from which it took its\nname, was the logical site for its terminal.    Two miles distant, in\ncabins set haphazardly on grainfields,  squatters waited to see \"which way the\ncat would jump. \"   The cat was a Pouce Coupe landowner who had set too\nhigh a price on the acres the railroad wanted.    Would he or wouldn't he\ncome down?\nHe wouldn't.    The rails ran on west--to the rise.    The\nsquatters rolled their cabins over on logs.    When the first train pulled\ninto Dawson Creek on January 15,   1931, two hundred residents welcomed\nit.\nBut already the shadow of the Great Depression,  which had\nbeen moving west since 1929,  was falling over the prairies.    During the\nnext five years 85 per  cent of the farmers went on relief.    By 1942,\nDawson Creek's population had not reached five hundred.    Before the year\nended,  it has passed twenty thousand!\n\"The Alaska Highway built Dawson Creek, \" local historians\ndeclare and date its birth from the March night when the first American\ntroops arrived in driving snow to set up their pup tents along the railroad\ntracks.\n iff\"\n118.        DAWSON CREEK & FORT ST. JOHN IN 1957\nWhat Dawson Creek remembers best of those frenzied years\nis the hundreds of poor men it enriched.    The blacksmith,   country storekeeper,  and a score of other \"small-timers\" who became millionaires or\nmulti-millionaires on its bounty.    \"Wherever you see a prosperous business\nin north or central B. C, today, \"it is feaid,   \"you can bet ten to one the\nAlaska Highway started it. \"   Locally, the Great Fire of 1943 and an army\ncolonel helped.\nOne mid-February afternoon, the warehouse in which the\nArmy stored both dynamite and dynamite caps blew up with such force that\neven farm homes two miles away suffered cracked windows and walls.\nWhile soldiers and civilians saved the rest of the town, the Volunteer Fire\nDepartment battled until only the chief and one fireman remained uninjured\nto save the business district.    And the surviving two, having refilled their\nsmall watertank at the railroad,  were returning pell-mell to carry on when\nthe Colonel yelled,   \"Where do you two think youdre going?\"\n\"To wet down those buildings. \"\n\"Let them burnl    You'll never get a city here till this dump\nburns to the ground. \"\nThe Frontier Lunch Company,\nAnd the Alcan Tire Shop next,\nThe Blacksmith Shop and Central Garage\nWere all a total wreck. . . .\nas a Dawson Creek bard sang.    Since all records burned,  too, many\nsubstantial buildings, businesses and citizens today testify to the\nunchallenged imagination on which owners and merchants drew to recover\ntheir losses from the millions of dollars the U.S.  Army paid in damages.\nA 15-year perspective now gives full play to the sense of\nhumour which enlivens Dawson Creek memories of those days of intolerable\nchaos and discomfort.     The Canadian Ration Board, having allotted supplies\nsince 1939 to a village of 484 people,  could not be convinced that between\nMarch and December,   1942,  it had multiplied its population more than\nforty times! . . . .\nTo the right of Peace River Bridge, an aerial bridge carries\nthe $153,430,000 pipeline of the Westcoast Transmission Company from\nnorth bank to south to begin its 650-mile underground journey through\nsouthwest British Columbia to the International Boundary.    There it joins\nthe 1,488-mile line of the Pacific Northwest Company to supply the entire\nPacific seaboard with natural gas.\n DAWSON CREEK & FORT ST.  JOHN IN 1957 119.\nA refining plant now covers the fields on Taylor Flat.    To\nit,   smaller lines from northwest Alberta and Fort St.  John's gasfields--\none of the largest if not the largest natural gas reserves in Canada--bring\nthe raw gas to be \"scrubbed\" before entering the main pipeline.    The\ndistant pastures now are lined with small, frame homes.\nTo the left of Peace River Bridge,  a second neighbour, the\nbridge of the Pacific Great Eastern Railway,  popularly known as \"PGE, \"\nis preparing the way for rails and trains to reach Fort St.  John     Beyond\nit,  the open country of a year ago houses a small town of construction\nworkers.    Motels, tourist cabins,   small shops and cafes how rise to the\nplateau whose grainfields are dotted with \"capped\" gas wells and tall oil\nderricks which set the pocket-black nights ablaze with lights and flames.\n(Here must be inserted word of another and this time\ntragic change.    No sooner had this manuscript left my hands than in\nOctober,   1957,  historic Peace River Bridge collapsed--a casualty of\nintensive industrial traffic and a possible shift in the shale bed of the\nriver.)\nNo longer does the highway enter a frontier outpost.    Fort\nSt.  John's three thousand permanent citizens drive down a paved main\nstreet, walk on continuous sidewalks.    Office buildings,  air-and bus-line\nstations,  new shops,  banks,  another hotel,   replace or elbow the doomed\nfalse fronts.    Housing developments replace the shackies.\nNot at all surprised, the pioneers now await fulfillment of\nthe rest of their expectations.    All they've been waiting for is\ntransportation.    The PGE already whistles at their door.    Once arrived,  it\nmust go on to open up the north all the way to the Yukon and Alaska.    Now\nthe awakened Northern Alberta Railway must come in.\nA third possibility is a Rocky Mountain Trench railway.\nSuch a line through one of the most scenic phenomena on the continent,\nthe 1,000-mile depression at the feet of the western slopes of the Rockies,\nwould be a sensational tourist attraction.    In case of war,  it could carry\nthe heavy modern armaments which the Alaska Highway cannot support.\nEventually,  and above all,  it would realize for the Peace and Omineca\nValleys all the prophecies made for their hydroelectric,  mineral,forest\nand other resources.\nWhile we talked, the possibility was on the way to becoming\na probability.    Shortly,  the British Columbia government announced that it\nhad awarded to the Swedish multimillionaire,  Alex Wenner-Gren,  a\npriority right to survey forty thousand square miles of the trench for a\nmonorail railroad and the exploitation of its natural resources.    If\ndetailed studies fulfill the promise implicit in the area,  a billion-dollar\n 120.      DAWSON CREEK & FORT ST. JOHN IN 1957\nproject will be undertaken that may do more than develop the northern 40\nper cent of the Province.    It may revolutionize the Province's entire\neconomic future.\nEven with the transportation lines now assured,  Fort St.\nJohn is confident that the fertile farmlands out of reach of the Alaska\nHighway will be opened up.    That the half billion tons of coking coal,  another\nhalf billion of semi-anthracite,  the manganese,  uranium,  tin,  copper,  gold\nwhose locations are known can reach a market.    The oil derricks outside\nthe town are merely seedlings,  it is said,  of the metallic forest that will\nrise over what may prove to be one of Canada's richest oilfields. . . .\nIf some date the town's origin from 1797,  when North West\nCompany erected Fort of the Pines near the junction of the Peace and Pine\nRivers,  others date it between 1805 and 1825, when five or six trading posts,\nall named Fort St.  John,  had brief careers on one bank or the other of the\nPeace.    Still others cite the 1930's,  when incoming homesteaders needed\na centrally located store,   school and church,\n\"But it was just a scratchin' until 1943, \" an old-timer\nassured me.    \"Then,  overnight,  you might say,  it come alive--with five\nthousand U. S.   soldiers and other folks pilin' in here and seemed like about\na^rmany trucks.    Highway built,  war over---phut!    All but a few hundred lit\nout.    Those few hundred built this town. \"\nWhatever its date of origin, the Alaska Highway,  World War\nII, and modern methods of exploration and exploitation have played the\nheavy roles in giving Fort St.  John identity and direction.    But the pioneers,\nby virtue of doing whatever had to be done as a matter of course and\ncharacter,  made up an exceptional supporting cast.\nOne of them is Mrs.  George Murray,  better known as\n\"Maggie Murray, \" the editor and publisher of the Alaska Highway News. . . .\n(Vera Kelsey, \"British Columbia Rides a Star\" Toronto and Vancouver, 1958.)\nlit\n Over the Pea\nWHAT GIVES\nAT THE HOPE\nWith an exerting sum\nahead these farts couc<\nmg the little town nest\nin the f.Mjihills (la mi\nfrom Fort St John,\npert in. nt.\n\u2022 The pustmmre<fe was art\nvir.ed !a:-t7 w-eek to \u00ab xp' < t\nan extremely large increase\nm mails for the village, and\nshe was given authority to\nextend her staff when necessary.\n\u2022 Young's Catering have\ncompleted a building*, 100\nfeet long. It is situated near\nGething s cabin at the canyon's edge. It is equiped to\nboard 40 men and lodge 20\n\u2014and bunkhouses art* next\non the .>>chedule to house\nanother 20. Young's has\neverything m the way of\namenities i n c 1 u d i ng propane heat\n\u2022 The Canadian Hank of\nCommerce trailer branch is\nsitting next to Miller's\nRooms, now the Canyon\nHotel, ready for business\nwhen the time is right.\n\u2022 There are no residential\nlots to be purchased There\nare acres of land adjacent\nto the village which are\navailable but which will\nhave to be surveyed and\nbroken  into lots.\n\u2022 Two or three years ago,\nHope folks felt embarrassed\nto ask $150 or $200 for a\nlot. -Today, a business property might be purchased\nbut it would cost two or\nthree thousand dollars. The\nhotel property (which is\nvarant linr-e the Hudson's\nHope Hotel burnt down)\nsold for $4,000, to the Imperial Oil.\nRecently a group of\nHoi>\u00ab businessmen purchased a block of 21 lots, left\nover- from the Steige-Pa-\nquette estate Eighteen of\nthese were sold. Of the 18\npurchasers, eight have started or will start building\nas soon as weather permits.\nThe lots brought aa> thing\nfrom $000 to $3,000\nAbout 400 p!\nselves a ball a\nover the weeki\nor three carl<\nChetwynd and\nThawing com\nFort St. John\nroad prevented\nJohnners atteJ\nThe objecti\nto popularize\nby the govern)\nof about ten <\nof road which\na highway lin.\nwynd and Hu\\\nfirst part of\nChetwynd to t\nLake is a gc\nThe next six\nbuilt, graded A\nSandy Constri\nG. Moore Li\nThere remain!\nbe completed\ncost of $1,000\nroad, and $3,W\nweather con*\ndays brushing\nof a bulldoze!\nmiles into sh<\n200 cars whi<\ncavalcade. Th\nj Peace River\nwere hauled u\non the Hud?\nwith the help\nThe Chetw;\nto see this ro\nserve industry\nmiles off the i\nmen and hoUd\nlike   to   cut\nPrince George\nm ust   now   a\nf\\.ll   cirde   tr\nJ >hn   and   Di\n\u25a0<-ach Chetw^\nThe govern*\nquired to op!\n Over the Peace to Hudson's Hope\no dam site\nFf-j3\nWHAT GIVES\nAT THE HOPE\nWith an exciting cummer\nahead these facts concerning the little town nestling\nin the foothills (ia miles\nfrom Fort St John, art-\npert in. nt The ixj.stnusireso was ud-\nVi::ed :a;t w-eek to expect\nan extremely large increase\nin maili for'-the village, and\nshe v.as given authority to\nextend her staff when ne\ncessary.\n Young's '-Catering have\ncompleted a building, 100\nfeet long. It is situated near\nGething s cabin at the canyon's edge. It is equiped to\nboard 40 men and lodge 20\n\u2014and bunkhouses are next\non the .tchedulo to house\nanother 20. Young's has\neverything in the way of\namenities i n c I u d l ng propane heat\n9 The Canadian Bank of\nCommerce trailer branch is\nsitting next to Miller's\nRooms, now the Canyon\nHotel, ready for business\nwhen the time is right.\n\u2022 There are no residential\nlots to be purchased There\nare acres of land adiacent\nto the village which are\navailable but which will\nhave to be surveyed and\nbroken  into lots.\ns) Two or three years ago.\nHope folks felt embarrassed\n\u2666q ask $150 or $200 for a\nlot. Today, a business pro-\nP\u00abU might be purchased\nbut it would cost two or\nthree thousand dollars. The\nhotel property (which is\nvacant since the Hudson's\nHope Hotel burnt down)\nsold for $4,000, to the Imperial Oil.\nRecently a group of\nHot* businessmen purchas-\neo a block of 21 lots, left\nover- from the \u2022 Steige-Pa-\nmietto estate. Eighteen of\nthese were sold. Of the 18\npurchasers, eight have started or will start building\nas soon as weather perfhits\nThe lots brought anything\nfrom $000 to $3,000\n*\u00abe****\"'\" '*;\nidSlI\nf busy and cleaned up the debris. In their enthusiasm these\ngood people had food, prepared\nfor a thousand Four hundred\ncame. And considering the\nthawing to-iditioru. of the\nroads, this wa.-. an exceptional\n'y tine turn-out.\nOne car got over the side\nfnrouti- to Fort St. John. One\nof (he nune enthusiastic Dawson (Yeekers almost turned up\nfor tfe party in Foit St. John\nhaving taken a wrong turn at\nthe top of the c.'jt haul. But\nthe;e Were minor  im idents\nFor a delightful turn-back of.\nthe clock, for western hospitality as it used to be. for\nrun and gaiety as only rugged,\nhard working people enjoy it\n-- this reporter gives yrm\nHUDSON'S HOrK!\nHudson's Hope is situated about 20 miles from\nthe edge of the proposed Peace River hydro!\np!|f project's dam. The country is still in winter's\n\"  frozen grasp, though many or\" the cavalcade\ncars drove up to the site.\nthe Peace Rivr M trie summer\nmonths in order to make any\nroad functional. In winter, ice\ni will support all traffic.\nBound lo gain by any road\nimprovement  program  in  the\ni area   are   the   Fort   St    John\n[Lumber Company interests.\nj Mr   G   G.   Moore,   president,\nand his wife Helen, were with\nthe   caravan,   as   well   as   the\nCarmichaels, Trails, Encksons,\nAbout 400 people.had them-1 S a ndy s, Clarks, Fuhrimans,\nselves a ball nt Hudson's Hope   Leaches, McKenzies, Tom Ja-\nover the weekend. All but two I mieson, and other well-known\n1M&\nor three carloads came from\nChetwynd and Dawson Creek.\nThawing conditions on the\nFort St. John -Hudson's Hope\nroad prevented many Fort St\nJohnners attending.\nThe objective A cavalcade\nto popularize the completion\nby the government of a stretch\nof about ten and a half miles\nof road which would complete\na highway link, between Chetwynd and Hudson's Hope. The\nfirst part of this road from\nChetwynd to the first Cameron\nLake is a .government road.\nThe next six miles of it was\nbuilt, graded and gravelled by\nSandy Construction for the G.\nG Moore Lumber Interests.\nThere remains 10 lh miles to\nbe completed at an estimated\ncost of $1,000 a mile for raw\nroad, and $3,000 a mile for all\nweather construction. Three\ndays brushing and the services\nof a bulldozer put these 10%\nmiles into shape to carry the\n200 cars which made up the\ncavalcade. They crossed the\nPeace River on the ice and\nwere hauled up the steep bank\non the Hudson's Hope side\nwith the help of a cat tractor.\nThe Chetwynd people want\nto see this road completed to\nserve industry, and to cut 200\nmiles off the tourney of sportsmen and holidavers who would\nlike to cut 200 miles from\nPrince George. Vancouver, and\nmust now complete almost\nf\\.ll circle through Fort St.\nJohn' and' Dawson Creek to\n.\u2022each Chetwynd\nThe goverm .< nt will be re\nquired to operate <* ferry over\nnames from Dawson Creek\nand Pouce Coupe.\nFort St. John Lumber is\nshipping 100,000 board feet of\nlumber a day out of this area.\nAnd travellers Saturday with\nthe cavalcade were treated to\nthe sight of six acres or more\njammed with great logs, piled\n10 feet into the ah. The timber reserves on the south side\nof the Peace at this point are\nestimated at. 200 million board\nfeet.\nChetwynd was well represented. Joe Engelman of the\nCanadian Bank of Commerce,\nand president of the Chetwynd\nBoard of Trade, Frank. Olerle\nspoke for that thriving community. Joe Putters was present from G.r a n d e Prairie\nTobie Timberlake of the Prince\nGeorge Board of Trade made\nthe trip. Allan Clark represented Pouce Coupe, Glen\nKyllo represented Taylor. Jim\nFahey was on hand from Moberly Lake, and so was Father\nE. Youngbluth. All of these\npeople had a few words to say\non the day's outing, and their\nhopes for completion of the\nroad.\nFort St. John's mayor, and\nthe president of the local\nBoard of Trade, Mr E a r 1 e\nChase, also addressed the gathering.\nBecause of shortage of space\nHudson's  Hope ealvaeade\npictures\nwill appear\nnext week\nHOPE   FOLKS   HAVE   A   HALL\nFOR  VISITNG  CAVALCADE\nThe 75 people who live in\nHudson's Hope (there are 27\nschool children) cooked 300\npounds of beef, 150 turkeys,\nand 125 pounds of pork for\nthe clambake. They had wash-\ntubs full of salad, and cases\nof celery stuffed with cheese.\nThere were drinks for the\nguests who came well supplied\nwith thetr own stock anyway.\nJello loaded with fruit and\nwhipcream, and yards of gorgeous home-made cakes completed the menu.\nThe dinner was held in three\nElaces \u2014 the school, whose\nlack boards were plastered\nwith verses and greetings urging completion of the road\u2014\nth.' town hall or community\nhall\u2014 where about 200 people\nsat on benches alter helping\nthemselves buffet style\u2014with\nan overflow filling station arranged in one of the general\nstores in the villas e.\nThe Hudson's Hope people\nresponsible for the party were\nall the women of town and district headed up by Mrs. Keith\nk and Mrs. Noel Verville.\ne Hudson's Hope board of\ntrade executive\u2014Messrs. Earl\nPollon, Keith Peck and Pete\nGoodwin\u2014made the other arrangements. The Dawson\nCreek chamber of commerce,\nand its opposite number in\nChetwynd, organised the trip,\nbought tickets, and, obviousfy\nswung the deal.\nTha Fort St. John community was represented by the\nmayor an9 the president of the\nboard of Vade, and his party.\nA car of Junior Chamber of\nCommerce people. A car of\nFrontier Inn personnel. Two\npress people, Mr. Rudy Schubert and Mr. Manny Mauger\nphotographers, tape recorders\n'and so on.\n,.    AH   the Kyllos were there.\n^s0k W. J. Powell, and other\npeople like her, who were\nvisiting* foi thjg weekend in\nHudson's Htf%m And Mayor\nFrank SpiceSK^-wiwa joined the\ncavalcade   at  %;iM\u00bbvvvnd\nHOPE FOLKS '-mmc\n,   MEAN FO0T\nThe f-elebriatatas Wound up\nwith a dance *i night in the\ncommunity .h*K- \u00abf|e like of\nwhich JBJ\u00bb. me don't see\nanymore. a**Br os^pestra did\nnot arriverAomit midnight so\na pick-up eassrs'wa\u00bb accomplish\ned with Bar Juad on the gui\ntar, Henry .GSarvpisier on the\nfiddle and meitn Peck at the\npiano. Chetwynd put on a free\nbeer spread for an hour or so,\nmany sat around the sides of\nthe hall visiting\u2014including all\nthe children and many Indians\nAs the pace heightened, the\nhall would empty once in a\nwhile as arguments were\nmoved outside for further set\ntlement. The feet of the dancers were clad in anything\nfrom shoe packs and moccasins\nto high logger boots. Most\npeople wore overshoes. Hudson's Hope has no street lights\nand icing was normal, but\nfooting precarious. Therefore\na great deal of entertaining'\nwas done in cars, and any\nfisticuffs brought applause in\nthe'form of blaring horns and[\nblinking lights.\nAll sorts and kinds attended\nthe dance. Van-dyked engi\nneers\u2014not one over 25 yeajrsj\nof age\u2014vied with country folk|\nin shining suits and shirts,\nand city folk in dungarees\nfor the favors of the ladies.\nSquare dancing was popular\ntoo. The romp went' on untij\nthe early hours of the mor\nning. Finally the last car-wad\nsafely down on the Peace Rij\nvex ice, or along the road'td\nFort St. John Hudson's H6pJ\nfolks, who surely wouldn't\nhave to cook for a week. go  PART\nI I I\nGENERAL\nDESCRIPTIONS\n  A 1912 DESCRIPTION OF THE COUNTRY 123.\nHUGH   SAVAGE\nThe writer of the following description was one of the first journalists\nto explore the Peace River District from the British Columbia side. Born in England,\nSavage :came to Canada in 1908, was on the staff of Jiie Vancouver Daily Province in 19CL0,\nand later was for many years editor and publisher of the Cowichan Leader.\nNorth of Fort George, then,  is the Arctic watershed.    The\nrivers forming both the Peace and the Liard take their rise very near the\nPacific coast,  separated from it only by the coast range.    Both of them are\ntributaries of the Mackenzie,  and they are the only two rivers of the\nContinent which flow easterly through the Rocky Mountains.    Of the Liard\nRiver country little is known.    On Government maps it is marked \"unexplored, H and few but Indians,  Hudson's Bay Company's servants,  or an occasional trapper and prospector have ever entered it.\nThe Peace River country of British Columbia is easily\ndivided into two sections,  being those areas  east and west of the Rocky\nMountains\u00bb\nBroadly speaking,  the land west of the range is timbered,  is\ncrQSsed by other mountain chains, and offers at present more scope for\nmineral development than for agricultural settlement,  although its   myriad\nvalleys and numerous plateaux may one day become the home of the farmer.\nA private but reliable estimate of the land fit for agriculture in this section\nis about 3,000,000 acres.    The Provincial Government has but little data\nconcerning it save the observations of its mineralogist, who has several\ntimes travelled along its waterways and trails.    Forty\u00b0one miles from Fort\nGeorge up the Fraser and on its east bank is set a store and half a dozen\nfarms known collectively as Giscombe.    Thence a fairly good wagon road\nof 8 miles leads to Summit Lake.    This wagon road crosses the height of\nland on the frontier,  and north of it is a wild country sparsely dotted with\nHudson's Bay Posts.. ..\nNaturally in such a vast area there are variations; in places\nthe soil is of a clay loam as far down as is known,  in others it is silt\nsoil to a minimum depth of 1 foot, underlain by gravel.    Its productivity\nmay be gauged by the present growth of wild grasses and berries.    For\nthe most part it is timbered,  and this timber will be of commercial value\nwhen transportation is assured.    In it are considerable stretches of\nspruce, but the bulk is poplar (or aspen) and cottonwood,  although south\nof McLeod Lake, balsam, hemlock, jackpine and fir are to be found,  and\nin some localities a few tamarack.    In diameter these trees range from\n1 to 2 feet.    What open spaces there are have been caused by the agency of\nforest fires.\n ififr\n124. A 1912 DESCRIPTION OF THE COUNTRY\nOut of Summit Lake, which is some ten miles by five in extent,\nflows the Crooked River,   so named by reason of its tortuous course.    This\nstream is in reality a series of watercourses,  linking up,  as it flows north,\nPerry,  Sucker,  Horseshoe,  Davis,  Redbank, Kerry,  and McLeod Lakes.\nThree of these are of considerable size and depth,  Kerry being 4 miles by\n1,  Davis 6 by 4,  and McLeod 18 by 4 1\/2.    At the north end of the latter\nis set McLeod Lake Post,  distant from Summit Lake 80 miles.\nThis trading station of the Hudson's Bay Company was\nfounded in 1805 by Simon Fraser,  and as it was here that the Indians were\nfirst able to procure firearms, the lake was called \"Cheyson la toot\"\n(gun lake).    The natives whose houses are near the store are Sicanees\nand live by hunting   and fishing.    This point is also of strategic value,  for\na trail runs south-westerly to Fort George or Hazelton.    North-westerly\nrailroad routes have been surveyed through the Pine Pass,  which is a short\ncut through the Rockies and leads to the plateaux beyond.\nOut of the McLeod Lake drains the Pack River,  of whose 17\nmiles some 10 are set with rapids,  necessitating the frequent packing of\ngoods,  3 of the remaining 7 miles being across Tudai Lake.    As is the\ncase with the Crooked River,  it affords passage to light draught craft, only,\nthat is, to boats and canoes.    The valley drained by the streams already\nmentioned is comparatively narrow, and all the good land in it has been\nalienated by the purchase system.    The water itself is literally alive with\nfish, including trout of several varieties,  chub and whitefish, which may be\ntaken with the greatest ease.    Beaver are very plentiful on the Crooked\nRiver.\nThe Pack now joins with the Parsnip River,  so called from\nthe growth of wild parsnip upon its banks.    This river rises on the other\nside of the watershed to that upon which the north fork of the Fraser\nflows, and drains th\u00a3 foothills of the Rockies as it proceeds north to its\njunction with the Pack.    This effected, its course is always in view of the\nRockies, which are here much smaller eminences than the more southerly\npeaks*.    It would be possible to run steamers,  drawing one and possibly\nmore than one foot of water, throughout the season over 90 miles from this\npoint to the Peace.\nSome 40 miles below the junction of the Pack and Parsnip\nRivers there enters the latter a large river known as the Nation,  which\ndrains the district of that name,  flowing out of a series of four lakes,  the\nhead of which is separated from Tackla Lake by a similar portage to that\nat Giscombe.\nWhile all the rivers of the north are swift,  the Nation is\nespecially so,  and a series of canyons effectually blocks navigation.    All\nthe rivers contain gold,  and on many of the bars in their courses\n A 1912 DESCRIPTION OF THE COUNTRY 125.\nconsiderable amounts have been \"panned\" out, the Nation river being the\nobjective of a small \"rush\" some 20 years ago.    The country around the\nheadwaters of the river is estimated to contain from 180, 000 to 200, 000\nacres fit for settlement.\nAt the point where the Parsnip joins the Finlay River the\nPeace River is formed.    The former of these is 145 miles long, the\nFinlay being 250 miles in length.    For 175 miles up the latter it would be\npossible to navigate shallow - draught steamers.\nThe river has its beginning in Lake Thutade,  a lake 50 miles\nlong by 2 to 4 miles wide,  surrounded by mountains whose western slopes\nare drained into the Pacific by the Stikine and Skeena systems.    There are\ntwo bad canyons along its route,  named Long Canyon and Deserter's Canyon,\nand into it flow consecutively from the west,  Bower Creek, the Ingenika,\nOmineca and Manson Rivers.    Around these rivers and their tributaries\nmuch interest has from time to time centred on account of the mineral\nwealth of the districts they drain.\nIn 1908-09 great excitement was caused by the discovery of\ngold in McConnell Creek,  a tributary of the Ingenika,  but owing to the\nexpense and impracticability of getting in supplies operations soon ceased,\nalthough for a time ground was worked which gave an ounce of gold per\nday per man.    The whole Ingenika valley is rich in fine gold upon the river\nbars,  while tracts of fine spruce and good agricultural land are there also.\nFort Grahame, a Hudson's Bay post,  is 20 miles below the\nmouth of the Ingenika on the Finlay, which is here crossed by the trail\ncut by the Royal North-West Mounted Police from Edmonton to Yukon River\nin 1897-98.    Some 45 miles below this point the Omineca River enters the\nFinlay,  and on its headwaters mining has been carried on for the past 30\nyears,  gold being won with satisfactory results in spite of the cost of\npacking in supplies from Hazelton on horseback.    The whole region surrounding the rivers flowing into the Finlay is undoubtedly of mineral value.    It is\nonly partially explored as yet, but with the advent of better means of\ntransportation, development will follow.\nAs regards the taking up of this land,  an area of 20 miles\non either side of the Parsnip River is reserved by the Government for\npre-emption only.    Outside of that,  large areas have been alienated under\nthe purchase system.\nFrom the confluence of the Parsnip and Finlay Rivers the\nPeace flows steadily eastward through the mountains and foothills for a\ndistance of 75 miles.    It is a mighty stream even here and would bear\nvessels of several feet draught were it not for two rapids in its course,  the\nFinlay and Parle Pas,  while an effectual stop is put to navigation some 40\n 126. A 1912 DESCRIPTION OF THE COUNTRY\nmiles below the latter rapids by the canyon of 30 miles into which the river\nnarrows and plunges at the old site of Cust's House.    Thence runs a trail\nof 12 miles leading to Hudson's Hope,   3 miles inside the Dominion Government's lands,  and from this place there is unbroken navigation to Vermilion,\n550 miles distant,  over which the steamers of the Hudson's Bay Company\nnow make periodical trips.\nIt is to this land, known as the \"Peace River Block\",   and\nowned by the Dominion Government,  and to the contiguous prairie in Alberta,\nthat attraction^ is now so largely directed.    The block consists of 3, 500, 000\nacres,  confined on the east by the Alberta boundary,  and 12 townships have\nnow been surveyed and thrown open for settlement.    Nor have private\ninterests been idle,  for many sections of coal lands have been staked around\nPeace River Canyon,  and on Mount Selwyn a number of gold claims have been\nheld for some time.    On its southern limits is Pouce Coupe prairie,  where\n100, 000 acres have been surveyed for \"homesteading, u though probably not\nmore than a dozen settlers have yet settled on the land.    To the north-west\nof this settlement the land is largely covered by bush, and near to Cutbank\nRiver, which runs north to the Peace, there is a considerable belt of spruce.\nHudson's Hope, to which immense bodies of coal are adjacent, has been\nmentioned as being on the western limits of the block,  and. lying almost due\neast in the centre is Fort St.  John.    North of this point there are considerable stretches of woodland prairie,  or open spaces  amid the bush,   some\nfairly large lakes and more good spruce until the swampy tree-covered\nland which reaches to the Nelson River is reached.    The white population\nin this district is as scanty as at Pouce Coupe,  for none of the land there\nhas yet been surveyed for \"homesteading\".    It is the home of a section of\nthe Beaver tribe of Indians.\nSpeaking generally, the best of the British Columbian land\neast of the mountains is included within the Dominion Government's block.\nThe land outside its northern boundary is mainly bush covered,   save in the\nriver valleys.    There is a considerable extent of open land along the Halfway\nRiver.    The country to the south of the block,  though having the advantage\nof being nearer the probable railroad routes,  is handicapped by the\ninclusion of the broken country and actual foothills of the mountains.\n(Henry J. Boam and Ashley G. Brown, Compiler and editor, \"British Columbia, Its History,\nPeople, Commerce, Industries and Resources\", London, 1912.)\n FINLAY AND INGENIKA VALLEYS,   1914 127.\nF.   C.  SWANNELL\nA Provincial Government surveyor made an exploration of the Finlay and\nIngenika Valleys in 1914.\nFort Grahame,  a Hudson's Bay Company's post on the\nFinlay River,  was the starting point for the season's operations.    The area\ncruised and mapped lies between 56\u00b0 30' and 57\u00b0 45' north latitude and is\nbounded on the east by the Rocky Mountains and on the west by 126\u00b0 30'\nwest longitude.    The area is approximately 5,000 square miles.    The\nmain characteristic of the whole region is its mountainous character,  only\n400 square miles being agricultural lands.    The average elevation of the\nmain river-valleys is between 2,200 and 3,000 feet, the mountains rising\nabout 3,000 feet aboye this drainage level.    Many higher ranges exist!,\nhowever,  glacier-bearing peaks exceeding 10,000 feet in altitude having\nbeen observed.\nThe total population of this 5, 000 mile area consists of a\nscant dozen of white prospectors and a couple of small bands of the\nnomadic Sikanni Indians.    No attempts at agriculture have been made,\nexcept a little desultory gardening at Fort Grahame.    The Finlay Valley,\nhowever,  as far north as 57\u00b0 37' contains probably the largest compact\narea of excellent land remaining unexploited in British Columbia,  and\nboth soil and climate render it particularly desirable for settlement.    At\npresent,   remoteness,  and consequent difficulty and expense of obtaining\nsupplies,  is the chief drawback. . . .The near advent of railways touching\nMcLeod Lake and the Peace River and the placing of a steamboat on the\nUpper Peace,  Parsnip,  and Finlay Rivers would make the whole of the\nFinlay Valley readily accessible. . . .The climate is rather less severe in\nwinter than that of the Nechako Valley,  and the snowfall on the lower\nFinlay is reported to be light.\n(P.C. Swannell, B.C.L.S., \"Exploration of Finlay and Ingenika Valleys, Casslar District\"1,\nRepdrt of the Minister of Lands for B.C. for 1914, Victoria 1915.)\n 128. A 1923 DESCRIPTION OF THE AREA\nJ0  D.  GALLOWAY\nThe Provincial Department of Mines' Resident Mining Engineer for No.2\nDistrict with headquarters at Hazelton, visited the Peace River area of British Columbia\nin 1923.  His description of existing mineral claims and possibilities of the region was\npublished in the Department's Annual Report.\nThe water route into the Peace River District from Summit\nLake has been used for many years, but formerly it was necessary to commence with a boat trip up the Fraser River to Giscome and then across\nthe Giscome portage to Summit Lake.    Now,  however,   it is simpler to go\nby train to Prince George and then by   motor-car,  some 30 miles to\nSummit Lake.    At the lake canoes or long,  flat-bottomed,  river-type\nrowboats can be secured.    The latter with an Evinrude motor attached\nmakes a good outfit for the trip. . . .Freight is taken in by this route to posts\non the Finlay and upper Peace rivers; flat-bottomed barges are used and the\nhigh-water period in June is the best time.\nThe advantage of this route into the district is that from\nSummit lake to the Peace river it is down-stream all the way, with no falls\nor rapids until Finlay Forks is reached.    From Summit Lake the route\nis by the Crooked river,  McLeod lake, the Pack river,  and then the Parsnip\nRiver to Finlay Forks.    At this point the Finlay from the north joins the\nParsnip from the south,  and the resulting river,  the Peace, flows easterly,\nbreaking directly through the main range of the Rocky mountains.    Half a\nmile below Finlay Forks are the Finlay rapids, which should not be run\nexcept by skilled canoemen familiar with them.    A short portage on the\nsouth bank can easily be negotiated and the boat can be lined around the edge\nof the rapids.    Going down the Peace river the next rapids are the Parle-pas,\n45 miles above the head of the Rocky Mountain canyon,  and although it is\npossible at certain stages of the water to run these rapids,  it is much better\nnot to take the risk.    A boat,  loaded,  can easily be lined up or down the north\nbank.    The full name of the rapids,  \"Qui ne parle pas, \" meaning \"That do\nnot speak, \" is most appropriate,  as coming down-stream they look\ninsignificant and are hardly audible.    The water flows with a deadly smoothness but great speed,  and breaks almost silently over a hard sandstone bank\nwith a drop in the centre of about 4 feet.    Signs have been erected above both\nthe Finlay and Parle-pas rapids to warn travellers; the latter one is some\ndistance up-stream from the rapids.\nTh,e distance from Summit Lake to Finlay Forks is about\n150 miles and from Finlay Forks to the head of the Rocky Mountain canyon\nis 95 miles.    The Rocky Mountain canyon,  or the \"Canyon of the Mountain\nof Rocks\",  or Peace River canyon,  as it is variously called,  is where the\nPeace River cuts through the foot-hills of the Rockies and emerges on to\nthe plains. ... It is a recent topographic feature, the river having been\n A 1923 DESCRIPTION OF THE AREA 129.\nforced into its present channel by a terminal morain which closed up the\nold gap between Portage and Bullhead mountains, through which the river\nformerly flowed.    The canyon is about 25 miles long and consists of a\nseries of foaming rapids for about half the distance; below that the water\nis calmer,  with relatively *small drop and few riffles.    The canyon is quite\nimpassable for navigation.    The portage around the canyon is only 15 miles\nin length,  as the river makes a big half-circle bend.    There is a wagon-\nroad across this portage and teams and wagons can be obtained at Hudson\nHope for taking supplies across.\nHudson Hope is situated at the lower end of the canyon and is\nthe head of navigation on the Peace River.    The usual type of sternwheel,\nflat-bottomed river-steamers  are in use on this part of the river,  as well\nas gas-boats.    Hudson Hope is a small town containing two stores,  one of\nwhich is a Hudson Bay post,  and a restaurant.    During the summer season\nthe Hudson's Bay Company's boat makes the trips to Hudson Hope from the\nlower Peace and a gas-boat runs between Hudson Hope and Peace River\n(formerly called Peace River Crossing).    One branch of the Edmonton &\nDunvegan Railway starts from Peace River and another from Grande Prairie.\nThe traveller from Hudson Hope can either take the boat right to Peace\nRiver and there connect with the train,  or he can go to Rolla Landing,  90\nmiles below Hudson Hope,  and there have a car meet him and take him to\nGrande Prairie.    There is an   office of the Government telegraph system\nat Hudson Hope,  by which means a car can be ordered from Rolla,  B. C.\nThe car trip from Rolla Landing to Grand Prairie is interesting,  as the\nroute goes through the best-settled portion of the district and gives a good\nidea of the immense area of wheat land available in this district; the\ntowns of Rolla,  and Pouce Coupe are also on the route.    The latter place\nhas the Government Agency for the Peace River District.\nOn the water route into the district there is the Hudson's Bay\nCompany's McLeod Lake Post on McLeod Lake,  a post of the Northern\nTrading Company at Finlay Forks,  and one a mile up the Finlay river from\nthe Forks kept by W.Gibson.\nSixty miles down the Peace River from Hudson Hope is the\nold point of Fort St.  John.    This point is now practically abandoned, the\npresent town of Fort St.  John being 5 miles northerly from the old point on\nthe river. . . .\nHudson Hope is the centre for a considerable fur trade,  and\nis also the starting-point for many big-game hunting parties.    These\nparties as a rule go north to the Nelson River section where grizzlies,\nmoose, mountain-goat,   and big-horn mountain-sheep are found.    Guides\nand horses can be obtained without difficulty at Hudson Hope.\n JflflF\n130. A 1923 DESCRIPTION OF THE AREA\nFor anyone looking for a pleasant canoe and camping trip\nthis water route into the Peace River District can be highly recommended.\nIn August and September the weather,  as a rule,   is perfect, the mosquito\nseason is over,  and the fishing is the equal of anywhere.    Unexcelled flyfishing is obtainable for rainbow and Dolly Varden trout and in the tributaries of the Parsnip and Peace Rivers arctic trout abound.    Prairie-\nchicken and ducks are very plentiful in the fall of the year around Rolla,\nPouce Coupe,  and other parts of the district.\nScenery, with which British Columbia is lavishly supplied,\nis also not wanting along the water trip into the Peace River Division.    Going\nnortherly from Summit Lake, the rolling hills topography of the Interior\nplateau gradually gives way to the massive rugged scenery of the Rockies.\nThe low elevation of the Parsnip and Peace rivers and the abruptness with\nwhich the mountains rise from the water's edge give a magnified impression\nof their elevation.    From Finlay Forks to about the Parle-pas rapids the\nPeace River cuts boldly and directly through the heart of the Rocky mountains.\nIt is indeed remarkable, too,  that in this distance going transversely through\nthe range, there are only two short and relatively insignificant rapids.\nBelow Parle-pas rapids the mountains gradually fade away into foot-hills and\nthe river-valley widens considerably.    The Rocky Mountain canyon,  where\nthe Peace river debouches from the foot-hills on to the plains,  affords\nmagnificent scenery for the traveller; this,  of course,   cannot be viewed from\na canoe,  but from a trail along the north bank of the river.    After getting\nthrough the mountains the prairie country,  with its slight undulations,\nscanty timber,  and bountiful crops of wheat,  affords a striking and pleasing\ncontrast.. . .\nThe important known mineral-deposits of the Peace River\nDivision consist of coal and placer gold.    It is known that an extensive\narea is underlain by coal, and it is also known that the field as exposed at\nthe Rocky Mountain canyon and on the Carbon river carries very high-\ngrade coal.    Development and mining of the coalfield has of course not\nproceeded far owing to lack of transportation and market.\nMore or less small-scale placer-mining has been carried on\nalong the Peace,  Parsnip,  and Finlay rivers for years, but within the last\nfew years attempts at larger-scale mining have been attempted.    Owing to\nlack of proper methods not much success has as yet been attained,  but\nmore may be expected in the future.    Associated with the placer gold in\nsmall and varying amounts is a certain amount of placer platinum.\nComparatively few lode-mineral deposits are known in this\nDivision.    The explanation for this apparently lies in the fact that throughout most of the Division the rock formations are not such as to be\nfavorable for the occurrence of lode minerals.    The great majority of lode-\nmineral deposits are very directly connected in their origin with intrusions\n A 1923 DESCRIPTION OF THE AREA 131.\nof igneous rocks and in this Division igneous rocks are practically absent.\nReports of copper-deposits in the northern part of the Division or in the\nadjoining Liard Division have been heard,  but no exact description is\navailable.    The great distance of these deposits from transportation will in\nall probability prevent development of them for some time.    A low-grade\ngold-deposit on Mount Selwyn has been known of for a long time and claims\nhave been held on it since the nineties.    Some development has been attempted,\nbut much will be required before it can become productive.    A deposit of\nbog-iron ore,  reported to be of considerable size,\"lying north of Hudson\nHope wag examined,  but was found to be of no importance either now or in\nthe immediate future.\nThe possible occurrence of petroleum in the rocks of this\nDivision has been the subject of some investigation.    Geologic reconnaissances have been made by a number of oil companies and leases have been\ntaken up.    Drilling was done a few miles east of Rolla by the Imperial Oil\nCompany and a considerable flow of natural gas was struck.    Further\ndrilling was apparently unsuccessful in finding oil as the work has all been\nstopped. . . .\nThe Rocky Mountain Canyon coalfield has been known for\nmany years; leases were taken up in the area by Neil Gething as long ago\nas 1908.    At the present time a syndicate consisting of Neil Gething, George\nAylard, and R. F.  Green holds forty leases, and another twenty are iheld\nby W.S. Johnston.    In the immediate vicinity of the canyon no other leases\nhave been taken up, and as the coal is under reserve none can be taken up\nat the present time.    On the Carbon River, thirty miles above the head of\nthe canyon, ten leases are held by C.F. W.  Rochfort and partners.    No\nother coal leases are known to be held in the Division, . . .\nApart from its high-carbon content this coal is noteworthy\nfor its low ash content which on the average is considerably lower than\nany of the coals now being mined in Western Canada.    The high rank of this\ncoal, together with the low ash,  makes it altogether an exceptional coal and\npractically the equal of the high-grade coals of West Virginia and Wales.\nMost of the coal in this area is non-coking,  although certain\nbands within some seams and certain small seams are fairly good coking-\ncoal.    Two more or less distinct types of coal occur in the field and in\nmany instances a seam will contain a band of each kind of coal.\n(J.D. Galloway, \"Peace River Mining Division\" in 1923 Annual Report of the Minister of\nMines, Province of British Columbia, Victoria, 1924.)\n 132. A 1927 DESCRIPTION OF THE COUNTRY\nF.  H. KITTO\nTaken from an official Dominion Government booklet published in 1927,\nwhich describes the whole Peace River Country in considerable detail. It was prepared\nprimarily for the information of prospective settlers.\nPeace river itself,  aside from its vast bordering valleys\nand plateaus,  is of more than passing interest.    It is a major link in the\ngreat Mackenzie River system,  which,  with a length of 2, 525 miles from -\nits extreme headwaters to its Arctic delta and a drainage basin of 682, 000\nsquare miles,  constitutes the largest river system in Canada and one of\nworld-wide prominence.\nAt the opposite extremities of a trough-like depression in\nthe mountainous regions of the northern and central interior parts of\nBritish Columbia two large rivers, the Finlay and the Parsnip,  have their\nsources.    The headwaters of the Finlay,  which are also the upper\nextremities of the whole Mackenzie system,  are separated from those of\nthe Stikine and the Skeena rivers,  flowing to the Pacific coast,  by the\nCassiar and the Omenica ranges of mountains.    Those of the Parsnip rise\nbut a few miles north of the town of Prince George,  being separated from\nthe upper section of the Fraser river by a comparatively low divide.\nBetween the great depression in which these rivers are found and the plains\nregions of Western Canada lies the main Rocky Mountain range,  having\na northwesterly and southeasterly bearing.\nThe Finlay,  flowing from the far northwest between the\nsnow-capped peaks of the Cassiar and Omenica ranges on the one hand and\nthose of the Rockies on the other, meets the Parsnip, flowing almost\ndirectly towards it,  at a point in the lowest part of the valley near the\nfoot of Mount Selwyn.    The larger volume of water resulting from the\nunion of these two great mountain rivers, already reinforced by numerous\ntributaries of no mean dimensions,  is thenceforth known as Peace River.\nThe meeting place (the source of the Peace),  now known as Finlay but\nformerly as Finlay Forks,  is the site of a small trading post and a\nscattered settlement of a few trappers,  prospectors and other pioneers.\nAn outlet for these converging waters is found through a\ncleavage in the Rocky mountains.    Starting on a course almost at right\nangles to the trend of its affluents the Peace flows sharply to the east\nand for nearly a hundred miles winds its way through one of the most\ngorgeous mountain passes in existence.    Its final sortie from the mountains\nto the plains region is marked by a remarkable chasm known as Rocky\nMountain canyon.    At the lower end of the canyon is located the small\nsettlement of Hudson Hope.    This marks the westerly,  or upstream,  limit\nof the main agricultural portion of the Peace River country.\n A 1927 DESCRIPTION OF THE COUNTRY 133.\nFrom Hudson Hope the Peace flows in a general easterly\ndirection to the town of Peace River,  formerly known as Peace River\nLanding or Peace River Crossing,  thence more northerly to Fort Vermilion\nand thence easterly and northerly to the vicinity of lake Athabaska.    About\nfifty miles below Fort Vermilion a series of rapids and low falls known\nas Vermilion chutes are found.    These might be said to mark the easterly or\ndownstream limit of the so-called Peace River country.    The country below\nthe chutes is more closely merged into the lower Athabaska and Slave\ndistrict.. . .\nOn either side of Peace river, from Hudson Hope to the\nVermilion chutes,  are vast plateaus varying from 2, 600 to 1,000 feet\nabove sea level.    The valley of the Peace is about 800 feet below the\nplateau level near the foothills0    This difference gradually diminishes to\nabout 100 feet of gentle slope at Fort Vermilion,  below which it practically\ndisappears....\nThe width of Peace river varies from about a quarter of a\nmile at Hudson Hope to a mile at Vermilion chutes.    Having its sources\nin the mountains it is subject to considerable fluctuation in volume,  rising\nor falling rapidly according to weather conditions in its headwaters.    The\nhighest water is usually experienced in early mid-summer and the lowest\nduring the winter months.    Like most plains rivers the Peace is comparatively shallow, with the channel-shifting type of bed.    It is navigable for\nmotor boats and for the large type of flat-bottom,  sternwheel steamboats,\nexcept where the interruptions caused by Rocky Mountain canyon and\nVermilion chutes occur.     These divide it into three navigable sections.\nThe current is fairly steady and uniform, the rate varying\naccording to high or low stages of water.    The Dominion Water Power and\nReclamation Service has ascertained, through a series of records observed\nfrom May to October over a period of five years, that the average speed\nof the whole stream is 2. 6 miles per hour at Hudson Hope,  2. 7 miles at\nPeace River, and 2.4 miles at Fort Vermilion.    The mid-channel speed\nwould be from 50 to 75 per cent greater.    During high-water periods the\naverage rate of mid-stream flow is as high as 10. 5 miles per hour from\nHudson Hope to Peace River and 5. 5 miles from Peace River to Fort\nVermilion.    The rise and fall of the river is about 15 feet. . . .\nThe climate of the Peace River country is excellent,  and\nremarkably moderate considering the latitude.    The air is pure and\nbracing--in winter,   clear and crisp,  and in summer,  dry and balmy.\nExtremes of temperature,   sudden changes and severe storms are very\nrare.    The winters are by no means mild but are very dry,  with clear\nskies,  little snowfall and moderate winds.    Blizzards are unknown,  but the\nmild Chinook winds occasionally work through the mountain passes from\nthe warm Pacific,   giving pleasing respites of balmy days to break the\nmonotony of a steady cold.\n 134. A 1927 DESCRIPTION OF THE COUNTRY\nSpring comes early and quickly.    The snow rapidly disappears\nand the ground dries in a few days.    Ice on the lakes and rivers breaks up\nduring the latter part of April or early in May.    Seeding is usually well\nunder way by the middle of April,  or about the first of May at Fort\nVermilion.    Most of the rainfall occurs in June,  July and August.    The\naverage precipitation for the full year is from twelve to sixteen inches.\nHarvest commences fairly early in August.    September and\nOctober are usually especially pleasant months.    Life in the woods is at its\nbest during this period.    The days are still warm in September but the\nnights grow colder and the flies disappear.    October brings heavier frosts\nand the ice forms late in this month or early in November.    Winter usually\nsets in early in November,  although plowing has been continued some years\ntill late in this month.    Fairly mild weather till Christmas is not uncommon.\nAn examination of official meteorological records from Fort\nVermilion,  Peace River and Beaverlodge,  covering periods varying from\ntwelve to twenty-one years in durations,   reveals the following salient\nfacts.    The seasons are well defined and regular.    The months of December,\nJanuary and February are cold and dry and represent a distinct winter\nseason.    The summer months of June,  July and August make another well\ndefined season having an average temperature considerably higher than\nthat of May or September and usually a slightly greater precipitation.\nBoth December and February are from ten to twenty degrees\nhigher than January.    There is not so much variation during the summer\nseason.    July, the warmest month, has an average temperature at Fort\nVermilion of sixty degrees (Fahr.),  at Peace River sixty-one,  and at\nBeaverlodge fifty-seven.    June and August do not average more than three\nor four degrees below these figures. . . .\nTaken the year round the climate is healthy and enjoyable\nand conducive to active and vigorous outdoor life. It is one of the many\nattractive and valuable assets of the country.\nThe luxuriant vegetation of the country is one of its most\nremarkable characteristics.    Though the growing season is short,  the\nrate of growth is rapid in midsummer,  especially with respect to grasses,\ncereals,  vegetables,   shrubs and smaller plants.    There are no barren or\ndesert areas.    The nearest approach to any natural lack of vegetation\nis sometimes seen on high areas of open prairies,  in exceptionally dry\nseasons,  when the native upland hay is sometimes short and light in\nconsequence.    The prevailing impression of the landscape during summer\nmonths is one of abundant greenness.\nTrees,   shrubs,  wild fruits and flowers abound,  but the most\nstriking form of native vegetation is probably the grasses.    Everywhere\n A 1927 DESCRIPTION OF THE COUNTRY 135.\nexcept in the dense woods the ground is clothed with some form of pasturage.\nOn the open prairies the native upland grasses can be made into hay of\nexcellent quality.    The marshes,   edges of ponds and wet meadows produce\nheavy yields of slough grass which,  though much coarser than the upland\nvarieties,  makes a hay of fair quality and excellent keeping qualities.\nSeveral varieties of legumes are native to the district, the most prolific\nof which are the so-called wild vetch and pea vines.    They grow in great\nprofusion in lightly wooded areas and flourish after fires,   even though the\nsoil has been injured for other crops. . . .\nWhile a change of climate in any district is a much disputed\nquestion it cannot be denied that the clearing up and draining of wooded\nand wet areas permits of an earlier and hence safer season.    The\nintroduction of earlier maturing varieties of seeds still further reduces\nthe hazard of injury by frost to growing crops.    Bearing these factors in\nmind and considering the prevailing favourable climate and luxuriant\nvegetation as observed over a period of a century and a quarter it is safe\nto assume that the Peace River country will ultimately be one of the world's\ngreat grain-producing areas. . . \u2666\nThe high-water mark of Peace river at Finlay,  its source,\nis about 2,000 feet above sea-level.    Mount Selwyn towers above it,  having\nan elevation of 6, 220 feet.    At the foot of Rocky Mountain canyon the Peace\nhas an elevation of slightly over 1,500 feet, while the plateaus on either\nside are more than 800 feet higher. . . .\nBefore the year 1912 there were only a few scattered pioneers\nto be found engaged in farming in the Peace River country.    As mentioned\nbefore, the census of 1911 credited the whole district with a total\npopulation, white and native, of less than two thousand.    Commencing about\nthese years, however, a steady stream of settlers moved northerly and\nquickly took possession of the choicest prairie lands.    Surveyors worked\nthe year round to keep ahead of the rush.    Before the outbreak of the Great\nWar thousands of homesteads had been filed on,  and several thriving\nvillages were springing up.\nEven during the war years settlement continued.    Immigration from Europe having been suspended^ the district received its newcomers for a time almost entirely from the older settled parts of Canada\nand various states of the adjoining Republic.    Then came many returned\nsoldiers,  certain lands having been set apart for their exclusive choice.\nThe country thus received an exceptionally high percentage of English-\nspeaking people; British subjects of French extraction also accounted for\na fair proportion. . . .\nNo metallic deposits of note are known to exist in the Peace\nRiver country east of the mountains,  but extensive areas are underlain with\n 136. A 1927 DESCRIPTION OF THE COUNTRY\nvarious non-metallic deposits.    The principal of these are coal,  natural\ngas,  brine,  gypsum,  and possibly oil.\nIn the Rocky mountains and areas adjacent to the headwaters\nof the Peace considerable quantities of metallic ores occur.    Placer gold\nwas discovered on Parsnip river in 1861 by prospectors who drifted north\nfrom the Cariboo gold fields.    A year later similar discoveries were made\non Finlay river.\nThe discovery and exploitation of the famous Omineca fields\nfollowed quickly.    The rich and easy diggings of the Omineca,  which\nyielded about a million dollars' worth of gold in a few years,  were soon\nexhausted.    Numbers of miners then prospected down-stream.    Several\nbars on Peace river were worked as far as the foothills,  and even beyond,\nbut the pay gradually lessened till such industry became unprofitable.    Fine\ngold has been carried downstream as far as Fort Vermilion.\nExtensive bodies of gold-bearing quartz are known to occur\nin the mountain regions,  and it is anticipated a lode-mining industry will\ndevelop in due course.    It is also possible that placer mining by dredging\nand hydraulicing may be undertaken when improved means of transportation\nmake such undertakings more feasible.    Large veins of silver-bearing\ngalena were found many years ago.    More recently samples of limotite ore,\na hydrated form of iron oxide, have been secured from a deposit of bog ore\nnear the Halfway river west of Fort St.  John,    While the analyses of these\nwere encouraging the extent of the deposit is not known to be of commercial\nimportance.    From time to time discoveries of other rnetallics are reported.\nSeams of coal of excellent quality are exposed in Rocky\nMountain canyon above Hudson Hope.    A sample from this source gave the\nfollowing analysis: moisture,  0.9; ash,  3.3; volatile matter,   18.5; fixed\ncarbon,  77. 3 per cent.\nCoal measures also outcrop to the south of Pine river and\non the headwaters of Smoky river.    Coal of sub-bituminous quality has also\nbeen found in the banks of the Peace below the town of Peace River,   on\nRed Willow river and in other sections.\nThe best and most extensive coal fields are those on the\nheadwaters of the Smoky and adjacent rivers.    Commenting on them,   Dr.\nCharles Camsell,  Deputy Minister of Mines,  Ottawa,   says:   \"The areal\nextent of the fields and the high quality of the coal indicate that in this part\nof the Peace River district there is one of the most important coal fields\nof Western Canada. I\nA report on the Smoky River coal field by James McEvoy,\nmining engineer and geologist,   contains the following comment:\n A 1927 DESCRIPTION OF THE COUNTRY 137.\n\"Considered as a new source of coal supply,  the principal fact about the\nSmoky-Sheep rivers area is that it contains a large tonnage of very high\ngrade bituminous coal,  one notable 14-foot seam grading in places,  by\nanalysis,  as semi-anthracite. \"\nA National Coal Reserve of about 550 square miles has\nbeen set apart in this district,  but,  owing to its present inaccessibility,  it\nis not likely to be developed for a long while.    Deposits within easier\nreach are sufficient to meet the needs of the Peace River country for many\nyears.\nSeepages of natural gas, high-grade crude oil and tar have\nbeen observed at various places from the foothills to Vermilion chutes.\nThese suggest underlying reservoirs in the rocks below.    Drilling to\nascertain the presence and extent of such has been undertaken by a number\nof concerns during recent years. . . .\nBelow Vermilion chutes beds of gypsum from ten to fifty\nfeet in thickness are exposed on both banks of Peace river near Peace\npoint.    They extend along the river for a distance of fifteen miles,  and\ntremendous quantities can be mined under most favourable conditions.\nFarther north are salt deposits and brine springs.    It is considered\npossible that potash might be found with this combination.\nAluminum sulphate has been found in the banks of Little\nSmoky river near its mouth.    While the occurrence as observed is small\nas to quantity the possibilities of larger and workable deposits are said\nby Dr.  Allan,  of the University of Alberta, to be promising.    Red and\nyellow ochres are found here and there, being deposited about springs,\nthe waters of which are charged with iron oxide,  or in some cases\nmanganese oxide.    While the quality is usually high grade, the known\nquantities are small.\nSand and gravel suitable for concrete work,  building\nconstruction and road making have been located at various convenient points\n.Clay suitable for the manufacture of common brick and tile is believed to\nbe abundant,  although only a  couple of small plants have yet been\nestablished.    Field boulders suitable for foundation work are found in some\nsections.    Out-crops of sandstone and limestone in many cutbanks along\nrivers and streams suggest further sources of fundamental building\nmaterial.    The sandstones underlie much of the Peace River and Grande\nPrairie districts,  and the limestones are found in the Fort Vermilion and\nnortherly areas.\nWhile all the mineral deposits of the country are still in an\nundeveloped state,  it has been proved that coal,  gas and gypsum are\nabundant.    It is hoped that oil will be located in commercial quantities.\n 138. A 1927 DESCRIPTION OF THE COUNTRY\nThe development of these,  and other possible mineral deposits,  will\ndoubtless be in keeping with the settlement and growth of the area. . . .\nWater-power is not so abundant in the Peace River region\nas in many other parts of Canada.    Natural power sites and storage reservoirs'are rare.    Moreover,  the Peace and some of its principal tributaries\nflow from mountain sources and,  as a result,  their volumes are very\nirregular,  varying as much as fifty to one between high and low water, with\nthe floods occurring during the summer months and the low water during\nthe winter.    This disadvantage might be overcome to some extent by the\ncreating of artificial storage reservoirs.    The maintenance of forest\nreserves in the headwaters regions will,  at any rate,  prevent a more\nexaggerated condition from developing,  as would be the case if these areas\nwere denuded of trees.\nOn Peace river there are two possible power sites,  one at\nRocky Mountain canyon and the other at Vermilion chutes.    No definite\ninformation is available respecting the canyon site but power engineers of\nthe Department of the Interior have surveyed and reported on the chutes\nsite.\nThe river flows through the canyon for a distance of 18 or\n20 miles between high banks of sandstone and shale.    The fall in this\ndistance is said to be 270 feet.    It is understood that, while a large block\nof power could doubtless be developed here,  the undertaking would be\ncostly.    Moreover,  there would be little or no market for the power for\nsome time.    A preliminary estimate places the minimum development at\n81,000,  or for six months during highest water, at 245,000 horse-power. . . .\nThe big game animals of the Peace River country are moose,\nwhich are fairly widely distributed,  and caribou and deer,  which are scarce\nand found only in limited areas.    In the mountain regions to the west there\nare some goats and grizzly bears.    More interesting still is a large\nherd of bison,  or buffalo as they are commonly called,   roaming in a free\nstate over a large plain bordering on the north bank of   Peace river near\nits mouth.    These are the survivors of the millions that once roamed over\na third of the North American continent.    They are protected by a rigid\nclosed season,  and the area in which they are found has recently been set\naside'as a national park.\nFur-bearing animals have been the source of an important\nlocal commerce for a century and a quarter.    In fact for a century the fur\ntrade was the only industry of the country,  and even today it is of no mean\nconsequence.    Many outlying posts receive in trade no other commodity.\nThe principal centres of the trade are Peace River,  Fort St.  John,\nHudson Hope,   Fort McLeod (west of the mountains),  Grouard,  Keg River,\nFort Vermilion,   Hay River,   and Red River.\n A 1927 DESCRIPTION OF THE COUNTRY 139.\nReports from the resident traders at these posts state that\nthe principal fur-bearing animals are bear,  black,  brown,  and in some\ndistricts the grizzly; coyote or prairie wolfe; wolverine; lynx; fox,   red,\ncross and silver; skunk; ermine or weasel; beaver,  marten; otter; fisher;\nmink and muskrat. . . .\nGame shore birds include the Canada goose,  Sandhill\ncranes,  ducks of several species,  curlew and snipe.    Land species are the\nprairie chicken,  ruffled grouse or partridge,  spruce grouse and ptarmigan.\nThe shore birds belong to the migratory species and their numbers\nfluctuate somewhat from year to year.    Prairie chickens likewise appear\nscarce or plentiful according to the nature of the season.    Grouse appear\nto be holding their own while the ptarmigan is a winter visitor from the\nmountains. . . .\nPeace river furnishes a few fish,  principally ling and goldeyes.\nThe muddy waters of the river during summer months practically place it\nout of the fishing water class.\nThe Peace River country at large is not an angler's goal.\nHowever,  on many of the headwater's streams in the mountains excellent\nfly fishing is obtainable.    Such well known species as the Dolly Varden and\nRainbow trout abound in great plenty.    The favourite grayling trout is also\nfound in these waters as well as in several plains streams,  particularly\nsome of those flowing into the easterly end of Lesser Slave Lake and\ntributaries of the Wapiti and Little Smoky. . . .\nThe Alberta and Arctic Transportation Company,  Limited,\nof Edmonton,  operate the commodious stern-wheel steamboat D. A. THOMAS\non Peace river,  from the opening of navigation,  about the first of May till\nthe end of September.    Alternate trips are usually made from Peace River\nupstream to Hudson Hope and return,  and down-stream to Vermilion chutes\nand return.    About ten round trips on each course are made per season.\nA powerful gasoline boat is used when necessary as an auxiliary. . . .\nHudson Hope is located on the north bank of Peace river on\nthe westerly limit of the Peace River block.    It is the gateway from the\ngreat plains to the mountain regions, being at the foot of Rocky Mountain\ncanyon and on the easterly base of the foothills. . . .\nDuring summer months steamboats ply up and down the\nriver from Peace River town to this little settlement,  giving on an average\na fortnightly service.    There is also considerable travel to and from\nPrince George by canoe.    This route,  by water and portage,  is about three\nhundred miles.    A wagon road some fourteen miles in length leads past\nthe canyon to the upper waters of the Peace,    which are navigable for\nsteamboats.    Another road gives connection with Fort St.  John.    From a\n 140. A 1927 DESCRIPTION OF THE COUNTRY\npoint on the opposite side of the river another road leads to Pine river and\nthe Pouce Coupe district and a trail runs some eighteen miles south to\nMoberly lake.    Various other trails lead out to the haunts of the trapper and\nthe prospector,  for this district is rich in furs and has wonderful mineral\npossibilities.\nIn the immediate vicinity of Hudson Hope,  on either side\nof the river, there is very little agricultural land.    The country is rather\nhilly,   rough and stony.    The soil is not of the best and most of the surface\nis wooded.    There are a few choice sections but they are not extensive.\nDown stream a few miles on the north side of the river and adjacent to\nthe Halfway river there is a much larger area of gently rolling country,\nwooded with small poplar,  willow and alder,  and having good soil.\nA few homesteads have been located about Hudson Hope,\nhere and there on the flats along the river below and near the mouth of\nHalfway river where there is a little community called Halfway.    Excellent\ncrops of grains and vegetables are produced on these farms.    About Moberly\nLake there is some good land,  but the best falls within the limits of Indian\nreserves.    Wild hay and peavine grow profusely in this district.    It appears\nwell adapted to mixed farming and stock-raising.\nHudson Hope is provided with telegraph service,  being the\nterminus of the Edmonton-Peace River Government line.    It holds a very\nstrategic position,  being in the direct path of any railroad line that might\nbe projected through the mountains by the low pass of the Peace river\nvalley.    It should witness important developments at some future date. . . .\n(F.H. Kitto, p.R.G.S. - \"The Peace River Country, Canada, Its Resources and Opportunities\",\nDepartment of the Interior, Canada, Ottawa, 1927.)\n THE ROCKY MOUNTAIN TRENCH 141.\nJ.   LEWIS ROBINSON\nProfessor Robinson, Chairman of the U.B.C. Department of Geography,\ngave a description of the Rocky Mountain Trench in 1953.\nThe Rocky Mountain Trench is the most continuous gash in\nthe surface of the North American continent,  and can rank as one of the\nworld's outstanding topographic features.    This persistent valley extends\nsome 1, 100 miles from Flathead Lake,  Montana, through British Columbia\nto the Liard River Valley of Yukon Territory.    The Trench forms the\nwestern boundary of the Canadian Rockies,  and its alignment (approximately north 20 degrees west) is parallel to the trend of the Rockies.\nThe full extent and significance of this amazing valley have\nbeen realized only in the past few decades.    As a: route for the migration\nof early man who moved southward from Alaska, the \"highway\" of the\nTrench has intriguing possibilities.    Early in World War II parts of it were\nsuggested as a topographically favourable route for the Alaska Highway.\nIt is still frequently discussed as the obvious choice for a railway link\nbetween northwestern United States and Alaska. . . .\nA few scientists,  and undoubtedly many travellers, have\nwondered and postulated on the origin of this \"natural highway\" which links\nthe United States and Yukon Territory.    It might be compared with the\nGreat Valley (Shenandoah) of the Appalachian Mountains which is such an\nimportant agricultural region and transport route through the central part\nof the mountains,  in eastern United States.    But the trench is longer,\nnarrower,  and has steeper sides.    As the name indicates, it is a \"trench\"\nrather than a \"valley. \"\nThe floor of the Rocky Mountain Trench lies from 2, 000 to\n3,000 feet above sea-level.    It is therefore far below the mountains which\nrise to peaks of more than 10, 000 feet on both sides of it.    Owing to this\ngreat difference in altitude the view of the Rocky Mountains from the west\nside is considered by many to be far superior to that usually seen by\nvisitors approaching from the Alberta side.    To the east of the Rockies,\naltitudes in the Alberta Foothills   are already 4,000 to 5,000 feet,  with\nhigher peaks beyond.    But from the Trench,  along Kootenay River in the\nsouth, for example, the steep wall of the Rockies rises 5,000 to 7,000\nfeet directly above the valley in awe-inspiring,   rugged grandeur.\nAlthough the floor of the Trench appears quite flat throughout its length when viewed from the air, this is primarily due to the\ncontrast with the high, jagged peaks of the several mountain systems on\nboth sides of it.    The Trench varies in width from about 2 to 10 miles,  and\nmuch of the bottom is rolling to hilly except along the flat terraces cut by\n M\n142. THE ROCKY MOUNTAIN TRENCH\nthe rivers.    Since the Trench was occupied by remnant ice masses at the\nend of the Glacial Age, the valley bottom is mantled with hundreds of feet\nof glacial gravels and sands.    Many small,  circular lakes mark the final\nmelting places of large ice-blocks.   Presumably the Trench was blocked with\nice until later than the drier and higher Interior Plateau of B. C. to the\nwestward.    This latter area is, therefore,  a more probable route for the\nmigrations of early man in North America than the topographically-\nfavourable passage of the Trench.\nThe exact origin of the Trench is uncertain,  and an\nexplanation awaits the accumulation of additional geological evidence.\nCertainly parts of the remarkably straight valley are caused by faulting (a\nslippage of rock along zones of weakness,  which,  over a period of thousands\nof years may move large masses of rock many hundreds of feet).    The\nprocess which formed the Trench is associated with the rise of the Rocky\nMountains,  rather than with the mountain groups which lie to the westward\nof it.    Linear valleys are not peculiar in themselves,  for there are many\nthroughout the Cordilleran system of western North America.    What is\ndistinctive about the Trench is its persistence over such a great extent,\nand the regularity of its box-like sides,  particularly on the east wall.\nThe Trench was not cut by one single river, and one of its\npresent peculiarities is that it is now occupied by several rivers flowing\nin opposite directions. . . .\nNortheast of Prince George there is another drainage divide\nin the Trench,  but this one has a little hilly topography.    A distance of a\nfew miles in this watershed determines whether waters flow to the Pacific\nOcean or to the Arctic Ocean.    The headwaters of the Parsnip River flow\nto the northward to Finlay Forks where they join the southward-flowing\nFinlay River.    These rivers combine to form the Peace,  which breaks\nthrough the wall of the Rockies to the eastward.    The roaring canyon of the\nPeace River marks the only place where a river has been able to cut down\nthrough the continuous barrier of the Canadian Rockies.\nTo the northward the Trench again has a peculiar drainage\ndivide.    The small Fox River, westward-flowing tributary of the Finlay,\nis but a few miles away from the northward-moving water of Ketchika\nRiver which drains into the Liard River.    This divide,  Sifton Pass,  is the\nhighest point along the Trench,  having an altitude of about 3, 200 feet.\nThus,  in four places along the 1, 100 miles stretch of the Trench there are\ndrainage divides between major north and south   flowing rivers.    Engineers\nmust have looked at this and wondered how much - or little - work it would\nentail to join^them all together into one super-river!\nJust as the Rocky Mountains terminate at the Liard River,\nso does the Rocky Mountain Trench end in the broadening valley of the\n THE ROCKY MOUNTAIN TRENCH 143.\nLiard Plain.    The alignment of the Trench can be followed to the northwest\nalong the straight valley of the southward-flowing river,  but the \"trench\"\ncharacter has disappeared. . . .\nTo many American planners it has been indeed unfortunate\nthat the Tintina Valley and Rocky Mountain Trench are not continuous.    This\nwould have meant a through-route,  without a serious topographic barrier,\nfrom north-western United States to Alaska.    Undoubtedly it is one of\nNature's \"through-ways. \"   As a northwest-southeast \"avenue\" the Trench\nis mildly appealing to the anthropologist looking for migration routes,  but\nit compels the attention of the military strategist concerned about supply\nroutes through mountainous western North America:. .\nThe agriculturist is interested in the Trench because of the\nsmall area of level to rolling land which it offers amid the rugged mountains\nof southeastern B.C.    There is a little farming and some ranching in the\nsouthern parts of the Trench,  despite the rather low rainfall in the valley\nbottom(15 to 20 inches annual precipitation).    To the northward,  however,\nthe Trench acts as a funnel for cold air masses from the Yukon, and the\nfrost-free season is generally too short for agricultural development.\nUndoubtedly many tourists and travellers would be delighted\nto see the Trench,  since it offers over a thousand miles of unrivalled\nmountain scenery.    As a route to Alaska it would far surpass the scenery\nof the present Alaska Highway,  which,  in its access roads in Alberta and\nalso in parts of northeastern B. C. , has long stretches of uninteresting\ncountry.    In addition, the low precipitation would mean less maintenance\nthan routes which have been proposed farther westward,  near the Coast\nMountains.    However,  roads are found only in the southern part of the\nTrench (the Big Bend Highway),  and in the sections north of Tete Jaune\nand north of Prince George now occupied by the newly opened Hart Highway\nbefore it cuts eastward through the Rockies at Pine Pass. . .Some day\nmotorists may be able to view the magnificence of the Rocky Mountain\nTrench from end to end; but until resources are discovered along the route\nto pay for such a road, or the needs of military expediency arise, that\nday is still far off.\n(j. Lewis Robinson, \"The Rocky Mountain Trench\", in The Beaver, A Magazine of the North,\nMarch, 1953.)\n  PART\nIV\nRESOURCES\n  WATER POWERS OF UPPER PEACE RIVER SYSTEM 145.\nARTHUR V.   WHITE\nFrom a survey conducted by the Dominion Government's Commission of\nConservation, the results of which were published in 1919.  An earlier report Issued in\n1916 by this Commission estimated that the available theoretical capacity of the Peace\nRiver Canyon site amounted to 282,000 h.p. (May to November).  In 1919 however, no\nestimate was given.\nThe Peace River district probably comprises the largest\nconsolidated area of agricultural land in British Columbia.    The climate is\nfavourable and resembles that of Alberta west of Edmonton.    In summer,\nthe longer day compensates for the high latitude.    The winters are more\nsevere than farther south.\nIn a country so comparatively level,  water-powers are\nnaturally not abundant.    The only large power known is that on the Peace\nriver,  commonly referred to as the Peace River canyon.    The difference\nin elevation between the upper and lower ends of the canyon has not been\nascertained by levelling, but a careful measurement by Mr. Leo G.  Denis,\nof the Commission of Conservation with an aneroid, indicates a difference\nin level of 225 feet in a distance of 18 1\/4 miles.    The canyon is in the\nform of a horseshoe bend, the portage across being about 11 miles.    Mr.\nDenis states that:\n\"The descent of the water in the canyon is fairly uniform,\nexcept near the head, where there is a fall of approximately 25 feet in\none-half mile.    This latter descent is concentrated at two chutes over\nledges; one is situated at the head of the canyon, and the other one-half\nmile below, with rapids intervening.    The narrowest point in the canyon\noccurs at its head,  where the distance from bank to bank is only 200 feet. \"\nThe canyon constitutes a power possibility of considerable\nmagnitude and may some day supply the light and power needs of a large\nportion of the Peace River district.    No particulars are as yet\nascertainable of any other large water-powers in British Columbia east\nof the Rockies.    No doubt there are several streams rising on the eastern\nslopes which may yield powers, but, at present,  much of this country remains\nunexplored.    The precipitation on the eastern flanks of the mountains in this\ndistrict,  though sufficient for agriculture,  is not heavy.\nThe district west of the Rocky mountains,  for the most part,\nis very mountainous.    The Parsnip,  Finlay and Kachika rivers occupy here\nthe continuation of the Intermontane Valley, the Parsnip and Finlay at their\njunction forming the Peace River.    The continuity of the west wall of the\ngreat valley is broken near the Parsnip,  while, to the north, the range\nre-forms and is known as the Cassiar mountains.    The following are the\nchief streams of this district and,  a brief description of their characteristics,   so far as known.\n ifir\n146. WATER POWERS OF UPPER PEACE RIVER SYSTEM\nThe Parsnip rises near the headwater of Bad river,  a\ntributary of MacGregor river.    This stream was first ascended by Sir\nAlexander Mackenzie in 1793.    He missed the other branch of the Parsnip,\nPack River,  which,  by way of Giscome portage,  forms a much travelled route\nand offers a very much easier passage to the Fraser river.    From\nMackenzie's description the Parsnip probably rises in true glaciers among\nhigh mountains.    Below its junction with the Pack river,  however,   it flows\nsmoothly between low banks through generally level country.    In places the\nbanks rise to a height of 80 to 100 feet,   showing steep slopes,   composed of\nsand,  clay and gravel.    For some 10 or 15 miles,  midway between the\nmouth of the Pack and the Nation,  the channel is much cut up by islands and\nsloughs.    Most of these are dry at low water and large timber jams\ngenerally occur where they branch off from the main stream.    Reports\nrespecting its  agricultural possibilities differ considerably,  yet the country\nbordering the upper Parsnip is not considered of great agricultural value,\nas it consists largely of gravel terraces covered with small growth.\nThe Parsnip river,  besides Pack river,  has two other\nimportant tributaries - the Nation and Misinichinka.    The last named leads\nto Pine river pass.    The lower portion of the Misinichinka is tortuous and\nnot very rapid,  with swampy flats covered with black spruce and other\nlowland growths on the inner sides of its bends.    The opposite side is\nusually formed of the scarped edge of a gravelly terrace,  these terraces\nbeing covered with western scrub pine of small size.    There is no water-\npower on the river below the point at which the trail leaves the river to\nfollow up the Atunatche.    Above the Atunatche the Misinichinka is a\nmountain stream.\nThe main valley of the Nation extends east and west for about\n60 miles.    With its numerous tributaries, it drains a very extensive area,\nmuch of which is available for agriculture and can be cleared at relatively\nlow cost.    The width of the valley varies considerably.    Indications are that,\nuntil comparatively recently, the district was heavily timbered.    Large\nareas have been reforested,  leaving strips of the original coniferous growth,\nprincipally along the shores of the lakes and in patches on the surrounding\nmountains and hills.    Spruce predominates, with a generous proportion\nof lodgepole pine and some balsam.    The general elevation of the plateau\nis about 2,500 feet,  or about 100 feet above the Nation lakes.    Excellent\nand well distributed water supplies exist, but, as a rule, the creeks are\nnot adapted for the economical  development of water-power.    The main\nstream, from its mouth to the lakes,  has not been examined for water-\npowers.    There are said to be some rapids and a canyon but it is not\nknown whether either is suitable for development.\nBetween latitude 56\u00b0 and 58\u00b0 N. , the great Intermontane\nValley is traversed by the Finlay river.   The valley is six to eight miles in\nbreadth and contains much good land,  which is flat-like up to the mountain\n WATER POWERS OF UPPER PEACE RIVER SYSTEM 147.\nranges, paralleling the valley. Originally, it was heavily timbered, spruce\npredominating. Large areas have, however, been burnt and reforested with\nlodgepole pine,  poplar willows and some birch.\nThe region of the Finlay and its branches is characterized\nthroughout by its mountainous character,   and,  with the exception of the\nnarrow flats bordering the main stream,  no plains of any magnitude are\nknown.    The eastern tributaries drain the western slope of the Rocky\nmountains proper, the western branches head in a confused medley of\nmountain ranges with a fairly uniform height of about 4, 000 feet above the\nvalleys,  and lying to the east of the Tatla lake and its feeders.    They may\nbe regarded as the southern extension of the Cassiar range.    Commenting\non the mountainous character of this part of the province,  Mr.  R.G.\nMcConnell says:   \"The most notable feature of the country in the latitude\nof the Omineca and Finlay rivers,  or from latitude $5\u00b0 30' to latitude 57\u00b0\nor beyond,  is its universal mountainous character.    In this latitude,  the\nwhole country,  from the eastern edge of the Rocky mountains westward to\nthe Pacific ocean,  is destitute of plains of any considerable extent and,  with\nthe exceptions of the breaks where the region is crossed by the valleys\nmentioned above,  is covered with a succession of mountains and mountain\nranges varying in height from 3,000 to 5,000 feet above the valleys.    In no\nother part of British Columbia is the country so persistently mountainous\nacross the whole Cordilleran belt. \"*\nThe Finlay river,  named after John Finlay,  who ascended it\nin 1797 in the interests of the North West Company,  is much larger than\nthe Parsnip,  and may be regarded as the upper portion of the Peace.    It is\n310 miles long and,  in the navigable portion,  averages 250 yards in width.\nExcept in passing through Deserter canyon, the river is easily navigable\nfor 140 miles above its mouth.    It is continually changing its channel - in\nmany cases there are several channels and long sloughs which extend for\nmiles.    Large piles of driftwood are a characteristic-feature.    For 15 miles\nabove the mouth of the Ospika the current is slack,  elsewhere it would\naverage,   say, three miles per hour,  and seldom exceeds five miles an hour.\nFrom the mouth to Deserter canyon,  90 miles, there are no rapids,  and\nnavigation by light-draught steamers would be comparatively easy at all\nstages of the water.    Farther up,  it is interrupted by a long succession of\ncanyons and rapids.    Its branches interlock with tributaries of the Skeena,\nthe Stikine and the Liard,  and low passes through the mountains from one\nbasin to another are not uncommon.\n*   \"Report on an Exploration of the Finlay and Omineca Rivers, \" by\nR.G.  McConnell,   B. A. ,  Report of the Geological Survey of Canada,   1894 -\nVol.  VII,  p.   13 c.\n 148. WATER POWERS OF UPPER PEACE RIVER SYSTEM\nDeserter canyon is about one-half mile long, through hard\nconglomerate and sandstone,  and,  at its narrowest part,  scarcely exceeds\n150 feet in width.    The walls are not very high,   except at the lower end,\nwhere there is a steep cliff.    The channel is crooked and interrupted by\nseveral bad rips.    At certain stages the canyon can be run,  but its\nnavigation is dangerous.    A good portage track has been cut out on its west\nbank.    For nearly 50 miles above Deserter Canyon the main stream\ncontinues to occupy the great Intermontane valley,  but above its junction\nwith the Tochieca it breaks through the range bordering the west side of\nthe valley.    Twelve miles above this gap its navigation,  except at very low\nwater,  is stopped by the Long canyon.    For five miles the river is a\nsuccession of canyons,  rips and rapids and frequently narrows to less than\n100 feet.    The Finlay rises in Thutade lake.    For the first four miles after\nleaving Thutade lake it flows in a canyon,  which ends in a fall with a drop\nof 50 to 60 feet with swift water above and below.\nOmineca river came into prominence in 1868 by the discovery\nof gold on one of its tributaries.    Miners flocked into the country, and\nfor some time the population was estimated at 1,200 to 1,500.    It  reached\nits zenith about 1879$ but as the yield of the creeks became exhausted the\nenterprise has gradually declined.    The Omineca joins the Finlay from the\nwest about 15 miles above its mouth,  and is by far its largest tributary,\napparently carrying about one-fifth of the water of the main stream.    From\nits mquth to the Black canyon, a distance of about five miles, the current is\nextremely swift and the river shallow, the slope of the stream exceeding 10\nfeet per mile.    Numerous gravel bars and islands,  covered in places by huge\ndrift piles,  obstruct the course of the stream,  dividing it into several channels\nThe Black canyon is about one-half mile in length and varies\nin width from 100 to 200 feet.    Its walls are usually vertical and in places\nexceed 150 feet in height.    This canyon is said to be easily navigable by\ncanoe at low water but impossible to navigate at flood.    From the Black\nCanyon to a point nine miles above the Little canyon,  a distance of about\n30 miles, the river has a grade of about 12 feet per mile, the difference in\nelevation being about 370 feet.    From the head of the rapid water to\nGermansen landing,  a distance of 12 miles,  with the exception of a few\nsmall ripples the current is easy, from two to three miles an hour.    Slack\ncurrent continues nearly to New Hogem,  a distance, measured along the\nvalley,  of about 23 miles.    The river by its tortuous channel is considerably\nmore.    About New Hogem the river enters a granite area and a rapid current\nis aga,in encountered.\nThe character of the country through which the Omineca flows,\nwith the exception of a few miles at its mouth,  is everywhere mountainous.\nThe valleys and the lower slopes of the ranges are,  as a rule,  densely\ntimbered with evergreens so prevalent in the north.    The timber line in this\nregion seldom ascends beyond an elevation of 5, 200 feet.    The Omineca has\n WATER POWERS OF UPPER PEACE RIVER SYSTEM 149,\none large tributary,  the Mesilinka,  a swift river with many rapids,  and\none canyon - Dog canyon - a mile from the mouth.    Tributary to this is\nTutizeka river,  on which a water-power possibility is reported below\nTutizeka lake.    Another large tributary of the Finlay river is the Ingenika\nriver,  but recently investigated.    This river rises near the head-waters of\nthe Finlay,  its source being within a mile of a small creek which flows into\nThutade lake,  which is the source of the main Finlay creek.    The Ingenika\nriver has a length of over 150 miles and several tributaries,  of which the\nmost important is McConnell creek.    The main stream has been ascended\nfrom its mouth,  which is 80 miles above the junction of the Parsnip and\nPeace rivers,  for about 100 miles; above that point the bed of the stream\nbecomes too rough even for canoes.\nNote:  See the following map reproduced from this report.\n(Arthur V. White, \"Water Powers of British Columbia\", Committee on Waters and Water\nPowers, Commission of Conservation, Canada, Ottawa, 1919.)\n  WATER POWER POTENTIAL OF THE CANYON       151.\nJ.W. BREMNER AND C. R. CRYSDALE\nThe water possibilities of Rocky Mountain Canyon were studied in 1930\nas part of the survey of resources of the Pacific Great Eastern Railway Lands, The survey\nwsts undertaken jointly by the Government of British Columbia and the Canadian Pacific\nand Canadian National Railways. A detailed study was made by Mr. J.W. Bremner, who\nconcluded his report with the following remarks:\nIt will be readily understood that a market for this power is\nabsolutely dependent on a railway outlet, both to the east and west.    Should\nthis outlet be provided a vast area of the finest agricultural land would be\nmade available for settlement and a considerable market for power would\ndevelop eastward from the canyon.    The timber resources of the 30,000\nsquare miles in this watershed would justify the development of a large\npulp and paper industry.    The numerous streams in the drainage area could\nbe utilized in logging operations and almost any quantity of logs could be\nsafely stored in the reservoir.    Recent investigations would indicate that\nthere are extensive mineral deposits northwest of Finlay Forks and it is\nreasonable to suppose that the construction of a smelter will be necessary\nwhen this area is developed.    The raw materials required in the\nmanufacture of cement are to be found in the district,  and will be adjacent\nto any railway that may be built in the Peace Valley.\nThe almost inexhaustable deposits of one of the finest coals\nin Canada, the great power possibilities,  which with a reasonable\nexpenditure for storage, would almost double that estimated in this report,\nand a surprisingly equable climate,  would indicate this might become a\nhighly developed industrial district.\nThe engineer in charge of the survey,  Mr.  C.R.   Crysdale,   summarized\nthe  findings as  follows:\nThe canyon is about 20 miles long,  and the watershed above\nis 30,000 square miles of timbered country including the valleys of the\nParsnip,   Finlay,  and Omineca Rivers.    Hudson Hope, the head of navigation\non the Peace,  is at the foot of the canyon.    The banks of the canyon are\nsandstone and shale,  in which coal seams may be seen,  and the river is\nabout 700 feet below the general level of the country,  affording possible\ndamsites in several places.    A dam at the upper end 100 feet above low\nwater will create a reservoir extending 50 miles upstream to Clearwater\nCreek.    Storage has been estimated at 1, 455, 000 acre feet but only 80% of\nthis,  or 1, 164,000 acre feet,  has been used for calculation.\n 152.     WATER POWER POTENTIAL OF THE CANYON\nDISCHARGE MEASUREMENTS were made at the head of the\ncanyon in February 1930,  which showed the discharge to be 6,200 c.f. s.\nThe work was in charge of Mr.  J.W.   Bremner,  who has had several years\nexperience on similar work.    He also ran a line of levels from Hudson Hope\nto the head of the canyon,  which show a total fall of 215 feet,  half of which\nis in the upper four miles.\nThe nearest gauging station established by the Dominion\nWater Power Service is at Hudson Hope,  and the next is at Peace River\nCrossing,  200 miles down stream.    The former was established in 1917\nand records were made in the open water season of each year until 1922.\nContinuous measurements,  however,  have been made since 1915 at Peace\nRiver Crossing,  and a comparison of these shows that the discharge at\nHudson Hope during summer is about 60% of that at Peace River Crossing.\nConsidering the gravel deposits in the watershed above Hudson Hope as more\nefficient underground storage for water than the clay subsoil of the country\ndownstream,  it would appear that the proportion of discharge at Hudson\nHope would be slightly increased during the balance of the year.    The\nsummer measurements at Hudson Hope have therefore been supplemented\nby figures based on an assumption of 60% of the discharge at Peace River\nCrossing for the winter months,  and complete yearly records made for the\nyears 1917 = 22.    Records at Hudson Hope from 1922 to date have been made\nby assuming 60% of the discharge at Peace River Crossing.\nThe mean discharge at Hudson Hope for the four months\nDecember,  January,  February and March,  for the season 1916=17,  was\n4, 670 c.f. s.,  but   the average discharge for these four months for the 12\nyears of which records are available was considerably more than this.\n4, 500 c.f. s. has therefore been assumed as minimum discharge and by\ndrawing on the reservoir for four months from 1, 700 to 2,800 c.f. s. ,  which\nresults in lowering the level 20 feet,  a minimum of 55,000 horse=power can\nbe obtained.    Mean heads varying from 97.5 to 82.5 feet in stages of   5\nfeet have been used in the calculation.\nTwo more dams lower down with plants operating at heads\nof 80 feet will utilize practically the entire fall in the canyon.    The mean\ndischarge from the upper plant for the four low water months will be\n6, 760 c.f. s. which at heads of 80 feet will yield 98, 000 horse-power in the\ntwo lower plants,  or a total of 153, 000 minimum continuous horse-power.\nIn determining the power available for the remaining eight\nmonths a discharge of 9, 000 c.f. s.  may be safely assumed and with a head\nof 100 feet the upper plant will yield 80, 000 horse-power.    The two lower\nplants with heads of 80 feet will yield 130,000 horse-power or a total of\n210,000 horse-power.\n WATER POWER POTENTIAL OF THE CANYON 153.\nMaximum six months power calculated with a discharge of\n12,000 c.f. s.  and a head of 100 feet will be 109,000 horse-power for\nthe upper plant.    Heads of 80 feet at the two lower plants will yield 174, 600\nhorse = power or a total of 283, 600 horsepower.\nThe foregoing estimate may be considered as conservative.\nAdditional storage may be obtained from tributary lakes and the use of flash\nboards.\nThe mineral deposits in the Finlay River country will provide\na market for this power,  and the timber on the watershed is ample to\njustify the installation of a pulp plant.    An agricultural community will be\nbuilt up in the neighbourhood of such industrial centres,  and the large\ndeposits of high grade coal will serve many purposes.\n(Pacific Great Eastern Railway Lands Report of Survey of Resources, Part I, 1929-30.]\n 154. A 1954 WATER POWER ESTIMATE\nThe following information was published in 1954 by the Provincial Water\nRights Branch.  Elsewhere in the same publication, the Peace River Canyon was listed to\nhave from 179,000 to a maximum of 513,000 h.p. (unregulated flow) at 80# efficiency.  No\nestimate was given for regulated flow.\nNATION RIVER\nThe Nation River,   rises in the Omineca Mountains and flows\nsome 145 miles in an easterly direction to join the Parsnip River at a\npoint approximately 37 miles above Finlay Forks,    where the   Parsnip and\nFinlay Rivers unite their waters to become the Peace River.\nThroughout half its length the Nation River broadens out\ninto a succession of lakes interconnected by short reaches of river,  with\nlittle change in elevation, the whole section being navigable for canoes or\nsmall boats.    Proceeding down-stream, the four \"Nation Lakes, \" as they\nare generally called,  consist of Tsayta,  Indata,  Tchentlo,  and Chuchi.  Chuchi,\nthe lowest lake,  is at an elevation of 2, 730 feet.\nBelow Chuchi Lake the river drops through a succession of\nrapids in a distance of about 72 miles to an elevation of 1, 940 feet at its\nconfluence with the Parsnip River,    This portion is navigable by canoe,\nalthough extremely difficult and dangerous,  and constitutes the power\nsection of the river.    Varying amounts of power are available at a number\nof sites,  of which four,  considered the most important for economical\ndevelopment of the river as a whole, have been investigated.    Proceeding\ndown-stream, the sites are located 35,  41,   57, and 68 miles below the outlet of Chuchi Lake.\nA dam approximately 35 feet high and 500 feet long constructed at the mouth of Chuchi Lake would store an estimated 565, 000 acre-feet.\nNo runoff figures are available for the river, but it is estimated that the\nstorage is sufficient to allow a regulation and 80 per cent efficiency,\nproceeding downstream from Chuchi Lake,  is as follows:   Site 1,  head 135\nfeet,  18, 780 horse-power;   Site 2,  head 105 feet,   14, 740 horse-power;\nSite 3,  head 140 feet,  20,240 horse-power; Site 4,  head 103 feet,   15,000\nhorse-power.    The total estimated minimum power available  is 68, 760\nhorse-? power.\nPEACE RIVER\nPeace River,   one of the chief tributaries of the Mackenzie\nRiver,  is formed by the junction of the Parsnip and Finlay Rivers.    The\nonly known power-site on the Peace River is at the canyon west of Hudson\nHope,  where aneroid readings show a fall of 225 feet in 18 1\/4 miles,\n25 feet of which is concentrated in the first half-mile.    The narrowest part\n A 1954 WATER POWER ESTIMATE 155.\nof the canyon,  approximately 200 feet from bank to bank,  is also located\nat this point.    The power possibilities depend primarily upon the economical\nhead that could be developed,   and no information exists concerning this.\nThe minimum flow of the river is estimated to be 7, 200 c.f. s.\nFINLAY RIVER\nFinlay River, the north branch of the Peace River,  is\neasily navigable for 140 miles above its mouth,  except at Deserter Canyon.\nIt rises in Thutade Lake and 4 miles below is reported to flow through a\ncanyon which terminates in a fall of 50 to 60 feet.    Other canyons exist\nfarther downstream.\nOMINECA RIVER\nOmineca River,  the largest tributary of the Finlay,  flows\nthrough what is known as Black Canyon,  approximately 5 miles from its\nmouth.    This canyon is nearly half a mile long,  varies in width from 100\nto 200 feet,  and has vertical rock walls,  in places over 150 feet high.\nThe drainage areas of the Omineca and Upper Finlay are\nmountainous in character,\nPARSNIP RIVER\nThe Parsnip River is the south branch of the Peace River,\nand no known power possibilities exist on it.\n(\"Water Powers, British Columbia, Canada,\" 1954, Water Rights Branch, Department of Lands\nand Forests, Victoria.)\n 156. PROPOSED DIVERSION OF PEACE RIVER\nGEO.  J.  SMITH,   B.   C.   L.  S.\nIn February, 1955, a well-known land surveyor who had made the basic\nsurveys for Kitimat and Kemano, as well as many other large, projects in the Province,\nadvanced the following suggestion in a paper presented at the Eighth B.C. Natural\nResources Conference:\nAs we all know,  the Peace River has its headwaters in\nBritish Columbia and flows eastward through the Rocky Mountains to join\nthe Mackenzie.    One of these headwaters is at Summit Lake,   a short\ndistance north of Prince George.    From Summit Lake a small tributary\nflows northward to join the Parsnip River and eventually the Peace.    The\nelevation of Summit Lake is 2, 315 feet above sea level,  and the elevation\nof the Peace where it crosses the Rockies would create a reservoir with a\nwater surface at the level of Summit Lake, permitting the water to flow\nsouthward through a canal constructed from Summit Lake to the Fraser.\nSummit Lake is approximately six miles from Giscombe\nRapids on the Fraser,  and a head of about 400' could be readily developed\nat that site.    An estimate of the flow of the Peace where it passes through\nthe Rocky Mountains is about 33,000 cubic feet per second.    This flow,\ndeveloped through a head of 400 feet,  would develop over one million\nhorse-power at Giscombe Rapids near Prince George.    From here southward the waters of the Peace would join those of the Fraser in their journey\nto the sea.\nCould the huge reservoir created north of Summit Lake,  and\nthe waters of the Peace, be used to develop power on the Fraser?   This\nis an intriguing possibility,  as a similar plan is now being investigated by\nthe Dominion Government concerning the diversion of Columbia River\nwater into the valley of the Thompson.    If it is possible to develop power\non the Thompson in this manner without interfering with the salmon runs,\nrailroads and human habitation, it would seem that a similar plan should\nbe feasible on the Fraser.    Providing adequate dam sites were available,\nthe water of the Peace developed along the Fraser between Prince George\nand Lytton could create an additional 4 million horse-power.    This would\nbe in an area now lacking cheap power and possessing a great wealth of\ntimber produce.\nPower developed in the vicinity of Prince George, and\nfurther down the Fraser between Prince George and Lytton, could be\nutilized by local industries,  or transmitted throughout the province where\n PROPOSED DIVERSION OF PEACE RIVER 157.\nrequired,  and could be reasonably expected to support a large population.\nCheap power,  pulp,  natural gas and other raw materials could very well\ncreate a great industrial expansion that would completely transform the\nheart of our province in a similar manner to the expansion created by the\nBonneville Power Commission in the State of Washington.\n(Geo. J. Smith, B.C.L.S., of McElhanney, McRae, Smith and Nash, Vancouver, in a paper\nentitled \"Major Undeveloped Water Powers of Northern B.C. and What They Mean to the\nProvince\/' Transactions of the Eighth B.C. Natural Resources Conference, Victoria, 1955.\n If\n158. A FOREST INVENTORY IN 1917\nH.  N.  WHITFORD & R.  D.  CRAIG\nThe Federal Commission of Conservation, under the chairmanship of\nSir Clifford Sifton, made the first detailed survey of British Columbia's forest resources.\nThe area drained by the Peace River and its tributaries within the Province was broken\ndown into several parts, as follows:\nPARSNIP RIVER DRAINAGE BASIN,  (EXCL.  NATION RIVER)\nThe section of the Rocky mountains drained by Parsnip river\nis much lower than that portion of the mountains to the southeast.      The\nhighest known peak in the Parsnip drainage has an altitude of 7, 689 feet.\nLow, timbered passes connect the west and east slopes.    Of these,  the\nlowest is Pine pass (altitude 2,850 feet).    The water-parting in the Rocky\nMountain trench,  between Bad river and the Parsnip basin,  is 2, 300 feet\nabove sea level.    The average elevation of the plateau that forms the western portion of this drainage basin is about 3, 000 feet.\nWhile there are no meteorological stations within the region,\naccounts of explorers indicate that the upper reaches of Parsnip river have\na precipitation of well over 30 inches.    In the lower portion of the river and\non the adjacent plateau the precipitation is,  in some localities, probably\nas low as 15 inches.\nTwenty-three per cent of the area lies above the line of\nmerchantable timber.    Of the 3,451 square miles,  or 77 per cent,  below\nthis line,  all but 169 square miles is timber-land. . . .\nThe amount of merchantable timber,  by species,  in the\nParsnip River drainage basin,  is as follows:   Douglas fir,   36,912 M.b.f. ;\nbalsam,   1, 476, 500 M.b. f.; spruce,  5, 536, 875 M.b. f. ; lodgepole pine,\n332,213 M.b.f. ; total,   7, 382, 500 M.b.f.\nExcept where it has been replaced by the temporary lodge-\npole pine type, the principal forest type of the region is the Engelmann\nspruce-alpine fir type.    The small amount of Douglas fir of the region is\nfound on specially warm sites,  mixed with the spruces,  or carrying small\nareas in nearly pure stands.\nNo logging operations have yet been carried on in this region.\nShould the projected railway from Prince George to the Alberta prairies,\nby way of Pine pass,  be built, the timber of this basin will find a ready\noutlet.\nAt present,  little or no land is cultivated in the region,\nthough there are a few settlers in the valley of the lower Parsnip.    It is\n A FOREST INVENTORY IN 1917 159.\nestimated that 175 square miles,  or 3.9 per cent of the whole,  comprises\nthe area within which agricultural pursuits can be carried on.    Of this,\n32 square miles is covered with statutory timber.\nSTUART,  SALMON AND NATION RIVERS DRAINAGE BASINS\nThe drainage basins of the Stuart and Salmon rivers lie in\nthe extreme northern portion of the Fraser plateau.    Under the name of the\nDriftwood river,  Stuart river rises in about lat.  56\u00b0,  long.   127\u00b0,   and\nflows southeastward to Tacla lake.    Stuart river discharges Tacla lake\nand flows in a southeasterly direction through Trembleur and Stuart Lakes\nto its confluence with the Nechako river,  about 50 miles above the city\nof Prince George.    Comparatively low,  wooded water-partings separate\nit from the Babine drainage on the west,  and from the Nation and Salmon\ndrainage on the east.\nThe Nation River basin lies in the northeastern portion of the\nregion.    The river rises a short distance from Tacla lake.    It has a general\neasterly course,  and the upper half of the river broadens out into what are\nknown as the Nation lakes.    The Nation river falls into the Parsnip,  about\n35 miles above its confluence with the Finlay.\nSalmon river occupies the southeastern section of this\nregion.    It rises in about lat.  55\u00b0,  log.  124\u00b0, has a general southeasterly\ncourse,  and debouches into the Fraser river a short distance above\nPrince George.\nThe general altitude of this region is about 3, 000 feet, though\nthere are a number of peaks and low mountain ridges that vary in altitude\nfrom 5, 000 feet to more than 6, 000 feet.\nA distinguishing characteristic of this region is the large\nnumber of lakes,  varying in altitude from 2,200 to 2,400 feet.    These lakes\naggregate some 632 square miles in area.\nClimatic data at Fort St.  James,  which lies at the lower end\nof Stuart lake and has an altitude of 2, 280 feet,   show an annual mean\ntemperature of 33\u00b0,  with a winter mean of 12\u00b0,   and a summer mean of 53\u00b0.\nThe highest recorded temperature is 97\u00b0,  and the lowest is -55\u00b0.    The\nannual mean precipitation is 15 inches,  about one-third of which is in the\nform of snow.    These climatic data probably represent an average for the\nvalleys of the entire region,  but,   doubtless,  the uplands have a slightly\ngreater precipitation and a lower temperature.\nIn contrast with the southern portion of the Fraser plateau,\nthis region, together with the Nechako-Blackwater basin to the south of it,\nis,   in spite of its comparatively low precipitation,   capable of producing\n dT\n160.\nA FOREST INVENTORY IN 1917\nmerchantable forest growth throughout the greater part of its area, up to\nan altitude of 5, 000 feet.    This is due to a better conservation of soil\nmoisture,   resulting from lower temperature conditions.\nOnly six per cent of the area is above the line of merchantable\ntimber.    Of the 10, 116 square miles below this line,   1, 652 square miles is\nincapable of carrying merchantable timber.    The area has been badly burned.\nWhere fires have been severe,   it is re-stocking mostly with lodgepole\npine, though,  on patches where the soil is deep,  poplar is the first invading\nspecies.\nThe amount of merchantable timber,  by species,  in the\nStuart-Nation-Salmon River drainage basins is as follows:   Douglas fir,\n804, 360 M.b.f. ; balsam,   695, 960 M. b. f. ; spruce,  4, 697, 540 M.b.f. ;\nlodgepole pine,  761, 740 M.b.f. ; total,   6,959, 600 M.b.f.\nThe Engelmann spruce-alpine fir type is the principal forest\ntype.    In the southern portion of the Stuart and Salmon basins, this type\ncontains,  at the lower altitudes,  a mixture of Douglas fir,  which,\napparently,  was more abundant in the original forest than at present.    On\nspecial sites,  there are small areas covered with stands of pure or nearly\npure forests of this species.    Over large areas,  lodgepole pine has entirely\nreplaced the original forest.\nPractically none of the timber has been utilized commercially.\nThere are no saw-mills,  and, until the more accessible timber of the\nprovince is utilized,  the timber resources of this region will probably not\nbe in demand for general use.    With adequate protection from fire, the\nlarge area of young growth will,  in time,  reach maturity,  when, perhaps,\nbetter transportation facilities will render accessible the very large amount\nof timber the region will then contain.    This area should accordingly be\nregarded as a reservoir to supply the demands of a distant future.\nA considerable area of land has been classified by the\nprovincial authorities as suitable for agriculture, but the area is unutilized,\nsave for a few patches here and there.    Root crops,  hardy grains and\nvegetables   and forage crops can be grown,  though summer frosts are not\ninfrequent.    Dairy-farming is likely to prove the chief agricultural\nindustry.\nIt is estimated that 1, 022 square miles,  or 9.5 per cent of\nthe whole,   comprises the area within which agriculture will be carried on.\nOf this,   63 square miles is now covered with statutory timber. . . .\n A FOREST INVENTORY IN 1917 161.\nFINLAY RIVER DRAINAGE BASIN\nThe portion of the Rocky Mountain trench occupied by the\nFinlay river and its tributary,   Fox river,  constitutes the axis of this\nbasin.    Finlay river rises in lat.   57\u00b0,  long.   127\u00b0 30',  near the southern end\nof the axis of the Cassiar mountains.    Fox river rises in Sifton pass,  in\nlat.  58   ,   and flows south-southeast to its junction with the Finlay.    The\naltitude of the bottom of the Rocky Mountain trench increases from about\n2,000 feet,  where the Finlay and Parsnip rivers unite to form Peace\nriver,  to about 3,500 feet,   at Sifton pass.\nThe axis of the Rocky mountains forms the eastern boundary\nof the Finlay drainage basin; the western boundary is formed by the axis\nof the Omineca range and the southern end of the Cassiar mountains.\nThe rivers that drain the western slope of the Rocky\nmountains are mostly short; some of them,  however, that assume a\ndirection parallel to the axis of the range are considerably longer.    The\ngeneral altitude of the Rockies in this basin is about 6, 000 to 7, 000 feet,\nwith individual peaks of over 8, 000 feet.\nThe Omineca range is a general term applied to the mass of\nirregular short ranges separated from each other by the western tributaries\nof Finlay river.    These mountains have an altitude of 6, 000 to 7, 000 feet,\n.with some peaks of about 9, 000 feet.    Small glaciers are present at some\nplaces.    The valleys between the ranges are U-shaped in cross-section.\nThe principal western tributaries of the Finlay are the Ingenika,  Omineca\nand Manson rivers.\nThere are no meteorological stations within this region, but\nindications are that for most of the region the precipitation is well below\n20 inches,  and that the mean annual temperature is about 33    for the southern portion of the Rocky Mountain trench.    For the northern portion of the\ntrench,  and for the higher elevations,  the temperature is probably lower.\nOn especially warm days in the summer,  a temperature of 90    or higher\nis said to be reached.\nSixty-seven per cent of the area is above merchantable\ntimberline,  which occurs at about the 4, 000-feet contour.    Of the 6,290\nsquare miles below this line,   651 square miles is incapable of beiaring\ntimber,  leaving 5,639 square miles as the wooded area.    Of this 4,201\nsquare miles is more or less covered with young forest growth.    The region\nhas been badly damaged by fire,   and large areas are re-stocking with\nlodgepole pine,   or with this species in mixture with spruce.\nThe amount of merchantable timber,  by species,  in the\nFinlay River drainage basin is:   Balsam,   70, 368 M.b.f. ; spruce,  2, 638,800\nM.b.f. ; lodgepole pine,   809,232   M. b. f. ; total,   3, 518, 400 M. b. f.\n 162, A FOREST INVENTORY IN 1917\nEngelmann spruce-alpine fir and lodgepole pine types are the\nprincipal forest types of the region.    The latter has replaced the former over\nlarge areas.    The sub-alpine type consists,  for the most part,  of balsam,\nwith some spruce and lodgepole pine.\nPlacer mining on a small scale is being carried on in the\nregion.    In connection with placer mining, two mills are found in the\nregion,  one on the Omineca, the other on Manson river, but they have not\nbeen in operation for a number of years.    From a commercial viewpoint,\nthe timber is inaccessible at the present time.\nConsiderable areas of land along the lower part of the Finlay\nhave good soil,  and could be utilized for the raising of hardy agricultural\nproducts,  principally forage crops and vegetables.    Some alpine grazing is\navailable,  principally in the neighbouring Omineca range,  but there is\nlittle grass in the valley.\nIt is estimated that 356 square miles comprises the area\nwithin which agricultural pursuits can possibly be carried on.    Of this,\n39 square miles contains statutory timber.\nSOUTH PINE RIVER DRAINAGE BASIN\nThis region comprises all of British Columbia south of the\nPeace river and east of the axis of the Rocky mountains,  with the\nexception of the Peace River block.    The region is drained,  for the most\npart, by the South Pine river,  which rises in the axis of the Rocky\nmountains and flows in a general northeasterly direction.    The extreme\nsouthern portion of the region,  however,  is drained by the headwaters of\nthe Wapiti branch of Smoky river, this,  in turn, being a tributary of Peace\nriver.    Except in the extreme southern portion of the region,  the altitude\nof the Rocky mountains in this basin is comparatively low.    At the extreme\nsouth,  however,  one peak has an altitude of 10,000 feet.    The east slope\nof the Rocky mountains grades off imperceptibly into the region of the Great\nplains,  which comprise an area, triangular in shape,  immediately south\nof the southern boundary of the Peace River Block.    The uplands of these\nplains have an altitude of from 2, 000 to 3, 000 feet; the valleys are from a\nfew feet to several hundred feet below these elevations.    Practically no\nclimatic data are available for this region.\nTwenty-three per cent of the area lies above the merchantable\ntimber line,  which here occurs at about the 4, 500-feet contour.    Of the\n6, 700 square miles below this line,   1, 171 square miles has been so badly\nburned that it cannot be reforested,   except at great expense.    Of this area,\n278 square miles is now clothed with grass or very open forest.    This lies\nmainly along the southern boundary of the Peace River Block,  and is\nprobably an extension of what is known as the Pouce Coupe prairie.   The\n A FOREST INVENTORY IN 1917 163.\nmain bodies of merchantable timber within the region lie in the valleys of\nthe eastern slopes of the mountains.\nThe amount of merchantable timber, by species, in the\nSouth Pine River drainage basin is: Balsam, 331,260 M.b.f. ; spruce,\n4, 637,640 M.b.f. ; lodgepole pine, 1, 656, 300 M.b. f. ; total, 6,625,200\nM.b.f.\nEngelmann spruce-alpine fir is the principal forest type\nof the region.    Over large areas,  due to fires, this has been replaced by\nthe lodgepole pine type.    White spruce is present in the region, though it\nis not known to what extent this species is represented in the   spruce\nstand.    It is estimated that 220 square miles comprises the area within which\nagricultural pursuits may possibly be carried on.\nPEACE RIVER BLOCK\nThis block includes a strip approximately 74 miles wide\nfrom north to south and traversed by the Peace river.    It extends from long,\n122    to the boundary between British Columbia and Alberta.    It comprises\nabout 3,500,000 acres,  is under the control of the Dominion Government,  and,\nhence,  is considered apart from the regions north and south of it.    This\nblock,  and the portions of the general region to the north and south of it,\nare,  from the standpoint of commercial possibilities,  considered a part\nof what is generally known as the Peace River district,  which lies entirely\nwithin the physiographic unit known as the Great plains.\nThis portion of the Great plains has an average altitude of\nfrom 2,000 to 3,000 feet, while the valleys of the rivers are from a few\nfeet to 600 or 800 feet below this level.    Peace river traverses the block\nfrom west to east and cuts it into two nearly equal portions.    The main\ntributaries from the north are North Pine and Halfway rivers,  and those\nfrom the south are the Moberly,  South Pine and Kiskatinaw (Cutbank) rivers.\nAll these rivers have their headwaters beyond the limits of the block.\nNo meteorological data are available that will justify a\ndefinite statement of the conditions of precipitation and temperature of the\nblock.    The mean summer temperature at Dunvegan,  Alta. ,  on Peace\nriver,   some distance east of the block,  is stated to be 58   ,  while Fort St.\nJames,  on Stuart lake, west of the Rocky mountains,   has a mean summer\ntemperature of 53\u00b0.    The figure for the Peace River Block is probably\nslightly lower than that for Dunvegan.    Summer frosts are likely,   especially\nin late August.    The mean winter temperature is much lower,  however,  in\nthe Peace River Block than at Fort St.  James, judging from a comparison\nof the data for this latter station with Dunvegan.    Thus,  while Fort St.  James\nhas a mean winter temperature of 12\u00b0,  Dunvegan has a winter mean of 1\u00b0.\n f\n164. A FOREST INVENTORY IN 1917\nThe moisture seems to be sufficient for tree growth,   for\nevidently the region was formerly covered with an unbroken forest.    The\nprairie condition which prevails over a portion of the area is believed\nto be due to the destruction of the former forest by repeated fires,   rather\nthan to the lack of sufficient precipitation.    Judging from comparison with\nother regions,  where the vegetation is similar,  this region probably has an\naverage annual precipitation of about 15 inches.    It is reported that,  during\nthe winter,  there is from 14 to 20 inches of snow.\nNone of the area of the block lies above merchantable\ntimberline.    Thirty per cent is treeless,  about one-half,  or 900 square\nmiles, being fire-made 'prairie.'   Fires have done severe damage to the\nforest.    On 380 square miles the forests have been so badly burned that\nthere is no reproduction on the land.    The balance is re-stocking,  mostly with\nlodgepole pine and poplar; the latter forms groves on the richer soils. . . .\nThe amount of merchantable timber in the Peace River Block\nincludes 3,269,000 M.b.f.  of spruce and 1,276,000 M.b.f.  of lodgepole\npine, making a total of 4, 545, 000 M. b. f.\nIn addition to the spruce and pine there is estimated to be\n415,000 M.b.f.  of poplar (90 per cent aspen),   15,000 M.b.f.  of tamarack\nand 7, 000 M.b.f.  of birch which might be sawn.    It is doubtful if even a\nsmall percentage of this will ever be used as lumber.    Including all the\nsmall timber in the young and old forests,  Mr.  Doucet estimates that there\nis,  in addition to the above,   11,000,000 cords of wood,  chiefly poplar and\nlodgepole pine.\nThree principal forest types are distinguished,  namely, spruce\n(probably mostly white spruce),  lodgepole pine and poplar.    The two latter\nare temporary types and are due to fires.    The lodgepole pine type occupies\nthe poorer soils,  while the poplar type represents the first stage of recovery\non the better soils.    Both of these types may or may not be mixed with\nspruce.    The swampy areas carry tamarack and black spruce.\nSo far. as known no saw-mills are at present in operation\nwithin the block or in the adjoining basins,  to the north and south of it.\nThe fact that pre-emptors are rapidly settling the region is\nfairly good proof of its possibilities as a farming district.    Hardy varieties\nof wheat and other cereals are said to do well.    The region has been much\nadvertised as regards its agricultural possibilities.    Probably it will\nultimately become a mixed farming country,  with stock raising as the chief\nindustry,  the poorer soils,   whether open or covered with timber,  furnishing\nspring,   summer and fall grazing.    It is estimated by Mr.  Doucet that 1,817\nsquare miles comprises the area within which agricultural pursuits can be\ncarried on.\n A FOREST INVENTORY IN 1917 165.\nDRAINAGE BASINS OF THE NORTH PINE AND HALFWAY RIVERS\nWith the exception of that portion lying in the Peace River\nBlock, these drainage basins comprise all the area north of Peace river\nand east of the axis of the Rocky mountains,  to the divide that separates\nthe Peace River drainage from the Fort Nelson River drainage.    Its\neastern boundary is the dividing line between Alberta and British Columbia,\nand its western boundary is that axis of the Rocky mountains.    It comprises\na portion of the east slope of the Rocky mountains and of the Great plains.\nNorth Pine river has a general southeasterly to southerly\ncourse,  crosses the northern boundary of the Peace River Block,  and\nempties into the Peace.    Halfway river rises near the axis of the Rocky\nmountains,  in Laurier pass.    It has a general southeasterly direction,\ncrossing into the Peace River Block before it joins the Peace.    The Rocky\nmountains within this region are comparatively low and grade imperceptibly\ninto the Great Plains region.    The divide between the North Pine and Fort\nNelson rivers averages about 3, 500 feet in altitude.    From this divide the\nregion slopes toward the south,  to an altitude of 2, 000 or 2, 500 feet at the\nnorthern boundary of the Peace River Block.\nVery little is known about the forest conditions of this\nregion.    The following indicates the situation,  according to the best information available.    Thirty-two per cent of the area is above merchantable\ntimber-line.    Of the 4, 129 square miles below, there are known to be 28\nsquare miles of merchantable timber,  mostly along North Pine river.\nProbably,  other such areas exist,  but specific information is not available.\nOf the remaining land below merchantable timber-line,  it is estimated\nthat 2,274 square miles is re-stocking.    Some of this,  perhaps, has\nmerchantable timber.    The remaining 1,827 square miles includes badly\nburned areas not re-stocking,   'fire-made' prairies,   swamps,  and other\nareas that cannot be made to grow merchantable timber without great\nexpense.\nThe amount of timber is estimated to be 134, 400, 000 board\nfeet,  and consists of spruce (probably white spruce).    The burned areas are\nrestocking with lodgepole pine and poplar,  or with these species mixed\nwith spruce.    Tamarack and black spruce are found in the swamps.    The\narea which may be of use for agriculture is roughly estimated at 600 square\nmiles.\n(H.N. Whitford & R.D. Craig, \"Forests of British Columbia\", Commission of Conservation,\nCanada, Committee on Forests, Ottawa, 1918.)\n  SOME MINERAL RESOURCES OF THE AREA 167.\nM.   Y.   WILLIAMS\nIn 1929 and 1930, Professor M.Y. Williams and several other members of\nthe U.B.C. staff made a survey of the mineral resources of the Peace River Block and the\nvalley of the Pine River, as part of the P.G.E. Lands Survey of Resources, prepared for\nthe B.C. Government, the Canadian National and the Canadian Pacific Railways and tabled\nin the Legislature at Victoria in 1931.  Most of the report deals with coal, natural gas\nand petroleum, but the following extracts may be of interest:\nAt two localities at least,  raw materials and fuel for the\nmanufacture of Portland cement are present in close proximity.    At the\nmouth of Ottertail River,  suitable shale occurs 2 miles up river; good\nlimestone may be obtained 15 miles up Peace River,  and excellent coal may\nbe obtained on Carbon River.    Again on Pine River,   a plant situated between\nthe mouths of Le Moray and Mountain Creeks would have a large selection\nof limestone within a radius of 10 miles and shale within one mile. . . .\nFresh water marl,  of excellent quality,  occurs in the\nvicinity of Swan Lake.    The known deposits are about one foot thick and cover\nconsiderable areas.    Should sufficient quantities be discovered, this\nmaterial would be excellent for the lime ingredient of Portland cement,  or\nfor burning to quicklime.\nLarge deposits of calcareous tufa are located along the north\nbank of Peace River just west of Hudson's Hope.    One of these is about 30\nfeet high and extends some 1, 500 feet along the river bank.    The Hudson's\nBay Company formerly burnt this tufa for lime,  and the raw material present\ncould supply the community in quicklime for many years to come.\nIron hydroxide in the form generally known as ochre occurs\nin considerable quantity near Thorson's Landing,  about 4 miles above\nFort St. John.    At this locality there are two deposits,  each of a diameter\nof about 100 feet and an estimated depth of 10 feet.    It seems probable that\nother similar deposits await discovery.\nLimonite or bog iron is being deposited in small amounts\nby springs in the northern part of the area.. . .Samples show a content of\n45 to 52 per cent metallic iron.    Although coal is obtainable within 20 miles,\nthe known deposits cannot be considered as of commercial value.\nFine gold is generally disseminated in the gravels of Peace\nRiver,  and small recoveries have been made by individuals on various bars.\nUnsuccessful dredging operations were undertaken at Gold Bar below the\nmouth of Carbon River,  and dredging was carried on in 1921=22 in the\nvicinity of Fort St.  John by the Peace River Gold Dredging Company,  but\nwithout success.\n f\n168.       SOME MINERAL RESOURCES OF THE AREA\nOver large areas gravel for road-building and other\nconstruction is scarce; but on river benches and along the river bars and\nin morainal areas large deposits are available.    The wide distribution of\ndeposits already known leads to the conclusion that sufficient material of\nthis kind is present for all future needs of the growing community.\nIn the western part of the area the limestones exposed in the\nmountains offer a plentiful supply of stone for building and structural\npurposes.\n(M.Y.  Williams,   \"A Summary of the Mineral Resources of the Peace River Area of British\nColumbia,\" The Miner,  Vancouver,  B.C.,  January,   1934.)\n A MINERAL REPORT   -   FORT GRAHAME AREA 169.\nDOUGLAS   LAY\nThe resident mining engineer of B.C.'s North-eastern District made an\ninspection trip to the Fort  Grahame area in 1926.\nFort Grahame,  a small settlement at which there is a Hudson's\nBay Company's post,  is situated on the Finlay river,   some 65 miles above\nFinlay Forks.    It lies approximately in the centre of the narrow strip of\nPre-Cambrian formation,  which extends some 125 miles to the north and\nsouth and between 15 and 25 miles east and west of the river systems,  which\nhave their courses in the Rocky Mountain trench. . . .\nThis region is of particular promise from a mineral standpoint,  more especially because the Pre-Cambrian area in East Kootenay,\noccupying a precisely similar position in the Rocky Mountain trench, has\nproduced the famous Sullivan and other well-known lead-zinc mines of that\ndistrict.    There are many remarkable points of similarity,  both geologic\nand topographic,  which coupled with the mineral-showing in the northern\narea justify the hope that another Sullivan may be found in the latter area.\nProspects in this region are hopeful not only in regard to lead-zinc deposits,\nbut also in regard to mica and probably also asbestos.    Unfortunately the\nfact that the region is so remote from transportation does not encourage\nactive prospecting.    Indeed, under existing conditions,  while a certain\namount of development might be accomplished,  it is well-nigh hopeless to\ncontemplate the active operation of any properties other than gold or mica,\nand even such must incur high cost of production.\nFort Grahame has recently come into prominence because\nof the operations of the General Holding Company,  of Edmonton,  at its\nmica properties on Mica mountain,  distant some 6 miles from the settlement,  and where also a discovery of muscovite mica crystals of exceptional\nsize was made this past summer by H. Ravenal, and also because of the\nfact that good surface showings of lead ore exist on the Ferguson group on\nthe Ingenika river,  about 45 miles distant.\nIt should be understood that it is not only this comparatively\nsmall Pre-Cambrian strip which offers mineral promise.    To the west and\nsouth-west of the latter there is a very large area known to be of great\ngeneral geologic promise. . . .\nTwo alternative routes are available for getting in supplies\nto Fort Grahame:-\n(1)    From Prince George,  on the Canadian National Railway,\nby motor-truck to the Summit Lake; thence via Crooked,   Pack,   Parsnip,\nand Finlay rivers to Fort Grahame,  a total distance of about 245 miles.\nI\n I\nL.\n170. A MINERAL REPORT     -     FORT GRAHAME AREA\n(2)   From Edmonton by Edmonton,   Dunvegan & British\nColumbia Railway to Peace River thence by stern-wheel steamer to Hudson\nHope; thence across a 14-mile portage; thence continuing by boat up Peace\nand Finlay rivers to Fort Grahame,  a total distance of 738 miles.\nOf these routes,  the former is preferred,  because it is\ndownstream all the way to Finlay Forks,  but it is open to the objection\nthat it is only open for six weeks of the year,  during late spring and early\nsummer,  for conveyance of more than a few hundred pounds of freight.\nMoreover,  the hazard of navigation is very considerable during the open\nhigh-water period mentioned,  when small scows with a maximum safe load\nof 3 tons can be used.    This route cannot be used for shipping material out =\nore for example.\nThe latter route (2) is up-stream all the way,  and there are\ntwo rapids - the Parle Pas and Finlay rapids - up which boats have to be\nlined.    Scows cannot be taken up at present.    On the other hand,  it is the\nonly route by which large quantities of material can be shipped out and it is\nopen in normal years for at least five months.    Moreover,  in improving this\nroute by blasting out a channel in the Finlay and Parle Pas rapids at low\nwater lies the only hope,   short of a railway,  of materially improving\ntransportation conditions, because the cost of an arterial road is out of all\nproportion to the advantages gained. ...\nIt must therefore be apparent that no base-metal mining\noperations can take place on any large scale in this,  or any other remote\nregion unless a railway forms the main transportation artery.    Present\nconditions will be very sensibly ameliorated by clearing the Peace River\nchannel as indicated,  and the outlook for mica-mining operations will be\nrendered much better.    At the same time there can be no real expansion,\nnor can the active development of base-metal properties take place,  until\na railway passes through the heart of the region. . . .\nAs to the quality of the mica, no doubt whatever appears to\nexist as to its being excellent, comparing favourably with the best grades\nof imported Indian mica, , . .\nAs to commercial possibilities,  prospects are distinctly\nencouraging,   although development so far has necessarily been almost\nentirely superficial.    The result of the excavational development now in\nhand will be awaited with interest.    Operations in such a remote region are\nnecessarily carried on under many difficulties and the cost is high.\nFortunately mica-mining,  unlike metal-mining,  does not necessitate any\nexpensive treatment plant to yield a marketable product,   and,  moreover, the\nvalue of the product in relation to its weight is very high.    The management\nis to be congratulated upon overcoming many difficulties and the operation\nof this company is of signal service to the district. . . .\n A MINERAL REPORT     -     FORT GRAHAME AREA 171.\nA remarkably fine surface showing of galena occurs on the\nIngenika river,   about 45 miles distant from Fort Grahame,  on the\nFerguson group.    This group consists of five claims owned by J. Ferguson.\nThere appear to be sound grounds for entertaining the idea\nof the likelihood of the existence of an ore-body of magnitude in this\nregion owing to the points of resemblance to the East Kootenay region\ncontaining the famous Sullivan mine.    There is geographic,   geologic,  and\ntopographic relationship.    Mineralogically,  however, there is no\nsimilarity between this ore and the Sullivan ore.    The former shows no\npyrrhotite and crystallization is comparatively coarse; it is therefore an\nore which would probably be amenable, to water-concentration.    It has\ncertain points of resemblance to the North Star ore,  a neighbour of the\nSullivan.    It is perhaps not foreign to the matter to state that the writer\nsome twenty-seven years ago inspected the Sullivan mine,  having at that\ntime to report upon the smelting and concentrating possibilities.    The\nFerguson group merits the most careful and searching scrutiny with a\nview to determining the advisability of a little immediate surface work,\nfollowed by diamond-drilling. . . .\n(Douglas Lay, in \"Annual Report of the Minister of Mines for 1926 in the Province of B.C.\nVictoria, 1927.)\n 172. COALFIELDS INVENTORY IN 1956\nA.  F.  BUCKHAM\nIn February, 1956, the Chief of the Exploration Department of Canadian\nColleries (Dunsmuir Ltd.), gave the following summary in a paper before the Ninth B.C.\nNatural Resources Conference.  He quoted a 1946 estimate listing the known coalfields\nof Northeastern B.C. as containing 520,240,000 short tons of recoverable coal.\nIn northeastern British Columbia coal deposits of Lower\nCretaceous age are known in 7 general areas.    These are the extension of\nthe Inner Foothills Cadomin-Luscar belt in Alberta.    One is on the Peace\nRiver at Peace River Canyon, north of which is the Butler Ridge area,  about\n50 miles north of that the Halfway-Sikanni Chief Rivers coal area,  and 20\nmiles further the Minaker River area; all of these are apparently on strike.\nAbout 20 miles west of the Peace River Canyon area is the Carbon Creek\n(River) coal area,  on a second zone known to extend 75 miles southeasterly.\nThe portion of this zone in the vicinity of Pine River contains areas\nvariously referred to as Falling (Falls) Creek coal area,  Fisher Creek and\nNoman Creek areas,  and Willow Creek coal area.    East of this part,  and\n10 miles southeast of Pine River is the Hasler Creek coal area.\nIn the Peace River area,  where mining has been carried on,\non; a small scale,  for some years there are 8 coal seams with thicknesses\nranging from 3 feet 5 inches to 5 feet 6 inches.    The coal mined is of low\nvolatile bituminous rank and is non-coking,  but coking coals do occur in the\narea.    Considerable work on the Carbon Creek area and more especially on\nthe Willow Creek and Hasler areas,  including bull-dozing and diamond drilling has been done by the Provincial Government.    In the Carbon Creek\nbasin,  at least 10 seams locally exceeding 4 feet in thickness are known\nover an area 18 miles long.    Coals from several of them have low ash,\nhigh calorific value and are predominantly non-coking.    In the Noman Creek,\nWillow River,  and Hasler Creek areas several seams ranging in thickness\nfrom 4 to 22 feet,  of low to medium volatile bituminous coal are known,\nsome of them coking well and others less so.    Structures along this zone\nappear fairly broad and open in Carbon Creek area,  with folding and\nfaulting more intense to the southeast.    Up to the present this area has been\nheld back by inaccessibility but the proposed extension of the P. G. E,  passes\nthrough it.\n1_\n(A.F. Buckham, Canadian Colleries (Dunsmuir) Ltd., Cumberland, in a paper entitled\n\"Inventory and Evaluation of British Columbia Coal,\" Transactions of the Ninth B.C.\nNatural Resources Conference, Victoria, 1956.)\n NATURAL GAS IN NORTHEASTERN BRITISH COLUMBIA 173.\nL.  K.   TURNER\nThe following outline of Northeastern British Columbia's natural gas\nresources was made in 1956 by an officer of Pacific Petroleums Ltd. and Westcoast\nTransmission Co. Ltd.\nToday,  despite the lack of a market and the difficult drilling\nconditions in our north,  this province has nearly three trillion cubic feet\nof natural gas - an energy source greater than the electrical energy that\nwill be developed,   at today's rate,  by all the hydro installations in British\nColumbia for the next twenty years.\nAlthough this success has been gratifying to the petroleum\npioneers it only marks the start of the real expansion.    Now that a market\nwill be provided by Westcoast Transmission Company's pipeline,  exploration and development work is being increased.    And this in turn will result\nin further finds and further rewards in energy,  fuel resources,  and\nrevenues to the province and its people.. . .\nSince the early days of this century men have been drilling\nfor petroleum in various parts of the province without success.    The area\nto get the first attention was the Flathead district in the southeastern\ncorner of the province,  where oil and gas seeps had long attracted prospectors.    Other areas,  including the Fraser Valley, the Gulf Islands and\ncertain sections through the central interior were probed a number of times,\nbut were found wanting.\nThe last district to see a full-scale search was the northeastern corner of the province - the Peace River area and beyond.    These\nrolling prairies and foothills,  bounded by the Rocky Mountains on the west,\nthe Yukon and Northwest Territories on the north,  and Alberta on the east,\nhad looked for years like good hunting grounds for the elusive black gold.\nThe whole area is part of the same sedimentary basin that\nonce was a large inland ocean stretching from what is now the Gulf of\nMexico to the Arctic Ocean.    It is in these same sediments that lie the\nproductive oil and gas fields of Texas,   Oklahoma,  Kansas,  Saskatchewan,\nAlberta - and now British Columbia,\nIt is very fortunate for this province that the border between\nAlberta and British Columbia didn't follow the Rocky Mountains all the way\nnorth.    For if this had happened,  and in past years there have been many\nresidents of the Peace River who have said it should have,  then the entire\nnorthern sedimentary basin would have been in Alberta.    But because men\nchose an arbitrary meridian,  this basin with its extra thick sedimentary\ndeposits is in British Columbia.\n 174.      NATURAL GAS IN NORTHEASTERN BRITISH COLUMBIA\nAnd for two main reasons, this places this province in a very\nfavoured position for both petroleum and pipeline development. The reasons\nare:\n(1) The province now has more than 30 million acres of land\nin this northeastern sedimentary basin.    And this district,\nlarger than some of the producing states in the U.S. ,   gives\npromise of the major gas and oil reserves;\n(2) Geographically,  British Columbia also provides the\nsensible outlet for further gas and oil reserves that are also\ncertain to be found still farther north.    Natural gas has been\nlocated already in the Northwest Territories - directly north\nof British Columbia's field - and many geologists believe\nthat important reservoirs will be proved up even farther\nnorth.    Gas and oil can only be moved economically by\npipeline,   so when these new fields are proven it will only\nmean building other pipelines almost directly south through\nBritish Columbia.    This booming province and the fast growing Pacific Coast states should be able to provide the essential\nmarkets for many years to come.    Therefore,   it seems only\nlogical that all these northern reserves should ultimately\nflow through British Columbia.\nAlthough successes have been many,  the oil and gas development in British Columbia is still in its infancy.    Born in the post-war years,\nas a poor cousin of Alberta's healthy, wealthy industry,  its potentialities\nare still overlooked by many of our citizens and some of our industrialists.\nExploration for oil and gas has gone on in Alberta for more\nthan 50 years,  with large quantities of money and materials being poured\ninto the prairie search.    Despite the expenditure and concentration of\neffort, Alberta's current oil boom didn't really start until February 13,\n1947,  when Imperial Oil brought in its first Leduc well.    From then on,\nthe industry never looked back.    All the knowledge and know-how acquired\nduring the years of fruitless search were put to good advantage,  with the\nresult that our neighboring province is bursting with its oil and gas today -\nand is incidentally,  debt-free because of this.\nBritish Columbia,  on the other hand,   saw a hit-and-miss\ndevelopment.    As I mentioned,   a few prospectors drilled dry holes in many\nareas,  then later,   reservations were placed on the potential petroleum lands,\nwhile the province itself tried unsuccessfully to bring in oil.    It wasn't\nuntil August,   1947,  when the reserve over the lands was lifted,  that an\nactive petroleum search began.\nFirst Company to take out permits and to start large-scale\nexplorations was Peace River Natural Gas Company - a subsidiary of\nPacific Petroleums.    At first results were small,  but encouraging, then in\n NATURAL GAS IN NORTHEASTERN BRITISH COLUMBIA 175.\nNovember,   1951,   Pacific and its associates hit oil and gas in Fort St.  John\nNo.   1 Well on the northern bank of the Peace River.    This was the start\nof British Columbia's natural gas industry,  the backbone of the pipeline,\nand the beginning of a new era in British Columbia. . . .\nWe feel now that the reserves of British Columbia are\napproaching or passing three trillion cubic feet,  while the whole northern\narea is nearing the five trillion mark.    It is interesting to compare this five\ntrillion figure with Alberta's estimated reserves of 15 trillion.    Despite\nthe short time we have been at work,   reserves we can call on are close to\none third of those in Alberta.\nAll the British Columbia discoveries have been made by oil\ncompanies who had no guarantee of any market for the gas when it was\ndiscovered.    Now with the market assured and exploration increasing -\nPacific Petroleums and its associates alone are planning 70 new wells -\nmuch more gas will be found rapidly.\nThere is no way of putting a figure on the volumes we will\nfinally come up with.    Geologists feel that if there is a sale for the gas and\noil, then prospecting will continue and the whole North could be developed\ninto one of the continent's largest producing areas.    At a recent meeting of\nCanadian and United States petroleum geologists in Jasper it was reported\nthat the Canadian West was one of the most important exploration sections\nin North America,  while of this the Western Foothills district of Alberta\nand Northeast British Columbia stands out as one of \"the greatest future\"\noil and gas areas in Canada,  perhaps North America.\nBritish Columbia has been an extremely fertile ground for gas\ndiscoveries,  which can be partly accounted for by the extremely deep beds\nof sedimentary rock lying under our northeastern triangle.    These beds,\nwhich bottom sometimes 12,000 feet below the surface,  are much deeper\nthan the 5,000 - 6, 000 foot beds on the prairies.    As oil and gas usually are\nfound in this sedimentary rock, this gives British Columbia a much better\nhunting ground,  and has resulted in a very high discovery rate.    As a matter\nof fact,   Pacific Petroleums and associates drilled 80 wells there in the\npast few years,  with 52 of them gassers and only 28 abandoned.    All the\noperators in the entire northern district had, until the fall,  drilled one\nhundred and thirty-four wells with only 55 abandonments.\nThis is a discovery rate of better than one producing well for\nevery two wildcats drilled,  which compares with a continental average of\none producer for every 9 wildcats.    It is a most unusual record,  and one\nthat points up to the large potential that lies in wait.\n(L.K. Turner, Pacific Petroleums Ltd. and Westcoast Transmission Co. Ltd., in a paper\nentitled \"Oil and Natural Gas Energy\", Transactions of the Ninth B.C. Natural Resources\nConference, Victoria, 1956.)\n 176. BRITISH COLUMBIA'S PETROLEUM INDUSTRY IN 1958\nA,   N.   LUCIE-SMITH\nThe writer is chairman, Petroleum and Natural Gas Conservation\nCommittee, B.C. Department of Mines.\nThe situation with regard to development in British\nColumbia is unique.    Whereas elsewhere in the world oil has been the\nprincipal marketable commodity from the outset,  the reverse is true in\nBritish Columbia where gas, though intrinsically less valuable than oil,  has\nbeen and is still the more marketable product.\nGas was discovered first and the reserves of gas were built\nup to approximately one trillion cubic feet before oil in any commercial\nquantity was discovered.    Since the Trans Mountain oil pipe-line had\nalready been completed and was supplying Alberta crude to refineries in\nthe Vancouver area,  it appeared,  and rightly so, that development of gas\nshould be given precedence to that of oil,  at least for the time being,  so that\na gas transmission line could be justified at an early date.    With this object\nin view exploration drilling was designed to augment gas reserves as\nquickly as possible.    The direct result of this approach is that British\nColumbia now has a gas transmission line with more capacity than that\nrequired for the volume of gas it presently produces.    On the other hand,\nthe outlet for oil is limited to a small refinery at Dawson Creek with a\nthroughput of some 1700 barrels daily and to the spare capacity of a\n2500 barrel-a-day refinery at Grande Prairie in Alberta, which is so far\ndistant that transportation costs are excessive.   Although the capacity of\nthe refinery at Dawson Creek is now being increased to 2500 barrels per day\nand will be increased further to 3500 barrels a day by the end of 1959,  it will\nbe some time before there is an adequate market for oil which would help\nto normalize the present development situation.    Moreover, the Dawson\nCreek refinery is at present limited to the processing of asphaltic crude,\nsince there is a local market for asphalt for the paving of the Alaska\nHighway. . . .\nThe average daily production figures for September,  1958,\nwere as follows:\nRaw Gas  .   149, 376 MCF\nCrude Oil         1, 656 Barrels\nThe gas produced is based on an allowable rate 25% of the\nopen-flow potential of each producing well calculated from back-pressure\ntests at four different rates of flow; additional wells are being tied into\nthe gathering systems.    The oil production figure is only part of the\navailable reservoir data from each well; at the end of September,   1958,  the\n BRITISH COLUMBIA'S PETROLEUM INDUSTRY IN 1958 177.\navailable oil potential was 4, 742 barrels daily,  of which the amount being\nproduced was only 28.8%.\nThe following tabulation records the number of producing\nwells up to the end of September,  1958:\nYear\n1953\n1954\n1955\n1956\n1957\n1958 (to end September) 25\nJust as the inauguration of the gas transmission line and the\nputting-on-stream of the McMahon Plant at Taylor were the outstanding\nevents in the development of the petroleum industry in British Columbia\nduring 1957,   so the completion of the asphalt plant at the Dawson Creek\nrefinery and the first shipment of sulphur have been the two outstanding\nevents so far this year.    The potentiality of northeastern British\nColumbia is so great and the unexplored area so vast that there will be\nmany more outstanding events to mark the progress of the petroleum industry in the Province in the years to come.\nNOTE:  See the following map of gas and oil fields.\nOil Wells\nOil Wells\nGa\ns Wells\nGas Wells\nProducing\nCapable of\nProducing\nPr\noducing\nCapable of\nProducing\n-\n-\n-\n33\n,f BA\n-\n2\n48\n1\n1\n3\n56\n9\n10\n3\n90\n19\n22\n46\n130\nc) 25\n34\n45\n143\n{A.N. Lucie-Smith, P. Eng. \"Oil and Gas Development in British Columbia\" in \"The B.C.\nProfessional Engineer,\" December, 1958.)\n GAS AND OIL FIELDS\nOF NORTHEASTERN\nBRITISH COLUMBIA\nbased on map produced by\nThe Canadian Bank of Commerce GAS FIELD\n\u25a1 OIL FIELD\nMi     RG.E. RLWY.\n ORIGIN OF CERTAIN PLACE NAMES 179.\nBEATTON RIVER - named after Frank Beatton,  H.B.C.  trader at Fort\nSt.  John for many years.    (See p.  68,  69).\nBUTLER RIDGE - after Gen.  Sir Wm.   Butler who travelled through the\narea in 1873. (see p.  45).\nCARBON CREEK and LAKE - from coal deposits in vicinity.\nCROOKED RIVER - because of its winding course.\nDAVIE LAKE (formerly DAVIS) - probably from \"Twelve Foot\" Davis,  who\ntravelled through it many times on his way to Peace River from his\nsupply base at Fort (now Prince) George.\nDAWSON CREEK - after Dr.  G. M.  Dawson of the Geological Survey of\nCanada who explored the area in 1879.\nDESERTERS CANYON - Samuel Black's party of exploration in 1824 lost\ntwo members who became terrified by the roaring of the rapids or\ndiscouraged by the sight of the difficult portage,  (see p.  33).\nFINLAY RIVER - after John Finlay of the North West Company who\nexplored the lower part of the river in 1797.\nFORT GRAHAME - after J. A.  Grahame,  who rose to be a commissioner\nof the H.B.C.\nFORT McLEOD- established in 1805 by Simon Fraser, the first permanent\nor continuously occupied post within what is now B. C.    Named after\nA,N.  McLeod of the North West Company.\nFOX RIVER - probably after Wm.  Fox,  H.B. C.  employee in the Finlay\nRiver area for many years from 1893.\nGERMANSEN LANDING, RIVER,  etc.   - after James Germansen, who\ndiscovered gold here in 1870.\nGOLD BAR - gold dredging was attempted here,  as well as earlier placer\nmining.\nHALFWAY RIVER - presumed to be half the distance from Fort St. John\nto Rocky Mountain Portage House,    Formerly called \"Riviere du\nMilieu\".\nHUDSON HOPE (formerly HUDSON'S HOPE) - believed to be named after\na persistent and hopeful miner by the name of Hudson,   (see p. 41,   105).\n 180, ORIGIN OF CERTAIN PLACE NAMES\nLIARD RIVER - originally Riviere aux Liards (Cottonwood River).\nMANSON CREEK & RIVER - after Wm.  Manson,  a miner in the Omineca\ngold rush.\nMcCONNELL CREEK - after R.G.  McConnell of the Geological Survey.\nMOBERLY LAKE = after H.J.  Moberly,   an early fur-trader and prospector.\nHe built a cabin here in 1865.    His experiences are related in the\nbook \"When Fur was King\".\nNATION RIVER - formerly \"Riviere au Nation\".    Simon Fraser states in\nhis journal that it was so called because \"the upper part of it is\ninhabited by some of the Big Men (an Indian tribe) though of a\ndifferent family\".\nOLD HOGEM - refers to the trading practices of a storekeeper during the\nOmineca gold rush.\nOMINECA RIVER - Indian for lake-like or sluggish river.\nPACK RIVER - goods have to be packed around rapids.\nPARSNIP RIVER - from the cow-par snip plants growing on the banks.\nPEACE RIVER - In 1782 peace was declared between the Cree and Beaver\nIndians at a place on the river thereafter called Peace Point,  after\nwhich the river took the same name,   (see p.  7),\nPINE RIVER & PASS - Formerly South Pine River - from the large number\nof pine trees here.\nPORTAGE MOUNTAIN - Mountain north of Peace River Canyon, around\nwhich the Portage road runs.    Named by Dr. Selwyn in 1875.\nPOUCE COUPE - from a Beaver Indian chief so named,  i. e.  cut thumb,\nbecause of the similarity of his native name to these two French words.\nROCKY MOUNTAIN CANYON & PORTAGE - called by Mackenzie \"Portage\nde la Montague de Roches\" or Portage of the Mountain of Rocks - no\nreference was intended to be made to the Rocky Mountains.    Also\ncalled \"Peace River Canyon\".\nSELWYN,   MOUNT - after Dr.  A.R.C.  Selwyn,  who climbed it in 1875.\nSUMMIT LAKE - near the divide between the Peace and Fraser systems.\n ORIGIN OF CERTAIN PLACE NAMES 181.\nTAYLOR - formerly Taylor Flats,  after H.  Taylor,  a former H.B. C.\ntrader (see p.   11).\nWARE - formerly Fort Ware - after Wm.   Ware,  a H.B,C. trader\n 182. A RECOMMENDED BIBLIOGRAPHY\nEYE-WITNESS ACCOUNTS\nBezanson,  A.M.,   \"Sodbusters Invade the Peace\",   Toronto,   1954.\nBlack,  Samuel,   \"A Journal of a Voyage from Rocky Mountain Portage in\nPeace River to the Sources of Finlay's Branch and North Westward\nin Summer 1824\",  Edited by E.E,  Rich,  with an introduction by\nR.M.   Patterson,   London,   1955.\nButler,   Gen.   Sir Wm.   F, ,   \"The Wild Northland,  being the Story of a\nWinter Journey,  with Dog,  across Northern America\",   London,   1874.\nFootner,  Hulbert,   \"New Rivers of the North,  The Yarn of Two Amateur\nExplorers\",  New York,   1912.\nFreeman,   Lewis R. ,   \"The Nearing North\",  New York,   1928.\nGalloway,   Capt.   C.F.J.   \"The Call of the West - Letters from British\nColumbia\",  New York,   1916.\nGordon,  Rev.   Daniel M.   \"Mountain and Prairie,  a Journey from Victoria\nto Winnipeg,  via Peace River Pass\",  Montreal,   1880.\nHaworth,   Paul Leland,   \"On the Headwaters of Peace River,  a Narrative of\na Thousand-mile Canoe Trip to a Little-known Range of the\nCanadian Rockies\",  New York,   1917.\nHoretzky,   Charles,   \"Canada on the Pacific,  A Journey from Edmonton to\nthe Pacific by the Peace River Valley,  etc.\",  Montreal,   1874.\nJohnston,  Lukin,   \"Beyond the Rockies,  Three Thousand Miles by Trail and\nCanoe through Little-Known British Columbia\",  London & Toronto,\n1929.\nLamb,  W.  Kaye (Editor) \"Sixteen Years in the Indian  Country, the Journal\nof Daniel Williams Harmon,   1800-1816\",  Toronto,   1957,\n*Lamb,   W.  Kaye (Editor) \"The Journal of Simon Fraser\", to be published\nsoon.\nMackenzie,  Sir Alexander,  \"Voyages from Montreal on the River St.\nLaurence through the Continent of North America to the Frozen and\nPacific Oceans in the Years 1789 and 1793\",   London,   1801  .\nPike,   Warburton,   \"The Barren Ground of Northern Canada\",   London,   1892.\n*Willard Ireland was originally designated as editor,  but pressure of other\nduties has prevented him from completing the task.\n GENERAL 183.\nB.C.  Government (Forest Service) \"Continuous Forest Inventory of\nBritish Columbia,   1957\",  Victoria.\nB. C, Government (Lands Service) \"The Peace River District, \" Bulletin\nNo. 25 (Bulletin Area No. 10), Department of Lands and Forests,\n1955.\nB. C.  Government (Lands Service) \"The Fort Fraser- Fort George Bulletin\nArea\",  Bulletin Area No.  7,  Department of Lands and Forests,   1958.\nDawson,   C. A. ,   \"The Settlement of the Peace River Country - A study of a\nPioneer Area\",  Toronto,   1934.\nGoodchild,   Fred H.,   \"British Columbia,  Its History,   People and Industry\"\nLondon,   1951.\nKelsey,  Vera,   \"British Columbia Rides a Star\",  Toronto & Vancouver,\n1958.\nKitto,  F. H. ,   \"The Peace River Country,   Canada,  Its Resources and\nOpportunities\",  Department of the Interior,   Canada,  Ottawa,   1927\n(or 1930).\nJenness,  Diamond,  \"The Sekani Indians of British Columbia\",  Bulletin\nNo.  84, Anthropological Series No.  20,  National Museum of Canada,\nOttawa,   1937.\nMacGregor,  James G.  \"The Land of Twelve-Foot Davis,  a History of the\nPeace River Country\", Edmonton,  1952.\nMorton,  Arthur S. ,  \"A History of the Canadian West\" to 1870-71\",  London,\n1939.\nRamsey,  Bruce \"A History of the P.G.E. \",  to be published in December,\n1959.\nWallace,  J.N.   \"The Wintering Partners on Peace River, from the Earliest\nRecords to the Union in 1821\",  Ottawa,   1929.\nWhite, Arthur V. ,  \"Water Powers of British Columbia\" Committee on\nWaters and Water Powers,   Commission of Conservation,   Canada,\nOttawa,  1919.\nWoollacott,   Arthur P.   \"Mackenzie and His Voyageurs,  By Canoe to the\nArctic and the Pacific,   1789-93\",   London & Toronto,   1927.\n 184,\nINDEX OF AUTHORS QUOTED\nAlaska Highway News 121\nBancroft,  H. H. 18\nB.C.  Forest Service 166\nBlack,  Samuel 33\nBremner,  J, W. 151\nBuckham,  A. F. 172\nButler,  Gen,  Sr.  Wm.  F. 45\nCraig,  R.D. 158\nCrysdale,   C.R. 151\nDenny,   Capt.  Sir Cecil 65\nFootner,  Hulbert 66\nFraser,  Simon 27\nFreeman,   Lewis R. 93\nGalloway,   Capt.  C.F.J. 70\nGalloway,  J.D. 128\nGordon,  Rev.  Daniel M. 51\nHarmon,  D.W. 30\nHarrington,   Lyn 104\nHaworth,  Paul L. 82\nHoretzky,   Charles 41\nImrie,  John M, 3\nJohnston,   Lukin 95\nKelsey,   Vera 114\nKitto,   F.H. 132\nLay,  Douglas 169\nLeitch,  J.S. 63\nLucie-Smith,  A.N. 176\nMcDonald,  Archibald 38\nMacGregor,  James G. 7\nMacKenzie,  Sir Alexander 23\nMcLean,  John 40\nPatterson,  R.M.                         12,   110\nPike,   Warburton 57\nRobinson,   J.   Lewis 141\nSavage,  Hugh 123\nSelwyn,  A.R. C. 50\nSimpson,  Sir. George 36\nSmith, Geo. J. 156\nSomerset,  H.  Somers 61\nSternberg,   CM. 102\nSwannell,  F. C. 127\nTurner,  L,K. 173\nWater Rights Branch 154\nWhite,  Arthur V. 145\nWhitford,  H. N. 158\nWilliams,  M. Y. 167\n INDEX\n185.\nAgriculture,  4,70,81,115,123,\n135,140,143,159,160,\n162,164\nAlaska Highway, v, 11, 17, 115,\n116,143\nAlaska Highway News,  v, 120, 121\nAlbright,   W.D.,  9\nAluminum Sulphate,   137\nAngell,  Sidney,  iv\nAsphalt,   176,177\nBancroft, H. H. ,   18\nBeattie,  Jim,  90,91,98,99,109,\n113\nBeatton,  F. ,   11,68\nBeatton River,   11\nBedaux,   Charles,   106,107\nBig Kettle,  86\nBlack Canyon,  vi, 15, 33, 86,148,\n155\nBlack, Samuel,   12,14,33\nBox Canyon,   107\nBranham Flats,   100\nBremner,  J.W.,   151\nBrick,  Rev.  Gough,  9\nBuckham,  A.F. ,   172\nBullhead Mountain,  91, 108, 110,\n129\nButler,  Ridge,   110,113,172\nButler,   W.F.,   15,44,45,104\nCanadian National Railway,   151,\n167\nCanadian Pacific Railway,  v, 39,\n51,76, 151, 167\nCanyon City,  vi,79,80\nCarbon River,   98,131,167,172\nCharlie Lake,   11\nChetwynd,   121\nClay,   137\n^iimate,  4,50,56,81,127,133,\n134, 135, 159,161,163,164\nCoal,  5,98,99,108,130,131,136,\n137, 167, 172\nConsolidated Mining & Smelting, iv\nCopper, 96,99\nCornwall,   Col.  Jim,  9\nCraig,  R.D. ,   158\nCrooked River,  71,82,124\nCrysdale,   C.R.,   151\nCust,   Bill,  vi, 8, 18, 19,42, 108,\n113\nDavie Lake,  83,95, 124\nDavis,  \"Twelve-Foot\",  vi,8,18,58,\n83,90,99\nDawson Creek,  v, 5, 11, 115, 116,\n117,121,176,177\nDenny,   Capt.  Sir Cecil,   65\nDeserters' Canyon,   13,33-35,89,\n125,147,148\nDinosaurs,   102,103,108,112\nDonald,   Frank,   9\nDumas,   C. ,  55\nFell,  A. J.B.,  iv\nFerguson Claims,   171\nFinlay Forks,  iv, v, 9, 15, 31, 47, 54,\n59,84,85,97,132\nFinlay,  John,  7,12\nFinlay Rapids,   28,54,59,66,76,97,\n111,125,128\nFinlay River,  vi, 9, 12, 13, 14, 18,\n19,33,49,65,86,87,125, 127,\n132,147,155,161\nFish,  82,83,97,102,124,130,139\nFishing Lakes,   13,15\nFootner,  Hulbert,   66\nForests,  5,83,123,146,147,158-\n166\nFort Grahame,  iv, 15, 16, 65, 87, 125,\n127,169\nFort McLeod (or McLeod Lake),\n18,27,31,40,44,52,61,73,\n74,84,95,114,124\nFort St.  John,  v, 10, 11, 32, 56, 57,\n68, 100, 119, 120\/121,JL29, 175\nFort St. John Lumber Co. ,   121\nFox River,   12, 13, 161\nFox,   Wm.,   65,87,142\nFraser,  Simon,  iii, 3, 7, 27, 38\nFreeman,   Lewis,  93\nFur Trade,   36,37,99,138,139\n_J\n 186.\nGalena,   5,99, 136, 171\nGalloway,   Capt.   C.F.J.,  vi, 70\nGalloway,  J. D. ,   128\nGame Animals,  42,84,88,91,96,\n102,129,138,139\nGermansen,   19, 148\nGething 63,99,102, 108, 121,131\nGold,  iii,vi,5,8,9, 10, 15, 18-20,\n54,57,62,99, 100,124, 125,\n130,136,148,167\nGold Bar,  98, 109, 167\nGordon,  Daniel M. ,  51\nGrand Trunk Pacific Railway,   63\nGravel,   137, 168\nGypsum,  5,136,137\nJones,   Charlie,   98\nKelsey,  Vera,  v, 114\nKitto,   F.H. ,   132\nKlondikers,  iii, 9, 16,64,65,77, 117\nLavoie,  Joe?   17, 112\nLay,  Douglas,   169\nLead, v, 96, 100,169\nLeitch,  J.S. ,   63\nLimestone,   105,137,167,168\nLong Canyon,   16,17,125\nLucie-Smith,   A. N. ,   176\nHalf-Breeds,   Names of,  94\nHalfway River,   10,57,126,140,\n165\nHarmon,  D. W. ,   30, 114\nHarrington,   Lyn,   104\nHart Highway,   v, 110, 114\nHaworth, P. L. ,   17,82,112\nHoretzky,   Charles,  41\nHudson Hope,   iv, v. vi, 3, 10, 41,\n42,45,50,55,57,68,79,80,\n91,93,104,105,121,129,139\nHudson's Bay Company,  iii, 8, 45,\n53,74,79,90,93\nHunters,  55\nHuntington,   L.W.,   iv\nIndians\nBeavers,   7,9,11,28,30,31,44,\n54,57,60,68,69,92,106,\n126\nCrees,  7,24,30,54\nIroquois,  8,38,55,57,68\nSekanies,   15,28,30,31,49,54,\n84,88,105,114,124,127\nIngenika River,   iii, 89, 96, 98,\n125,149,169\nIron, 99,131,136, 167\nJohnson Creek,   63, 80\nJohnston,  Lukin,  95\nMcConnell Creek,iii, 125, 149\nMcConnell,   R. G. ,   16\nMcDonald,  Archibald,   38\nMacGregor,  J.G. ,  vi, 7\nMackenzie,  Alexander,  iii, 3, 7,\n23,52,93,103, 104, 107, 114\nMackenzie and Mann,  iv\nMcLean,  John,  40\nMcLeod,   Malcolm,   39\nManson Creek,   19,20,125\nMaurice Creek,   106\nMica,  5,15,98,169,170\nMinerals (see individual entries)\nMisinichinka River,   53, 146\nMoberly Lake,   vi, 50, 57, 60\nMorgan,   House of,   iv.\nMount Selwyn,   54, 66, 75, 77, 80,\n100,112,126,131\nMount Wolseley,  84\nMurray,   Mrs.  George,   120\nNation River,   20,53,59,124,146,\n154,159\nNatural Gas,  5,116,118,119,131,\n136,137,173-178\nNigger Dam,  8\nNorthern Alberta Railway,  v, 116,\n117\nNorth West Company,  iii, 8\nNorth West Mounted Police,   16,\n65,87,125\n 187.\nOchre,   137, 167\nOliver,   Premier John,  iv\nOmineca River,   iii, vi, 8, 9, 15,\n18,19,20,48,86,125,148,\n155\nOttertail River,   98, 112\nPacific Petroleums Ltd.,   173,\n174\nPack River,   31,52,59,75,111,\n124\nParle Pas Rapids (or \"Ne Parle\nPas\"),   77, 112, 125, 128\nParsnip River,  vi, 4, 9, 20, 31,\n43,44,52,53,75,111, 124,\n132,146, 158\nPatterson,  R.M.,   12,33,110\nPeace Point,   7\nPeace River*,   3,7,10,18,45,\n70, J10, 132, 133, 142, 156\nPeace River Block,  iii, v, 5,114,\n126,163\nPeace River Bridge,   118,119\nPeace River Canyon (or Rocky\nMountain Canyon),  vis5,\n10,23 = 26, 38,42,45,46,\n47, 55, 58, 63, 67, 68, 78, 90,\n102,107,108,128,138, 145,\n151-155\nPeace River District*, iii, 3-11,\n81,100,132-140\nPeace River Gold Dredging Co.,\n167\nPeace River Natural Gas Co. ,\n174\nPeace River Pass,  iv, 43, 54, 66,\n76,77,89, 110\nPetroleum,  5,131,137,173-178\nP.G.E.,  iv,v,85, 119,151, 167,\n172\nPike,   Warburton,   iii, 3, 57, 97\nPine Pass,   60,61,124,146,158\nPine River,   60,162\nPlatinum,   130\nPolice Trail,   16,65,87,125\nPortage Mountain,   55, 110, 113,\n129\n*   Main Entries Only.\nPotash, 137\nPouce Coupe, iv, v, 5, 100, 117, 126,\n129\nRailways,  iii, iv, 80,85, 100, 119, 170\nRobinson,   J.   Lewis,   141\nRocky Mountain Canyon\n(See Peace River Canyon)\nRocky Mountain Portage,   27, 30, 31,38\n40,41,42,55,58,79,90, 108,\n110\nRocky Mountain Trench,  v, 9, 12, 13,\n17,115,119,141-143\nRhondda,   Lord,  iv\nRolla,   5, 101,129\nSalt,   5,136, 137\nSavage,  Hugh,   12 3\nSelwyn,   A.R.C.,   50, 110\nSettlers,  v, 100, 117, 135\nShale,   167\nSifton Pass,   13, 142\nSilver,   5,96, 100, 136\nSimpson,  Sir George,  vi,8,14, 38,\n55,57\nSmith,  Geo.  J.,   156\nSomerset,  H.  Somers,   61\nSternberg,   CM.,   102\nSulphur,   177\nSummit Lake,  9,52,70,82,114,\n123,128,156\nSutton,   General F. A.,  iv\nSwannell,   F. C J   13,16,17,127\nTaylor,   H. ,   11\nTaylor Flats,   11,119,177\nTesterwich,  Baptiste,  vi, 57, 60\nThompson ,  David,  4, 7\nThutade Lake,   14, 17, 125, 148\nTimber,  83,123,146,147,151,158-\n166\nTooley,   Percy,  9\nToy,   Pete,  vi, 15, 18, 43, 47,48, 86\nTurner,   L.K.,   173\nTwelve-Mile Creek,   109,113\n Ware,     15\nWater Powers,  5,10*90,109,\n116,138,145-149,151-157\nWater Rights Branch,   154\nWsnner-Gren,  Axel,   119\nWestcoast Transmission Co. ,\n118,173\nWheat, 4,9\nWicked River,   54, 102\nWhite, A. V.,   145\nWhitford,  H. N. ,   158\nWilliams,   M. Y. ,   167\nZinc,   v, 169\n     ","type":"literal","lang":"en"},{"value":"Includes an index<br>Includes bibliographic references<br>Other copies: http:\/\/www.worldcat.org\/oclc\/16054634","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/www.europeana.eu\/schemas\/edm\/hasType":[{"value":"Books","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/identifier":[{"value":"FC3843.4 .E94 1959","type":"literal","lang":"en"},{"value":"I-2062-II-0061-III-0291","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/www.europeana.eu\/schemas\/edm\/isShownAt":[{"value":"10.14288\/1.0417572","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/language":[{"value":"English","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/www.europeana.eu\/schemas\/edm\/provider":[{"value":"Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/publisher":[{"value":"Vancouver : Western Development and Power Limited","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/rights":[{"value":"Images provided for research and reference use only. For permission to publish, copy, or otherwise distribute these images please contact digital.initiatives@ubc.ca.","type":"literal","lang":"en"}],"http:\/\/purl.org\/dc\/terms\/source":[{"value":"Original Format: University of British Columbia. Library. Rare Books and Special Collections. 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