The Traveller.

Southern Cross, Volume 9, Issue 52, 15 March 1902, Page 12

The Traveller.

mm w.z. to ekoiawd. No. 11. British Columbia, Vancouver has extensive wharves and warehouses, many fine hotels (the Vancouver being a splendid structure), churches, schools, etc. It has many buildings of brick and granite, and some of its private residences would do credit to cities of a century’s growth. It has many miles of asphalt streets, the footpaths being; chiefly laid with Douglas fir planks 2in. thick, and the city is lighted both with gas and electricity. A splendid water supply is provided by means of pipes laid under the inlet from a mountain stream opposite. There is a regular steamship service to Victoria, Nanaimo, and San Brancisco, to China and Japan, to Puget Sound, and Alaskan ports, it being one of the principal points of departure on the coast for Klondike, and other northern goldfields and an outfitting headquarter for miners and prospectors. The C.P.R. White Empress Dine to the Orient, whose steamsMpe are the only twin screw vessels on the Pacific, takes the shortest, safest, and most pleasant route; steamships for Yokohama, Kobe, Nagasaki, Shanghai, _ and Hong Kong, making the quickest passage by from five to 10 days across the North Pacific, depart every three weeks in summer, and every four weeks in winter, and for Australia via Honolulu every four weeks. At Hong Kong passengers make connection with steamers of the P. and O. Company for Columbia and the other points on the round the world route with steamers of the China Navigation Company and the Eastern and Australian Navigation Co., which ply between Australia and Hong Kong, or with the German Lloyd steamships from Shanghai or Hong Kong via Singapore, Colombo, Suez, Naples and Genoa to Southampton. The country south, towards the Eraser, has fine farms, and is especially adapted for fruit-growing. The coal supply comes from Nanaimo, directly across the strait of Georgia and almost within sight. The scenery all about is magnificent, the Cascade Mountains near at hand at the North, the mountains of "Vancouver Island across the water at the west, the Olympics at the south-west, and Mount Baker looming up at the south-east. 3tanle} r Park is a magnificent public pleasure resort, and a visit to Capilano Canon, a remarkable mountain cleft across the islet, is a delightful outing. Opportunities for sport are unlimited at no great distance —mountain goats, bear, and deer in the hills along the trout fishing in the mountain streams, and sea fishing in endless variety. While here I visited the largest sawmill in the city, where they cut 160,000 feet per day, saw them breaking [down logs over 4ft. diameter and 40ft. long. The way they handle the logs from the sea to the saw is simply marvellous. The manager showed me the photo of a log sent to the exhibition, 112 in long, by 62in square at each end. Little sticks of this sorl they style “ Canadian tooth picks.” After enjoying a week’s stay in Vancouver with fine winter weather such as we get here at odd times, I started on the 13th February by the Canadian Pacific railway to work my way over the rookies east through Canada and part of the States to New York, a distance of some 3,500 odd miles. Prom Vancouver the railway follows the south shore, of Burrard Inlet, and the outlook is most delightful. Snow-topped mountains, beautiful in form and colour, rise opposite and are vividly reflected in the mirror-like waters of the deep-set inlet. At intervals along the heavywooded shores are mills with villages around them, and with ocean steamships and sailing yachts loading with sawn timber for all parts of the world. On the other hand, and

towering high above, are gigantic trees 20, 30, and even 40 feet around. At Hastings at the eighth the North Arm of Burrard Inlet is seen extending at right angles to the railway about 15 miles into the mountains, which, black and sombre descend about 5000 ft. sheer to the water, which is almost fathomless in depth. Shortly after reaching Port Moody, which for a time was the terminus of the railway, at the head of the inlet, the railway leaves the salt water, and. crosses over a low-lying ridge, and descends into the valley of the Fraser. At New Westminster Junction a branch line diverges to New Westminster (population 7000), on the Fraser River. The town is the headquarters of the salmon canning industry, which is represented by a dozen or more extensive establishments. In connection with the salmon pack of 1900 the shipments were:

To Great Britain ... 382,978 cases ~ Eastern Canada ... 79,171 ~ ~ Australia ... 25,903 ~ ~ Other destinations 56,237 ~ ~ Local sales ... 20,309 ~ ~ Stocks ... ••• 20,815 ~ T0ta1—585,413 cases or 29,270,650 lbs. It has also large sawmills, the product of which is shipped largely to China, South America, Africa, Europe and Australia. Lumber cut during 1900 shows a large increase compared with former years, as will be seen from the following table ; Cut on Crown lands, timber leaseholds, private property, 1897 ... 105,939,397 ft Do do do 1898 ... 124,546,658 ft Do do do 1899 ... 161,900,463 ft Do do do 1900 ... 223,374,723 ft T0ta1—616,761,241ft Total shipments of lumber from British Columbia and Puget Sound for 1900, 241,068,042 feet. The Provincial asylum and penitentiary are located at New Westminster. Steamers ply regularly to Australia. Soon after leaving the junction the line crosses Pitt River by a bridge one quarter of a mile in length from which a magnificent view is to be had up Pitt Lake, embracing water and woods and mountains of great height, and at various distances, with great meadows alive with cattle in the foreground. On either side of the river extensive alluvial flats have been dyked, thus rendering about 20,000 acres of the moat fertile lands fit for cultivation. At Hammond the bank of the Fraser River is reached and followed by the railway for about 130 miles. It is here a smooth and mighty river. Immense trees are frequent, their size being indicated by their enormous stumps near the roadway. Many beautiful glimpses are had of Mount Baker, a magnificent isolated cone in the State of Washington, rising 14,000 ft. above the railway level, the favourite view being that from the crossing of Stave River, about two miles east of Whonock. Prom Missing Junction the branch line crosses the Fraser River and runs to the International Boundary Line, where rail connection is made with the Seattle and International Railway for Seattle, Washington, thence via Northern Pacific Road to Tacoma, Portland, all Oregon and Californian points. This line gives through connection for all the prominent points, Puget Sound, for Portland and San Francisco. Near Harrison station the Harrison River is crossed just above its confluence with the Fraser. Until the opening of the Fraser route in 1864 the only access to the northern interior of the province was by way of the Harrison river and Jake, where gold has recently been discovered. We now come to the Agassiz. Overlooked by Mount Oheam is a Government experimental farm, where fruit and gram are grown in great variety. Agassiz is the station for Harrison Springs (hot sulphur) on Harrison Lake five miles north. These springs are famed for their curative properties, and are visited by

invalids from everywhere on the Pacific Coast. We now pass Ruby Greek, which is named from the garnets found in the vicinity. Above Ruby Creek the valley begins to narrow, and the luxuriant vegetation which has extended from the Pacific Coast to this point, gradually changes to the more stunted and gnarled growth to be found on the mountain sides.

We now begin to ascend towards the Rockies at Hope, alt. 200 ft. Southward may be seen Hope peaks, where great quantities of silver ore are exposed and only await suitable fuel to be worked profitably. Yale is the head of navigation and from it a waggon road was built in 1863-4 to the then famous Cariboo mines, but the first hundred miles of it have been abandoned since the construction of the railway, and become in many places impassable even for a foot passenger. Indian huts are seen on the opposite bank, and in the village a conspicuous Joss-house indicates the presence of Chinamen, who are seen washing gold on the river bars for a long way below, and far above the town. (To be continued).