THE MARITIME PROVINCES.—The Maritime Provinces belong in part to the Appalachian system. On the north-west of New Brunswick, and along the coast of the Bay of Fundy, the land, consisting chiefly of pre-Cambrian rocks, in which those of igneous origin prevail, rises to heights of over a thousand feet, while the intervening area, covered with Carboniferous strata, seldom exceeds a few hundred feet. In Nova Scotia a number of ridges, formed by the outcrop of harder rocks, run more or less parallel to the general trend of the peninsula, and are continued in Cape Breton Island, being separated from one another by valleys resulting from the removal of less resistant formations. Along the Atlantic coast the rocks are chiefly Silurian, but in the west of Nova Scotia and Cape Breton, as well as in Prince Edward Island, which is low lying, Carboniferous and Permian formations with large granitic areas are found.
The climate of the Maritime Provinces is, as a result of latitude, less severe than that of the Laurentian Plateau, and, as a result of proximity to the ocean, less extreme than that of Central Canada. The following figures show its general characteristics :— The chief agricultural areas of the Maritime Provinces are found in the Carboniferous lowlands of New Brunswick ; along the shores of the Bay of Fundy, where land reclaimed from the sea may be fertilised year after year by the opening of the sluices in the dykes ; on the western intervale lands of Nova Scotia, where Carboniferous and Permian rocks prevail ; and in Prince Edward Island.
Within the last thirty years the character of agriculture in these regions has undergone a considerable change. Since 1881 the area under wheat has decreased, while that devoted to dairy-farming, stock-rearing, and fruit-growing, has largely increased. The reasons for this change, which is even more marked in the St.
Lawrence Lowlands, will be discussed in connection with that region. The great fruit-growing districts are the Annapolis andiCornwallis valleys in Nova Scotia, which contain over 70 per cent. of the orchards of the Maritime Provinces, apples, plums, and cherries, being among the chief products.
The importance of the Maritime Provinces has been greatly augmented by their mineral wealth, and over 50 per cent. of the
total coal production of Canada is obtained from the coalfields of Nova Scotia. These are the Sydney coalfield, which extends for thirty-two miles along the sea coast of the north-eastern extremity of Cape Breton and produces 72 per cent. of the total output, the Inverness coalfield, along the west coast of Cape Breton with about 6 per cent., the Pictou coalfield in the north-west of Nova Scotia with nearly 13 per cent., and the Cumberland coalfield in the west with nearly 9 per cent. In New Brunswick the Grand Lake coalfield, about seventy miles north of the city of St. John, yields a small quantity not amounting to 1 per cent. of the whole. In 1911 these fields together produced 7,000,000 tons. The coal is bituminous and of good quality ; it is suitable for the production of gas and coke, and is used as a steam coal. Part is consumed at home, chiefly in the iron works, but considerable quantities are sent by rail or shipped, more especially from Sydney and Louisbourg, up the St. Lawrence as far as Montreal, and along the Atlantic coast as far as Boston.
Although iron ore occurs in many parts of the Maritime Provinces, the production is small and in 1911 hardly amounted to 54,000 tons. Since 1896 the Wabana mines in Bell Island, Newfoundland, have been the principal source of supply for the iron works which are situated chiefly at Sydney and Londonderry. In 1911 these produced 260,000 short tons of pig-iron, most of which was converted into steel.
The agricultural development of the Maritime Provinces will probably be slow. The valuable timber resources of the region retard the expansion of farming and give an impetus to lumbering ; the development of the coalfields and the facilities for the importa tion of iron ore encourage the growth of manufactures ; the rich fishing grounds of the continental shelf call many of the inhabitants to the sea, and, along with the possession of the winter ports of the Dominion on the Atlantic, enable them to retain much of their old interest in maritime affairs. Halifax, on the east coast of Nova Scotia, is generally open throughout the year, and St. John, in New Brunswick, is always open. Both are connected by rail with Montreal.