Forests.— The province of Quebec abounds in forest lands, which extend to nearly 100, 000 square miles, and the numberless rivers and their branches make the handling of lumber ex tremely easy. The territory on the north side of the Saint Lawrence River is covered with forests which are to all practical purposes value less owing to the abundance of small growth. Along the river Manicouagan and the Gulf and river Saint Lawrence, the timber is not only of good quality but grows in great quantity, including even scattering pine of value. Ex tending westward from the Manicouagan to the eastern watershed of the Gatineau, pine of the best quality is found and lumbering has been successfully carried on for a number of years. In the district from which the Saguenay and its branches draw their waters is a vast quantity of pine, spruce, larch and other woods. In the district drained by the Saint Maurice and its tributaries pine and spruce are most abundant.
In the Lower Ottawa region, including the vacant and waste lands of the Crown on the northern tributaries of the Lower Ottawa and embracing the valleys of the rivers Assumption, Dunord, Petite Nation, the Blanche and du Lievre, in all 11,256 square miles, are to be found poplar, white and red pine, spruce, tama rack and birch. In the Upper Ottawa territory is a great pine-growing district, but, while it is more valuable than the forests of the southern part of the province, it has not been worked to the same extent as that part, where the marvel ous growth of brown birch, cedar, walnut, maple and pine has been a valuable source of income. Scattered throughout the province are to be found elm, beech, ash and cherry trees. About 175,000 square miles have been set apart as forest reserves. It is estimated that the forests of the province still contain 50,000;000, 000 feet of standing pine. The value of the lum ber cut was (1916) $13,722,883, and of pulpwood production $6,840,489. Since 1911 the exporta tion of unmannfactured timber has been for bidden and the result has been the creation of a valuable pulp-wood industry.
There is no coal in the province. The Laurentian formation, in the central por tion of the province, holds thick beds of lime stone and iron ore,— titanic and magnetic, phos phate, plombagine, mica and large deposits of graphite. Farther west the Laurentian forma tion is succeeded by the Potsdam sandstone. On this rests a dolmitic limestone and the lime stone of the Lower Silurian Age, known as the Chazy and Trenton groups, are affording the best building stone of the province. There are
many other minerals in the province of Que bec; but a few of them only are worked, namely, asbestos, ochre, chrome, copper, lead, silver and gold. There were 8,263 workers employed in the mining industry in 1916, the value of pro duction for that year being $13,070,566, an in crease of 14 per cent over the preceding year. Of the total the products of the mines are valued at $7,982,430, and building materials at $5,088, 136; the former show an increase of 52.8 per cent; and the latter a decrease of 18.5 per cent. The values of the principal products were: as bestos, $5,182,205; cement, $2,525,841. copper and sulphur ore, $1,273,724 brick,j742,163; VW magnesite, $525,966; chromite, , 0. The Quyon mine, opened April 1916, and from which shipments were in that year made of the value of $129,267, is probably the largest producer of molybdenite in America.
Climate.— The cold in Quebec in winter is generally steady; the thermometer often regis ters 20° below zero and the snow falling to a great depth lies on the ground from November until April. The extreme heat of summer, which is generally warm and pleasant, is in dicated at 90°. But it is only exceptional that it runs up to that figure. Autumn, which lasts six or eight weeks, is the finest season of the year.
Agriculture.— Vegetation develops rapidly; there is a rich and loamy soil in much of the country. In the large valleys of the Saint Law rence, of the Ottawa River, of the Matapedia, of the Richelieu, in the whole region of Lake Saint John, and in the eastern townships of the province, fanning is the chief industry. The principal crops are wheat, barley, oats, rye, peas, buckwheat, potatoes clover, hay and corn. The lands lying in the vicinity of the State of Ver mont are given to stock raising to a greater extent than to farming, and dairying has be come an important branch of the trade of that district. In 1916 there were 660 butter fac tories, ::5 cheese factories and 445 combined cheese and butter factories, the products having a total value of $22,761,252. In the stock raising districts horse and cattle breeding has assumed the most important ptisition, while sheep and swine are also raised to a great ex tent. Quebec had (1917) 379,276 horses, 91, 102 mulch cows, 958,010 other cattle, 849,148 sheep and 712,0877 swine. The total area under field crops in 1916 was 4,590,200 acres and the value $102,937,300 The following are some of the details: The field crops in 1916 totaled $102,937,300 in value and were as follows: Total yield,