300 THE CANADIAN NATURALIST. [Vol. viH. 



represents the sole supplies of that mineral on the Pacific coast 

 of North America. British Columbia might supply the whole 

 Pacific coast and a vast interior region, and might produce many 

 millions of tons annually. 



Iron, silver and ccpper are known to exist in productive quan- 

 tities, and there is reason to believe that mercury, lead, and 

 platinum might be added. 



In short, British Columbia posssesses all that mineral wealth 

 which has enriched California and the States adjoining it ; and 

 the opening up of communication between it and other parts of 

 the Dominion would be the beginning of a series of events that 

 ivould build up great and wealthy cities and populous seats of 

 industry in a region now scarcely inhabited, and cut off from 

 direct intercourse with the other provinces politically connected 

 with it. 



What the Intercolonial has begun to do for our relations with 

 the Atlantic provinces, the Canada Pacific must do for our rela- 

 tions with the Pacific province ; and if I could present before 

 you in a prophetic picture all that would follow from the estab- 

 lishment of such a connection, and the trade of the great sea and 

 lands beyond, which might flow through our country, you as 

 citizens of a commercial city, as well as in the capacity of votaries 

 of science and scientific art, would at once say that at almost 

 any sacrifice this great work should be executed. The difficul- 

 ties in the way are undoubtedly great — so great that this gene- 

 ration of Canadians should scarcely be called upon to overcome 

 them unaided, but they are probably not insurmountable, and 

 the mode of meeting them is certainly at present the greatest 

 public problem that our statesmen have to solve. It is further 

 undoubtedly the duty of those whose scientific studies show them 

 the grandeur of this great question and the nature of the prac- 

 tical results of its aolution, to aid in every way that they can 

 the progress towards an unobstructed highway ^hrough our terri- 

 tory from the Atlantic to the Pacific. 



If it is in our power thus to bring together the resources of 

 the whole breadth of the Continent, we may hope to consolidate 

 our connection with the Mother Country by making ourselves 

 indispensable to her interests, to relieve ourselves from the galling 

 commercial yoke laid upon us by our neighbors, to provide 

 homes and work for the surplus population of our older provinces, 

 to build up the wealth of great trading centres, and to render 



