APPENDIX A XLl 



The field work included a study of the glacial deposits and of 

 the marine terraces of the lower parts of the peninsula and gave 

 opportunities for observing the effects of the physical features of the 

 region on the lives of the inhabitants. This address is mainly founded 

 on the observations made during the months spent in geological work. 



Physical Features of Gaspé 



The south shore of the lower St. Lawrence presents a surprisingly 

 smooth and unbroken curve, ending toward the southeast in the sharp 

 spine of the Forillon. There is nothing like it elsewhere on the coasts 

 of Canada; and it is peculiar in another way, this northward bending 

 back of Gaspé has not a single harbor. No ship larger than a schooner 

 or a tug boat can find shelter on the 200 miles of storm-beaten and 

 pitiless shore; and even they can only squeeze into some river mouth 

 at high tide. This is a very serious lack on so wild a coast, and the 

 want of commodious harbors on the north side of the peninsula has 

 greatly influenced the lives of the inhabitants. 



The south side of Gaspé is as ragged in outline as the north is 

 smooth and has no lack of harbours, including the famous Gaspé 

 basin where a fleet of large ships can find perfect shelter. 



There are, of course, geological reasons for this strong contrast 

 between the two sides of the peninsula. The graceful bow on the 

 north corresponds to the sweep of the Shickshock mountains, which 

 form the last swing of the sigmoid curve of the great Appalachian 

 chain. The south shore of the St. Lawrence below Quebec conforms 

 to the intimate structure of the mountain system, and in Gaspé the 

 range of highest mountains keeps close to the shore, sometimes 

 reaching the sea as grand cliffs. All the rock structures, even of the 

 lowlands, on the north coast of Gaspé are bent into the same tense 

 bow, and hence there are no broad bays or inlets to form harbours. 



On the north side of the steep mountain range plains are few and 

 narrow and often have a niggardly soil of sand or gravel; while on the 

 south they are broad, and frequently the soft rocks have weathered 

 into a rich and deep soil, giving fine farmlands. This lack of sym- 

 metry of the peninsula has profoundly influenced the lives and habits 

 of the people on its opposite sides. 



To these physiographic features must be added the factor of 

 climate. The north side of the mountains is chilled and depressed 

 with fog or rain whenever the wind blows across the St. Lawrence or 

 the gulf; while the broad southern lands are sheltered from these in- 



