Advantage in Forestry Operations 



Wireless within the Dominion itself is undergoing a 

 continual expansion and branching out at the hands of 

 both provincial governments and business corporations. 

 A very fine service has been built up by the forestry service 

 of the province of British Columbia as part of their 

 precautions against forest fires and to keep rangers in 

 instant touch with each other and headquarters. A system 

 of stations is advocated for Northern Manitoba to put 

 this region into communication with Winnipeg. Several 

 pulp and paper companies have received licenses to operate 

 systems, and last year the Shawinigan Water and Power 

 Company at Shawinigan Falls, Quebec, received a license 

 to operate a station there to communicate with their head 

 office at Montreal, a distance of eighty-two miles. 



The innovation of the Canadian Pacific Ocean Ser- 

 vices in starting a Canadian news service by wireless to 

 their liners in the North Atlantic created intense interest 

 in Canadian, United States, and British shipping circles, 

 as bringing Canada into that select circle of nations which 

 gossip by wireless. Not only is the news of the Canadian 

 markets, Dominion progress, and general Canadian 

 happenings received by the Company's passenger liners 

 at sea, but wireless stations situated elsewhere pick up 

 the messages, and Canadian news vies in the importance 

 of its appeal with that of Great Britain and the United 

 States. 



A review of the wireless situation in Canada gives 

 gratifying evidence of the Dominion's progress with the 

 times, and of its recognition of the necessity of keeping 

 abreast in the extension of the uses of this great invention. 

 It is being successfuly used in connection with Dominion 

 fisheries and forests, and will undoubtedly in the future 

 be utilized to a greater extent in bringing the rich regions 

 of the hinterland into touch with the governmental and 

 industrial centres. 



Survey of Canadian Bank Clearings 



The prosperity of any country is more or less 

 reflected in the prosperity of its banking institu- 

 tions, and a review of the bank clearings over a 

 given period may, therefore, be accepted as 

 indicative of the commercial activity and pro- 

 gressive development in the areas served. While 

 it is doubtless true that the increased cost of all 

 classes of commodities is partly responsible for 

 the expansion of clearing house figures, it may, 

 nevertheless, be reasonably assumed that they 

 have expanded upon a sound basis and represent 

 in a large degree the intelligent application of the 

 capital that uncovers natural resources, erects 

 factories and establishes industries. 



Ten years' survey, 1910 to 1920, of the clear- 

 ing house figures of eight of Canada's principal 

 provincial cities Prince Edward Island main- 

 tains no clearing house shows percentages of 

 increase ranging all the way from 97 . 5% in 

 British Columbia to 353.8% in Saskatchewan, 

 and are as follows: 



In common with most other countries, the 

 influence of increasing prices and unemployment 



laid a strain upon financial structures. This has 

 been responsible, among other causes, for a 

 policy on the part of Canadian banks to restrict 

 loans, and not a little criticism has been levelled 

 at banking institutions on this account. On the 

 whole, however, it will be conceded that if the 

 machinery of trade and commerce is to be kept 

 going, and because of the vital importance of 

 that machinery, there is much to be said in favor 

 of the restrictive policy adopted by directorates 

 of banks in the matter of loans. It is apparent, 

 however, that Canadian banks have handled, 

 and are continuing to direct the financial affairs 

 of the country through a trying period without 

 serious disturbance. Under the administration 

 of the banks, and with the goodwill of their 

 supporters, Canada, it may well be claimed, is 

 emerging from the present financial crisis 

 successfully and with every promise of increasing 

 strength. 



So far as savings deposits are concerned, it is 

 gratifying to note that they continue to express 

 steady expansion. Statistics show an increase 

 from December, 1919, to December, 1920, of 

 approximately $155,000,000. A further and even 

 better proof is provided by the figures for the 

 month of January, which evidence an increase 

 of $20,000,000 over those of the month previous. 



The Imperial Bank of Canada 



Amongst Canadian chartered banks whose 

 activities command attention by reason of their 

 progressive and practical policies, is the Imperial 

 Bank of Canada. The success attending the 

 efforts of the directorate and executive of the 

 bank is attributed by them to the fact that with 

 the exception of the absorption of the Niagara 

 District Bank in 1875, the bank has refrained 

 from amalgamations, and devoted all attention 

 to "paddling its own canoe." 



Established in 1875, the bank had an author- 

 ized capital of $1,000,000 and a paid-up capital 

 of $805,000. During the first year of its existence, 

 it absorbed the Niagara District Bank; after one 

 year's operations the total assets of the combined 

 institutions amounted to approximately $3,000,- 

 000, with total deposits of $1,600,000, with head 

 office at Toronto, and branches at St. Catharines, 

 Ingersoll, Welland and Port Colborne, Ontario. 

 Its growth from that time is reflected by the 

 following periodical figures: 



1900 1910 1920 



Total Assets $20,000,000 $56,000,000 S130.000.0OO 



Deposits 14.000,000 42.000.OOO 98,000,000 



Capital Stock (paid-up) .. 2,500,000 5.000,000 7.000.000 



Rest Fund 1,700.000 5,000,000 7,500,000 



In 1920, the Imperial Bank had but thirty- 

 two branches. Ten years later, there were 101, 

 and by 1920, the number had increased to 216. 



The executive formulated a policy to direct 

 all energies of the institution towards keeping 

 the bank a strictly Canadian one, using its 

 resources to the best interest of Canada. They 



90 



