94 REPORT OF THE , No. 3 



Appendix No. 27. 



Algonquin Park, November 1st, 1918. 



Honourable Sir, — I beg to hand you my report for the fiscal year ending 

 October 31st, 1918, under much happier conditions than my last report owing 

 to the fact that the war that for years has been sapping the best life of the 

 Empire is fast drawing to a victorious close. 



We have had the usual staff of rangers, and they have been employed in 

 various ways during the past year. 



In November last you decided to have them take out a number of deer from 

 the sections convenient to the railways, to be shipped to Toronto and other points 

 to help out the meat supply. This was done, and several of our best men given the 

 task of shooting and bringing to the railway the deer from different points. This 

 represented a good deal of hard work, but our rangers did it creditably and some 

 650 deer were taken and shipped to Toronto and Hamilton. The net weight of 

 the venison was 59,082 lbs., which sold for $5,090.34. The deer were taken 

 mostly from near headquarters, Joe Lake and Brule Lake sections, a few coming 

 from the Canadian Northern in the northern section of the Park. The venison 

 found a ready market and was, I believe, much appreciated both in Hamilton 

 and Toronto. It was also decided to take out a quantity of fur. This was done 

 mostly by the same men who took out the deer and a fine lot was sold, bringing 

 $9,008.25. This was disposed of at public sale at the Parliament Buildings, 

 Toronto, as usual, and was made up of beaver, otter, mink, marten, fisher and 

 muskrat. As far as possible, the meat of the beaver, which by the way is excellent 

 food, was saved and shipped to Toronto where it was in demand and brought a 

 good price. Of this, 2,404 lbs. were shipped, the price received for which was 

 $240.40. 



In the spring it was decided to take out a quantity of mullet from the 

 lakes near headquarters, where they had become very numerous, much to the 

 detriment of the better fish, and five tons were taken out and shipped, bringing 

 $129.20. I would recommend taking out a like quantity next spring from here 

 and Joe Lake. The trout and bass are caught each year and the mullet left, with 

 the result that they very much predominate and as they are spawn eaters they 

 are under existing conditions a detriment. 



It was also determined to take out a large quantity of hardwood in view of the 

 fuel shortage, and in compliance with your instructions, camps were built, a 

 drag-sawing machine and engine bought, and as many of the rangers as could 

 be spared were allotted to this work. The wood was cut on one of the hardwood 

 ridges west of Cranberry Lake and everything was cut, the brush and debris being 

 well piled with a view to burning in the spring, when the whole will be cleaned 

 up and seeded to hay for use of headquarters, etc. Several hundred cords of 

 wood were cut by the rangers, when owing to the scarcity of men on the Grand 

 Trunk Railway it was found necessary to detail our rangers to build the sidings 

 required at several points in the Park for loading wood. This, of course, put a 

 stop to the wood cutting. Three sidings were built, one at headquarters, one at 

 Source Lake and one at Potter Lake, at both of which latter points the Government 

 had given large contracts for taking out wood. By the time these sidings were com- 

 pleted, it was necessary for our men to return to their respective sections as the 

 trappers had become Wsy, knowing the rangers were off their beats, and men 



