THE PHYSIOGRAPHY OF LABRADOR 55 



The maps showing Mr. Low's traverses are published by 

 the Geological Survey Department at Ottawa, Canada; 

 they are the only reliable maps of any part of the interior. 



The distances along the coast-lines of the peninsula 

 are truly " magnificent." The air-line stretch from Battle 

 Harbour to Cape Chidley on the northeast coast is seven 

 hundred miles; following the sinuosities the shore-line is 

 doubtless three to four times as long. From Cape Chidley 

 to Cape Wolstenholme (the north coast) is about five hun- 

 dred miles as the crow would fly, if he could live up there. 

 From Cape Wolstenholme to the bottom of James Bay is 

 another eight hundred miles, while the south coast is ap- 

 proximately seven hundred miles, also in a straight line. 

 Thousands of miles of additional shore-line are represented 

 in the numerous inlets and in the literally thousands of 

 islands along the southern and northeastern coasts. The 

 relative accessibility of the coasts, coupled with the fact 

 that fisheries will long be the principal industry of the 

 country, makes it expedient to use more space in the de- 

 scription of these parts of the peninsula. Besides the 

 physiography described in the special chapter on the 

 northeast coast, I shall here add some notes derived from 

 my own exploration of the northern fiords. 



If one could and should accurately picture the fiords, it 

 would mean that half the interest of the visitors in these 

 northern waters would be lost. The romance of these 

 wonderful cleavages in the mountains largely consists 

 in the feeling one has that, when he turns a corner, no 

 man has told him what will next meet the eye. The study 

 of the fiords has only just begun ; all that I can do is to give 

 some indication as to general location, lengths, and con- 



