'basin- ai>* area of 400,000 square miles, of \vhich 

 about 70,000 belong to the United States. The re- 

 maining 330,000 square miles constitute the pro- 

 vince of Canada. With the exception of about 50,000 

 square miles belonging to Lower Canada, and extend- 

 ing from the line of New York to Gaspe, the whole 

 of this territory lies on the north side of the St. 

 Lawrence and the great lakes. 



On either side of the valley of the lower St. 

 Lawrence is a range of mountainous country. These 

 ranges keep close to the shores for a considerable 

 distance up the river; but about 100 miles below 

 Quebec where the river is fifteen miles wide, the 

 southern range begins to leave the margin, and 

 opposite to Quebec is thirty miles distant. From this 

 point it runs in a more southwestern direction than 

 the river valley, and opposite Montreal is met with 

 about fifty miles to the southeast, where it enters 

 Vermont, and is there known as the Green Moun- 

 tain range, which forms the eastern limit of the 

 valley of Lake Champlain. In Canada, this range, 

 stretching from the parallel of 45 north latitude to 

 the Gulf, is known as the Notre-Dame Mountains, 

 but to its northeastern portion, the name of the 

 Shickshock Mountains is often given. 



The flank of the northern hills, known as the 

 Lauren tides, for : ms the north shore of the river and 

 gulf, until within twenty miles of Quebec. It then 

 recedes, and at the latter city is already about 

 twenty miles distant from the St. Lawrence. At 

 Montreal the base of the hills is thirty miles in the 

 rear, and to the westward of this it stretches along 

 the north side of the Ottawa River for about 100 

 miles, and then runs southward across both the 

 Ottawa and the St.. Law T rence, crossing the latter 

 river a little below Kingston, at the Thousand 



