PREFACE. 



'HERE is no portion of the Dominion of which so little is generally 

 ^ known as " Our North Land," a term which I have applied to that 

 vast expanse of territory stretching from the Atlantic to the 

 «^* J Pacific, and from the fiftieth parallel to the Arctic Circle ; and 

 yet I. venture to say that there is no other part of the continent which 

 presents a greater variety of interesting features — features interesting 

 to the student of natural history ; to the lover of travel, romance, and 

 adventure ; to the man of business, on the look out for opportunities of 

 profitable trade and commerce ; to the miner and prospector ; to the 

 promoters of railway and steamboat lines ; to the student of meteorology ; 

 and especially to the young, who should improve every opportunity of 

 extending their knowledge of the physical geography of their own country. 

 The following pages are founded chiefly upon the experiences of the 

 Canadian Government Expedition to Hudson's Bay and Strait ; Mr. 

 Klotz's overland Expedition to Hudson's Bay ; Dr. Bell's Hudson's Bay 

 Explorations ; the Travels and Explorations in the North-West of Dr. 

 Selwyn, Mr. Marcus Smith and many others, and the Travels and 

 Experiences of the Author. 



I have endeavoured, from the information thus obtained, to give an 

 account of the vast resources of the region in question, to describe the 

 industries now in active operation, and to point out the possibilities of 

 their future development. The export from the products of the oil-bearin^ 

 animals of the waters of Hudson's Bay alone amounts, at the present 

 time, to over $150,000 annually, and may be increased to five times that 

 amount ; in many districts the fur trade is yet in its infancy ; and the cod, 

 salmon, and trout fisheries offer large and sure returns to almost any extent 

 that capital and labour can be found to develop them. 



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