418 Our North Land. 



District, told me that just as much meat is eaten by the Indians 

 when they receive flour and potatoes as without them. 



"At the Forks of the Athabaska, Mr. Moberly, the gentleman in 

 charge, has a first-class garden, and wheat and barley of excellent 

 quality. He has cut an immense quantity of hay, as the Hudson's 

 Bay Company winter all the oxen and horses used on Methy Port- 

 age at this point. He told me that in a year or two the Company 

 purposed supplying the whole interior from this locality with food, 

 as the deer were getting scarce and the supplies rather precarious. 

 This is the identical spot where Mr. Pond had a garden filled with 

 European vegetables when Sir Alexander Mackenzie visited it in 

 1787. It will be seen that about the 20th of April ploughing can 

 commence on Peace River, and from data in my possession the same 

 may be said of the Saskatchewan regions generally. It is a curious 

 fact that spring seems to advance from north-west to south-east at 

 a rate of about two hundred and fifty miles per day ; and that in the 

 fall winter begins in Manitoba first, and goes westward at the same 

 rate. The following data selected from various sources will throw 

 considerable light on the question of temperature. It is worthy of 

 note that Halifax, on the sea coast, is nearly as cold in spring and 

 summer as points more than twelve degrees further north. 



" Spring, summer and autumn temperatures at various points — to 

 which is added the mean temperature of July and August, the two 

 ripening months — are given as follow :■ — 



Latitude Summer. Spring. Autumn. July and 



north. August. 



Cumberland House 53.37 62.62 33.04 32.70 64.25 



Fort Simpson 61.51 59.48 26.66 27.34 62.31 



Fort Chippewayan 58.42 58.70 22.76 31.89 60.60 



Fort William 48.24 59.94 39.67 37.80 60.52 



Montreal 45.31 67.26 39.03 45.18 68.47 



Toronto 43.40 64.43 42.34 46.81 66.51 



Temiscamingue 47.19 65.23 37.58 40.07 66.43 



Halifax 44.39 61.00 31.67 46.67 66.55 



Belleville 44.10 temperature nearly that of Toronto. 



Dungevan, Peace River 56.08 average summer six months 54.44 



Edmonton 53.31 39.70 



Carleton 52.52 35.70 



■ Winnipeg 49.52 64.76 30.13 35.29 65.32 



