1913-14 DEPAETMENT OF LANDS, FOliESTS AND MINES. 65 



Appendix No. 24' 

 Survey of the Township of Orkney, District of Algoma. 



Sault Ste Marie, Ont., January 20th, 1914. 



Sir,-^— We have the honour to submit the following report on the survey of the 

 subdivision of the township of Orkney, in the District of Algoma, made by us 

 under instructions from your Department of July 2nd, 1913. 



We arrived at Franz on the Canadian Pacific Eailway on the morning of 

 July 13th, and proceeded northward on a construction train to Oba on the Algoma 

 Central Eailway. From this point we canoed down the Little Albany river to 

 the south-east angle of the township of Orkney and commenced work on July 18tli. 



We ran our concession lines and side lines in accordance with instructions in 

 the regular way. An error in chainage was made on 0. L. S. Speight's meridian, 

 and the lines between the second and third concession and the fourth and fifth 

 concession were cut for a distance of four (4) miles each, from points fifty (50) 

 links too far south. We ran these lines over again in their correct positions, 

 which we now feel was a mistake. However, as these lines exist in the field 

 we show them on our notes. 



Physical Features. ^ 



The entire area which we covered was gently undulating country, heavily 

 wooded with poplar, balm of gilead, spruce and white birch. There are no out- 

 crops of rock of any moment to our knowledge in the township. We only 

 encountered three small lakes in cutting.our lines and did not discover any within 

 the limits of the lots, aside from these. 



Soil. 



Practically the entire area within the township of Orkney is good agri- 

 cultural land. In the lower areas, strong clay loam is covered by humus to a 

 depth varying from three to twelve inches. Fully half the township, however, is 

 clay loam without any appreciable covering of decayed vegetation and could be 

 farmed at the present moment without drainage. 



Timber. 



The prevailing tree is certainly the poplar, which grows to a great height 

 on all ridges and dry land. In the muskegs there is a considerable quantity of 

 spruce* which is for the most part small in size. Besides these two trees there 

 is a considerable growth of birch, balsam, balm of gilead. There is no brule and 

 our timber plan is uncoloured. 



Waters. 



The Missanabie river runs through the length of the township and is joined 

 by a tributary of considerable size, the Mattawitchewan in concession 5. The 

 flow of the Missanabie river at low water period, we would judge to be about 

 five hundred cubic feet per second. There are, however, no falls within the 

 township and no rapids of sufficient drop to warrant water power development. 

 There are only three small lakes, all of which are shallow with marshy shores. 



