1909-10 DEPARTMENT OF LANDS, FORESTS AND MINES. vii 



Ninety Certificates were surrendered to the Grown for $50.00 each, making a 

 total of 3,301 disposed of in this way. ' 



Six hundred and fifty Certificates have been applied in pa3m(ient for Crown 

 C^nds. 



This, therefore, shows that 11,446 certificates have been redeemed, leaving 

 2,547 still outstanding. 



When certificates were issued and assigned, assignees became liable to the 

 performance of settlement duties, and this ccndition also applies where there was 

 more than one military location to the mile in townships not specially opened for 

 veteran locations. 



Four hundred and thirty-four notices issued to military settlers and assignees 

 of veterans calling upon them to show that they were in actual occupation and the 

 nature of the duties they had performed upon the land, resulted in the cancellation 

 of 261 location? for non-performance of conditions. 



Patents were issued during the year for 1,238 locations, making a total of 

 3,889 patents issued to date. 



The Mining Industry. 



The mining industry of the Province continues to expand. The two metals 

 which lead in point of production are silver and nickel. The output of silver from 

 the mines of Cobalt for the year ending 31st October, 1910, was nearly 27 million 

 ounces. The total production of these mines since their opening in 1904 will, by 

 31st December, 1910, have amounted to 92 or 93 million ounces, having a value 

 01 say 50 millions of dollars. The ores of Cobalt are yet far from being exhausted, 

 and may be expected to yield liberally for years to come. 



The nickel mines of the Sudbury region have also been increasing their produc- 

 tion, the quantity of nickel produced during the 12 months ending 31st October 

 being about 19,000 tons, valued in the matte at $3,860,000, in addition to about 

 9,400 tons of copper. The operating companies have improved their facilities for 

 mining and smelting, and much the larger proportion of the world's supply of 

 nickel now comes, and for several years past has come, from the mines of Ontario. 



The discoveries of gold at Porcupine, noted in last year's Report, have under- 

 gone vigorous development during the year, and the results so far have encouraged 

 the hope that the field may prove a valuable one. Shafts at various points have 

 been sunk, and largf. stamp-mills for the treatment of the quartz are to be erected 

 on the Hollinger and Dome properties. Doubtless other prospects will be simi- 

 larly equipped should the indications of richness and permanency at depth be 

 favorable. A branch of the Temiskaming & Northern Ontario Railway is to be 

 constructed into Porcupine, and will afford the new field first-class facilities for 

 getting in machinery and supplies. 



It is a fortunate circumstance that the mineral regions of Ontario are well 

 supplied v/ith water-powers. So far as fuel is concerned, the evolution of a mining 

 ;camp in Ontario is marked iby three stages: first, that in which wood is used; 

 second, coal; third, water-power. At the beginning of operations wood is usually 

 abundant, but the available supply soon becomes exfhausted, and the expense of 

 bringing it from a distance makes the cost too great. Coal is then brought in by 

 rail, but freights from Pennsylvania make it dear. The next step, should the ap- 

 parent life of the camp warrant it, is to harness one or more of the numerous 

 water-powers generally found in the vicinity, and ere long the mines and works are 

 equipped with electrical power, at a cost of one-half or even one-third that of power 



