674 



QUEBEC. 



Q 



QUEBEC, a province of the Dominion of Can- 

 ada. Area, 188,000 square miles ; population in 

 1881, 1,359,027. 



The People. The inhabitants are chiefly 

 French Roman Catholics, though many English 

 and Scotch Protestants occupy the counties east 

 of the St. Lawrence along the United States 

 border. These are termed " The Eastern Town- 

 ships," and are much in advance of the dis- 

 tricts farmed by the French. Many of the 

 French inhabitants are descendants of Scottish 

 soldiers, who, seeking service in the armies of 

 France before and during the reigns of William 

 III and Anne in England, were disbanded and 

 settled in the province. Such names as De 

 Ramsay, De Murray, D'Alexandre, and De Na- 

 pier, are still common among the French of 

 these districts. The prevailing language is 

 French, though in Quebec and in Montreal 

 both tongues are familiar to the people. 



The original tenures, or large farms, which, 

 as a rule, were located along the rivers, have 

 been divided and subdivided for generations, 

 each subdivision still retaining a frontage on 

 the river or highway, until now it is not uncom- 

 mon to see a farm only a few rods wide and 

 over a mile long. As the French Canadian 

 builds his cottage in the most picturesque spot 

 along the river-bank, the scene presented is in 

 many instances very animating, closely resem- 

 bling one long, straggling village. In some of 

 the more remote localities the parish priest is 

 still the shepherd of the flock in more than 

 spiritual matters. He directs their voting at 

 elections, controls their conduct at fairs and on 

 market-days, and even has the grain garnered 

 in his barns. Tithes, in Quebec Province, or 

 any rates levied by the authority of the Roman 

 Catholic Church "on the property of Roman 

 Catholics, no matter whether leased by a Prot- 

 estant or not, are collectable by law. 



Soil and Climate. On the whole, the soil of 

 Quebec is not good. The Eastern Townships, 

 and some districts north of the St. Lawrence 

 and along the Ottawa, are good, especially for 

 grazing ; but as a grain-growing province it is 

 not a success, compared with Ontario. 



The cold currents from the Arctic regions, 

 entering the Gulf of St. Lawrence through the 

 strait of Belle Isle, preserve a continuous fri- 

 gid temperature along the northern shore of 

 the gulf. This influences the climate of the 

 surrounding country to a considerable extent. 

 A scheme is proposed to bridge or embank 

 the strait of Belle Isle from Newfoundland to 

 the mainland, and thus force the cold currents 

 along the east coast of that island. By this 

 plan, it is also claimed, winter navigation of 

 the St. Lawrence gulf and river, as far as Que- 

 bec, would be rendered comparatively easy. 

 At Quebec, in latitude 46 49', longitude 71 

 16', the mean annual temperature rarely exceeds 



38. It is not alone the general temperature 

 that renders the northern and northeastern 

 portions of the province comparatively worth- 

 less, but also the certainty of early and late 

 frosts destroying the crops. The maximum 

 summer heat is as great as Toronto's. The 

 means for June, July, August, and September, 

 respectively, are 58, 68, 61, 55. 



Cities and Ports. The important cities and 

 towns of Quebec, with their population in round 

 numbers, are: Montreal, 140,000 ; Quebec, 62,- 

 000 ; Three Rivers, 9,000 ; Levis, 8,000 ; Sher- 

 brooke, 8,000 ; Hnll, 8,000 ; St. Henri, 6,000 ; 

 St. Jean Baptiste, 6,000 ; Sore], 6,000 ; St. Hya- 

 cinthe, 5,000. 



The ports are Quebec, Montreal, Three Riv- 

 ers, Sorel, and Rimouski, all on the St. Law- 

 rence, and accessible for ocean-vessels of all 

 sizes. Gasp and New Carlisle are on the 

 shores of the St. Lawrence and Chaleur gulfs. 

 The great bulk of the trade of the province is 

 carried on from Montreal and Quebec. 



Industries. In Quebec, as in Ontario, the chief 

 industry is farming. Unlike Ontario, the graz- 

 ing products in Quebec are in excess of the 

 agricultural ; the exports of animals and their 

 produce in 1882 being $10,694,531, and of agri- 

 cultural products only $9,551,745. Of the for- 

 mer, $8,875,318 were shipped to Great Brit- 

 ain, and $1,723,602 to the United States ; and 

 of the latter, $6,445,440 went to British ports, 

 and $2,021,847 to American. Peas, wheat, 

 flour, oats, hay, rye, and potatoes are the chief 

 agricultural products. 



The products of the forest rank next in im- 

 portance, the exports amounting to $9,280,238. 

 Of this, $7,184,236 went to Great Britain, and 

 $1,409,824 to the United States. 



The exported manufactures amounted only 

 to $1,247,147. These were chiefly leather, 

 woolens, wooden-ware, ships, and soap. To 

 Great Britain were sent $705,330 ; to the 

 United States, $369,306; and to Newfound- 

 land, $108,008. 



The export value of the fisheries of Quebec 

 was $773,785 ; but there is a large home con- 

 sumption of Quebec fish. Indeed, very many 

 residents along the lower part of the river and 

 the gulf earn their livelihood in this manner, 

 depending almost entirely on fish for food. 



Mining is in its infancy in Quebec. The ex- 

 ports were valued at $519,200, chiefly gold- 

 bearing quartz, copper-ore, and phosphates. 



Education. The educational department of 

 Quebec ispresided over by a superintendent, who 

 is the executive officer of a Council of Public 

 Instruction. This council is appointed by the 

 Lieutenant-Governor, and iscomposed of sixteen 

 Roman Catholics and eight Protestants. In all 

 matters specially affecting their own schools, 

 the Roman Catholic and Protestant commis- 

 sioners act independently. Each municipality 



