30 COMMISSION OF CONSERVATION 



advantage of social attractions as a means of keeping people on the 

 land, and preventing deterioration, and goes to show the need for 

 blending the agricultural and manufacturing population to a greater 

 extent than hitherto in the interests of both classes of industry and 

 population. It also emphasizes the need for some measures being 

 taken to prevent the wholesale sub-division of productive land around 

 cities, where such land is lying idle nearest to the markets. 



Conditions in Western Provinces 



In the western provinces we do not find much satisfaction from 

 statistics, as the following particulars show: 



The scope for filling up the fertile regions of the western provinces 

 is indicated by the following low density of population per square 

 mile in 1911: Manitoba, 6.18; Saskatchewan, 1.95; Alberta, 1.47; 

 British Columbia, 1.09. 



The rural percentage fell in Manitoba from 72.4 in 1901 to 

 56 in 1911 and 44 (estimated) in 1914; in Saskatchewan from 80.7 

 in 1901 to 73.3 in 1911 and 73 (estimated) in 1914; in Alberta from 

 71.8 in 1901 to 62.1 in 1911 and 60 (estimated) in 1914; in British 

 Columbia from 49.5 in 1901 to 48.1 in 1911 and 44.6 (estimated) in 

 1914.* 



The land area of the three Prairie Provinces (Manitoba, Saskat- 

 chewan and Alberta) is said to comprise 371,658,698 acres. Of this 

 area about 187,504,678 acres have been surveyed and about 121,710,- 

 680 acres disposed of, including over 60,000,000 acres given in home- 

 steads and pre-emptions and about 38,000,000 of railway and Hudson's 

 Bay Company's lands. Of the land disposed of 16.9 per cent 

 being 27 acres in each quarter section, and comprising a total of 

 20,577,230 acres, are stated to be under crop in the three provinces. 

 It is estimated that there are still vacant and surveyed lands within 

 20 miles of the railways as follows:— Within 20 miles, 15,443,200; 

 within 15 miles, 12,705,440; within 10 miles, 8,914,240; within five 

 miles, 4,491,680. (Figure 2.) 



The total extent of land in Canada within about 15 miles of the 

 railways has been estimated to amount to the enormous area of 

 261,783,000 acres. 



The Canadian Pacific Railway Company obtained grants of 

 28,737,399 acres, of which 23,057,227 acres have been disposed of, 

 and 5,680,171 acres are still unsold. 



These figures are based on the census classification, and a number of rural 

 villages are excluded from the rural population, although the inhabitants of these 

 villages are engaged in rural pursuits. 



