September i6, 1909] 



NATURE 



343 



■services which the engineer has already rendered to the 

 Dominion and will render in the immediate future. 



Railways, 



It has well been said that the great problem of to-day 

 in Canada is that of providing ample and cheap transport 

 •for her agricultural, mineral, and forest products from the 

 interior to the sea, and so to the markets of the world. 

 Important as inland navigation may be as an aid to this 

 ■enterprise, it cannot possibly compare with railway develop- 

 ment in actual and potential results. Apart from that 

 ■development the one united Dominion must have remained 

 a dream ; thanks to the rapid and efficient intercommunica- 

 tion furnished by railways, widely scattered provinces are 

 knit together in friendly and helpful union, literally by 

 " bonds of steel " which stretch from the Atlantic to the 

 Pacific, and reach farther and farther north each year. 

 Regions which would otherwise have remained inaccessible 

 .and unproductive have been turned into new provinces, the 

 fertility and future development of which it is not easy to 

 forecast, and practically impossible to exaggerate. 



In this department successive administrations (both 

 Federal and provincial) have realised the facts and possi- 

 Jbilities of the position, and have given substantial assist- 

 ance to private enterprise in the execution of great 

 ■engineering works. Progress in railway development has 

 been remarkable since Federation was accomplished forty- 

 two years ago. During the preceding thirty years the 

 total railway mileage in operation had been raised to 2278 

 miles; in 1S87 it was 12,184 miles; in 1897, 16,550 miles; 

 in 1907, 22,452 miles. The number of miles of railway 

 actually under construction in 1907 was officially estimated 

 .at 3000, exclusive of lines projected but not yet under con- 

 tract. In 1906, when the lines in operation were 21,353 

 miles, it was estimated by competent authorities that 

 the railways under construction, and projects for extensions 

 likely to be carried into effect in the immediate future, 

 reached a total of at least 10,000 miles, while probable 

 further extensions of about 3500 miles were under con- 

 sideration. Further, it was estimated that the capital ex- 

 penditure required to complete these schemes would be 

 about 60 millions sterling. These figures may need amend- 

 ment, but there are others representing ascertained facts 

 •which equally well illustrate the magnitude of the railway 

 interests of the Dominion.' The total capital invested in 

 ■Canadian railways in 1907 was officially reported to be 

 about 234,390,000/. ; the aid given to railways up to that 

 <iate by X)ominion and Provincial Governments, and by 

 municipalities, considerably exceeded 36,000,000!. sterling 

 in money ; the land grants from the Dominion Govern- 

 ment approached 32 million acres, while the Provincial 

 ■Governments of Quebec, British Columbia, New Bruns- 

 -wick, and Nova Scotia had granted about 20J million acres. 

 The Governments have also guaranteed the bonds of rail- 

 way companies to the extent of many millions of dollars. 

 The capitalisation per mile of railway lines owned bv the 

 Governments (amounting to 1890 miles) is reported as being 

 11,400/. ; this is practically the same amount as that for 

 Indian railways, that for the United States being 13,600/., 

 and for New South Wales and Victoria about 12,600/. 

 For British railways the figure given is 54,700/. per mile. 

 The freight carried by Canadian railways in 1907 amounted 

 ■to nearly 63,900,000 tons (of 2000 lb.), which included 

 ■about 14,000,000 tons of coal and coke, nearly 4,500,000 

 tons of ores and minerals, 10,250,000 tons of lumber and 

 other forest products, nearly 7,900,000 tons of manufac- 

 tures, and 2,309,000 tons of merchandise. In 1875, when 

 4800 miles of railway were in operation, the corresponding 

 freight-tonnage was 5,670,000 tons ; so that while the 

 length of railway increased nearly 4.7 times, the tonnage 

 Increased nearly 11.3 times. During the same period 

 passengers increased from 5,190,000 to 32,137,000. For 

 twenty-eight railways making returns the average revenue 

 per passenger per mile was 2. 232 cents, and for the four 

 principal railways was 2.07 cents. For freight fifty-nine 

 railways showed an average rate of 2-328 cents per ton- 

 mile, and for the five principal railways it was 0702 cent 

 per ton-mile. The average distance travelled by a 



1 Mo^e of these statistics are taken from the valuab!" Report for 1907. 

 -presented to the Minister of Railways and Canals by Mr. Butler, Deputy 

 Minister and Chief Engineer of the Department. 



NO. 2081, VOL. 81] 



passenger was 64 miles, the corresponding figure for the 

 United States being 30-3 miles. The average distance a 

 ton of freight was hauled was 183 iniles, as against 132 

 miles for the United States. In Canada, as the official 

 reporter remarks, there is a small amount of suburban 

 railway traffic and a low density of population. The 

 following table is taken from the official Canadian Railway 

 Statistics for 1907 : — 



For each mile of Railway 



^ , . 



Square miles 

 of Territory 

 13-61 

 5-29 

 8-46 

 14609 

 43 '42 

 25 89 

 61 09 

 161 -8 



Canada has therefore the highest mileage measured against 

 population, and the lowest against territory. 



The earliest great railway system of Canada, the Grand 

 Trunk, had its beginnings in 1845 ; in 1907 it was work- 

 ing about 3600 miles within the Dominion. In association 

 with the Government it is now engaged on the construc- 

 tion of the Grand Trunk Pacific Line, which will cross 

 the Continent wholly in Canadian territory, and have a 

 length of 3600 miles, exclusive of branches. 



The story of the Canadian Pacific Railway is well 

 known, and need not be repeated ; the influence which its 

 existence and working have had upon the prosperity of the 

 Dominion has been enormous and beneficial since its open- 

 ing in 1S85, and experience of its effect has led to the 

 promotion of other Trans-Continental lines. In June, 1907, 

 the total length in operation was 'nearly 9000 miles, and 

 the company owned in addition great lines of steamships 

 employed on Atlantic and Pacific services. 



The Canadian Northern Railway system represents one 

 of the most striking examples of recent railway develop- 

 ment in the Dominion. In 1907 it was working nearly 

 2600 miles in the North-Western provinces, about 150 

 miles in Ontario, 500 miles in the Province of Quebec, and 

 430 miles in Nova Scotia and Cape Breton, making a total 

 of nearly 3700 miles. In 190S its mileage on the main 

 system was reported to have increased to nearly 3400 miles, 

 and the total length in operation had become 4800 miles. 

 The North-Western Provinces have given substantial assist- 

 ance to this great system, and its promoters are said to 

 aim at a complete Trans-Continental route, as well as the 

 development of railway communication to Hudson's Bay 

 and the establishment of a line of steamships therefrom 

 to Great Britain. 



Besides these three great railway organisations, which 

 in 1907 controlled about 75 per cent, of the mileage in 

 operation, there are a large number of smaller companies, 

 making up a total of about 80. Their total earnings in 

 1907 amounted to 20,350,000/., the total working expenses 

 being 20,750.000/. Earnings from freight service were (in 

 round figures) 19,000,000/. ; from passenger service, 

 7,837,000/. ; from express services, 655,000/. ; from mails, 

 325,000/., the balance coming from miscellaneous items. 

 The total number of persons employed by the railways was 

 124,000; their salaries and wages amounted to 11,750,000/. 

 It was officially estimated that if to the railway employees 

 were added persons employed in factories for rolling stock 

 and railway materials, as well as those engaged in the 

 casual service and shipping, with an allowance for their 

 families, " quite 25 per cent, of the population win their 

 dailv bread from the carrying trade " of the Dominion. 



The equipment of the Canadian railways in 1907 included 

 3504 locomotives, 3642 passenger cars, and 113,514 freight 

 cars. In the opinion of the official reporter on railway 

 i statistics, based chiefiy on a comparison of the proportion 

 of rolling stock to mileage in Canada and the United 

 ■ States, a considerable increase of rolling stock is required, 

 and there is a possibility of greater efficiency being obtained 

 in the utilisation of existing freight cars. The manufac- 

 turing resources of the Dominion are declared to be fullv 

 I capable of meeting all requirements, as in 1907 they pro- 

 duced 227 locomotives, 397 passenger cars, and 13,350 



