QUEEN CHARLOTTE ISLANDS. 3 B 



seven miles, this being the shortest traverse from any part of the 

 Queen Charlotte Islands to those adjacent to the mainland. 



The islands may be regarded as a partly submerged mountain rangOj General ehar- 

 being a continuation north-westward of that of Vancouver Island and islands. ''' 

 the high region of the Olympian Mountains of the north-western angle 

 of "Washington Territory. There is, however, a wide attachment of 

 low level land, forming the whole north-eastern part of Graham Island. 

 A line drawn from the southern extremity of the islands to their north- 

 western point has a bearing of N. 25° W.,* and this may be taken as 

 representing the direction of the mountain axis. The islands are 

 included in north latitude between 54° 15' and 51° 55', in west longi- 

 tude between 131° 2' and 133° 5'. The extreme length, from point to 

 point, is one hundred and fifty-six miles ;f the greatest width, in a 

 direction at right angles to the length, fifty-two miles. It is impossible 

 to form even an approximately correct estimate of the area of the 

 islands, owing to the uncertainty which still obtains as to the true 

 position in longitude of the west coast. The islands forming the main 

 chain, and representing the mountain axis are, from south to north, 

 Prevost, Moresby, Graham and North Islands. The first was named 

 after Captain (now Admiral) Prevost. North Island, so called by 

 Dixon in 1787, was named Isle cle Langara by Caamano. Prevost 

 Island has a length of eleven and a half miles ; though I believe that 

 the extremity of the land forming Cape St. James is separated from 

 Prevost Island proper by a narrow channel. Moresby Island is seventy- 

 two miles long, but the explorations now reported on have resulted, 

 by the tracing out of the channels on its east coast, in leaving it a 

 mere skeleton. Graham Island has a length of sixty-seven miles, with 

 the width above assigned as the maximum of the group. North Island 

 is about five miles in extreme length. The separation of the larger 

 islands may be said to be accidental, as it does not depend on any 

 fundamental structural feature, but on the casual inosculation of inlets 

 or fiords which characterize both the eastern and western coasts. 



From the southern extremity of the islands to Cumshewa Inlet, in Coast line, 

 latitude 53°, the east coast is dissected with inlets, which generally 

 have bold rocky shores, and either end blindly among the mountains 

 or inosculate laterally with others, cutting out large islands. The 

 inlets in their main directions conform to two principal bearings, 

 being either nearly parallel with or transverse to the direction of the 

 main mountain axis. They are generally deep, and northward 

 to the latitude of Laskeek the sea to the eastward is so also. Beyond 



* This and other bearings throughout the report are given with reference to the true meridian. 



t Distances in this and the succeeding descriptive portion of the report are stated in nautical 

 miles. 



