22 c 



GEOLOQICAL SURVEY OP CANADA. 



Breeding cattle 

 at Churchill. 



Pasture. 

 Butter. 



Coast N. W. of 

 the Churchill. 



Button's Bay. 



Flat bouldery 

 shores. 



Illustration. 



Derivation ot 

 the boulders. 



Cream-colour- 

 ed dolomite. 



Latitude of 

 (new) Fort 

 Churchill. 



Hay can be cut in abundance in the neighbourhood of Fort Churchill, 

 and cattle thrive well, yet the same ignorance or obstinacy as 

 that above referred to, formerly prevented any attempt being made to 

 breed stock on the spot, so that every fresh animal required had to be 

 brought from some other post. Now, the small herd which is kept at 

 the place is recruited by raising the animals calved at the fort itself. 

 The open grassy land near the sea is practically of unlimited extent. 

 Much of it is dry and undulating, affording abundance of pasture for 

 the cattle. The butter made by Mrs. Spencer could hardly be excelled 

 for quality and fineness of flavor in any country. 



Although I did not succeed in exploring much of the shore of Hud- 

 son's Bay to the north-west of the Churchill, enough was seen to give 

 one a good idea of the nature of the coast. The east shore of Button's 

 Bay, which begins at the point on the west side of the mouth of the 

 river, runs south-westward for nearly ten miles. Fort Churchill is 

 situated on the west side of the lagoon, about five miles from the mouth 

 of the river. From the fort, the distance westward across tne penin- 

 sula to Button's B&y I found to be only a little more than two miles. 

 Around the bottom of this bay, and westward, the shore is extremely 

 low. When the tide is out, wide bouldery flats are laid bare. These 

 descend so gradually to the sea level that it is difficult to effect a land- 

 ing, even from a small boat. Looking over these flats, the sky and the 

 even outline of the boulders seem to meet in the distance, and their 

 appearance suggests " a sea of boulders " as an appropriate name for 

 them. Even within the lagoon of the Churchill, when the tide is out, 

 the bouldery flats on either side form a conspicuous feature. Those on 

 the west are represented in the accompanying illustration, taken from 

 a photograph, looking southward at Port Churchill. The boulders, 

 which are of all sizes and generally well rounded, comprise a consider- 

 able variety of rocks, the prevailing ones being those of the unaltered 

 group of the east coast of Hudson's Bay in the neighbourhood of Mani- 

 tounuck and Nastopoka Sounds, which, as already stated, resembles the 

 Nipigon series. Boulders of gneiss and fossiliferous yellowish-grey 

 limestone are also numerous. At some places on the shore, within the 

 first few miles to the eastward of the mouth of the Churchill Biver, 

 a very light cream-coloured dolomite, resting on the grey quartz ite, is 

 so abundant, in a fragmental condition, that I have little doubt it occurs 

 in place immediately beneath, or at no great distance off. 



While waiting at Fort Churchill for the sailing of the Hudson's Bay 

 Company's ship, in order to proceed to York Factory, I obtained the 

 latitude of the place by five different observation of the meridian alti- 

 tude of the sun, taken by Troughton's repeating circle, as follows : — 



