Canadian Agriculture. 



161 



In the older provinces stock-keepers are finding it more 

 profitable to increase their dairy herds, and there has been a 

 remarkable extension of dairy-farming, especially in Ontario, 

 in the past five years. The progress of dairying in the 

 Dominion has, however, already been noticed on several 

 occasions in the pages of this Journal, and it is not necessary 

 to dwell at any length here upon this aspect of Canadian 

 agriculture. The importance of this branch of farming to 

 Canada may be best illustrated by the fact that the average 

 annual value of her exports of cheese alone during 1892-96 

 amounted to nearly ^"3,000,000, this being about double the 

 value of her exports of cattle, and representing over one-fourth 

 of the aggregate value of her exports of all kinds of agricultural 

 produce, excluding timber. Butter has not yet figured to any 

 great extent in the Trade Returns of the country, but efforts 

 are being made, by the establishment of creameries and the 

 adoption of winter dairying, to develop the exports of this 

 article. 



The great centre of dairy-farming is Ontario, though in 

 Quebec also the industry is a growing one. In the former 

 province there are about 1,200 cheese factories and 140 

 creameries, nearly half the total number of these institutions 

 having been opened since 1889. Efforts are being made by 

 the Department of Agriculture to promote the establishment 

 of dairy-farms in Manitoba and the North -West Territories, 

 but wheat-farming still continues to be the principal pursuit 

 in this region, and dairying has as yet made comparatively 

 little progress. Another province in which the production 

 of cheese and butter is becoming an important industry is 

 Prince Edward Island, where there are thirty-two cheese 

 factories and several creameries in operation. British 

 Columbia is also said to offer excellent facilities for mixed- 

 and dairy-farming, but the latter branch of agriculture has 

 not yet received much attention. In Nova Scotia a number 

 of cheese-factories and several manufactories of condensed 

 milk have been established. An experimental dairy-station 



sells in England for £iS, he finds it profitable to raise them. Comparatively few 

 sheep are at present to be found, but there seems to be a good opening for profitable 

 investment in these golden-hoofed animals." 



I, 



