PARK AND CEMETERY. 
iil 
RIDEAU CANAL, OTTAWA; BLENDING OF NATURE AND ART. 
Work of Ottawa Improvement Commission. 
The Government Reserve west of the 
canal, and adjoining the south side of 
Sapper’s Bridge, situated in the heart 
of the city, wap in 1900 and 1901 made 
into a park. In 1903 the Act was fur- 
ther amended by extending to 1919 
the time for the payment of the an- 
nual grant of $60,000, and empowering 
the Commission to borrow, on deben- 
tures bearing interest at a rate of not 
exceeding 4 per cent, a sum not ex- 
ceeding $250,000, to purchase land or 
to carry out any scheme of improve- 
ments requiring a larger outlay than 
is available out of the annual income 
of the Commission. The Act provid- 
ed that the debentures are to be re- 
deemed in equal annual installments. 
Sixteen debentures were issued ac- 
cordingly. 
A roadway from the Rideau Canal 
Driveway, at Patterson’s Creek, to 
Concessio street, on the west, was laid 
out in 1903 on property granted by 
Mr. H. C. Monk and the Clemow Es- 
tate. The land granted is from 80 to 
85 feet in width. Arrangements were 
made in 1903 with the Department of 
Militia and Defence for the care and 
maintenance of Cartier Square. Tile 
drains were laid where most required. 
Green and Maple Islands, situated 
between the spans of Minto Bridge 
and the Rideau River, were protected 
by crib work in 1904, and a quantity 
of filling was deposited to raise them 
above high water level. In June, 1904, 
the City of Ottawa leased to the Com- 
mission for a period of 15 years Rock- 
cliffe, Strathcona and Somerset street 
parks, the Commission to improve, 
maintain and repair these properties 
during that period. In June, 1903, the 
Commission decided to acquire the 
land, about 110 acres, lying between 
Rockcliffe Park and the Dominion Ri- 
fle Range, and construct thereon a 
large park to be called, for the time 
being, the “National Park.” 
In 1900, Dr. Wm. Saunders, director 
of Dominion Experimental Farms, 
who was about to visit France, kindly 
offered to select a stock of trees and 
shrubs suitable for the work the Com- 
mission was undertaking. About 25,000 
trees and shrubs, comprising nearly 
300 species and varieties, were pur- 
chased at a cost of $600 and set out in 
a nursery at the experimental farm, 
from which they were taken and plant- 
ed as required. The Commission fur- 
ther availed itself of Dr. Saunders’ 
kindness and entrusted to him the 
planting of the parks and boulevards, 
which work has been most efficiently 
carried out under his personal direc- 
tion. 
In addition to the foregoing, the 
Commission has embellished and 
beautified the city in many other ways, 
and the work is being continued. It 
is determined to make the Capital 
City the most beautiful one in Canada. 
Many important improvements are 
now in contemplation. 
Tire largest and most beautiful park 
in Ottawa is Rockliffe. It comprises 
about 185 acres. It is claimed that 
this is one of the finest natural parks 
in the world, and one that required 
but a comparatively small expenditure. 
It was not necessary to improve much 
on what Nature had done for it. All 
that was needed was to clean up and 
make a few alterations. This park 
stretches along the tank of the Otta- 
wa River for over a mile. 
Strathcona Park contains about 13 
acres. Formerly it was little better 
than a swamp, but it has been trans- 
formed by the Improvement Com- 
mission into a beauty spot. Major 
Hill’s Park, si.x acres, is owned by the 
-Government and is adjacent to the 
Parliament Buildings. The total acre- 
age for all the parks is 443, or about 
13k2 per cent of the total area of the 
city. 
The most important work under- 
taken by the Improvement Commis- 
sion was the construction of the series 
of driveways across the city. Where 
formerly there were narrow, crowded 
streets and unsightly stretches of 
weed-grown waste, the city now pos- 
esses a noble system of broad drives, 
boulevards and shady parks, cool, min- 
iature lakes and water stretches. 
An extension or branch of the main 
driveways was cut across the south 
end of the city, thereby giving an ad- 
ditional mile of driveways and boule- 
vards about 120 feet wide. 
The next step of importance con- 
templated by the Commission is the 
construction of a driveway from the 
western limit of the Experimental 
Farm north to the Ottawa River, to 
HOW A BARREN SPOT WAS TRANSFORMED. 
