it is on the surface, and generally turns in direction on the surface and below at the same time. The velocity of the current in this bay reaches 4 knots an hour in places.

The Tidal and Current Survey, a branch of the Naval Service, has made investigations of these currents; and also maintains tide gauges in continuous operation throughout the year at Quebec, Father Point, Forteau Bay in Belle Isle strait, St. Paul island at the entrance to the gulf, Charlottetown, Halifax and St. John, N.B.

RIVERS IN THE PROVINCE OF QUEBEC.

The Saguenay river is navigable by large river steamers from Tadoussac, on the north shore of the St. Lawrence river, to Chicoutimi, the head of navigation, a distance of 7111⁄2 miles, and by ocean-going vessels to St. Alphonse. It flows from lake St. John by two discharges from the lake.

Lake St. John is a body of water 30 miles long by 18 miles at its minimum width. Eight rivers flow into this lake, which in spring cause the overflowing of its banks.

The Richelieu river is navigable from the St. Lawrence river to lake Champlain, including canals, a distance of about 60 miles. Numerous rivers discharging into the St. Lawrence are navigable for a short distance from the main river.

NEW BRUNSWICK RIVERS.

The St. John river is 500 miles in length from its source, in the state of Maine to St. John, where it discharges into the harbour of St. John on the bay of Fundy. It is navigable in three sections. The first section is from the mouth of the St. Francis river, where it first touches Canadian territory, to Grand Falls, a distance of 75 miles; the second section is from Grand Falls to Fredericton, 140 miles, and the third to St. John, a distance of 80 miles. The influence of the tide is felt as far as Chapel bar, 90 miles from the mouth of the river.

Several lakes and rivers empty into the St. John river. Grand lake is about 30 miles long and is from three to six miles in breadth. Its outlet is about 30 miles below Fredericton at what is called the Jemseg, a narrow deep channel. Salmon river, which falls into the head of the lake, is a good sized stream, rising in the same highlands as the Richibucto river that flows into the gulf of St. Lawrence.

The Washademoak flows into the St. John river about 36 miles below Fredericton. This river has a course of between 60 and 70 miles.

Extensive improvements have been made on the St. John river by the Government of New Brunswick and by the Federal Government, covering a period of many years. An International Commission is now engaged in an hydraulic investigation of the river, its tributaries, lakes and watersheds to determine the possibilities and effect of creating storage by dams, and otherwise improving the river.

The St. John river is famed for its beauty, and on this account offers exceptional attractions to tourists, who find steamers plying between St. John and Fredericton, with excellent accommodation.

The Miramichi river is the second river in importance in New Brunswick. Its branches are numerous and drain a large extent of country. This river empties into the gulf of St. Lawrence. It is navigable for a distance of 42 miles from its mouth by large vessels and still farther, for several miles, by light draft vessels, but the river is greatly influenced by tidal waters. Chatham and Newcastle, located on its banks, are important lumber ports; the first is about 30 miles from the mouth or bay, and the latter 42 miles. Extensive lumbering operations and shipment of lumber have been carried on for a century or more. The northwest arm and southwest arm unite about 15 miles from the mouth of the river, while three of the northwest branches spring from a chain of lakes not far from the Tobique and Nipisiguit rivers.

MARITIME WATERS OF BRITISH COLUMBIA PACIFIC COAST.

Juan De Fuca strait is between the south coast of Vancouver island and the mainland of the state of Washington.

The breadth of the strait between cape Flattery, its southern point of entrance, and Bonilla point, on Vancouver island, is 13 miles. The breadth of the strait for sixty miles easterly averages 12 miles.

At its eastern part are channels leading in or outwards between Vancouver island and the mainland of British Columbia and among the Haro archipelago, and southward to the coast of the United States, by Admiralty inlet and Puget sound.

The strait, along the southern part of Vancouver island, contains several inlets in which harbours are loacated. The most important of these harbours are Victoria and Esquimalt.

Strait of Georgia.-The route generally taken from Victoria to Vancouver is south of Trial and Discovery islands through the main channel of Haro strait, and northward of Stuart and Waldron islands into the strait of Georgia. The Fraser river empties into this strait, and in its freedom from risk of life and shipwreck it possesses advantages over any other river on the coast. A sheltered strait, scarcely 15 miles across, receives its waters; the island of Vancouver serves as a natural breakwater, preventing the possibility of any sea arising which would prove dangerous to vessels even of the smallest class.

The strait of Georgia may throughout be said to measure some 60 miles in length, and on both the southern and northern shores of Vancouver island and mainland shores shelter can be found everywhere. On the south shore lies Nanaimo, Ladysmith, Departure bay and Oyster harbour.

Chemainus bay is a well sheltered bay, two-thirds of a mile in length by one in breadth.

Queen Charlotte sound.-From the strait of Georgia to Queen Charlotte sound there is deep water everywhere. Seymour narrows in Discovery passage is but three quarters of a mile in width, and steamers have sometimes to wait for tides, but for the one hundred and fifty odd miles from Vancouver to Queen Charlotte sound the route is not only well sheltered but is perfectly safe in every other way.

It will here be of interest to give a little data about the most important inlets from Burrard inlet to Prince Rupert.

Howe sound, immediately adjoining the former, is an extensive sheet of water, the general depth being very great, while there are but few anchorages. The entrance, nearly 12 miles in width, is between point Atkinson, the north point of Burrard inlet and Gower point.

Jervis inlet.-In Malaspina strait, well protected by Texada island, is the entrance to Jervis inlet, one of the most remarkable arms of the sea which indents the continent of America from the parallel of Juan de Fuca strait as far as latitude 60° N. It extends by winding reaches in a northerly direction for more than 40 miles, while its width rarely exceeds 111⁄2 miles, and in most places is even less.

Bute inlet is the next extensive area of the sea to be found northward. It penetrates the mainland for nearly 40 miles in a winding course inland, and presents many similar features to Jervis inlet, the general breadth varying from one to two miles, as in Jervis inlet. On both shores are mountains rising abruptly to some 5,000 or 8,000 feet covered with snow all the year round. There are neither as many anchorages nor harbours as in the former, but the depths are greater.

The main entrance, though rarely used on account of rocks, to Knight inlet, which is one of the most extensive of sea canals of British Columbia, lies northward of Swanson, Lewis and Village islands. From thence Fitzhugh sound, Millbank sound and Laredo sound are important inlets navigable with very deep water. Grenville channel still further north leads to Prince Rupert in Chatham sound.

North of Prince Rupert is Port Simpson, one of the best harbours on the coast protected from all winds except west winds which seldom blow. The harbour embraces an area of 4 square miles of water from 4 to 20 fathoms deep. The British Columbia coast continues some distance farther north in Chatham sound and includes the Dundas islands, Zayas and other islands.

Dixon entrance between Queen Charlotte islands and Prince of Wales island, is a broad entrance from the Pacific ocean and merges into Brown passage between Stephens and Melville islands. Very deep water is found in Dixon entrance until the contour line of the coast is reached. In Brown passage it is not so deep but ranges from 16 to 126 fathoms in the passage to Chatham sound.

West of the inner channels described on the course between Vancouver and Prince Rupert, a number of large islands lie on the east coast of Hecate strait.

Hecate strait is a broad sheet of water between the Queen Charlotte islands and the mainland. Between the north end of Vancouver island and the southern of the Queen Charlotte islands, the waters of the Pacific ocean pass until they reach the coast of the mainland.

Vancouver island and the Queen Charlotte islands are indented by many bays and inlets on their eastern sides. The same can be said of the western coast from the most northern part of Graham island, of the Queen Charlotte islands, to the southern end of Vancouver island or Juan de Fuca strait where the description began.

An important Sound 30 miles west of the entrance of the strait is Barkley sound. It is 14 miles wide and practically retains this width, including islands, for a distance inland of 12 miles. The Sound then breaks into numerous channels or canals, the principal one being Alberni canal that extends inland 23 miles. This canal so deeply indents Vancouver island that only 13 miles of land remains between the head of the canal and the east coast of the island.

TIDES OF THE PACIFIC COAST.

The tide of the Pacific coast of Canada can best be described as a declinationtide. Its leading feature is a large diurnal inequality in time and height. There is also a large annual variation with the change in the declination of the sun. When the moon is farthest south or north of the equator the inequality between the two tides of the day is the greatest, and what is termed long and short runs of the current occur.

The tide on this coast is not only of direct interest to navigation, but also to several important industries, notably the lumber industry and coal trade which are carried on to a large extent by towing. The fishing industry is also deeply interested in the tide, not only on the Fraser and Skeena rivers, where numerous large canneries are located, but also on the long natural channels and sheltered passages.

On the outer coast of Vancouver island the tide has a rise of from 10 to 12 feet. Among the islands of the gulf of Georgia and in the strait the mean rise is 12 to 13 feet. At Port Essington on the Skeena river the rise at the springs is 21 feet while Port Simpson has 19 feet, and Prince Rupert, the terminal of the Grand Trunk Pacific, 5% more. The range of the tide at the head of the long inlets or channels is only 2 to 12 per cent. greater than at their mouth, while the time of high and low water is practically the same.

One of the difficulties met with in navigation on the Pacific coast is the very strong tidal current in the various passes and narrows, so strong that in some of them navigation is only possible at slack water. The most important of these is the far-famed Seymour narrows, where there is a current of 7 to 12 knots. The Yuculta, largely used by tugs in towing logs, has a current almost as strong. In Active and Porlier passes, on the route from Vancouver to Victoria, the current runs from 5 to 7 knots.

As these passes can only be navigated at slack water, except by vessels of high speed, the time of the turn of the current is important. In this connection the Tidal and Current Survey include in their Tide Tables the time of slack water in these passes and narrows, based upon observations obtained at each locality.

Tide gauges are kept in continuous operation at Clayoquot, on the west coast of Vancouver island, Victoria, Vancouver, Prince Rupert and Port Simpson.

The Tide Tables issued by this Survey are published in two sets, one including the harbours of Eastern Canada and the other those on the Pacific coast; and besides giving the time of the tide at the principal harbours, these tables give a series of "differences" by which the time of high and low water at intermediate ports can be readily and accurately determined.

GREAT LAKES.

The bodies of water termed "Great Lakes" include lakes Superior, Huron, Erie and Ontario. These great inland seas or waterways are connected by a system of canals and locks which permit vessels to proceed from Montreal, on the St. Lawrence river and head of ocean navigation, to Thunder bay, north-west side of lake Superior. Vessels drawing 19 to 20 feet navigate the Great

Lakes on the Canadian side of the boundary from Port Colborne at the eastern end of lake Erie to Port Arthur and Fort William on the northwest shore of lake Superior. Deep draught vessels also trade and carry passengers between Canadian and American ports situated on opposite sides of the lakes. Water traffic is also maintained by vessels drawing more than 14 feet by one Canadian port with another.

The Sault Ste. Marie canal and lock connects lake Superior at its eastern end with lake Huron and Georgian bay. The canal is over one mile long and 150 feet wide at the water surface. It contains one lock chamber 900 feet long and 60 feet wide, with 18 feet 3 inches depth of water at its extreme low water, but of a greater depth at other stages. The distance from Sault Ste. Marie west of Port Arthur is 274 miles, affording deep water navigation all the way across. The depth of the lake in places reaches over 600 feet.

The course from Sault Ste. Marie to Fort William and Port Arthur is in a northwesterly direction, and the Canadian lighthouse and buoy system includes a number of lights and gas buoys, placed as aids to navigation where they are deemed necessary.

Lake Huron, connected by Sault Ste. Marie canal with lake Superior, is also navigated very extensively, and Georgian bay, part of lake Huron, is connected with the canal by what is termed the North Channel or St. Mary's river. Lake Huron has a number of ports along the coast, and Georgian bay, a greater number of safe harbours and well-known ports termed, "Bay Ports."

Lake Huron is connected on the great waterway with lake Erie by the St. Croix and Detroit rivers. The lighthouse and buoy systems on these waterways embrace a most complete chain of aids to navigation.

Lake Erie, the shallowest of the Great Lakes, includes a small number of wellknown ports and is connected with lake Ontario by the Welland canal. This canal is 2634 miles long and has its western entrance at Port Colborne on lake Erie and the eastern entrance, at Port Dalhousie on lake Ontario. There are 25 lift lock chambers and one guard lock, by which vessels are transferred from one lake to the other; the length of the locks is 270 feet, width 45 feet and water over the sills 14 feet. The total lockage lift from lake Ontario to lake Erie is 32634 feet. The mean height of lake Erie above mean tide at New York on the Atlantic, is 572.6 feet. The new Welland canal, being constructed, will vary from the older one by the introduction of all the modern improvements for operation, and will be built large enough to permit the largest and the deepest draft vessels navigating the Great Lakes to pass from one lake to another. Niagara falls, on the Niagara river, flow over its declivity between the two lakes.

Lake Ontario, a deeper body of water than lake Erie, is the most easterly of the chain of Great Lakes and from it the great St. Lawrence river flows to the gulf of St. Lawrence, nearly its whole length in Canadian territory. The bay of Quinte, a large sheet of water, is part of lake Ontario. The navigating connection between. lake Ontario and Montreal is made by a series of canals of different lengths, containing locks for overcoming the several rapids on the Upper St. Lawrence river. The lake coast affords good harbour accommodation for shipping and a number of important ports are situated on its shores. Communication between Montreal, at the head of ocean navigation, and lake ports is continuous to the head of lake Superior. The great waterway has steadily increased in importance notwith