Items about Atikokan in Historic Newspapers, 1890 - 1910.

A St. Paul Man Purchases the West End Location Near Port Arthur — Inspection of Gold-bearing Leads at Tache.

Port Arthur, Aug. 20.—One of the most important deals ever consum­mated in Port Arthur silver district has just been closed. The result is that the Americans have captured another most valuable silver mine. Elias F. Drake, the St. Paul millionaire, has given his check on the New York National Bank to the West End mining company for one hundred and fifty thou­sand dollars, being the purchase price of mining locations r.55, r.56 and r.57, in the Silver mountain camp known as the West End mine. The property consists of 240 acres with three-quarters of a mile of vein and a well developed mine. The mining force will be increased at once and a silver mill built when the railway reaches there next month. H.N. Nichols of Port Arthur, president of the West End company, negotiated and carried through the sale.

Mr. Thomas, of Ishpeming, Mich., who has been visiting the Atikokan iron range, states that no such an immense body of pure ore exists on the south shore of Lake Superior as is to be found at Atikokan River.

The steam yacht Picket, with President McLeod of the Duluth board of trade and some friends, cleared for Nipigon to-day but had to return owing to the heavy southwest gale which prevailed.

Messrs. Nester, of Baraga, Michigan, are here with a party of friends from South Bend, Indiana. They came on their big steel tug Colton, and leave again for Duluth to-morrow.

A Party of American capitalists to-day left for Tache to examine some gold veins near the Canadian Pacific there, which promise well, the assays giving from $13 to $53 per ton in gold.

Arrived: Colton and barge Marill from Chicago; Enterprise and Albacore from Buffalo with coal.

Interview With Director of the Bureau of Mines – Gold Mining in the Seine River and Lake of the Woods Regions.

Mr. Archibald Blue, director of the Bureau of Mines, Ontario, arrived from Rat Portage on the Saturday afternoon's train and is stopping at the Manitoba. A reporter of the Free Press called upon him there Saturday evening and had a talk with him on the mineral wealth and mining industries of his province, with particular reference to the gold fields of Rainy Lake and Lake of the Woods. Mr. Blue left Toronto five weeks ago, and only a week of that time has been spent on Lake of the Woods. Nearly a month was occupied in the country south of Savanne and in the region along the Atik-o-kan and Seine rivers and upon Rainy Lake.

"I met Dr. Coleman at Savanne," he said, "and we spent a week visiting the old Huronian gold mine in Moss township, and some other gold locations in that region, and iron properties on what is known as the Mattawin range. On Lake Shebandowan we met Mr. James Hammond, a Fort William prospector, who was returning with a party from the survey of seven or eight gold locations recently discovered in and near Moss township, and Mr. Hammond returned with us to the Huronian."

"And what do you think of that gold mine?" Mr. Blue was asked.

"Well, I do not care to say," was his cautious answer. "A great deal has been said and written about it, and the tumble-down buildings one sees at almost every turn in the old clearing now in copse-wood make it clear that a good deal of money has been spent there. There is a ten-stamp mill which is yet in a fairly good state of preservation, and there are two shaft houses with their ore dumps. How deep the shafts were sunk I do not know, nor what the size or character of the vein is underground I do not know; one dares not trust himself on a rotten ladder, and anyway the shafts are nearly full of water. Some good looking ore is to be seen; but of course it has been picked many times over, and no doubt the best samples have been carried away. We found none that showed sylvanite, and I always understood that ore of the Huronian mine was rich in this mineral. The vein is bedded in the Huronian slates and there is nowhere any large outcropping. Indeed, it is quite narrow, and of no great length that I could see; but possibly it looks much better underground. It always does, the ever-sanguine prospector will tell you."

"Why were the works closed? you ask. That I cannot exactly tell, but there is a tradition that the officers could not agree between themselves who should be greatest. They were getting ready to put in a chlorination plant, and some of the old houses are packed full of acids and other stock required for this treatment. But suddenly the order to stop was given by someone having authority, and the enterprise had a sudden ending. The property may have justified the money spent upon it, which is said to be over $100,000, one cannot say who sees only the surface – and the ruins of the works."

"But are there no other gold properties there?"

"Yes, there are many other locations taken up in Moss township, but little or no work has been done upon them. Most of these were taken up years ago; and it may be that the owners have lost sight of them. Mr. Hammond has found a number of new ones this year, and samples shown by him are rich in free gold."

"What of the iron ore?" Mr. Blue was next asked.

"The best and largest I have seen anywhere," he replied. "I was never sure of there being a large supply of the red ore of iron in Ontario, but I have no doubts now. The range is said to extend from Hunter's Island to the Kaministiquia River and beyond it, as is thought to be a continuation of the famous Vermillion range of Minnesota. We got upon it near Greenwater Lake, south of Lake Shebandowan, where there is a deposit of solid ore of fine quality 50 feet wide. The northern exposure is a bluff 30 feet high, and Mr. Hammond told us that it has a length of nearly half a mile. Twelve or fifteen miles farther east, in the Mattawin valley, we came upon the range again. There it appears as a little mountain over 100 feet high, 400 to 450 feet wide and about a quarter of a mile long. A mile eastward is another mountain, higher, wider and longer, but showing more jasper, especially on the western slope. There are eight of these hills in succession down to and beyond the Mattawin River, and I do not believe that either the Vermillion or the Mesabi ranges of Minnesota can show any ore bodies larger or better. No, I have no fears now of a scarcity of hematite iron ores in Ontario," the director said in his quiet way, "and 15 to 20 miles of new railway would connect the locations with the C.P.R., or the Port Arthur, Duluth and Western road."

Dr. Coleman, who is also an officer of the Ontario Bureau, has been employed this summer in carrying on geological explorations of the goldfields, a work begun by him last year. His report on Lake of the Woods and Rainy Lake regions is in the fourth report of the bureau, and will be found a valuable aid to explorers and miners. He this year went north as far as Lac Seul and renewed and extended his survey of the region on the Wabigoon and Manitou waters, and the Seine River up to Steep Rock lake. On this lake is an extensive formation of limestone, which is about the only locality of the Winnipeg River basin in Ontario where limestone occurs. Dr. Coleman finished his summer's work at Savanne, and returned to Toronto, while Mr. Blue left Savanne to canoe Lac de Milles Lac, the Atikokan and Seine rivers, and thence by steamer to Rat Portage to inspect the gold mines.

"There are very large deposits of magnetic iron ore," he said, "on the Atikokan river; the largest, no doubt, that we possess in Ontario. But they are 50 miles from a railway, and for some time to come it is hardly likely that the price of ores will warrant the cost of a railway to reach them. But they have kept a long time, and when wanted they will be there. Let the United States produce 15,000,000 tons of pig iron a year, and good authorities say they will begin to do so by the beginning of the twentieth century, and how long do you suppose it will be before necessity compels an opening of iron mines in Ontario? For my own part, however, I should greatly prefer to see our ores smelted at home. With so much raw material, we ought to have an iron industry of our own, instead of importing nine-tenths of all the iron and steel we require from Great Britain and the United States. And let me say, it is not for want of capital that we are not in the business now."

"But what about the gold mines?"

"O, the gold mines! Well, it is not for lack of capital that Canadians are not at work developing gold mines either. Look at the monthly bank statements, and see the enormous sums deposited by the public, much of it earning nothing at all, and the rest at a low rate of interest. I believe there are opportunities going to waste for investment of Canadian capital in opening up and working numerous gold properties on the Seine river, on Rainy Lake and on the Lake of the Woods. But our people have not made their wealth in that way, and without experience they fear to take risks in anything so uncertain as a gold mine. Had they but once tasted blood, as Britons and Americans have done, I am sure there would be vastly larger sums put into gold mines than corner lots."

"Where are the most promising shows?"

"That is not easy to say, off hand. A property is being worked by Port Arthur men on Harold Lake. This is a way up the Seine river, a few miles below Steep Rock Lake. A five-stamp mill was built this year, and it started to run about the 1st of August. There are a number of veins on the property, all of which are in a granite formation. None of them are large, but all carry free gold, and some beautiful specimens are shown. I was told that the average collected on the plates is $10 per ton, and that the concentrates will probably make the total yield $15 or $16 per ton. Many discoveries are reported lower down the river, and at Wild Potato and Shoal Lakes, which are but expansions of the Seine, a large number of locations have been taken up. North of Shoal Lake is a large area of altered granite, which is honeycombed with veins, and the ore has a very promising appearance. On one of the locations a mill was built last spring, and run for a short time; but either because the parties interested had not enough capital, or did not know their business, or desired to freeze each other out – for all these reasons are given – the mill was shut down, and all mining work has ceased. I think it is a good property, and not likely to be idle for long. I saw several others also which seem to be equally good, on one of which active operations are carried on by a Duluth company. The manager says they intend sinking two shafts to depth of 400 feet each, when a mill will be built if the prospect warrants. On another property I saw a vein of 5 to 12 feet wide, which has been stripped and cross-cut for several hundred feet, and the ore is said to pan free gold. An area several miles in extent in this locality has been surveyed and taken up within the last year. At present much attention is being given to the district northward of Rainy Lake, on the Manitou and Wabigoon rivers and lakes, and it is said that many rich finds have been made. South of little Manitou lake a placer field has been discovered, and the owners have gone in with sluice boxes to work it. They claim that gold can be panned out of sand, gravel and even the swamp muck; but the area is not large, and work is hampered by scarcity of water. Surveyors and prospectors are busy in that country now."

"What is being done in the Lake of the Woods?"

"The greatest activity is to be witnessed there as far as real work goes. The Sultana mine is producing its brick a week, and when I was down in the mine the other day I found the miners at a depth of 150 feet or more, stoping underfoot upon a vein 30 feet wide without yet having reached the hanging wall. At this depth are found fine specimens, showing free gold. Mr. Caldwell is a Grit in the way he carries on work there, whatever his politics may be, and I hope his enterprise will be as well rewarded as it deserves. Away to the south-east of Rat Portage about 45 miles, beyond Yellow Girl bay, an English company is developing a property of good promise, known as the Regina mine. The work is carried on under the direction of Mr. Motley, a mining engineer of experience, and a ten-stamp mill was started a few days ago. It is a well-equipped mill, and I hope to hear good results of it. Four veins show up on the locations, three of which are in granite, but running into altered traps at the end of a few hundred feet. In both formations the ore shows free gold. General Wilkinson, England, who has a large farm in Manitoba, is president of the company, which is organized under an English charter, with a capital of £130,000. Another English company or syndicate has lately purchased the old reduction mill at Rat Portage, the Black Jack mine, and the Gold Hill mine, and have now fifty men at work. The mill at Rat Portage is being thoroughly refitted, this time with four batteries of five stamps each, instead of the fancy machinery put in by the bonus-hunting adventurers who built the mill a few years ago. The Colorado stamp mill, on the Gold Hill property, is also being renovated, and both mills will be ready to treat ore in the course of a few weeks. Mr. Ahn, of Toronto, is the energetic manager of these works, and it was largely through his efforts that English capital came to be invested in the properties. Then there is Mr. Wright, of Ottawa, who is commencing operations on the west side of the lake, and I hope to visit his Gold Mountain mine next week."

"Yes," Mr. Blue said, "there is no doubt that there are many gold-bearing veins around Lake of the Woods, Rainy Lake and their tributary waters. Like every other gold field, no doubt, the blanks will be more than the prizes I apprehend, but whatever happens to others, mining men who know their business will not be disconcerted or discouraged thereby."

And what of your canoeing experience?"

"Very enjoyable, indeed. We started on the Savanne river, crossed Lac de Milles Lacs into Barril bay, portaged the height of land into the clear waters of Barril lake and Windigoostagwan, and a second height of land into Elbow and Crooked Pine lake to the Atikokan river, down that river to Steep Rock lake, and thence into the broad waters of the Seine. There is no other interior river in Ontario to compare with the Seine in volume, or beauty of scenery, or in diversity of flow – now quiet, now swift, and too often for one's comfort, rushing and tumbling over rocks and down waterfalls. It is magnificent; and I think I may say that were the portages easier there would be found no other such canoe route in America, as from Savanne to Fort Francis. I enjoyed it immensely."

Which Will Mean Great Wealth When the District is Opened Up.

Ontario and Rainy River Railway, to be Begun This Fall, Will Directly Tap the Atik-Okan District – The Location, Owned by the Wiley Brothers, Has Been Thoroughly Tested to show the Magnitude of the Ore Deposits.

Port Arthur, Ont., July 9.—(Special Corres­pond­ence.)—Gold is not the only form of mineral wealth boasted by North­western Ontario, for, among other resources this part of the province has large deposits of iron. One of the most notable of these is the Atik-Okan iron range, and towards it on the day after our visit to Lake Harold we bent our steps – or rather our paddles. And this portion of our trip I shall ever remember as one of the most interesting among my western expeditions. Our course led through a stretch of territory and along a chain of lakes and rivers so seldom visited that we traveled straight ahead for four long days without seeing a sign of a single human being. This will give World readers an idea of how small a section of this great new Ontario has yet been explored. As a matter of fact, so far the prospector has covered only a few narrow strips lying immediately upon the shores of a small minority of the lakes and rivers, with which those hundreds of miles of territory abound. For a long time to come the half will not be told regarding these mineral regions.

The Atik-Okan Wilderness.

But as to the Atik-Okan wilderness, which is the district under discussion in this letter, besides being wholly devoid of human inhabitants, it has been devastated by destructive forest fires. These all-devouring conflagrations have swept the country in all directions, killing off vegetation, and for mile after mile myriads of dead trees rear their gaunt skeleton-like forms against the sky, investing the scene with a weird desolation. The everlasting panorama of blackened death would have a most depressing effect, were it not for the patches of green spared here and there on the portages or in the river beds, and for the game, big and little, of which there is plenty in the country.

A Long Journey.

To begin at the beginning, between 5 and 6 o'clock a.m. we struck camp on the south arm of Steep Rock Lake, and in the grey of the early morning proceeded through that fine body of water with its perpendicular shores of granite and slate and protogene to the foot of its extreme southern arm. High up on the face of a particularly precipitous cliff we spied an owl's nest, with a tiny bird sitting upon its edge, and blinking down upon us in its own stupidly-wise fashion. As we passed the mother owl became much agitated, and, making a great fuss to attract our attention, flew on ahead of us down the shore, with the obvious idea of leading us away from her young. The affection displayed by the wild denizens of the forest for their offspring, and the cunning they show in protecting them form an interesting subject of observvation.

Up the Atik-Okan River.

Disembarking at the south end of Steep Rock, we climbed a portage several chains long, or rather high, and very poorly cut by the Government, to a little lake situated on the top of a small mountain. Another portage brought us to Mercury Lake, after which, by still another, one-third of a mile in length, we descended into a valley and began our journey due east of the Atik-Okan River. It is along this stream that the forest fires have done their worst, and it is in its waters and upon its banks wherever the destructive element has spared a little vegetation that game most abounds. Wild duck, geese, turkeys, partridges, eagles, gulls, rabbits, musk­rats, cariboo, moose and bear frequent the neighbour­hood of the stream and its arms. The river itself may be described as a long narrow sinuous waterway, which winds its course with rather rapid current through swampy "bottom lands," enclosed between a double range of hills.

A Great Iron Range.

A few miles up stream we came upon the famous Atik-Okan magnetic iron range, which some people say will yet be worth more than all of those gold mines of the country put together. The deposit consists practically of a mountain from 100 to 500 yards wide, between 100 and 200 feet high, and upwards of 20 miles in length. It runs along the shores of the Atik-Okan for that distance, crossing the stream at intervals, and appearing first on one side, and then on the other.

Regarding the geological occurrence of this iron belt, I have the authority of Mr. W.W. Russell of Port Arthur that the outcrops or surface showings appear as beds in Huronian, hornblendic and chloritic schists, which are nearly vertical. The surface showings indicate that there are several of these beds, the intervening rock having a width of from five to thirty feet. Whether these beds will unite at a depth or maintain their separate identity is a problem for development work to decide. Mr. Russell considers that, as the Huronian belt, in which the magnetite occurs, rests comfortably in the folds of the Laurentian rocks, the depth of the iron deposit may be unlimited.

High Grade Ores.

The magnetite in these deposits is of a remarkably high grade, a series of assays of rock taken from different points having shown the existence of from 62 to 70 per cent. of iron. These figures are looked upon as rather startling among mining men, and another characteristic about the metal here found is its freedom from phosphorus and titanium, which fact renders it suitable for the manufacture of the highest classes of bessemer steel.

Judging from what I saw of the out­crop­pings, the deposit could be very easily worked. The range could be paralleled on either side by railway tracks, and the ore chuted direct into the cars. In fact, with transportation facilities, these iron beds should become immediately valuable.

It is believed that the Ontario & Rainy River Railway, to be begun this fall, will directly tap the Atik-Okan, and if it does not, another line may do so. I refer to the projected Atik-Okan Railway, a charter for which was taken out seven years ago by the Marks and Wileys of Port Arthur. A route for the road has been surveyed from Fire Steel Station, on the C.P.R., along the valley of the Fire Steel river towards the southwest, where it intersects the Seine River. The road would be between 45 and 50 miles long, and it could be built at comparatively small expense, as there are no heavy rock cuttings or earth excavations to be made on the way.

Waiting for Transportation Facilities.

The whole range was all taken up in mining locations years ago, and is still being held by the owners until such time as the aforesaid means of transportation are furnished. Those chiefly interested in the deposits are Messrs. Pompelly and Smythe of Boston; William Patterson of West Superior, Minn., part owner of the fee in the Pioneer iron mine; Judge Roberts of West Superior, the Messrs. Wiley and the Messrs. Marks of Port Arthur, and the Messrs. Graham, Horne & Co., and the McKellar Bros. of Fort William.

All of these locations I inspected more or less casually, until I reached the middle of the range, where, with Mr. Wiley, I disembarked to examine R. 401 and 402, the properties of the Wiley Bros. Here the range rises to a height of something like 150 feet, and though the bulk of the deposits are covered with soil the out­crop­pings of the mineral upon the sides and summit of the hill can readily be distinguished from afar. Upon these locations testing operations have been carried on to some extent. "Cores" brought up with the drill from a depth of 300 feet at various points on the property prove the deposit to have consistent values at that distance down in the earth. I brought away with me pieces of the cores and specimens of the mineral from the surface.

At one time a deal was on with a Belgian syndicate, including the King of the Belgians, for the introduction of $4,000,000 of capital to develop these deposits, but just when the consummation of the contract was about completed, the more accessible Mesaba range in Minnesota was discovered, and the enterprise fell through.

With the construction of the Ontario & Rainy River line much is expected of these vast beds of iron. Of other iron deposits in this Western country something will be said in succeeding letters.

F. D. L. S.

[To Be Continued – see next item]

This New Ontario District Seems to be a Veritable Hunters' Paradise.

Animal Life to be Seen Everywhere – Indian Camping Grounds – The Eastern Continuation of the Atik-Okan Iron Range – The Lakes and Rivers – A Glimpse of the Old Dawson Route – Return to Port Arthur.

Port Arthur, Ont., July 11.–(Special Corres­pond­ence.)–It was shortly after my inspection of the lower section of the Atik-Okon iron range, described in my last letter, that I saw my first live moose at close quarters. Towards evening on the day in question we were moving leisurely up a section of the river which turned and twisted like a serpent through low ground covered with a rank growth of grass and shrubbery, when several hundred yards ahead of us we saw a big buck emerge from the undergrowth and step down into the water. Forthwith we muffled our paddles, so that under cover of a bend in the stream we might creep up close to him before he saw us. As the breeze was blowing from him in our direction he did not get scent of us, and before he was aware of it we were upon him. As we rounded the turn the big brute, stern toward us, was, as is the habit of the animal, feeding upon the long submerged grass which grows in the bottom of the river. He must have been hungry for as he ate he buried his head in the water up to his eyes. So intent upon his evening meal indeed was he that we had gotten to within fifty feet of him before he noticed our presence. And then as he suddenly faced round upon us I saw as noble a sight as I hope to see again in many a day. As the big brute stood there up to his knees in that marshy water, his great spreading antlers proudly tossed into the air, and a surprised though not fearful look in his mild eyes, he seemed a veritable lord of creation. For fully 30 seconds he inquiringly stared at us, and then, turning tail, climbed the embankment and galloped off into the woods. I should like to have had his antlers, but the law forbids the killing of these animals – and besides, we had no firearms with us. The Government is endeavoring to protect the moose, but he is being slaughtered pretty freely nevertheless, and it will not be long before, like the buffalo, the breed becomes extinct. The same remarks apply to the cariboo, of which there are a few herds in this country.

Plenty of Animal Life.

At every turn in the river now we saw fresh evidences of abundant animal life. Here a great eagle soared high in the air, watching for his prey; there a partridge flitted through the undergrowth; at another point a water dog slipped into his mud house on our approach, and still further on a mother duck would go into a fit of hysterics for the sake of her brood of little ones. At a sign from her the ducklings would all dive beneath the water, and meantime she, with a great ado, would splash and splutter up the stream ahead of us to draw us away from them. After thus enticing us away a quarter of a mile or so she would rise high in the air and fly back over our heads to her charges.

The next interesting point we came to was Sabawe Rapids. Sabawe in Chippewa means "drowned," and here, nobody knows how long ago, an Indian princess lost her life, since when no Red man had been known to run these swift waters.

On Indian Grounds.

Portaging around this part of the river we entered Sabawe Lake, a fine stretch of water several miles in extent, in the midst of which we selected old Petowanaquab's Island as a place to pitch our tent for the night. The aged Indian who owns this name claims as his kingdom this portion of the country, as does Kabashkong a section farther west. The island we landed upon is one of his favorite camping grounds, and we used poles from his wigwam in setting up our tent. One proof of a more or less recent visit from him was a "cache" near by, containing an ax, some old clothing and an Indian letter written upon a piece of birch bark. On this island we also discovered an Indian sweat box. This is a sort of primitive Turkish bath, which the Chippewa has long used as a cure for all ailments. The box consists of a small wigwam built of poles, into which the sick person crawls with a lot of red-hot stones. Birch bark and blankets are heaped over the box, and if he is not cooked alive the sufferer feels better when he emerges.

After a short night's rest six o'clock next morning saw us partaking of a breakfast of pike and sea-gulls' eggs, the former caught off the shore of the island, and the latter, which I don't relish, stolen from nests on a rocky islet near at hand.

The Iron Range.

As we passed out of Sabawe Lake we examined that eastern continuation of the Atik-Okan iron range, into which the Graham-McKellar locations are situated. The outcrops here, which are said to show 63 per cent. of magnetic iron, occur in three beds, which appear on the summit and both faces of a ridge rising 100 feet above the river banks. It may be here added that it is estimated that the mining of these deposits would cost about 75 cents per ton, and the freight by rail to Port Arthur $1 per ton. Add to this the varying lake freight charges and the cost of the ore delivered at the smelters is easily arrived at.

Whiskey Jack River empties into Sabawe Lake. This stream resembles the Atik-Okan, in that it winds for miles through low lands. Upon its banks we saw three more moose in a group, but they fled at our approach.

Whiskey Jack Lake and Magnetic Lake we "did" in the course of the morning, and then after a couple of short portages we were launched in Crooked Pine Lake. This is a long-drawn-out sheet of water, and its shores are clothed with miles of dead forest. We stopped to cook lunch on a barren rock near the narrows in the midst of this lake, and after a paddle of several miles further we took a southeasterly course and portaged over into Elbow lake, so called because of its peculiar conformation.

Covering this lake from end to end in the course of a couple of hours we made two heavy portages of half a mile each into Windigoostigwan (Cannibal's Head) Lake. On the second of these portages I had another new experience. Often during my outing I had seen fresh bear tracks, but not until now did I have the pleasure of actually getting near Bruin in his native haunts. The big fellow crossed the trail a few yards in front of us, and as soon as he saw us tore off into the swamp like the veriest coward.

On the north shore of Wind­i­goos­ti­g­wan Lake we landed to cook supper. Here our tobacco gave out, and for smoking we had to resort to the inner bark of the Kin­ni­kin­nick, the willow made red by the blood of the Indian Ghost, Ninibishu.

After another hour's progress we camped for the night at the eastern end of the lake, and at 6 o'clock next morning proceeded on our way along Bruly River. A little way up this stream our "bow" Indian ejaculated "Chemung, chemung" (Chip­pawa for canoe), and sure enough approaching us from the east we made out a big birch bark containing the first human beings, outside of our own party, we had seen in nearly four days.

On coming to close quarters, we found the strangers to be two Indians bound from Savanne with a load of merchandise, which they hoped to dispose of at Nequaquin, where, in the course of a few days, the treaty redskins were to be paid their annual allowance by the Government agent. These "payment" days the Indians make occasions for furious orgies, and the traders usually succeed in securing all the aborigines' money before the celebrations are concluded.

On Bruly portage into Baril Lake I first saw the remains of a portion of the old Dawson route, which, before the days of the C.P.R., formed the link of communication between the head of Lakes Superior and Winnipeg. The long chain of lakes and rivers extending through this territory, and connected by portages, was made use of in this thoroughfare between the east and west. Wolseley and his soldiers, it will be remembered, went over this road in their journey west to cope with the Riel rising of 1870. The route has been discontinued for years, and at many points along it I saw the rotted remains of the barges used on the lakes in the old days. Were the road somewhat repaired and the bridges between Lakes Superior and She­ban­dowan restored, the thoroughfare might yet be employed as a means of reaching certain sections of the mining country which even the Ontario and Rainy River Railway will not touch.

Baril Bay.

Still following the Dawson route, we crossed the portage from Baril Lake into Baril Bay, where a mother partridge with a brood of chicks few at us like a barnyard hen in defence of her little ones. Baril Bay is the extreme southwesterly arm of Lac de Mille Lac. This lake of a thousand lakes is a big body of water, divided, as its name implies, by promentories and archipelagoes of islands into a myriad of arms. One unacquainted with its intricacies with difficulty finds his way about in it, and, to add to the unpleasantness of navigating it, no matter which way you are bound, head winds are always churning its shallow waters into choppy seas, which unmercifully toss a small canoe about. The distance from Baril portage to the northern end of the lake is about 28 miles, but after an all-day paddle in the face of a gale, with two stops to replenish the inner man, we accomplished the journey. A further stage of a mile and a half up the sluggish Savanne River brought us about 10 p.m. to Savanne, a station on the C.P.R. about 70 miles west of Port Arthur. This point, of which I shall say more in another letter, is the coldest, it is said, in Ontario, and, though the heat had been intense on the lake all day, here, as we stood around on the railway platform, we all shivered in our boots. Adjoining the little station is a hospitable little hostelry kept by a Mrs. Grant, but upon our arrival all the available beds had been taken by a number of travelers, just in from Partridge Lake, Osinawe Lake and Shebandowan gold regions, among whom were Mr. Thomas Marks of Port Arthur, a gentleman who, though 65 years of age, still likes to rough it in the woods; Mr. Peter McKellar of Fort William, Mr. D.M. Owen of Nova Scotia, and Mr. H. St. J. Montizambert of Toronto. As a result, most of us had to make shift to sleep upon the floor as best we could. In one room Messrs. Wiley and Montizambert and myself tried to share two pillows without any covering except the clothes we had worn all day, but our efforts proved rather futile, and we were all glad when the train from the west came along about 3 a.m., and took us aboard for Port Arthur. A canoe trip of something like 200 miles in and about the Saw Bill, Upper Seine and Atik-Okan districts, with an energetic fellow-traveler like Mr. Wiley, whose motto seems to be "I never sleep," taxes the physical energies of the bravest, and I think that at the end of it my genial companion himself felt rather tired out (though, of course, he maintained that he didn't), for, on reaching home, he is reported to have indulged in a snooze of some hours' duration.

F. D. L. S.

Port Arthur, Dec. 30.—A glittering silver spike driven into the Canadian Northern track yesterday noon at Antikokan by Hon. E.J. Davis, commissioner of crown lands for Ontario, and Mr. Jas. Conmee, M.P.P. for Algoma, marked the formal completion of the new Winnipeg-Port Arthur line, of the Canadian Northern.

Although the line was formally opened there is a section of three or four miles uncompleted, but it is expected that by New Year's Day the metals will be joined. The private train leaving Winnipeg Sunday afternoon met at Antikokan a train from Port Arthur with a number of local men as well as the Toronto party. Those present at the ceremony were: From Winnipeg, Hon. C.H. Campbell, Mr. T.A. Burrows, M.P.P., land commissioner for the Canadian Northern; Mr. D.B. Hanna, general manager of the Canadian Northern; Mr. Geo. H. Shaw, traffic manager; Mr. J. Aird, manager of the Bank of Commerce; Mr. Wm. Georgeson, president of the board of trade; Mr. J.A. Osborne, editor of the Brandon Sun; Mr. J.G.H. McLean. Train-master Risteen, Mr. Hugh Sutherland.

The party from Toronto was as follows: Mr. Wm. Mackenzie, Mr. D.D. Mann, Hon. E.J. Davis, Mr. Byron E. Walker, general manager of the Bank of Commerce; Mr. H.H. Lash, K.C., solicitor for the Canadian Northern; Mr. Lewis Lukes, accountant; Mr. J.J. Long, Collingwood; Mr. Alex. Mac­kenzie, Mr. W.H. Moore.

Those from Port Arthur were Mayor I.L. Mathews, Messers. Geo. T. Marks, B. Clavett, H.A. Wiley, Geo. Hodder, Col. S.W. Ray, D.F. Burk, A.J. Gorrie, T. Woodside, T.S. White, O. Mills, and from Fort William, Mayor W.F. Hogarth, Peter McKeller, Geo. A. Graham, president Rainy River Navi­ga­tion company, and J.T. Horne.

Driving the Spike.

Mr. R.J. Mackenzie did not come through to the opening ceremonies as he said he would stay on the Rainy River section till the last foot of track was laid. When the Ontario and Manitoba parties met at Antikokan the fine ten engine round house was examined, together with the machinery incidental to a divisional point. Then Mr. Mackenzie presented Hon. E.J. Davis with a magnificent silver spike. Mr. Jas. Commee, M.P.P., held the spike while the Ontario commissioner drove it home and the Ontario end of the line was formally declared open. The silver spike was afterwards prsented as a souvenir to the contractors.

The Speeches.

Brief speeches were then delivered. Mr. Commee said the occasion was one of the happiest of his life. For many years the people of Ontario had wanted this line. To-day saw their dream realized in practical form. He would venture to say that in a very few years the line would be one of the greatest grain carrying lines in Canada, and he estimated that in ten years or less the line would be double-tracked from end to end. Mr. Commee concluded by expressing his pleasure in being a supporter of a government that had done much to make the line a reality.

Hon. E.J. Davis.

Hon. E.J. Davis spoke in a similar strain. He remembered when but a private member of the Ontario House, appearing with a deputation of New Ontario members urging the government to assist this line. It was a task to educate some of the Ontario people in the south to the illimitable riches of the northern country but he was pleased to say that the education was now pretty well accomplished, and he was more than sanguine as to the future of Canada, and of this northwestern country. He believed that even yet it had not entered into the mind of Canadians how great their possession was. He was also pleased to tell the people of that section that the Ontario government were doing all in their power to turn immigration into the Rainy River country. In conclusion Hon. Mr. Davis said that this road of all roads in the Dominion of Canada had most reason to expect success, and he paid a tribute to the energy and ability of Messrs. Mackenzie and Mann and spoke of the value of such men to any country.

Mr. William Mackenzie.

Mr. Wm. Mackenzie was then called upon and greeted with hearty cheers. He thanked his friends for their kindness. He was perhaps more pleased than any one at the completion of the line. It had been up-hill work at first for the subsidies granted and offered were not sufficient to finance the line, but with the assistance of funds on both sides of politics, patriotic funds, in both the legislatures, and the Dominion House, the necessary aid was granted and the line was started with a just confidence in their ability to carry the matter to a successful conclusion. The result proved they were right. In conclusion Mr. Mackenzie thanked those who had helped the firm and he mentioned among others the Bank of Com­merce.

The ceremony at Antikokan concluded with three cheers for the King, the new road, Messers. Mackenzie and Mann, the Ontario and Manitoba governments and the Bank of Commerce. "God Save the King" was also sung after which the party took the train for Port Arthur arriving in the town at six o'clock Monday evening.

C. N. R. Mileage.

The line from Winnipeg to Port Arthur formally opened yesterday, adds 438 miles to the Canadian Northern system. Of course part of the line has been constructed for some time. Of this total distance 108 miles are in Manitoba, 43 in the State of Minnesota and the balance some 287 miles are in the province of Ontario. The entire mileage of the Canadian Northwestern system now is: Ontario, 354 miles, Minnesota, 50, Manitoba 883, Saskatchewan, 22; total 1,309 miles. Until to-day but 790 was in operation.

Residents' Welcome.

The first train over the Winnipeg-Port Arthur division was certainly very welcome to the residents along the line. Whole families stood lined up along the more settled parts of the country to see the first train go past. The division is very complete. Between Winnipeg and Port Arthur there are twenty-two stations and two divisional points. There is also in this distance forty-nine sidings, amounting in length to fifteen and a half miles, which is equal to five and a half per cent. of the total mileage. The section of line through the Rainy River country is specially beautiful, running as it does between lakes studded with islets and surrounded by thick forests. An immense [line missing here?] among the pile bridging was necessry in this section and in one fifteen miles there is 13,900 feet of pile bridging and trestle.

Parts of the line will be very productive of freight. One of the officials of the road said to-day that he knew two stretches of the lines each forty miles long which would contribute each two million bushels of wheat per year. Scattered all along the line are piles of lumber and ore which have been waiting, some of them for months for the completion of the railroad, in order to ship out to the markets of the world.

The Banquet.

The great banquet this evening at Port Arthur was probably the greatest occasion in the history of the town. At half-past eight o'clock two hundred of Canada's most prominent citizens sat down to dinner. The banquet, which is one given to Messrs. Mackenzie & Mann by the citizens of Port Arthur on the completion of the main line, was attended by representatives from Toronto, Winnipeg, Ottawa, Collingwood, Fort William, Fort Frances and Brandon and very many intermediate towns. The big Northern hotel, in which the banquet was held was profusely decorated with evergreens and Chinese lanterns, and in fact the whole town seemed to enter into the spirit of the occasion.

The banqueting hall was decorated in a unique and beautiful way. Besides potted plants, evergreens, flags, buntings and the usual decoration, one end of the hall was taken up with an almost life-size painting of a train of passenger cars. The cars were all enscribed with the C.N.R. and the engine's number was 1902. On the other end of the hall was a big motto, with portraits of Messrs. Mackenzie and Mann, with "energy, enterprise, ability" below. Some of the other mottos were: "Port Arthur, the Silver Gate­way of the Golden West." "Port Arthur by water to Liverpool, 4,000 miles; by rail to the Pacific ocean, 2,000 miles."

A unique feature of the decorations was a model C.N.R. railway over two hundred feet long. The stations along the line and the telegraph lines are reproductions of each section and a fine model of the proposed new terminal station was also pictured. The trains were represented on the lines in models.

Guests and Speakers.

Mayor Matthews occupied the chair of honor at the head of the hall. On his right were Mr. Mackenzie, Hon. Colin H. Campbell, Mr. Long, Rev. Father Arpin, and on his left Hon. E.J. Davis, Byron E. Walker, Jas. Commee, M.P.P., and Sheriff Thompson, of Port Arthur.

The speakers of this evening were in the following order: Messrs. Z.A. Lash, K.C., Toronto, and D.F. Burk, Port Arthur, in answer to the toast of "The Dominion Parliament;" Hon. E.J. Davis and Mr. Commee in answer to "The Ontario Legislature;" Hon. Colin H. Campbell in answer to "The Manitoba Legislature;" Messrs. Mackenzie and Mann in answer to "The Guests of the Evening;" Mr. B.F. Walker, "Banking and Commerce;" Messrs. J.J. Long, Wm. Georgeson, Geo. A. Graham and D.R. Hanna, "Transportation and Colonization;" "The Press," J.A. Osborne and M. Lawlor, of the Mail and Empire, Toronto.

The Speeches.

Mr. Lash, K.C., in speaking to the toast of "Dominion parliament," said he honored the same. The parliament next year had promised to help the Canadian Northern to the pacific ocean and thus give to Canada two transcontinental lines. Mr. D.F. Burk also spoke.

Ontario's Voice.

Hon. E.J. Davis was greeted very heartily. He said he desired to express the regrets of Premier Ross at his inability to attend. Later the chairman would read a telegram from Mr. Ross to better explain his message. The completion of the Canadian Northern counted a great deal for New Ontario, for Old Ontario and for Manitoba, and it was a great day for Port Arthur. There never was a day when the interests of Ontario were in as prosperous a condition as on the day the Canadian Northern was completed. Take the lumber industry as one of the great provincial industries. From information the minister believed that 1901 was the most prosperous year in Ontario's history. This year will see the largest dues for timber that had ever been concluded. Then the working men that helped to make the lumber industry had fared well too. They had been getting better wages this year then ever before. The records also showed this year a large number of settlers located in New . . . . [The corner of the microfilmed page is torn diagonally across the last 30 lines of text.]