Dominion of Canada.

Northland Age, 18 October 1904, Page 3

Dominion of Canada.

Professor William Saunders, the Director of the Dominion experimental farms in Canada, gives us some idea of the vastness of the Empire’s granary across the sea. In an elaborate article on the wheat-growing possibilities of the Dominion, reprinted in pamphlet form from the “ Canadian Magazine,” the Professor points out that there are 171,000,000 acres of land in Manitoba, Assiniboia, Saskatchewan, and Alberta suitable for cultivation, exclusive of the possibilities of 155,000,000 acres in Athabasca, and 340,000,000 acres in Mackenzie, as to the capacity of which for profitable crop growing it is as yet impossible to form an opinion. Of the 171,000,000 acres above referred to, the acreage under crop in 1902 was barely 4,174,000, yet from this comparatively small area over 67,000,000 bushels of wheat and nearly 59,000,000 bushels of other grain were produced. Of course, it does not follow that all the land fit for settlement in Manitoba and the other provisional provinces is suitable for wheat growing, bnt Professor Saunders points out that were only one-fourth of the area under wheat, and the average production equal to that of Manitoba for the past ten years, the total orop would be over 812,000,000 bushels, which would be ample to. supply a Canadian population of 30,000,000 and meet the present wheat requirements of Great Britain three times oyer. If these figures are a near approach to accuracy, which we believe they are, a future of the greatest importance is opening for Canada, whioh is likely in a few years from now to be in a position not only to supply Great Britain with wheat but foreign countries as well.