The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1896-12-05

| also test their sea going powers in this
| broad northern basin. In short none of
| the great lakes of North America fur
nishes greater attractions for the sports
| man. bOatman, or yachtsman. AL
! though midway between the Atlantic
| and Pacific oceans and five to six hun
dred miles from the Hudson Bay to
the north, this Winnipeg district has as
plentiful a supply of cheap and de-
| licious fish of most all varieties of the
| iinny family as any locality on the
| continent.
| The great marshes, too, about the
mouth of the Red river extend for
miles and form one of the largest duck
grounds in the northwest and they ac-
| tually swarm with all kinds of water
| fowl in their seasons. Here the sports
man can shoot till his gun gets too
| hot to hold and even at random can
| kill enormous bags of choice duck. In
the vicinity of Fort Alexander, at the
mouth of the Winnipeg river. are
moose. caribou and bear: also the same
are found on the western shore of the
| lake and about Big Island" and
| Grassy Narrows" uncounted ilocks of
| wild geese resort.
| PROVINCE OF ONTARIO.
| Resuming our journey from East Sell
| kirk the road runs eastward over
| prairie-like area. In thirty-four miles
| We come to Whitemouth, in lake
| country, where are numerous saw
mills, and at Rennie rocky woods and
| rich clover lands: at Ingolf we enter
| the province of Ontario. At Keewatin
is the mammoth Touring mill built of
| granite found on the spot. Here are
| the extensive newly completed works
| of the Keewatin Power company,whic
| made the Lake of the Woods one of
the greatest water powers in the world,
| a gigantic mill pond covering an area
of over 5000 square miles and capable
of supplying unlimited water power for
the manufacturing needs of the north
west.
Right in the heart of this wilder
| ness after a run of twelve miles is the
forAer post of the HudsOn's Bay com
pany of Rat Portage at the outlet or
the Lake of the Woods" when we
suddenly come upon a dozen busy saw
| mills. their chimneys black against
the sky and standing high above all
these are immense Touring mills built
of granite with a cluster of grain ele-
vators and warehouses about them.
Rat Portage is divisional point of
the Canadian Pacific, a city of i,oo0
population lying on the borders of and
the principal outlet of the Lake of the
Woods. Here are fine churches, excel
lent school buildings. two ably con-
Quoted weekly papers, and live town
generally.
LAKE OF THE WOODS.
This lake is the largest body of
water touched by the Canadian Pacific
railway between the Pacific and Lake
Superior. and is famed for its scenery.
1t Is the great gateway to the new
found gold fields of the so-called
Rainy District" of Ontario and Mime
sofa, where gold ore was discovered in
large quantities in 1894. This lake Is
studded with thousand islands,
and another favoritc resort for sports
men and pleasure seekers. Its waters
break through narrow run at both
Rat Portage and keewatin and create
an enormous waterfall into the Winni-
peg river; at the former place only
soc yards width of land divides the lake
and the Winnipeg river. Small indeed
is that water power which built up
Minneapolis when compared with this
gigantic fall and series Of falls on this
lake.
There exists through this wilderness,
this chain of lakes and rivers. which
make possible with small pOrtages
here and there continuous navigation
for hundreds and even thousands of
miles. Portages are points separating
one sheet of water from another where
boats and goods are transported.
Through these great water highways
the Indians, and later on the fur trad
ers guided their canoes among these
intricate channels. During the build
ing of the Canadian Pacific railroad
these inland waters served good pur-
pose in transporting supplies. The rail-
road Is carried across several of these
arms and bays of little lakes and in
places there are extensive fills one.
"Viaduct Lake" is crossed by a cause
way which took 100000 cubic yards of
earthworks to fill says Superintendent
Whyte. of the Canadian Pacific rail-
way. GA further reference will be
made later on)
A NORTHERN SUMMER RESORT.
Rat Portage is known as the Sara
toga of the West" Special trains |
arrive here from Winnipeg and
regular trains are often held |
here for Sunday excursions through
this Canadian archipelago. Many who
have enjoyed the scenery found here
declare it to be unrivalled on the con-
tinent, far SURPRISING the Thousand
Islands of the st. Lawrence in beauty
and interest. Fine steamers and small |
craft make regular runs to Fort Fran
els and the Rainy Gold Field Dis
trict." besides other resorts, daily. |
Steam ferries and launches ply on the
lake. too. and to and from
would be difficult to conceive
anything more beautiful of its
kind than the scenery of this great |
chain of lakes. Islands rise in continu-
Gus clusters and in every variety of
form. Sometimes in passing through
them the prospect seems entirely shut
in. Soon again it opens out and through
long vistas a glance is obtained of an
ocean-like eXpanse where the waters
meet the horizon. In appearance this
lake sprawls like a huge silver spider
amid romantic surroundings. These
islands are dotted with the summer
residences and camps of Winnipeg's
elite. For those who are fond of gaZ
ing on the rugged grandeur of the
frowning islands of the Lake of the
Woods. or into the gaping shaft Of a
gold mine (for here are rich gold
mnes), the proprietor has steam
launch to place at their disposal. !
manned by courteous and competent
officers. who are only too glad to obey
the commands of the hotel guests.
Jam Frazier Caldwell. owner of the
Sultana gold mines at Rat Portage. in
formed the writer that a happy future
awaited this section in gold mining
operations. fact indicated by the |
steady growth of that industry since |
it's discovery and by its enlisting also |
both English and American capital |
lists. The Sultana mine had shaft 200
feet deep. drifts extending over 500
feet. levels. etc. The quartz is called |
free milling quartz; and the gold is re-
covered by simple stamping and ANAL |
gamation with mercury. Ten stamps |
recover $1,000 in pure gold per week. |
This is a new country, but promising. |
The delay in its development is mainly |
due to the Dominion government dis |
putting the operators rights to these !
gold mines.
The fishing industry is the prominent |
feature here. Ten American companies |
employ 1876 boats, 236 nets and the value |
of their catch i'm 1894 was 50 O0O, 900, and |