Evening journal., 1909-09-13
R. ]. MACLEAN ON
CANADIAN TRIP
Writes From Port Arthur
About Agricultural Posi-
biI.tieS of Country

r. J. Maclean, president Of the VIII
mington Board Of Trade who is now
travelling in Canada writes the EVEN
ING JOURNAL as follows from Port
Arthur under date Of September 2:
After calling at some OF tho New
York cities, 1 concluded to take the
northern route TO the Pacifc--the Can
adian Pacific Railway-and return by
way of Denver and Chicago.
There are several routes from Buff
falo to reach the main line of the c..
p. Rail water route by way Of Lake
Erie, Lake Huron and Lake Superior
to Port Arthur; rail to Toronto, owen
Sound on the Georgian Bay. and then
boat to Port Arthur; rail to Toronto
and then due north. two hundred and
sixty miles, to Sudbury. For scenery
and picturesqueness. the lake routes
are said to be unsurpassed on the con-
tinent, the trip through the Georgian
Bay islands SURPRISING that through
the Thousand Islands OF the st. Law
renee. However, / concluded TO take the
land route. so as to see as much as
possible Of the north land. A new
country has always had a fascination
for me.
Leaving Toronto at 11.35 in the morn
/ ing, I arrived at Sudbury about $3.50
the same day. The first one hundred
miles is very interesting from a farm
| ing point of view, the country being
similar to the best agricultural COM
munities Of New York State especially
that section lying between Rochester
and Buffalo. It looks as if it were
even more carefully cultivated. Most
of the farmers appear to have one hun
dred acres. Brick houses predominant
and each farm has excellent barns
Many of the houses on the first fifty
miles of the trip would do credit to
the best streets of a city Some OF
these houses cost. so ] was informed
from $4,000 to $4,000 to build. Wheat
barley and oats are the chief products
Of this district. Each farm has small
fruit orchard, this being good sec
tion for apples. plums, cherries and
pears.
Occasionally an Abraham Lincoln
house is seen, giving the traveller an
idea Of the houses built by the early
settlers. These houses are now used
as play-houses by the children. This
section and in fact all Of southern
Ontario was originally dense forest
1t was settled about one hundred and
twenty-five years ago, chiefly by the
Scotch and other emigrants from the
northern parts of England and Ireland
In the western part Of the province
there were several large settlements
Of northern Germans, several of the
towns there now bearing names of
German origin. These Scotch, Ger
mans, Irish and English were good
farmers in the home land and gave the
new land the benefit Of their exper-
lienee. The result is that southern on
ltario is today unexcelled on the conti-
nent as an agricultural district Many
Of the descendants Of these early farm
ers moved TO Michigan, the Dakotas
and other western States and did much
70 develop these states as farming
communities. Southern Ontario was
also settled extensively by United En-
lplre Loyallsts-those who had taken
the side of the English government
during the Revolutionary war and who
preferred to continue subjects Of that
government.
Along the first seventy miles Of the
trip. there are numerous prosperous
villages. The town of Alliston, about
sixty miles north of Toronto. Impress
ed me as a specially prosperous place
Between there and Toronto most of the