The Challis messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1912-current, 1925-09-23
hudson [2AW
COUNTRY e

tributions to him have been firearms
and steel traps.
The climate Of Hudson bay IL very
! cold In winter. Due to its high tides,
| howeyer-about IL feet on the average
the bay does not freeze over solidly,
| but has large fields OF broken ice, with
rough Ice barriers along the shores
| In summer the days become long and
hot, and most Of the Ice has melted
| by August Local navigation LIS pos
slble much earlier The bay is shall
low and heats up rapidly. so that the
summer water temperature is higher
than that of Lake Superior
There is good soil around James
bay. especially on the east side 1t Is
not improbable that when railroad
penetrates to the southern end OF the
| bay, settlers move in and necessary
machinery becomes available. the
James bay country may become an
agricultural and dairy region Excel
lent gardens are grown at Moose Fac
tory, Rupert House East Main River
and Fort George The vegetables that
thrive In these plots are potatoes and
practically all root crops, cabbage, let
tuce, rhubarb and berries Oats have
been grown successfully at several
posts, maturing perfectly. There are
no facilities in the region, however.
for threshing grain. Grass grows lux
uriantIy near James bay and in valleys
even farther north. and at several Of
the posts cows and horses are kept
Under the sun Of July and August
flowers spring up everywhere 1t Is
no uncommon thing to see acres of
wild roses. wild sweet peas, yiolets
and other blossoms. The enc domi-
nantly important factor in agriculture
in this region seems TO be to drain
the soil adequately.
Whites Live Comfortably.
The white residents at the little fur
trading posts of Hudson bay do net
live in the rough way that might be
! supposed Thanks to transportation
| through Hudson strait In summer.
many of the factors have well-built
houses that would not be out of place
INTELLECTUALLY in American or Cana
dian towns Within are pianos, Ameri-
can and European furniture. we'll
filed bookcases. paintings. china, ST.
yer and linen Besides canned and
bottled goods of every description the
post families have fresh vegetables
summer and winter (from their root
cellars in the latter easel while fish
and wild game are abundant
4 Christianity has taken a strong hold
| on the Indians and some OF the Es-
| kimos of Hudson bay. There Is a
modest little cathedral" ar Moose
Factory, the see of a bishop of the
Anglican church; and at all Of tbs
posts are churches or missions Not
/ every church edifice has a pastor, but
there are several ministers In the re-
gion who go from place to place, and
In their absence services are con-
Quoted by the lay readers In these
/ posts on the edge of the wilderness
Sundays are scrupulously observed
The post store is closed no journeys
| are started or work done. and the en-
tire population goes TO church In the
south the services are conducted in
the local Indian tongue, farther north.
in Eskimo. The summer visits OF the
bishop are events that share impor-
lance with the arrival Of the annual
ship.
So far Hudson bay has played the
role of furrier to the world. In the
| years TO come it may add other parts
to its repertory- Agriculture. 1t has
been seen, is not out of the question
/ Ar,r MIL "a
| north of James bay on the east coast
a large river plunges 10 feet almost
| at the shore line Undoubtedly there
is much water power going TO waste
behind the great cliffs of the north
eastern coast Some day it may be
feasible to harness this power to fur
nish light and heat and power to the
southern settlements. Reconnaissance
has disclosed considerable quantities
OF iron ore and other minerals along
the east coast that ii may some time
be profitable to work-perhaps with
the aid of nearby water power
Hudson bays greatest opportunity
for future service. however. seems TO
be as a short salt water route to
Europe for the grain of the western
| Canadian provinces Port Nelson and
Fort Churchill. both at the mouths OF
rivers on the west coast, have been
urged as the future great port of the
! bay. Shortly before the World war
this project was being rushed through,
and a railway. connecting with the ex-
listing system near Lake Winnipeg,
was pushing toward Port Nelson 1t
actually reached within 90 miles Of Its
ldestination when work was abandoned
because of the war. Since peace came
funds have been unavailable TO resume
work. and the track. through northern
plain and muskeg. is falling into dis
repair. From Regina and points west
in the Canadian grain country rail
haul of 1000 miles or more would be
saved by shipping grain through Port
Nelson. The project would involve
the erection of large elevators ON the
edge of Hudson bay in which to store
grain and dairy products during the
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