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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Exeter Advocate, 1924-10-30, Page 3a CN TRAL CANADA'S FUEL PROBLEM Alberta One of the Possible Sources of Supply—Production and Transportation .Questions. One of the possible sources: of a Cianadian c'oa1 supply for Ontario and Quebec is the province of Alberta and it is with the possibilities and prob- lems of this s•aurce that the present arrti•ole deals. Alberta has immense resources of coal. The problem is how to get it to far ayyry Ontario and Quebec as a cost low enough to enable it to compete with coal from the nearby United States. In fact, the province contains seventeen per cent. of the coal re- sources of the world, and about eighty per cent, of the ooal resourees of Can- ada. D. B. Dowling, of the Geological Survey of Canada, in "The Goal Re- sources of the World," has estimated that Alberta contains an actual re- serve of over 385.,000 million tons and a probable reserve of about 674,000 million tons. This makes a total re- serve for the province of considerably over 1,000,000 million ton. A. close geological study of the Drumheller area, one of the principal producing areas of Alberta, shows that it alone will be equal to the needs of many future generations'. The yield, it is estimated, will amounh to ap- proximately 1,200 tons per acre foot with an aggregate of ten feet of work- able coal over at leant 6,0.00 acres. Geolopists estimate the reserve -amounts to nearly 100 million tons. With reserves such as these, it may be confidently predicted that coal min- , ing in Alberta is only in its infancy. The industiy began in 1881. when coal was dug from the bake of the river at Lethbridge, A little later a mine was opened at Anthracite on the mainline of the C.P.R. from which coal was ob- tained for the use of locomotives . and boilers : in connection with the heavy construction work .encountered in building that railway through the Rocky Mountains. From this small be- ginning the industry has grown till to- day there are 380 mines in operation, producing in the neighborhood of 6; 000,000 tone perannum, and giving em- ployment to over 6,500 persons. The problem of the industry in Al- berta has been to find markets for the large tonnage vrhidh it is possible to produce. Post war conditions and la- bor troubles in the United States of recent years have so increased the t. of United States anthracite, the which has until lately almost Monopolized the market in, Central {3anada, that an opening was created for the Alberta product in this popu- lous area, Experimental shipments ;Sere made to Ontario and the public 'gas convinced that Alberta coal was ss most desirable domestic fuel. Freight totes were high, however, and the $uestion was, could it compete with inited States anthracite when condi- tions across the border became nor- mal.. Last year the Canadian National Railways out their rate temporarily on aP coal from Alberta to Ontario to $7 a ton in an effort to encourage and popu- larize its use east of the Great Lakes. The continuation of nits, low rate, it was intimated, was coiiditiouai on the operators likewise reducing their rates in order to extend the market. 'Un- fortunately, 'production costs due to the large number of mines operating. only a part of the year and the ease with which new mines can lie oeene when demand increases, have alway been comparatively high, This season further complications have . been in- jected into the problem by serious la- bor troubles, In the Drumheller die- trict, for instance,the output for March was only 35 per cent. of noriiiai. Of 22 mines only 3 worked continuous- ly and these were forced to close for two or three days per week during the first three months of the present year, In District No. 16, one of the large pro- ducing districts in Alberta, the oper- ators claim that wages amount to 65 per cent. of the total cost of produc- tion. The result has been that, due to ,these causes and also -In part to the short season during which the mines are operated, high production costa. have continued. This situation has given United States coal a chanee,to enter even the market west of the Great Lakes, a market in which Western Canadian coal gained supremacy during and im- mediately after the close of the war. This area, which now imports around 2,000,000 tons annually, is a `natural preserve for Alberta and Western Can- ada coal. United States coal interests, however, are making a strong bid for it, and they have the advantage not only of being highly organized but al- so of favorable transportation to the head of the lakes in boats returning there for cargoes of grain. When the navigation season is closed by winter this coal is hauled west from Port Ar- thur and Fort William as return freight in grain ears that would other- wise have to return empty. While Alberta has all the natural fa- cilities for developing a large and pro- fitable coal mining' industry it is ap- parent that some radical changes will have to be made in organization before the industry comes into its own. Over- development is probably the chief trouble to -day, and some system is needed for regulating the opening up of new mines until there is an assured market for their product. The produc- tive capacity is four times the demand, so thmre is a problem also of getting more markets. The Central Canada market together with the one west of the Great Lakes are natural selling fields, and there are prospects too for developing a market in Vancouver and Seattle for bunkering of grain. cargo ships. As soon as Alberta coal can be placed on these markets on a sound economic basis there is little doubt• therewill be an effective demand. d s, COMPASS DOES NOT POINT NORTH 7 The magnetic compass has been need for more than 600 years and 'to - di y is more widely employed than fiver before; by miners underground, +y explorers, travellerre hunters, trap- pers, prospectors, pioneers, timber u-uisers and others overland, by nevi- ' tors on the seas; and by airmen h above the earth. With this small, dentate, restless instrument they are aBnabied to telI direction. Yet contrary 4e popular belief the magnetic Donn - pass doesnot point due north, but more or less eastward or westward of at different places. At Halifax it tints twenty-two degrees west of berth, a:t Vancouver twenty-five de east of north, while at Fort Me- herson, on the Mackenzie river, with- ;ie the Arctic circle, it paints forty-four IIteast of north, Scientists state t thle is, because, the niagnetio poles ed,' the earth' are not situated at the geographical poles as shown on our Minis of the world.' Changes From Year to Year. The problem of the compass Is still farther complicated by the fact that it &tinges its direction from year to year; it marches to the westward for Many years, then turne backward and marches to the eastward, then re- verses again and marches to the west- wserd, `etc. Moreover, its very 'confue- jag behaviour is quite different in dif- ferent places: Whether this Is caused by a shifting of the magnetic "poles, by changes within the earth itself, or 'bygone? influence of the gun or planets,. scientists' have not yet been able to determine. Surveys Necessary.. In order that the compass may be wedwith reliance, therefore, the dif- ferent countries of the world carry out 9iiagnetic surveys to measure its exact erection, and supply the information to the publJlo in the form ofmagnetic maps. Owing to the continual shift- ing or "march" of the compass., as it Called, the work accomplished by a Magnetic survey would become .obso- lete unless proper corrections are ap- ied; so this march- is measured at tale points and the work :corrected accordingly from time to time. Canadian Survey One of Largest, This infarmtedon-is particularly Valu- able in such a large new country as Granada, and it is therefore interesting to note that one of the largest mag- netic snrveva, ag-fletic,°snrvey., in tha ci4' 1st beine The Earl of Beauchamp has been elected leader of the Liberals in the House of Lords to succeed Viscount Gray of Fallowdon, who resigned the post recently because of ill -health. made in this country by the Topogra- ehical Survey of Canada whose field parties cover such wide areas on their '•and surveys. The cost is very slight because these measurements take but a minute or two and are made during spare moments in the land surveys._ The magnitude of the work accomp- lished since it commenced in 1880 is drown by the fact that nearly 20;000 of those measurements have been made already and maps published, showing the results, for compass users. --r Great Mirada. Think Alike. Pat had been hurt. It wasn't much more than a scratch, but his; employer, with vis•ions of being obliged to keep hiin for t-he'rest of his life, sent him to a hospital for enamination. The doc- tor said: "As subcutaneous abrasion is not observable, I do not think there Jo any reason to apprehend tegumental cica- trization of the wound." Ah," said Pat in relief, "ye took the very words out of me mouth." Baby Seals' Fear Water. Baby seals are afraid of water, - -arid have to learn'to swim by repeated of Cadet Rumbold, eleven years 'old, is the youngest sailor cadet in the British Isles, The young lad is shown being initiated into the art of splicing on board. H.M.S. Worcester. Old Times. There are no days like the good ol I days— The days when we were youthful! When humankind were pure of mind, And speech and deeds were truthful Before a love for sordid gold Became man's ruling passion, And before each dame and., maid be- came Slave to the tyrant fashion! There are no giris like the good ol Against the world I'd stake 'em, As buxom and smart and clean heart As the Lord knew howto make 'em They were rich in spirit andcommon sense, .And piety all•supportin'; They could bake and brew, and bad taught school, too, And they made such likely courtin'. Canadian Wheat and Flour. d' The remarkable development of the demand for flour in the Far Eastern markets and its ,satisfaction by the shipment of Canadian wheat and flour through Vancouver, constitutes in the view of the London Times a grave dan- ger to the British food supply. In an editorial the Times notes that where- as in 1922-23 there were exported through Vancouver alone 770;000 bushels of wheat to China and 2,610,- d. 000 bushels to Japan, in the following year exports to China had increased to 5,206,000 bushels and to' Japan to of 7,058,000 bushels. During the same period exports of flour had increased . from 99,000 barrels to 302,000 barrels - to Hong Kong, and from 270,000 bar - There are no boys like the good old boys, When we were boys together; When the grass wasi sweet to the brown bare feet, That dimpled the laughing heather. When the peewee sung to the summer dawn, Of the bee in the billowy clover, Or down by the mill the whip -poor -will Echoed his, night song over. There is no love Iike the good old love -- The love that mother gave us, We are old, old men, yet we pine again For that precious grace, God gave us•! So we dream and dream of the good old times, And our hearts grow tenderer, fonder, As those dear old dreams bring sooth- ing gleams Of heaven away off yonder. —Eugene Field. Foolhardy, "Owing to a severe storm the surf was so dangerous that the authorities forbade bathing from the beach. The young woman, however, a strong and courageous swimmer, insisted on put- ting on her bathing suit and entering th"e water. She was. caught in the un- dertow, swept out to sea and drowned," So reads the newspaper dispatch. How many fine young men and women, now dead, would be alive to -day if ,good swimmers were as readyto use their reason and common sense as they are to display their strength and courage! A Sharp Answer. "The difference between a woman and a glass," remarked the funny man, "is that the glass reflects • without speaking, while a woman speaks with- out reflecting. "And the difference between you and a glassy' said the sharp girl, "is that the glass is polished," No serviceable tooth should be pull- ed until after a consultation between dentist and "physician, according to the theory of " a professor of an Am- erican University cels to 504,000 barrels, to China. Re- viewing the' population figures, the Times continues: "It is clear that there is nothing in- herently improbable in a further ra- pid increase of the demand for wheat and flour in the Chinese market in the near future, and it Is equally clear that such a demand must be met from a surplus production for which these islands compete. The development of modern milling in Shanghai and other ports in China in recent years has ben amazing, and it casts less to bring wheat -to Shanghai across. the Pacific than from the northwestern. province of China. This year the late- ness of the grain crop in Western Can- ada will probably result in the exporta- tion of a larger portion through Van- couver than through Montreal be' water: It would, not be right to de- clare the situation is alarming, but no one who looks to the future rather than at the immediate present, can fail to recognize that if this country is oompelled to continue to import four- fifths of its wheat requirements, it le, impossible to view without anxiety the development of an important competi- tion for the surplus supplies which are now available." Fortune From a Wink. JackieCoogan, the infant prodigy of the film world, was discovered by Charlie Chaplin on the platform of a Pennsylvania railway station, _Chaplin was walking up and down waiting for a train when he wasstruck by th piquant face of the child. As he looked at him admirably the small boy suddenly and gravely winked at him. His intense gravity and self-possession decided ' Charlie Chaplin that Jackie must be secured for the films at once. Tackle Coogan's first appearance: weenier• Chaplin's six -part film, "The Kid." Wasting Energy. Kit's another is a keen motorist, and as a result Kit, though only three, is familiar with all sorts of motoring terms. The other day the cat was lying Bring Wildly outside the front door. Kit stooped to pat him, and turning to his mother said, earnestly: "Pussy ought to shut off the engine, oughtn't he, mummy, when he's stop- ping euta r_.1 i ?" de rouse? Forts. When once theyhave`-' i'enton he now been named the "Hollywood", of Canada sinceOn- been taught to swim,, • however; they soon tari.o go emnment has established a motion picture bureau there; Here is tho +orget to walk,, . studio, which is fully, equipped for film work. . CANADA'S BIG GALE RESOURCES International fleeting Indicat es the Dominion's Fortunate Position -Distribution of Game in Quebec That Canada was one of the most for- , nental Railway, west of the Lake St; tunate countries in regard to her re- John country. sources in big game and all that this 'As to the Ottawa districa• and its eback country, the 1a, means• for the health of the whole' normo and Timiskaming re us 1attawit people was brought out at the recent may be said that moose, caribou and meeting. in Quebec of the Internation-i deer are all found there. Partridges, al Association of Game, Fish and Con wild ducks and wild geese also abound 1 servation Commissioners.. At . this !. in their seasons. All the country meeting of the association, of which watered by the Dumoine and.Magan- Mr. J. B. Harlon, Commissioner 01 asfbi and neighboring rivers. is full of Canadian National Parks, Department large game, constituting a phenomenal of the Interior, was elected president, i hunting ground. In the Mattawa des- delegates attended from many parts of ;trio, big game is not as plentiful as it the continent, and Canada's pre- I once was, but there is more ef`it far then north, in and about the eminence in big game was stressed. .Kipawa country. Much reach -h valuable work was done the e•` exchange of :views and in the On the south side of the St. Law- rence red deer are plentiful in almost ing of decisions which will lead to the strengthening and harmonizing of every part of the. Eastern Townships, game laws throughout North America, where any wild forest land remains, One of the most informative papers and also In the. counties of Nicelot, was that of Mr. J. A. Beliisile, Super- Lotbiniere, Beauce, Dorchester, Belle- intendent of Game and Fisheries for cheese, Montmagny, l'Islet, Kaniour. the province of Quebec, .who in the aska and parts of Temiscouata, as well course of his address on" How Quebec as in the wilder portions of Compton and Megantie. Protects its Game" spoke of the dis- tribution of game in that province ,. " Almost the whole of that part o1 While Mr. Bellisle, dealt only with Que the southern portion of the province bee his paper gave an idea of the great 'of Quebec, adjacent to the•state of resource Canada has in game in the Maine, is an unsettled wilderness, and forested portions of the different pro- is full of big .game. Many moose as winces: well as red deer, roam the forests of FoIIowing are extracts taken from Beaune and around Lake Megantio, Mr. Bellislea paper:— Moose are wonderfully plentiful in the "The Lake Edward country has Temiseouata country, oas well as in long been renowned for the•large num- erase e y and Rf them , and is, her of moose that have been secured manse numbers ads ream undies there. So are many other parts of our forbad over thousands of square rtes north country, of virgin. forest, in the heart of the Y especially in the Gaspe peninsula. Here they find a Rivire a Pierre, Riviere Vermilion, safe asylum in the Gaspesian Porest, Peribonca, Lake St. John, and Segue- Fish and Game reserve, while thous• nay districts. Chicoutimi is also the ands of caribou find a fairly secure oentre of a first-class moose and carr- retreat in the forests along the Pat, ,bou country, and so are the head- pedia and about the headwaters of the waters of the Ottawa and Gatineau Matapedia in the interior of Rimouski rivers. Moose are plentiful in the and Matane, as well as at the head. forests along the St. Maurice river and waters of the rivers Sowing into Gaspe the line of the National Transconti- Basin." According to Pian. Although it was rather late In the year, it was a warm, fine day on the. sands, and the three little boys were very happy with their spades and buckets, each intent on his own par- ticular piece of work. They had organized a kind of com- petition between them. This. morning they agreed that each should build a model of a. motor car. One of them had piled and patted and cajoled the. sand into a resemblance of a racing car, another had •constructed, with fair success, a touring car. But the third little fellow's construction was without shape or form. "What sort of a car is yours?" asked a passer-by, who was taking an in- terest in the proceedings. The boy made no reply. "Yours looks like two or three cars all together," he was told. "Yes.," answered the little chap loftily, "That's just what it is. Mine's a collision." Hammer Still In Use. "An old Greek philosopher says the invention of music was brought about through the sounds made by ham), merge" "Undoubtedly, true. The girl who gave him that idea is still hammering I away in the apartment right nextto - ours!".. Interesting Data on Ottawa Valley Quake. Earthquakes are, fortunately, ab most unknown in Canada. One occurs from time to time along the St. Law: rence river below Quebec and oe casionaliy, but more rarely, a tremor is felt in British Columbia, In the Ob tawa, valley very slight chocks hap pen -event three or four years and such an earthquake was felt by many persons in that valley on the evening of July 14 last. The shock was recorded• on the eei* mograph at the Dominion Observatory' Ottawa, the first preliminary tremors beginning at ten minutes and nineteen seconds• after seven p.m., eastern stand and time and continuing until sevens fifteen. As usual in such cases the Seismologic Division of the Dominion Observatory sent out questionnaires to the postmasters in those sections of the country likely to be axeoted but the mas of data received in reply to the five hundred forms mailed has not yet been completely worked: up. No damage wan done at any point. The results to date from the ques- tionnaires indicate that the epicentre of the quake was near the Ottawa river and inthat section bordered by the county of Renfrew, Ontario. They show that the "fault line" or line of weakness, Iles along the Ottawa river and also along the valley of the Gati- neau. The noise phenomenon was par ticulariy marked and seemed to indi. cate that the quake moved from south- west to northeast in many cases. Snakes as Barometers. According to an old weather super- stition uperstition rain is foretold by the appear- ance ppearanoe and activity of snakes. Stories About W ell -Known People The Embarrassed Judge. Here is a story of Lord Darling in the days . when he was Mr. Justice Darling:— The famous judge was in a train which: had halted at a wayside station. A man came up to the carriage door, and asked if he were, addressing Mr.' Justice Darling. On being told that. he was, he said: "Oh, we have a kind i of connection with you. You sentenced my father to death not long ago." The judge murmured some words of re gret. "Not at all," said the man. "Father was a dreadful man. He mur- dered nurdered our mother." "Dear ane! said the judge; "a ter- rible errible tragedy for you all.". "Not at all," said the other again. "Mother treated us all shamefully. In fact, wrong as it was, it solved a great many problems for us." , "chronic" singleness has not been without its amusing side. Once, when he was Mr, A"J. Balfour, he was stay- ing at a hotel when a postcard was brought to him. It read. "Baby going on nicely. I really think she has grown since you left," He blushed deeply and felt very em- barrassed until it was discovered that there was. another A. J. B. among the guests. 0. Trials of Portrait -Painters, There are times when the most sue- cessful portrait painters. feel a loath- ing far their craft. Millais, though he made a point of having four months' holiday out of the twelve, could earn $200,000 a year. Yet he told a friend that he detested portrait -painting. "It is killing work to an artist who is sensitive. You have only yourself to please in other pictures. In por- traits. you have also to please the sit - tet• and the sitterae friends and rela tions," 111r. Sargent, who has received as Much as $50,000 for a single portrait, declared some years ago that he would paint no more portraits ' and for a period clung to this resolve. "Some sitters get on my nerves so inteneely, he says, "that I have to retire every now and then behind a screen; and put out nay tongue to re. sieve my feelings!" Portraits which the critics admire may fail to please the original. "Why is nay face so red I look as 11 I had been drinking," complained Car- dinal Manning, on seeing his portrait by IVlillale--one of the finest portralta in the world, according to Fordaladoe Brown. A Great Find: Most people know what great in- terest Lard Cowdray tookin the search for oil wells in Britain.. The engineer in charge of one of'the bor- ing parties sent Lord Cowdray a bot- tle ottle of crude oilto bo analysed. Lord Cowdray gave the bottle to a maid to take to an analytical chemist. By mistake tbe girl picked up the wrong bottle. Soon afterwards the engineer re- ceived this wire: "Congratulations. Your fortune is made. You have struck paregoric!" Making .Balfour Blush. Probably the most famous, bachelor of to=day is Lord Balfour, who has per- sistently shunned matrimony, in spite of rumor's efforts to couple his name with that of some fair liadv. -THip' 4 a LA.11Yl4s..