28 Pacific GREAT EASTERN Ratiway BE rt.

undesirable animals are culled out and results in a superior grade for the
Province as a whole.

Speaking generally, it may be said that there is adjacent to all present
ranches and possible ranches along the Pacific Great Eastern Railway an
abundance of summer grazing which isnot met with on the prairie ranges
proper. This feed comprises, mostly, rich grasses, succulent weeds, and
browse that is ideal for mature as well as young stock. It is estimated
that from 4 to 1 ton of hay per head is required for winter feed on the
more southerly ranches in Pacific Great Eastern territory. Much of the
range along the Fraser is fairly free of snow, and where bunch-grass pastures
are properly protected steers can be carried through the winter with but
little hay. Farther north, in the Blackwater River section, from 1 to 3
tons of hay is sufficient for winter purposes. There are numerous valleys,
more or less timbered, that furnish ample shelter for stock, and blizzards
such as are commonly met with on large tracts of prairie country are
unknown.

Undoubtedly, the man who goes in for stock-raising in the northern
section of the Pacific Great Eastern Railway Belt and who gives proper
care and attention to this line will develop highly successful business connec-
tions and get his cattle to market under eminently satisfactory conditions.

THE MARKET FOR FARM PRODUCTS.

The fact that only a comparatively small portion of British Columbia,
a Province with an enormous area, is adapted for agricultural purposes
has resulted in a very heavy importation of foodstuffs annually. As her
available arable lands become settled her local markets readily absorb the
bulk of all products raised, and the purchasing power of these markets is
constantly on the increase. Pulp-mills, mines, sawmills, fisheries, as well
as numerous industrial communities along the railway-lines, consume prac-
tically all products raised by the Central Interior, and any surplus is easily
taken care of by outside markets, to which there is convenient access.

The growth of agriculture in the Province as a whole has not kept
pace with the growth of the cities and towns. The standard of living in
these centres is high, and with the prospect of renewed development and a
marked increase in her population in the next few years the products of the
farm should command firm and decidedly remunerative prices.

So far as the stock-raising industry is concerned, it is only necessary
to note that British Columbia to-day brings in annually for home consump-
tion about 15,000 head of beef cattle. At a meeting of the Western Stock-
breeders’ Association held at Calgary on April 3rd, 1923, the Prairie grower
of beef was told that “ British Columbia will furnish a good market for
some time, as at the present period they are producing only 25 per cent. of
the cattle required.”

The following tables, taken from Bulletsn No. 94 of the Department
of Agriculture, show the local market available for farm products :—