The Central Interior and Coast District
of British Columbia along the
Grand Trunk Pacific

FEW years ago the North Pacific Coast was unknown land, except for the fleeting
glance of a gold-hungry traveler to the Yukon, and still less known was the
interior of the Central portion of British Columbia.

Since the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway surveys, however, were pushed through
and the vast areas of the very richest soil, with splendid climatic conditions, were
revealed to the explorers, the prospects for a very large traffic through the settlement
of this territory would seem alone to justify the construction of this line now completed.
Land-seekers and mineral and timber prospectors are flocking in, and they add their
tribute of praise for the marvelous rfossibilities of the country through the development
of its agriculture and other natural and diversified economic resources.

Markets

Nor are these promising areas to be remote from markets. On the contrary, the
exploitation of the resources of the country will make a considerable market in itself.
Prince Rupert—t he
west coast terminus of
the Grand Trunk Paci-
fic, and the Gateway to
Alaska—had a popu-
lation of nearly 5,000
people during the first
year of its existence. It
is a substantially-built
city, and will eventu-
ally have a very large
population, with the
rapidly-growing cities
of the north coast de-
pendent upon the sup-
plies of the interior for
their economic con-
sumption; with Alaska
and the Yukon ‘two
days nearer Prince Ru-
pert than any other
port: with a like say-
ing in time to the
Orient; and now that
the Panama Canal is
finished, the cereal pro-
ducts of the Central
Interior will be nearer
Europe in means of transportation than the Prairie Provinces of Western Canada.

Several prominent cities will flourish along the line of the Grand Trunk Pacific
in the very near future, a very large market alone for the produce of this soil and climate-
favored land.

British Columbia already consumes several times more than its production of the
farm, dairy, poultry and live stock; the value of the imports from outisde the Province,
as shown in Government returns for the last completed year, being:

A Typical Field of Oats in the Salmon River Valley, B.C.

BUGtCLa eee tre eee Per ee ee kee AO SOIO00N00
ROU Ltiyaa nh dake oS ae nee ee nner ace eet 5,823,269 .00
INSTICU CULO Maree Mine Hee eee Nits Big eet bce 10,515,816 .00

AGeO tala twpemerety mC me a2) cea eas $23,619,085 .00

The time seems opportune to reverse this score, for no finer agricultural land or
land better suited for dairy purposes exists than that in much of the territory dealt
with in this pamphlet. Besides, poultry and other market specialties will thrive to
perfection.