Mr. John Armstrong, in his report of the preliminary survey conducted under his direction in 1908 and 1909 for the proposed railway to Hudson bay, mentions that as the greater portion of the survey work was completed during the winter months when the ground was frozen and covered with snow, it was impossible to obtain much information on the subject of agricultural land and minerals. He continues:—“It may be remarked here, however, that although these lands may require more or less improvement in the way of clearing and drainage, the fact that they are situated within a few hours’ run of an ocean port may give to these lands a value not hitherto thought of, and may cause a more rapid settlement than expected. At the inland Hudson’s Bay Company’s posts all kinds of grain and vegetables have been grown successfully for years. A study of the records of the Meteorological Office indicates that the climate is quite as favourable for farming operations as that of Prince Albert.” [Illustration: Typical country on Hudson Bay Railway Survey.] During the summer of 1910, an inspection of the timber along the line of the proposed Hudson Bay Railway from The Pas to Split lake was made by J. R. Dickson, B.S.A., M.S.F., Assistant Inspector of Dominion Forest Reserves, and his report was printed by the Forestry Branch of the Department of the Interior, as a Special Bulletin (No. 17) in 1911. Mr. Dickson’s exploration covered a distance of some two hundred and thirty-five miles along the line of railway. The line of inspection followed was along the waterways on the northwest side of THE PROPOSED LINE OF RAILWAY, from which men were sent in at intervals of a few miles in each direction so as to locate the timber. On the return journey the waterway route to the south of the line was taken and similar inspections made from it. The special object was to locate and estimate the areas of commercially valuable timber that could be made use of in the work of constructing the railways, and as a result a good idea of the character and location of the timber along the line has been obtained. The route followed by the party was from The Pas to Moose lake, thence by portage to Mitishto river, down that stream and via Setting, Paint, Wintering, Landing and Sipiwesk lakes to Cross lake. From the last mentioned lake the party crossed to Minago river, and via that stream, Moose lake and the Saskatchewan returned to The Pas. The area covered was estimated by Mr. Dickson at eight thousand square miles. In addition to the information about the timber of this district given in this report there are many facts as to the topography of the country and its natural resources.