Page:EB1922 - Volume 32.djvu/235

From Wikisource
Jump to navigation Jump to search
This page needs to be proofread.
QUARITCH—QUEBEC
217

QUARITCH, BERNARD ALFRED (1871-1913), British bibliophile, son of Bernard Quaritch, the famous book- collector (see 22.711), was born Jan. 13 1871. He was educated at Charterhouse, and afterwards went to Leipzig and France. He joined his father's business in 1880, becoming its head in 1899. He played a very important part in the development of the firm, and purchased many rarities. He paid several visits to America, exhibiting there a large number of valuable books and MSS., and was a prominent purchaser at the Hoe sale (1911). He died at Brighton Aug. 27 1913.


QUEBEC (see 22.724*). Through the addition of Ungava in 1912 the area of the Canadian province of Quebec was doubled, and it became the largest in the Dominion. From 227,500 sq. m. in 1891 it had increased to 351,873 sq. m., which with the addi- tion of 354,961 sq. m. of Ungava (known as New Quebec) gives a total area of 706,834 sq. m. (about one-fifth of Canada), of which 690,865 sq. m. are land and 15,960 sq. m. water.

The pop. was 2,003,232 in 1911. It was estimated in 1921 at 2,350,000. About 98% are Canadian-born, and of these over 80% are of French descent.

The number of Indians in the province (including Ungava) was 13,366. The principal tribes are: Iroquois at Caughnawaga, Lake of Two Mountains, and St. Regis (the Indians of Lorctte are also of Iroquoian stock) ; the Montagnais, who are of Algon- quin stock, at Persimis, Mingan, Lake St. John, and Seven Is.; the Abenakis, also of Algonquin stock, at Berancour and St. Francis; the Micmacs, of Algonquin stock, at Maria and Resti- gouche; and the Malecites, Algonquin, at Viger.

Quebec, the capital of the province, had in 1917 a pop. of 103,000. R-'ontreal (pop. in 1917, 700,000) is the largest city in Canada, du'ieull (pop. 28,392^, just across the Ottawa river from Ottawa, is a luridber centre with a rapidly growing population. Three bridges connect it with Ottawa. The water-power of the Chaudiere Falls furnishes power for electric railways and for the lighting system as well as for saw mills, pu'p and paper mills and match factories.

Sherbrooke (pop. 22,583) is a close rival of Hull in industrial importance. It is located in the Eastern Townships, and its cotton and woollen factories and machine shops are amongst the largest in Canada. St. Hyacinthc (pop. 16,540) and Valleyfield have also large manufacturing establishments. Three Rivers (pop. 25,000) and Sorel have large shipping interests.

The Government of the province consists of a lieutenant- governor, a Legislative Council of 24 members appointed by the lieutenant-governor in council, a Legislative Assembly of Si members elected by the people, and an Executive Council of n members chosen from the Legislative Assembly and the Legisla- tive Council. The province is represented in the Dominion Parliament by 65 members in the House of Commons, and 24 senators. Either French or English may be used in addressing either House of Parliament, but French is the language largely used. The Civil law is the old French code existing prior to the conquest in 1760. The Criminal law is the same as exists throughout the Dominion.

Education. Very difficult problems presented themselves to the statesmen of Canada in connexion with education in the province of Quebec, for not only are 85% of the population Roman Catholics but 80% speak French as their mother tongue; and had it not been for the wise provision made as a condition precedent to confederation the Protestant minority of 15% would have found themselves in a very uncomfortable position. The superintendent of education for the whole province, who is a non-political officer, is assisted by a council divided into a Roman Catholic and Protestant committee, each with a secretary who is the chief administrative officer for both classes of schools respectively. These committees meet separately as a rule, though they may, and occasionally do, meet together as a council. Each committee supervises the expenditure of the pro- portion of public money allotted to it, and each has its own normal school, appoints its own teachers and exercises control by inspectors over its own schools under the general law. The

legislative grant for higher education is divided according to population, the Protestants receiving one-seventh; of the grant for normal schools the Protestants receive one-third, and the elementary school branch is divided according to population. This is supplemented by a local municipal taxation through trustees. In 1918 there were 6,103 elementary schools, with a teaching staff of 8,189 and a total enrolment of 247,531; the expenditure on education was $14,481,494.

A leading feature of the educational system is that all the public schools are denominational. Instruction in religion and morals given in Protestant schools is based on reading from the Old Testament, the Gospels and the Acts, and the children commit to memory portions of the Gospels and Psalms, together with the Apostles' Creed, the Decalogue and the Lord's Prayer. The religious instruction in the Roman Catholic schools is substantially part of the educational system, the Roman Catho- lic schools being controlled by the clergy, the episcopate forming, ex officio, one-half of the Catholic section of the council.

The chief universities are McGill at Montreal, founded in 1820; Laval (R.C.), founded in 1852, the headquarters being in the city of Quebec; and the newly founded university of Mont- real, which was formerly the Montreal branch of Laval. McGill University stands very high academically, and has an especially well-equipped department of applied science. Laval has a professorial staff of 79, the university of Montreal 525, and McGill 322. The total numbers of students were in 1918 686, 5,460 and 2,444 respectively. Bishop's College, Lennoxville, is a small Anrlican university in connexion with which is a school on the lines of an English public school. To McGill is affiliated the well-equipped agricultural college established at Ste. Anne de Bellevue by Sir William Macdonald, who is also noted for his liberal endowment of McGill University; and to Laval an agricultural school at Oka founded by the Trappist Fathers. There are numerous model and normal schools, the most important being that of Ste. Anne de Bellevue in connexion with Macdonald College.

Agriculture. In recent years great progress has been made in agriculture, especially in dairying and live stock. The products of the soil are abundant, and large quantities of hay and oats are ex- ported from Montreal and the city of Quebec; live stock, bacon, beef, eggs, butter, and especially cheese, to the value of millions of dollars yearly, are also shipped abroad. The field crops reach an annual value of $271,600,000. Apples, plums and melons are produced in large quantities, together with many varieties of small fruits. Nearly 87,000,000 is realized annually from the maple trees in sugar and syrup. In 1920 there were 813 butter and cheese fac- tories in operation. More than 92,000,000 Ib. of butter and cheese, worth over $35,000,000, are produced each year. Fully two-thirds of the tobacco grown in the Dominion comes from Quebec. The live stock of the province was in 1920 valued at more than $205,000,- ooo, and the total annual value of the field crops, principally hay, oats, barley, and some wheat, at about $305,000,000.

Forests and Lumber. Quebec, though second to Ontario in the production of lumber, exceeds it in the value of its pulp and paper products. Of the enormous forest area but a small portion has been cut over, and since Quebec has been a pioneer in scientific methods of forest conservation, copying the method of old France, the timber resources promise to be maintained indefinitely. In the N. the pre- dominating trees are pine, spruce, fir, and other coniferous varieties, while farther S. appear maple, poplar, basswood, oak and elm trees and many other hardwoods. The value of the lumber cut in 1918 was $20,916,604, of which spruce formed 66'3% of the output and white pine 13-1, the other commercial varieties in a smaller way being hemlock, balsam fir, birch and cedar. The capital invested in the lumbering industry amounted to $57,201,820.

Fish and Fur. The value of the annual catch of fish is estimated at $3,000,000, the industry employing more than 3,000 men. Fish hatcheries have been established by the Dominion Government at several places for the purpose of stocking the lakes and rivers of the province. With considerable tidal waters along its coast Quebec may be regarded as one of the Maritime provinces. The principal fish are cod, lobsters, herring, salmon and mackerel. The mainland waters abound in trout, pickerel, whitefish, pike and sturgeon.

The forests, especially in the northern part, abound in game, both fur-bearing and otherwise. Nearly 200,000 sq. m. of territory in

  • These figures indicate the volume and page number of the previous article