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 1 
 
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 FRC 
 
 
 vol 
 
 
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 By 
 
'V?V">*'- ' 
 
 4. 
 
 FROM THE TRANSACTIONS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA. 
 
 SECOND SERIES--1895-96. 
 
 VOLUME I. 
 
 SECTION IV. 
 
 GEOLOGICAL AND BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES. 
 
 
 THE PHYSICAL FEATJRES AND GEOLOGY 
 
 OF THE ROUTE OF THE ^ 
 
 PROPOSED OTTAWA CANAL 
 
 BETWEEN THE ' . 
 
 St. Lawrence River and Lake Huron 
 By R. W. ELLS, LL.D., and A. E. BARLOW, M.A. 
 
 OTTAWA : 
 PAYNTER & ABBOTT, 
 
 1896. 
 
 C 
 
 'fUS'^f.-.AIt, & ■"--*, 
 
 , ti^-^ ' i; 
 
I 
 
 i 
 
,1 %¥"'" 
 
 Skctios IV., 1803. 
 
 [163] 
 
 Trans. R. S. C. 
 
 
 1 
 
 ( 
 
 VII — The Physical Features and Geoloyy of the Route of the Proposed 
 Ottawa Canal between the St. Laivrence River and Lake Huron.i 
 
 By R. W. KLii^, LL. D., and A. E. Bahlow, M. A. 
 
 (K.«<1 May 15, 1895.) 
 
 The construction of a direct water way between the upper groat 
 lakes and the head of ship navigation on the St. Lawrence, by way of 
 the French, Mattawa and Ottawa rivers and Lake Nipissing.is a problem 
 of by no means recent <late. At different times the project has come pro- 
 minently before the Canadian public, and the comparative shortness of 
 this route, as c(mi|iared with the distance traversed by the Welland and 
 St. Lawrence system, has always caused it to be regarded with much 
 favour by many who saw in its completion a probable diversion of 
 much of the immense traffic of the West and Northwest from its 
 present course, and a corresponding lessening of freight lates, which 
 would go far towards solving the question of the successful develop- 
 ment of our great western heritage. 
 
 The route of the i)roposed canal as indicated has, until quite recent 
 times, formed one of tne most important and convenient avenues for 
 Canadian intercourse and commerce. For hundreds of years it was the 
 favourite means of communication between the tribes of the East and the 
 West. But in 1615 that intrepid explorer, Samuel Champlain, urged on 
 by the spirit of adventure, and under the guidance of his friendly Algon- 
 quin allies, boldly ascended the Ottawa and pushed westward to the 
 height of land at the source of the Mattawa. Here he crossed the 
 divide, and, sailing over the beautiful waters of the great Lake Nipis- 
 sing, descended the French River to its outlet on Lake Huron, and thus 
 earned for himself the proud distinction of being the first man of Euro- 
 pean descent to gaze upon the broad expanse of our vast inland seas. 
 
 This route having thus been made known, other courageous voya- 
 geurs and traders, led on by a like thirst for adventure or by the hope of 
 gain,speedily followed along the track Champlain had so bravely pointed 
 out ; and during the period of the French regime in Canada this consti- 
 tuted the principal highway of communication between the scattered 
 colonies along the lower St. Lawrence and the vast and almost unknown 
 areas now known as Western Ontario and the Northwest. For many 
 years subsequently it formed the principal channel for carrying on the 
 business of the Hudson's Bay Company, whose line of forts or trading 
 
 «'- 
 
 iPublished by permission of the Director of the Geological Survey of Canada. 
 
? 
 
 164 
 
 ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA. 
 
 stations were distributed along its whole extent, ut widely separated 
 points. Along the waters of its several streams, «tid lake expansions 
 also, thii great brigades of boats and canoes passed year by year,bearing 
 eastward the annual hai'vest of valuable furs Knd carrying westward, 
 into the otherwise pathless wilds of our vast interior, the various kinds 
 of merchandise which fcrmed thestajjle of trade with the savages of the 
 great western wilderness. Up to comparatively recent yeais, when 
 through the advent of railway and steamboat commiinicalion, it has 
 gradually fallen into disuse, it thus formed the main artei-y of traffic, 
 the sheltered nature of its water stretches and the din ctnoss and short- 
 ness of the route recommending it at a time when the light '#iroh canoe 
 of the Indian t ruder foruied the ehief, and often the only, means of 
 conveyance between the scattered hamlets nt the spat.sely settled 
 country. These same potent reasons have likewise, in moi-e recent 
 year?!, been advanced by advocates of the projected thiough water-way 
 who saw in this route the most feasible line lor an improved direct canal 
 system between the waters of the great lakes and the St. Lawrence. 
 Acting under instructions, therefore, from the Commissioner of Public 
 Works, Mr. Walter Shanly, C.E., in ] 8.3(5-57,' made a detailed exanun- 
 ation of the route contemplated, and pronounced most enthusiastically 
 in favour of the scheme. In l^r)8-59''^ another examination was made 
 by Mr. T. C. Clarke, C.E., in accordance with instructions from the 
 Commissioner of Public Works, and he also reported in favour of the 
 undertaking. The details of the surveys and estimates of the expense 
 can be found fully stated in the reports of these engineers. 
 
 The discussion of the proposed canal route naturally falls under two 
 heads, viz., that which pertains strictly to the engineering problems 
 involved, and in which the public at large are more directly interested, 
 and, secondly, that in which the great problems of Archiean geology are 
 presented. For the eonsideration of the latter, probably no better section 
 is anywhere presented; since it traverses the great development of the 
 older crystallines, nearly at right angles to tjieir strike, for several hun- 
 dreds ot miles. For uearly half a century the limestones and gneisses of 
 the area along the Ottawa and the rivers west to Lake Huron have been 
 studied by ^ome of the ablest geologists both of Canada and of the United 
 States, and the great variety of rocks here presented, including the 
 
 1 " Report of Walter Shanly, Esq., " On the Ottawa Survey," Toronto, March 22, 
 1858. Also, " Report on the Ottawa and French River Navigation Project," published 
 by order of the Montreal Board of Trade, 1863. 
 
 2" Return of the Recent Survey and Report of the Engineer on the Ottawa Ship 
 Canal," Quebec, 1860, Thos. C. Clarke. 
 
 I 
 
? 
 
 ]BIiL8 & barlow] 
 
 PROPOSED OTTAWA CANAL 
 
 163 
 
 I 
 
 Stratified gneissic and calcareous series, as well as the great variety of 
 intrusives which are associated with these, furnish materiaLs for the 
 satisfactory solution of some of the most interesting and important (jues- 
 tions in geological science. As for the engineering aspect of the ques- 
 tion, it falls for the most part beyond the scope of this paper ; but it is 
 thought that a brief sketch of the principal physical features presented 
 by the several rivers and lake expansions along the route proposed 
 may be of general importance, since it presents, in a form readily avail- 
 able for reference, a mass of facts obtained not only from the earlier 
 reports of the engineers who made the surveys but fiom careful personal 
 examination as well. Thi.s, it is hoped, will render the «liscussion of 
 the subject on any future occasion nnich more intelligible. 
 
 The total distance by the route proposed between Montreal and 
 the waters of Lake Huion at the mouth of the Frencli River is o-iven 
 by Mr. Clarke as only 430^ miles, and this may, for convenience of 
 description, be divided i-.ito two sections, viz., 1st, that along the Ottawa 
 River itself from Montreal to the mouth of the Mattawa, a distance of 
 308 miles, and, 2nd, that along the Mattawa, Lake Nipis,sing and the 
 French River, in all 122 J miles. 
 
 Along the lower or Ottawa River section those portions of the 
 system necessary to establish co?itinuous communication between the 
 cities of Montreal and Ottawa were completed nearly seventy years ao-o, 
 and have ever since been regularly used in connection with the Ottawa 
 and Kingston canal system. In this section is included the Lachine 
 Canal, which was constructed to overcome the fall in the St. Lawrence 
 above the city of Montieal known as the Lachine Rapids, in which the 
 waters of the river have a descnit of forty -four feet; 2nd, the Ste. 
 Anne lock, near tlie junction of the Ottawa waters with those of the 
 St. Lawrence, the fall here being only three feet, and the Carillon and 
 Grenville canals, the improvements here extending over a distance of 
 twelve miles and overcoming a total fall in the Ottawa River of fifty 
 feet. The intermediate spaces, known as Lake St. Louis, Lake of the 
 Two Mountains, and the long stretch of fifty-four miles between the 
 head of the Grenville Canal and the foot of the Rideau Canal at 
 Ottawa, have little or no current, and present no obstacles to navigation 
 The completion of these portions, therefore, has solved the practic- 
 ability of the scheme for the first 116 miles of the distance. 
 
 No attampt has yet been made to overcome the interruption caused 
 by the Chaudi^re Falls and the rapids above, where in a distance of six 
 miles, the waters of the Ottawa have a total descent of sixty-seven feet ; 
 
. . «. . I ii iiiiwi -.iiitir'wMii 
 
 166 
 
 ROYAL MOCIRTY OF CANADA. 
 
 but at tho Chats prills, which in the next ohstruetion at the head of the 
 Lake Doschenes, twenty-eight miles further west, an attempt was made 
 some years ago to overcome tho i)arner to continuous navi-jjation tlieve 
 presented hy the 'ronstrnetion of a canal alonj^ tlie north I)ank of tho 
 stream. The total fall in the river at this place is fifty feet, the broken 
 waters extending for quite three miles ; but though a (tonsiderable 
 amount of money was expended and excavations made along a consider- 
 able portion of the necessary distance, the project was never completed. 
 
 Passing the Chats Kapids, steamboat comnuinication is continuous 
 to the village of Portage du I'ort at certain stages of water, the only 
 difficulty at any time being pre.senterl by the small rapid known as the 
 Chenaux, about four miles below that place, where there is a fall of 
 from eitrht to ten inches otdv in the ordinarv stage ot water in tho 
 river. This stretch brings us to the foot of the chain of rapids and 
 falls known a.s the Darges, the Mountain, the Sable, and the Grand 
 Calumet, the whole extending for a distance of ten miles, in which there 
 is a total descent of ninety-three feet, and bring us to the town of 
 Bryson, on the north channel of the river past Calumet Island. 
 
 The river westward from Bryson presents no difficulties to steam, 
 boat navigation other than those caused by shifting f-and-l)a.s for 
 about thirty miles, or to the foot of AUumette Island, which is at the 
 upper end of Lake Coulonge. The shores of this portion of the river 
 along the north channel of Calumet Island ai'o generally low and com- 
 posed of sand, with rock ledges at but few pcnnts ; but the south or 
 Roche Fendue channel is much more broken heavy rapids and pitches 
 occurring for some miles or to within about three miles of the head of 
 the island. At the foot of AUumette Island two channels of the 
 Ottawa unite. On the south channel the navigation is obstructed by 
 two rapids, the Paquette and the AUurnette, the former at the lower 
 end of AUumette Island near the junction with the north channel, and 
 the latter about three miles below the town of Pembroke. These 
 present a well-defined barrier to the navigation of this channel, though 
 the fall in either of the rapids is not of great amount ; while in the 
 north channel the obstructions caused by L'Islet and Culbute rapid 
 and fall are overcome by a lock, constructed about twenty years ago, 
 by which a total descent in the river of eighteen feet is overcome. 
 By this means continuous steamboat communication is secured from 
 Bryson to the foot of the Des Joachims Rapids, a distance in all of 
 seventy-seven miles, and steamers ply regularly between the town of 
 Pembroke and the latter point. The portion of the Ottawa for thirty 
 
[KI.M & B,«HU)\V] 
 
 I'UOI'ONKI) OTTAWA CANAL 
 
 167 
 
 tnilfs hflow tho Dos Joncliims Kapids is known us tho Deep Kiv(M-, the 
 stream flowing' in a ntuirly stiui^rhi couiso botwcLMi gonorally lofty IiIIIh 
 of reddish nyenito and f^ninitic; j^Mieiss, Tho water alon^r this portion 
 is generally very ilc(}[), and tho river prosentH nuigniHc.nfc strotchoH of 
 the f/raiid scenery fonnd in tho Laurentinn hills, reaomhlin^r in this 
 respect to ajrroat extent tho gorjire-liko aspect of tho Srtijuenay. 
 
 BVoin the Des Joachims to the forks of tho Mattawa the distance 
 is only Hl'ty-two miles, and in this stretch the navij,'ation is broken by 
 the Joachim itself, with a fall of twenty-eijrht f(;et. in two mili-s, abovo 
 which tho course is ch>ar for sixteen miles to lloeherOapitaino rapid and 
 fall, one of tho Hnost ni the river, the descent here boinj^ forty-Hve feet 
 and tho obstrnction extondin^r for two miles. In tho stretch between 
 these two rapids tli > waters of tho stream have a fall of eight feet, in 
 which is included NrcSorley's Rapid, with a fall of almost three feet, 
 surtieient to impart a perceptible current, but otherwise ott'nrinj,' no 
 hindrance to continuous navicration. Ton miles above tho Capitaino 
 the three rapids known as tho Trou, tho Deux Rivieres and L'Eveilh^ 
 occur, extendin^r for throe miles, with a total descent of thirty-two 
 feet. Between this and I he junction with the Matta.va River throe 
 obstructions occur, viz., the Rocky Farm Rapid, with a rise of ei(>-ht 
 feet in five miles; Johnson's Rapid, with a rise of four f(;et in half a 
 mile, and the Mattawa Rapids, with a rise of three feet, the lattiu-just 
 below the confluence of tho Mattawa and Ottawa. 
 
 The Mattawa River thoujrh perhaps not the lar«fest tributary of the 
 Ottawa is nevertheless the most important and widely known. Jt may 
 perhaps be best described as a succession of largo deep lakes, united by 
 comparatively tuirrowand shallow rocky streams. The total lenoth from 
 its junction with the Ottawa to the western end of Trout Liike which 
 forms its head waters, in a stniight lino is about thirty-six miles, while 
 following the course of the river this distance is increased to fortv miles. 
 The course is in general nearly east and west, following very much the 
 same valley occupied by the Ottawa below the confluence rf the two 
 streams. At the junction, th ; Ottawa which above this has pursued 
 an almost due southerlv course turns abruiitlv to one not many de<'rees 
 south of east, which course is maintained for a considerable distance 
 below this point. Tho streams come together at the elbow thus formed, 
 the Mati.u ,\ a curving sharply northwaid at its iiiuuediate junction with 
 the main stream. The mouth of the Mattawa comes out on a h)w flat 
 point composed of sand, gravel and boulders. The southern bank of 
 the river projects in a long narrow point which at low water stretches 
 
168 
 
 ROVAL S0( IKTY OF CANADA 
 
 almost ccunplutt'ly across the Ottawa leaving only a narrow though 
 deep chainu'l close to the hiiHu of the almost perpciidictilHf clifls of the 
 northoasteni shore. 'I'Im! position c>f this har and the sizoand (tharacter 
 of the material composing it. as well as its resemblance to other ridges 
 of houldcrs which cross tin; Ottawa in many f)lncos tlirongho\it its 
 course, would seenj to indicate rather (ilearly its " moiainic " origin. 
 This obstruction causes a considerable rapid which, with an accom- 
 jMjnying swift current l)elow, gives a fall of about five feet. The loose 
 material causing the rapid ntsxt nuMitioncd has doubtless been consider- 
 ably modified, since its de|)(»sition, by alluvial action ; atid a rather well 
 defined channel, which must formerly hnve served as an outlet for th(> 
 water coming down from the west, runs tlirotigh the flat |»oint on which 
 the villaL'c of Mattnwa is built, leachin ' the Ottawa at the foot of the 
 rapid just mentioned and Hbout a mile below its ])resent ;nouth. 
 
 Ascending the Mattaw.i, rapid water is encountered almost at 
 once, the stream here flowing over a shallow botddery bid. This, 
 together with a small rapid a little over a mile above at the outlet of 
 Boom Lake, gives a fall in the river of about two feet. 
 
 Boom Lake, the first expansion reached, is only about a mile and a 
 (juarter long, and not over a ((Uiirter of a mile at its greatest width. At 
 the upper or western end of this lake, the river is contracted in two 
 places to a width of less than a hundred feet, and a fall of nearly twenty 
 feet is occasioned by the I'lein-Chant Rapids. The fall is in two 
 descents with an intervening stretch of (piiet water, the larger one 
 near Boom Lake alone having to be " portaged." Lake Pleiti-Chant, 
 at the head of these rapids, is a beautiful stretch of deep water, five 
 and a half miles in length. The widest portion is near the eastern 
 end, where it is about thirty chains, but this gradually diminishes west- 
 ward till near the upper end it is not more than three ov four ehain.s 
 wide. In the wider portion the sounding lead indicated a depth of over 
 two hundred and eighty feet. Between this lake and Lac des Aiguilles, 
 as the next expansion is called, the distance is a little over two miles 
 and four rapids intervene with alternating stretches of still water, the 
 combined fall of which is eighteen feet. The three largest rapids are 
 known in ascending order as " Les Epines, ' "LaRos-e" and "des 
 Rochers " or " des Aiguilles." The Amable du Fond River, the largest 
 tributary of the Mattawa, enters from the south side a short distance 
 above the second rapid. • We next come to Lac des Aiguilles which is 
 a little over a mile long and a quarter of a mile wide. It is separated 
 from the next succeeding stretch of river lying parallel to it on the 
 
fKI.M ft IIAHI.OW] 
 
 PROl'OSKI) «)TTA\VA CANAL 
 
 I HO 
 
 
 north hitlo. by a rooky har known an "Les AiguilUiH" IsIjiikIh. TIh' time 
 narrow rocky clianneU fornu'd l>y thasw two islands evun at lii^li wat('r 
 barely adoni u jmHsajr.. to loadjil eatioes. The eaHtcrn one conMtitnteH 
 tht.' main connection, and a suuxh rapid at this point .showii adn.sct'ntof 
 a i\'.w inchns. Abovo this wo tMitcr a loii^' nt retch of deep water which 
 gradually diminishes in width as wc ascend. The river thrmighonl thin 
 distanc(!i)f two and a half miles is flanked on eithcjr side by almost per- 
 pendicular walls of irncissitid gratnte, which in tlie narrower places 
 especially, give it the aspect of a bL-autiful natural canal. At the end of 
 this stretch, th<( upward course of the river clian<,'es sharply toaHoutherly 
 direction foral>out two nules,and the pro<;ress of na vibration is obstructed 
 by aH»'riesof lapids, with inti'rvals ofdeep water, the total fall in this dis- 
 tance being lifty-fivi! feet. The Chute des I'artjsseux, wheie the water of 
 the river is precipitated in a beautiful lall thirty-four feet in heiyht, is 
 the first and greatest of this series of interru|)tion.s encountered in the 
 ascent of the stream. I'imisi or Kel Lake, above these rapids, marks 
 another chanj,'ti in the course o^'the stream rnd from this place to the 
 head of Talon \y.\ke it maintains a northwesterly direction, Between 
 i'imisi Lake and the Talon Chute the river Hows for threo-(juarters of a 
 mile throuf,di a narrow rocky canon inclosed between pf'rpendicular walls 
 of yranite. At tlie Talon ( 'hute, which is the greatest single fall on the 
 whole river, the water is precipitatod a distance of forty-three feet over a 
 rocky ledge (!on)posed of massive Hesh-red gneissoid granite. The main 
 channel i.s on the north side, t»ut, in addition, there is anotlu^r thou<di 
 n)uch smaller |)assage parallel to this, which, at high water, affords au 
 exit to a consideiublt! quantity of the water of the lake. The downwanl 
 extension of this passage is continued in a deep gorge, wliich connects 
 with t':e main channel a short <listanco below the falls, the wliole 
 apparently representing the erosion of a band of crystalline liuiestone 
 or ophicalcite which here ( ccuisas.sociated with the granite. About half 
 a mile above Talon Chute a small rapid occurs with a descent of less 
 than a foot, and, a short distance westward, Talon Lake opens up to 
 view. To the left, as we enter the lake, a large bay extends westward 
 about thtee miles, known as Kal)iskaw Bay, at the western extremity 
 of which an important tiibutary (Kabiskaw Creek) enters, forming 
 the outlet of Nasbonsing Lake, a large »vnd irregular sh -et of water 
 situated in the southern part of the township of Ferris. 
 
 Lake Talon has a trend of northwest and southeast, is about seven 
 miles long aiid has, in general, a breadth of almost three-<jaarters of a 
 mile. The shores are frecjuently bold and rockv , although occasional 
 
170 
 
 ROYAL SOCIETY OK CANADA 
 
 small sandy flats occur, and one of these, knowri as Graswell's Point, 
 on the northeast side about half-way up the lake, has always been a 
 favourite cainpinj? spot. Shield's Point, near the lower end of the lake 
 on the southwest side, is a tolerably level flat, composed chietiy of sand, 
 gravel and other loose material. This point juts out into the lake, form- 
 ing a bar where the water appears to be much shallower than in the rest 
 of the lake. The general depth may be said to vaiy from fifty to one 
 hundred feet, but in occasional spots a depth of two hundred f A and 
 over was met with. The connecting stream between Talon and Turtle 
 or Lower Trout Lake, as t!ie next expansion in the river has been called, 
 is about four miles. The stream leaves Turtle Lake about a mile from 
 the eastern extramity. It is a shallow river often rocky and rajtid 
 with feome small intervening ponds of deep water. The upper part 
 flows through a rocky defile, while the remaining half pu/sues a serpen- 
 tine course through v snndv alluvial flat. On leaviuir the lake the 
 stream assumes a northerly direction, but gradually curves around to 
 the northeast, entering Talon Luke at the northwest end. This formerly 
 constituted a part ')f the regular canoe route but is now .seldom used- 
 and scarcely a trace remains of what must at one time have been a 
 well-beaten portage trail. The loute now ado})ted leaves tho c-'i.stern 
 extremity oi Turtle Lake over the " Poitage de !a Mauvaise Musique " 
 to Lac des Puis, and thence, \>y a portage a lit Je over half a mile in 
 length, into a bay of Talon Lake about a mile btilow its upper end. 
 
 Turtle or Lower Trout Lake as it is sometimes called, runs nearly 
 east and west, ar.d is about four and a half miles in len^tl', although not 
 more than half a mile at its widest place. An ascent of barely a foot 
 occurs in a short channel, cut through boulder.s and other loo^e n aterial, 
 before the largest lake and the summit levid of the river is i-eached, 
 Trout Lake is a magnificent ex|)anse of pure clear water often over two 
 liundred feet in depth. Theshores, especially those to the noith, are bold 
 and rocky, and towards the W3.stern end many beautiful r. cky islands 
 dot its surface. It is eiglit and a half miles in length and the greatest 
 bredth neai- the uppei' pud is about two miles. At this place, however, 
 the lake is divided into two portions by a bold rocky jieninyula abi)ut 
 four miles lorig, extending in an east and west diiection, so that a large 
 part of the lake is thus concealed from view, towards the eastern end, 
 the lake gradually taper,-; till the outlet is reached. To the north a range 
 of hills, ficm tiiree hundred to four hundred feet high, runs with un- 
 broken continuity to the mouth of the Mattawa River. The extreme 
 west end of Trout Lake is only abo t three miles (listant from the 
 
[KLLS & BAMOW] 
 
 PROPOSED OTTAWA CANAL 
 
 J71 
 
 eastern shores of Lake Nipissing, and the neck of land separating the 
 two lakes is In general very level, though bouldery, with numerous small 
 lakes and ponds which apparently have the same elevation as Trout 
 Lake, and which empty their waters into Lake Nipissing through 
 Otchipwo Creek, and one or two other small creeks. Indeed, it is 
 reported that a line can be chosen with one of the branches of Otchipwe 
 Creek which would show a summit level of less than three feet 
 above the waters of Trout Lake. The canoe route usually followed, how- 
 ever, leaves the lake in a bay running to the south near the western end 
 of the lake. The first portage runs over a ridge of sand, through which 
 the solid i-ock may be seen protrudingf, about twenty-tive feet above 
 Trout Lake. The Riviere de la Vase is then utilized all the way to 
 Lake Nipissing, a distfince of a little over six and a half miles. This 
 liver or lather cieek, for it is very small runs through low and often 
 marshy ground the most of the way, entering Lake Nipis.-sing about six 
 miles southeast, of Noith Bay. Two alternative routes have been pro- 
 posed for the canal through thi" isthmus, viz., 1st, that by way of the 
 valley of Riviere de la Vase, and 2nd,t1iat by way of the Otchipwe Creek. 
 The latter route .seems to have a decided advantage both in regard to 
 distance and cost, as it is only about four mihs by this line. Tho canal 
 would al«o have its entrance on a fine deep and unobstructed bay on 
 Trout Lake, while it would reach Lake Nipissing in the immediate 
 vicinity of North Bay, the most im[)ortant town in the district. The land 
 in the immediate neigh boorhood ot the Mattawa River, with few ex- 
 ceptions, is rocky and barren, and generally unlit for agricultural pur- 
 poses. At the mounhofthe Mattawa, and at several places immediately 
 adjoining Lake Talon, a few isolated areas are under cultivation. A 
 short distance from the river, however, in the townships of Papineau, 
 Calvin, Bonfield and Ferris, considerable areas have been cleared, and 
 good progress has alieady been made in the settlement of these town- 
 ships. The townships to the north of the river are still uncleared, with 
 the exception of portions of Widdifield, to the northwest of Trout Lake, 
 where a considerable number of farmers have started to make homes for 
 themselves. The country rises rapidly to the north of the Mattawa River, 
 the latter occupying a deep valley similar in character to that which 
 contains the Ottawa, and the high steep hills which border both streams 
 represent the edge of a large and comparatively level plateau, from 
 three hundred to four hundred K-et above the general level of the water 
 of both streams. There seems to be no doubt that good sized tracts 
 exist to the north of the M.attawa, which are well suited for farmin"- 
 purposes, but at present they are too inaccessible to be of much value. 
 
172 
 
 ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 
 
 Lake Nipissinj^ is a large and important sheet of water having in 
 general an east and west direction. The greatest length from the shore 
 at East Bay, near Callender station, on the northern division of the 
 Grand Trunk Railway, to the western end of Bear Bay (We.t Arm) 
 is. sixty niiles, while the greatest width from Beaucage Bay on the 
 north to the raouth of the South River is sixteen miles. Th<i northern 
 and eastern shores of the lake ai-e in general low, and, for the mo^t part^ 
 present beautifully curving beaches of yellow sand separated by low 
 rounded points cf rock. The water for a considerable distance from tlie 
 shore is shallow, and its approach is thus rendered more or less difficult 
 and dangerous, especially during stormy weather. The western end of 
 the lake possesses a mostirregularlyindented coastline; andmany large 
 arms or bays extend for miles to the westward filled with rocky islands. 
 A great number of these islands stud tlio surface of the more open 
 water outside, running in long lines more or less parallel, and usually 
 in continuation of the peninsulas or points which divide the bays from 
 one another. The islands vary in size from the small rounded rock, 
 destitute of vegetation and often only exposed at low water, to some 
 which are several miles in extent. The southern shores are bold and 
 rocky, and the water vpry deep, even in their immediate vicinity. 
 Occasional small coves between these rocks exhibit beaches of yellow 
 sand or fine gravel. The whole of the eastern end of the lake is wide 
 and exposed, containing only two small groups of islands, called re- 
 spectively the " Manitou " and *• Goose " Islands. The route from the 
 mouths of either the Riviere de la Vase or Otihipwe Creek passes in 
 the vicinity of the first-named group, the distance across to the mouth 
 of the Southwest Arm, out of which the French River flows, is eighteen 
 miles, which is unobstructed by rock or shoal of any kind. This South- 
 west Arm is about twelve miles in length and from one to two miles 
 wide. It is filled with numerous islands and large and intricate bays 
 extend to the west and northwest. From the most southerly of these 
 bays the water finds its way into the lake-like expansion of the main 
 river, about two miles northeast of the " Rapide du Pin." 
 
 The French River from the head of the Chaudiere Falls, which 
 mark the first obstruction in navigation to itr, mouth on Lake Huron, is 
 forty-eight miles in length. It may best be described as a series of very 
 long and comparatively narrow, though deep, lakes separated by rocky 
 dams or bars, which impede the course of the water, thus giving rise to 
 the various falls and rapids. The water escapes by numerous i-ocky 
 channels which bear a marked resemblance t ) one another The presence 
 
 
[ells & BAKLOW] 
 
 PROPOSED OTTAWA CANAL. 
 
 173 
 
 > 
 
 of many of these was unsuspacted, until the detailed survey made of the 
 river by Mr. Alexander Murray of the Geological Survey in 1856. The 
 two longest channels are known as the " North " and " South," and each 
 of these is divided into an east and west portion. The old travelled canoe 
 route utilized the "South Channel East" in the upper portion of the river 
 and the " North Channel West " in the lower portion as they are nearly 
 in line with one another and form the best and most direct course. 
 This is the channel propo.sed to be followed by the canal, and it seems 
 admirably adapted for the purpose as the natural obstructions present 
 no great engineering difficulties The presence oi" two or more channels 
 would also materially aid in the prosecution ot any improveme^it, as 
 by damming an outlet the water below the dam would ass\une a lower 
 level and thus enable work to be carried on to greater advantage. 
 
 The country in the vicinity ot the French River is in general rocky 
 and banen, presenting numerous more or less rocky hills or ridges, which 
 are in no case of any great height, with intervening stretches of com- 
 paratively level land, which are usually occupied by swamps. There 
 are occasional small tracts of go:)d land, chiefly to the north of the river 
 but the shores are, as a general rule, bold and rocky. The Chaudifere Falls 
 are divided into two de iccnts. separated by an interval of still water, the 
 total fall being about twenty-six feet, and the whole length about a 
 mile. At the Lower Chaudi^re the perpeniiicular rocky banks of the 
 river are not more than fifty feet apart Between the Chaudi^re Falls 
 and the next interruption in the stream, " Rapide du Pin," the river 
 widens into a lake about eight miles long, containing numerous islands. 
 In general this stretch of water is from half a mile to a mile in width, 
 although at one place opposite Bear Point it is scarcely a quarter of a 
 mile wide. The outlet of the north channel, which, after a course of 
 twenty-three miles, empties into the main channel about two and a 
 halt miles above " Grand Recollet Falls," is at the west end of a small 
 bay extending to the northwest from above " Rapide du Pin." This 
 rapid has a fall of 2.60 feet, and in the next four miles the stream is 
 interrupted by as many rapids, which are known as "La Grande 
 Faucille," fall 5.60 feet ; "Rapide du Buisson," fall 3.30 : " La Petite 
 Faucille," fall 4,40 feet, and " Le Parisien," fall 1.20 feet. A stretch of 
 deep still water then ensues which is seventeen miles in length before 
 the falls of "Le Grand Recollet" are reached. These are occasioned by 
 a rocky bar which here extends across the river. In the next sixteen miles, 
 before " Les Petites Dalles " are reached, as the last rapid'on the river is 
 called, there are only two small rapids. The first, about a mile below "Le 
 Grand Recollet," shows a descent of scarcely a foot; while the second one, 
 
— . M'li iT wMh'imiytel 
 
 174 
 
 ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA. 
 
 ahi»ut four luile.s further down.has afall uf only two feet. Elevenand ahalf 
 miles below " Le Grand Recollet " Falls the river, which hasjieretofore 
 had a direction a little south of west, changes abruptly to the south, 
 which course is maintained for throe miles further, when the route again 
 changes to the west for one and a half miles, at which point the rapids 
 known as " Les Petites Dalies " show a descent of six feet to the waters 
 of Lake Huron. This bi'ings us into a narrow inlet about two and a 
 half miles in length, extending northward from (leorgian Bay, and 
 constitutii)"' tlie most westerly' of the midille outlets of French River. 
 The waters of Fivnch River empty into the northern end of Georgian 
 Bay through a series of channels forming a curiously complicated 
 Tocky delta It has been customary to designate these mouths as the 
 " western," " middle " and " eastern " outlets. Tlie western outlets are 
 four in tmmber, three of which empty into the easter-n end of the inlet 
 marked on the last cliart (Commatider Boulton, 1886) " Voyageur 
 Channel," while the f.mrbh, known as the " Maiivaise " or " Bad " River, 
 reaches the lake nearly two miles east of this p »iafc. These channels 
 unite in their iiinvanl course in a narrow lake ivbout three miles from 
 Georgian Bay, and continue togt^tliei' ina nortii-eastjrly direction for 
 four miles, when the (iours.; suddenly changes t;) the east. The middle 
 one of these three channels is the (ma jjursaed by cauoes coming frctm 
 the west, while canoes coming from the south, along the shores of Geor- 
 gian Bay, generally found their way into French River by way of 
 Henvey Inlet or " The Key," from V);ith of which bays there is an easy 
 portage, routes coming out on the soutli channel of the French River 
 opposite Cantin's Island. The eastern, and middle outlets were there- 
 fore seldom used, and it is accoidingly not surprising that so little was 
 known with regard to them. The middle outlet'consists of two rocky 
 channels, which enter the lake witiiin two miles of one another 
 innnediately north of the Bustard Islands. The eastern outlet con- 
 sists of Itut one channel, which comes out in a bay about twelve miles 
 east of the most western outlet. The middle and western outlets run 
 in a north or north-easterly direction for five or six miles, when they 
 intersect the lake-like expansion of the river known as " Lac le Boeuf," 
 while the easterly outlet empties that portion of the river knowh as 
 the " South Channel West," nearly two miles above its junction with 
 the western part of the, north channel. Before a decision could be 
 arrived at in regard to the feasibilitj^ of this route for purposes of 
 canalization, it was necessary that a detaiU-d examination should be 
 made to determine whether a suitable harbor could bo found near 
 the terminus oti Lake Huron. Previous to 185G the prevailing opinion 
 
[ells &, SAULOW], 
 
 PROI'OSKD OTTAWA CANAL. 
 
 175 
 
 was that such could not be found, and that the mouths of the French 
 River were so beset by i.-slnnds and rocky shoals that they could not 
 be approached with any degree of safety l»y any craft larger than 
 the ordinary bark canoe. An examination of the chart of Georgian 
 Bay (surveyed by Capt. H W. Baytitdd, 1822) seemed to strengthen 
 these views ; for while this plan revealed the western outlets of the 
 river, coming out in a perfect labyrinth of bays, islan<]s and rocky 
 shoals, no noti(;e whatever is taken of the eastern outlet, and th.' middle 
 outlei was simply noticed as affording an exit for the water of a "large 
 river." The detailed and accurate survey of Mr. Alexander Murray, 
 in 185G, for the Geological Survey of Canada, and the later detailed 
 and special examination ol Messrs. Clarke and .Shanley, revealed the 
 fact that the most westerly of the middle outlets of the French River 
 was excellently arlapted for the purposes of a terminal harbor. In 
 187> .VIr. Ridout ma<ie a careful survey of this outlet in conne(!tion 
 with his work of exploration for the route of the Canadian Pacific 
 Railway. The'sounding.s then taken showed a straigiit channel not 
 less than a quarter of a mile wide and thirty feet dte[) (Voui the lake 
 into the bay into which tliis ouilet empties. In 187!) Mr. E. P. Bender 
 made a detailed examination of the French River with regard to its 
 practicability fo)- canal purposes, in connection with certain exploiations 
 for the Canadian Pacific Railway Company, and, as an indication of the 
 sheltered [xjsitiou of this haiboui', mentions the fact that many of the 
 pickets planted near the water's edge by Mr. Ridout were still stand- 
 ing at the time of his visit. At the instance of the Marine and 
 Fisheries Department, foui- lighthouses have been erected. Two of 
 these aie situated in lin • on the Bustard Rocks, to the west of the 
 Bustard group of islands. Another has l)een built on Lefroy Island 
 near the western entrance (jf the hay ; wliile the fourth is situated 
 On the Ciistern shore of the harbour itself, aljout a mile furtiier north. 
 The channel, though .somewhat narnjw, is straight and deep, and, with 
 the lighthouses UvJW in position, ought t(j be accessible to any of the 
 ve.ssels afloat on the Great Lakes. 
 
 The country traversed by the Ottawa is morediversihed tlian that 
 along the second or Mattawa and French Rivm- section. For while the 
 Laurentian Rocks may be said to form the chief geological feature of 
 the area, the hills at various portions recede from the river, and the 
 valle^ V " the Ottawa itself is at times occupied with the recent 
 .sediments, which, sometimes extend t\n- several miles on either 
 side. This feature is more particularly seen along that part of 
 the valley between the Chats Falls and the city of Montreal, 
 
I ■■ II uatummtmtm 
 
 176 
 
 ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA: 
 
 the country on either hand often being nearly level or broken by 
 low rollinj( hills, and occupied by flat lyinc; beds of the Potsdam, 
 Calcit'erous. Chazy and Trenton formations which rest unconform- 
 ably upDu the upturned edges of the Laurentian gneiss and limestone 
 At two points only in this distance do the Arehsenn rocks cross the river, 
 viz. at Rockland, tweiity-flve miles below Ottawa, and at Montebello, 
 about twenty-five miles further east, where tlie characteristic crystalline 
 rocks of the Liurentian show on the south bank of the river and are 
 directly oveilaid by the Potsdam sandstone. The banks of the river 
 generally, ahmg this part of the section between Ottawa and Montreal, 
 are low and composed of marine clays. The long range of the Lauren- 
 tian hills, ititer,secte<l by the deep valleys of the Rouge, the Nation, the 
 Litjvre and the Gatincau Rivers, which fire tributary from the north, 
 rise in graceful contours in places, to elevations of 800 to 1,000 feet 
 above the waters ot the river ; while to the south, the country is so 
 generally level, that the South Nation River which joins the Ottawa, 
 forty miles below Ottawa City, takes its rise within little more than 
 a mile Of the St. Lawrence, in the vicinity of Brock ville. The soil in 
 this area is for the most part excellent, though several extensive de- 
 posits of peat occur, dcstineil probably at no very distant dtiy to be of 
 considerable economic value. Above tlie city of Ottawa to the Chats 
 the nearly horizontal beds of the Calciferous and Chazy foimations 
 are well exposed, especially along the south shore, dnd in places con- 
 tein extensive beds of limestone, excellently suited for buildnig pur- 
 poses. The rapids and falls of the Chaudiore, at Ottawa itself, are 
 caused by the heavy ledges of Trenton limestone which here cross the 
 river, and on which the city of Hull on the noith, and to a certain 
 extent, Ottawa, on the south bank, are built. 
 
 Above the Chats Falls and rapids, which are produced by a rocky 
 barrier of crystalline limestone intersected by several heavy dykes of 
 syenite rock, the principal ot which is seen to cause the Fall itself 
 the areas of these sedimentary rocks are quite limited till we reach the 
 ht'ad of the Calumet Island Channel. Beyond this, however, to the 
 head of the AUumette Island, and on tiie south side oi the river 
 adjacent, the beds of Chazy and lower Trenton have a very consider- 
 able development. Hills of granitic and syenitic gneiss rise on the 
 north, almost from the shore ot the river, while broad stretches of sand 
 occur which overlie the marine clays of the istrict. From Pembroke 
 west to the Mattawa these sands are widespread, and occupy extensive 
 areas, through which isolated masses of the syenitic and granitic rock 
 protrude. Upon these latter also at widely separated intervals, out- 
 
[ells & barlow] 
 
 PROPOSED OTTAWA CANAL 
 
 177 
 
 liers of fossiliferous Silurian strata are found, which have escaped the 
 great denudation which affected the whole of this aiea. 
 
 It would appear from the presence of these sedimentary forma- 
 tions along the present channel of the Ottawa, that the valley itself 
 must have been formed at a very early date, and in fact that it con- 
 stituted a chief outlet for the drainage of the portions of the continent 
 from early Archaean times. 
 
 Along the projected route of the canal system the summit level is 
 found near the western end of the section at Trout Lake, 348 milea 
 west of Montreal, or 82 miles east of the western terminus at the out- 
 let of the French River, in Georgian Bay, and the elevation here is 667 
 feet above sea level, that of the surface of Lake Huron being 581 '3 
 feet; while the low water level of the River Ottawa., at the junction 
 with the Mattawa , 308 miles west of Montreal, is 498.9 feet. The 
 elevations for the various stations along the entire route will be found 
 in an appendix, in which the figures, as given in the reports of the canal 
 engineers, have been carefully corrected by Mr. James White, chief 
 cartographer of the Geological Survey Department, in accordance with 
 tlie most recent hydrographic surveys. 
 
 Indications of changes of level in past times are readily observed 
 at many points along the course of the Ottawa River in the ])resence 
 of terraces, drift sands and clays and old river channels, which have 
 since been closed through the accumulation of drift material, as sands 
 and gravels, and the waters again diverted to their original course- 
 Among these old water courses one may be noted at the Des Joachims 
 Rapid to the north of the present river channel, which it reached by 
 waj' of McConnell Lake and stream through the depression north of 
 the village of Des Joachims itsolf . Another evidently turned off from 
 the Deep River about fifteen miles below the Des Joachims Rapids, and 
 extended by way of the Sturgeon Lake and Bay, into which the waters 
 of the Chalk River now empty, thus cutting off the bold headland 
 known as the Oiseau Rock on the Deep River and the high point at the 
 sharp bend of the river below called High View The banks of the Ottawa 
 below the outletof this oldchaimelarecomposedofgreatmassesof reddish 
 sand, forming banks from twenty to sixty feet in height, which extend 
 along the course of the stream for some miles. A second former channel 
 evidently extended from the town of Pembroke, by way of the Muskrat 
 River and Lake, from which the course can be ti'aced by a series of 
 depressions, dotted by a chain of lakes to the present channel on Chats 
 Lake, near the Chonaux Rapids, .several miles above the mouth of the 
 Bonnechere. Opposite the city of Ottawa also another channel is seen 
 
178 
 
 ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 
 
 in rear of tha city of Hull ; while it is probable that still another 
 channel passtd to the south of the city of Ottawa by way of the Hinton- 
 bur^ depression and Dow's Swamp into the present channel of the 
 
 Riaeau. 
 
 The deposits of sand and clay on the lower Ottawa are in places 
 of great thickness, and show that the denudation of the old channel 
 must have been very heavy. Between the Laurentian range at Lachute 
 and the Lake of Two Mountains bore-holes have been sunk to a depth 
 of 120 feet without reaching the underlying rock, while terraces of 
 drift rise to the noith of the boring to a height of from fifty to sixty 
 feet, thus showing that the drift deposits must be not far from 200 
 feet in thickness at this place. The exposures of marine clay with 
 characteristic fossils, found on Lake Coulonge, more than 200 miles 
 west of Montreal, at elevations of 3(i0 feet above the sea level, show 
 that the waters of the ocean extended for a long distance inland 
 during the period of depression 
 
 Thesediinentary Palaioicoic formations found along the Ottawa river 
 and in its vicinity include all from the Potsdam to the Lorraine shales 
 which mark the summit of the Catnbro-Silurian system. The greater 
 part are well characterized by the fossils peculiar to each formation, and 
 the stratigraphical sequence can be well observed at various places- 
 There does not appear to be any defined break througl out the wl.ule 
 series, though the estimate of their total thickness is affected to some 
 extent by the presence of local faults. The basal beds of the lowest or 
 Potsdam sandstone are in places made up of the debris from the Lauren- 
 tian gneiss and limestone, while in other places the sandstones are pene- 
 trated by dykes of granite, which were formerly considered as integral 
 portions of the Archajan rocks. The descriptions of these various divi- 
 sions of sedimentary rocks are given fully in the earlier reports of the 
 Geological Survey of Canada, and need not be here repeated.i 
 
 At several places along the Mattawa and LakeNipissing ])ortions of 
 the route certain Pahieozoic strata are also seen resting in almost hori- 
 zontal beds on the hummocky surface of the pre-existing Archaean. A 
 few of these outliers may be noticed at low water dipping from the edge 
 of the gneiss, and forming a portion of the bed of the Ottawa River a 
 few miles below Mattawa. The lock is a light gray arenaceous lime- 
 stone,and the study of the few fossil remains which were obtained points 
 to their being of Black River age. Strata representing the same period, 
 
 1 Geological Survey Report, 1845, W. E. Logan ; 1851, A. Murray. 
 Sec. IV., 1895. 12. 
 
 V 
 
 f 
 
[KLLS & BARLUW] 
 
 PROPOSED OTTAWA CANAL. 
 
 179 
 
 { 
 
 f 
 
 and containing much more numerous an I better proKcrved fossil remains, 
 were also noticed on several, of the Mat»itou Islands, in Lake Ni^»issinJ,^ 
 The thickest section of these rocks appears to be near the southwest 
 end of McDonald Island, the second in size of the Manitou j^roup, where 
 these rocks have a thickness of about thirty feet. The lowest bed ex- 
 posed (»n these islands appears to be a coarse arkose made up of angular 
 or subangular fragments of the subjacent gneiss, cemented together by 
 a coarse sandstone or grit. This has no great thickness, and graduates 
 quickly upward into a sandstone holding corals and fragments of what 
 must have been \n some cases very large orthoceratites. This in turn 
 gives place to a gray limestone, which continues to the top of the series. 
 Near the southwest end of Iron Island beds of a coarse sandstone or 
 grit rest unconformably upon the gneiss, dipping at a very low angle 
 to the west. 
 
 The Arch.tan rocks which foim the great bulk of the strata 
 thoughout the entire area under consideration have been studied by 
 various observers for three-quaiters of a century. As early as 1821 
 Bigsby described the rocks north of Lake Huron as granite, gneiss, trap, 
 etc., all of which were at that time assigned to the primitive formation- 
 In 1827 the same observer also deseribed similar rocks along tlie north 
 .side of the St. Lawrence in the vicinity of Quebec. Among subseqijent 
 early writers on these rocks were Sir Wm. Logan, Muriay, Bayfield, 
 Emmons and Hunt, while in more recent years Macfarlane, Selwyn, Ven- 
 nor, Bell, Barlow, Lawson, and others have added many important facts 
 relating to their distribution, origin and general structure. The terms 
 Laurentian and Huronian, given by Logan and Murray in 1852-54 for 
 the two great divisions of the Archjean, have ever since been generally 
 adopted by woi-kers in this portion of the geological field. 
 
 A description of the crystalline rocks along tlie Ottawa River 
 section and of the country adjacent was given by Sir Wm. Logan in his 
 report for 184.7. At that time they were regarded as, for the most part 
 of metamorphic origin, the supposition being that they were orginally 
 depo.sited like the sediments of later Palneozoic times. The principal 
 rock mass was stated to be a red syenitic gneiss, with hornblende and 
 mica arranged in a parallel direction. On the Madawaska River, a 
 branch of the Ottawa in the south, a section of 1,350 feet was measured 
 which comprised gneiss, crystalline limestone and micaceous quartz 
 rock, in which the calcareous members were in three bands and in- 
 tprstrat.ififtd with the ffiieiss. The whole series at this point presented 
 many of the physical features of altered sedimentary strata, and they 
 were supposed to conformably overlie the great area of syenitic rocks 
 
MMH 
 
 180 
 
 ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA. 
 
 ludio especially developed to the west. Jioth series weio intersected 
 l»y clearly intrusive <rrauitic and pyroxenic dykoH and veins. 
 
 In 1852 tlio aeries ot crystallines north ot the Ottawa and St. Law- 
 rence was examined, and in 1857 the report of Lo«,Mn on the areas west 
 of Montreal was puhlished. These rocks, consisting of j,'nt'iss, liniestone. 
 quartzito and anorthosite, were all styled nietainoiphic sediments, 
 following the principles oii'inciated in the earlier report on the area to 
 the west. The presence of eruptives, snch as syenite, porphyry, diorite 
 and trai)pean rocks ot various kinds, was noted, but all these were re- 
 garded as older than the Potsdam san<istone, which at various points 
 was observed to flank the base ot the Lanrentian hills. In this series 
 also the anorthosites were considered as being an associated division of 
 the limestones, and as possibly belonging, with them, to one great 
 undulating mass. It was not, however, till the i)ublication of the 
 Geology ot Canada, 18();i, that anorthosites or Labradorite I'ocks were 
 stated to form the upper mumber ot tiie Lanrentian .series, being there 
 said to probably constitute an upper unconformable division to the 
 crystalline limestone, with nn !ip|)r' ximate thickness of 10,000 toet. 
 This area of rocks north of thu lower Ottawa was styleil theGrenvillo 
 series,! and was rcganh-d as lepre-eniing most completely the structure 
 of the oldest crystallines ot Canada. 
 
 In the meantime Logan's co-workf.r, Murray., described the usual 
 series of gneisses, ciystalline limestone and quartzite of the Thousand 
 Islands and of the mainland to the nortli, with associated areas of what 
 he regaided fis conglomerates, the latter being held to be conclusive evi- 
 dence of thd sedimentary and metamorphic character of the who'.e. In 
 185*V^ he made a traverse from Lake Huron by way of the Muskokaand 
 Petawavva rivers to tlio Ottawa, a route appioximately parallel to that 
 by the Mattawa and Ottawa, and in the ensuing year,4 he made further 
 explorations in this area by a traverse towards Lake Nipissing along 
 the Meganatawan River. In 1855 he completed the examination of 
 this section by the exploration of the Nipissing and French River 
 route.' In his descriptions of the several sections then examined 
 Murray enumerates the usual variety ot red and giay gneiss, micaceous 
 and hornblendic schist, quartzite and crystalline limestone, as well as 
 
 I Geological Survey Report, W. K. Logan, 1853-56. 
 •■2 Geological Survey Report, A. Murray, 1851-52. 
 ,{ Ihid. , 1 SS^-.'iK. 
 
 4 Geological Survey Report, A. Murray, 1853-56. 
 
 5 Ihid., 1853-56. 
 
[KBM k HAHLOW] 
 
 Pk()l»(),SKI) OTr.WVA CANAL 
 
 181 
 
 certain nroas of reddish syoiiitic rook, in which the Mtnitification wan 
 entirely absent or very indistinct, \vhi(!h were rcgardc"! us |irohal)ly 
 intrusive; while the country rockgencrally was held to he ni(!tainor|»hic. 
 The whole series was found to he everywhere corrujjjated, often with 
 steep bends and folds, and intersected by (iuart/o-lVlsi»athic dykes and 
 quartz veins. 
 
 The gradual evohition of the problem of the composition, origin 
 and structure of these oldest Lauientian rocks whi(di were so exten- 
 sively studied by Logan, Murray and Hunt |)rior to 18G.*}, niquired 
 much careful study, both in the field and laboratory. The ditHculty 
 of arriving at sivtisfactory concl jsions in the fiehl at that early date 
 can be scarcely appreciated at the present day ; since forty years ago 
 much of the area covered by the Laurentian rocks was accessible only 
 with great trouble and expense, while the men skilled in the interpre- 
 tation A such a com[)licated geological structure as was thus presented 
 were few. The problem undertaken by these pioneers in Canadian 
 geology was not otdy new but one ot exceeding ditHculty, yet the 
 results then arrived at, with the limited means at their disposal, have 
 been acce|)ted as conclusive by most workers in tiiis field for many 
 years. The more recent field work of Lawson ■ (»n these rocks as 
 developed to the west of Lake Supeiior about the Lfike of the Woods 
 and elsewheie, and by Bi >)w = in the country north of Lake Huron, 
 gradually led to the conviction, on their pai t, that much ot what had 
 been regarded as the oldest member of the Laurentian, viz., the sye- 
 nitic gut iss, destitute of limestone, was of more recent age than the 
 stratifi(^d gneiss and limestone .series with which they were associated ; 
 and that, in fact, these had been intruded into the gneiss at a date 
 subsequent to their depositiot>. 
 
 An examination by Dr. F. D. Adams in 1S83-86, of the great 
 anorthosite areas of Morin and the t()wnshi{)s adjacent, which had 
 been regarded as the upper part of the Grenvdle sedimentary series, 
 led him also to the conclusion that these could no longer 
 be regarded as altered sediments but that the anorthosite 
 was cit'arly intrusive through the Laurentian limestone and 
 associated stratified gneiss, and conseciuently of more recent date- 
 These examinations extended over several years and embraced large 
 areas both to the north of Montreal and in the Quebec and Lake St. 
 
 1 Geological .Survey Report, vol. iii., new series (F), A. C. Lawson, 1887-88, On the 
 Rainy Lal<e region." 
 
 2 American Geologist, vol. vi., pp. 1932 (July, 1890) ; Bulletin G. S. A., vol. iv., pp- 
 313-332. 
 
1H9 
 
 ROYAL SOCIKTV OF CANADA 
 
 John flistrict, and the losvilts iirrivetl ut Ity l)r. Aiiains an to their 
 eniptivo chamc'ter, bascil upon an exhuuslivo ntuily, hoth in thu field 
 and liy the aid of the inicroHCuptt, iniist he taken as conchiHivo ott this 
 Hubject., Thus tiie .stinl/ of the Ijann-ntians both on the extreme 
 cast and west of the typicial area ha.s strongly tended to establish the 
 opinion that nuiriy of the usually ac('e|)V(Ml views as to tlie structure 
 and ori|^in of the syenitie and granitic ^iitisH and of other porti()iis of 
 the great Aroluean complex re(pjireto be very conwiderably mociitieil. 
 
 In tlio consideration of a (juestion of such great extent and of such 
 complexity as that of tlu; origin and striictuie of these ancient crys- 
 tallines presenting as they do such variiJt}' in composition and physical 
 character, with such diversity of relations, it is to bo feared that much 
 of the apparent disc.re|)ancy of opinion has arisen from the attempt to 
 aolv(! the problem by a study of too limited an area, or from a too rapid 
 generalization from insnrti<;ietit d,itn,toi) often obtained from unreliablo 
 sources. The methods (tf study of the older erystallints and eruptives 
 also have materially changed duriu',' tlie la>t twenty years ; and tho 
 revelations of the mieroscopt; have thrown much light upon (ptestions 
 which for a long time wero perplexing m the extreme. Thus it has 
 gradually come nbout that much of wiiat, in the (jarly days of tho 
 study of this series o\' rocks, was cunsideied from their physical chur- 
 acters, (ihicHy ot acpu'oiis origin, has Ixien clearly shown to have 
 oiiginated in an entirely dirterent manner, and that many of these 
 rocks, foiinerly supposed to be sedimentary, are, in fact, tridy igneous 
 masses. While many dili'ering views have been exi)ressed by the 
 several workers in this very intiresting geologi('al field, it may be 
 stated that the (Jrcnville series or the original typical Lauientian aiea 
 of Logan probably most fully illustiates the most perfect section of 
 the Laurentian locks whicli we cm yet lecognize. Thi-. section em- 
 braces a great variety of rock structure. It includes the various kinds 
 of gneiss, foliated and stratified, with foliated ;w!d massive granites 
 and syenite>, pyroxenic and dioritic, hornblende and qnirtzose rocks, 
 (juartxite and limestone. In the b;isal IkmIs of : 'uC ,i,re interstra- 
 tified bands of lusty (jtuirtzose gneiss wliich, fr 'Ui the evidence yet at 
 our disposal, foim an integral {»ait of the calcareous tormation. T.iis 
 portion presents in its banded arrangenjent of cpiartzose an<l 
 calcareous rocks, the usual aspect of true altered sedimentary 
 str?ja The -ame well banded iirrangement is al.so visible in some 
 
 I " Debar das Norian oder Olier-Laurentian von Canada " aus dem Neues Yahrbach 
 fiir Mincrologie, etc., lieilageband, VIII., .Siuttgart, 1893. 
 
[KM.N k IIAKKiW) 
 
 I'KOI'OSKI) OTTAWA CANAL. 
 
 IMS 
 
 ot th»' tliftMitly iiiMloflyinj; j^ikmhs ; but iti the cftso of tho great masM 
 of thi-t jjutiNM. tho initrrnsciopir f!xainiiiation shows thf evidence 
 of an BinitMHis orij^iii to Ih- wiititiiij^. VVIiatever may hnvo 
 been tlioir origin however, the alteration into the gtieissic and 
 crystalline eondition niunt have be»»n completed prior to the deposition 
 of the Medinientary Cambrian or r)ther rocks which now rest upon them, 
 sineo in tho ease of tho Potsdam formation, and, in fa(!t, of many of th« 
 beds of the lower Cambrian, there is but small indi'-ation of a gneissic 
 or crvstalliiie struct nre, except whtue this has been produced 
 directly through lncal causes. That there has been a subseipient 
 ciystallization or metamorphism, even in the crystidliue limestone of the 
 Laurentian, is clearly eviileiiced l)y tlie presence of intrusive nuisses »»f 
 diorite, syenite or granite which have devolopeil (rrystals of mica, 
 gra])hite and other minerals along the lino of contact. Through the 
 same caiise also the limestone itself in places is changed to an ophical- 
 cite by the formation of grains of serpimtine through the cry.slalline 
 mass. 
 
 While it is now clearly established that some portions of the igneous 
 rocks of the Laurentian area, as developed in the area along the Ottawa 
 are of more recent age tha?« the crystalline limostones which are suppoeed 
 toconstitute the upper membi'r of the series, certain other portions 
 aie undoubtedly older, and these most |)robably represent the hnvest 
 jjortion ot the earth's crust known to us. These oldest gneisses are 
 folifiteil rather than stratified ; but in their foliation they underlie the 
 regular series of stratified hornblenle and other gneisses which occur 
 frequently between tiie fundamental gneiss and the crystalline lime- 
 stone and (pnu'tzito series at the summit of the sections. To this 
 fundamental series may l)e assigned tlu! rocks of the Trembling Moun- 
 tain which were assumed by Logan to constitute tlu^ lowest member. 
 Similar rocks occur as anticlinals north of Lachute, and at different 
 places thioughout the Grenville district, while large areas occur at 
 various points along the up})er Ottawa River section. Concerning much 
 (.if the intermediate gneisses, it may be .said that while in their general 
 aspect they resemble stratified .sedimentary rocks, their study under 
 the microscope shows them to have prosunnibly a different origin, so 
 that it is possible that the true altered atpieous portion may be eon- 
 fined to the areas of crystalline limestone with their associated bands 
 of(juartzite and grayish quartzose and hornblende gneiss. But con- 
 cerning this latter series it must also b3 .said that a considerable 
 diversity of opinion already exists, some regarding the sedimentary 
 origin of these rocks even to be an open and doubtful question. 
 
SB 
 
 gggggi 
 
 IBSSliMMMMMV^IMWM 
 
 M^m£mH 
 
 184 
 
 ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA. 
 
 I' 
 
 The crystalline limestones are particularly developed in the Ottawa 
 River section from the vicinity of the Desehenes Lake, west of Ottawa 
 city, to the viUage of Bryson. Here they form a tolerably continuous 
 belt extending along the river for many miles, though their continuity 
 is frequently broken by the presence of lar.ifo areas of intrusive granitic 
 and dioritic rocks. This portion of the section would, there!ore, appear 
 to represent the highest members of the Laureutian proper, and atone 
 place, near the <^hats, it is overlaid by a considerable breadth of 
 Huronian-looking rocks, schists, etc., which have been described in 
 earlier reports under the name of Histmgj series. The crystalline lime- 
 stone portion of the Laurentian has its most westerly outcrop on the 
 river in the vicinity of the Coulonge Lake, a short distance west of the 
 Black River, the rocks further westward being for the most part granitic 
 gneiss, granite and syenite, to the mouth of the Mattawa. In that portion 
 of the Ottawa River section east of Ottawa city the limestones occur 
 rather as separate bends occupying generally synclinals in the upper 
 stratified gneisses, which form in many cases well-defined anticlinals, 
 and in certain sections of this area these anticlinals are repeated very 
 frequently,presenting thus the aspect of a ridged structure,in which the 
 inclination of the strata is generally at a high angle. 
 
 The rocks exposed along the route of the Mattawa and French 
 rivers to Lake Huron are chiefly what have been regarded as Lauren- 
 Lian gneisses. There is, however, a general absence of crystalline lime- 
 stones, which forms such an abundant constituent of the Laurentian 
 further east ; and this, as well as the apparent inferior position of the 
 gnei.sses themselves, caused the n at an early date to be placed at the 
 very base of the geological series, thus constituting the Lower Lauren- 
 tian of Logan and other early Canadian geologists. 
 
 Crystalline limestone is only very sparingly present in association 
 with these gneissic rocks of the Mattawa section, and wherever 
 noticed the evidence all seemed to point to the fact that it had been 
 '' caught up " by the gneiss during the irruption of the latter. On the 
 south shore of Talon Lake, as well as in the southern channel of the 
 falls at the outlet of this lake, a crystalline limestone was noticed in 
 conjunction with a very massive red foliated granite. Although in 
 many places the bedding of this limestone corresponds with the planes 
 of foliation of the inclosing rock, still at one place on the north bank 
 of the river, a short distance above the falls, the limestone is seen to 
 be in unconformable juxtppositi'^n, the bedding of limestone abutting 
 against the foliation of the gianito. The line of junction is irregular 
 
 
[kli^ & barlow] 
 
 PROPOSED OTTAWA CANAL. 
 
 185 
 
 and jagi^ed, aiul the granite itself shows a much finer texture near the 
 line of contact. The limestone contains a good deal of serpentine in 
 small spots and jjatches, and would form excellent building stone as 
 well astgood material for burning for lime. 
 
 Crystalline limestone was also noticed on the east shore of the Great 
 Manitou or Newman Island, in the eastern part of LakeNipissing,as well 
 as on two ot the smaller islands composing this group. The limestone 
 occurs associated with a massive red gneissicrock composed chiefly of a 
 deep red felspar and a dark green chloritic material, the arrangement 
 of the latter in approximately parallel bands and streaks, giving it a 
 rather distinct foliation. The limestone is generally of a beautiful pink 
 colour, and exhibits abundant small scales and crystals of biotite or 
 fibrous radiating crystallizations of a dark green hornblende. It occurs 
 in rather small quantities, and, like the Talon Lake limestone, seems to 
 have become incorporated in the gneiss during its irruption. On Iron 
 Island, in Lake Nipi.ssing, small patclies of a dark colored crystalline 
 rock, C(jntaining a largo proportion of calcite. has been sometimes des- 
 cribed as a crystalline limestone, but an examination under the micro- 
 scope reveals its irruptive character, the largo quantity of calcite present 
 resulting from the decomposition of the plagioclase originally present. 
 
 It is not possible here to go into the various theories in regard to 
 these ancient crystalline rocks, but it me.y be well to mention certain 
 facts in this connection. It may be safely statea that the old belief 
 that the whole of these gneissic rocks represent ordinary aqueous 
 sediments which have undergone such extreme metamorphism as to 
 mask tb'jir original character, is now entertained by few geologists. 
 The " basement complex," as it has frequently been called, has been 
 shown to be composed of a great variety of rock types whose sole 
 resemblance consists in the more or less parallel disposition of their 
 component minerals. The excellent work of Professor Lehmann on 
 the gneisses of Saxony gave a fresh stimulus to the study of these old 
 rocks, and the rapid advances lately made in the science of petrography 
 have caused geologists to take a fresh interest in them. 
 
 The work of Dr. A. C. Lawson for the Geological Survey of Canada 
 in the Lake of the Woods and Rainy Lake district-., already referred 
 to, accompanied by an extensive microscopical examination of the rocks 
 of these districts, as well as the detailed petrographical studies of the 
 late Prof. G. H. Williams in the Menominee and Marquette region of 
 Michigan, defined clearly the fact that the foliation or lamination of 
 these crystalline rocks does not necessarily imply an original bedded 
 eharactor, but in most instances has been the result of the enormous 
 
sua 
 
 ■■»MjgV<|gg^ 
 
 186 
 
 ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 
 
 mechanical stresses to which these rock masses have been subjected. 
 The studies of both these observers in the field, as well as in the 
 laborator}', led them to the belief that many of the crystalline rocks^ 
 which had formerly been regarded as altered sedimentary strata, were 
 in reality of eruptive origin, and distinctly referable to the more com- 
 monly massive pi u tonic rocks. 
 
 The foliation noticed in these gneisses i.s produced either by (1) 
 the alternation of light and dark bands, or (2) by the more or less 
 parallel distribution of the component minerals. In many of the plutonic 
 or deep-seated rocks particularly the granites and similar allied types, 
 a maiked tendency is noticed in the bisilicates tc aggregate themselves 
 in certain spots or patches, leaving the rest of the rock mass compara- 
 tively free from these constituents. The dark spots {AusHcheidiiiKjen) 
 so conspicuous in many g.vinites are perhaps the most familiar examples 
 of this " mngmatic differentiation," as it has been called. A micro- 
 scopical examination of these "spots" shows that they possess the .same 
 mineial constituents as the surrounding rock, and differ only in the 
 relatively greater abundance of the bisilicates present — indeed felspar 
 and quartz are only sparingly represented, if at all. As the basic con- 
 stituents are the first to cool and to assume a crystalline condition, these 
 segregations mark the first formed nuclei in the slowly cooling magma. 
 The result of jiressure on a rock, characterized by the presence qf these 
 masses would result in their bemg squeezed or drawn out into more 
 or less lenticular areas, assuming an approxiiiiately ])arariel position 
 to one another in a direction at right angles to the pressure. 
 
 Again, many of the dark bands present in these gneisses are seen 
 to have have had their origin as dykes which have been intruded in a 
 direction corresponding to the foliation, as offering the least resistance. 
 The origin of many of these dykes of hornblendic schist may very often 
 be clearly made out in the field, as they can be frequently traced along 
 their strike into aieas oi- residual cores of the unaltered massive diorites 
 or diabases which for some ivason have escaped the pressure or deform- 
 ation to which the surrounding rocks have been subjected. In the case 
 of the more massive of these gneisses where the foliation is produced 
 by the approximately parallel position of the mineral con.stituents, their 
 field relations, as well as their microscopical characters and chemical 
 composition, reveal their true nature as eruptive granites which 
 acquired a foliation as Ji result of pressure. In fact at the present time 
 petrographers have abandoned the use of the term " gneiss " as applic- 
 able to any <lefinite type of rock, and are inclined to make use of it in 
 
itMinaii 
 
 TBLLS & BAKLOW] 
 
 PROPOSED OTTAWA CANAL 
 
 187 
 
 a structural sense only or as a term of convenience when nothing very 
 positive is known in regard to the constituents of the rock. 
 
 It has been conceded that many of the plutonic rocks, such as gran- 
 ite, diorite, etc., may, and, in fact, often do exhibit a tendency to a more 
 or less parallel disposition of their component minerals so that it has 
 now become customary wheie a rock has been subjected to examina- 
 tion, to speak of it as a gabbro-gneiss, diorite-gneis.s, etc., in this way 
 at once indicating the composition and texture of the rock mass. 
 
 Recent work in Archaean geology lias likewise shown that a great 
 deal of this gnei,ss has not only had an irruptive origin but wc.s in a 
 moltenor a plastic condition at a time subsequent to the hardening of cer- 
 tain distinctly clastic rocks with wliich it came in contact. A.t what depth 
 below the surface these rocks must have solidified to produce their perfect 
 crystalline condition is a matter of conjecture. Moreover, no certain evi- 
 dence has been produced ot the existence of any surface volcanic rock 
 with which they might most reasonably have been expected to be associ- 
 ated, although subsequent denudation and erosion may have removed all 
 traces of such mantle or covering. Although in many instances this first 
 formed floor has been shown by its contact with the Huronian elastics to 
 have beenin a very unstableconditioii.stillinagreat many casesits present 
 attitude witli legard to the overlying elastics may, and doubtless has 
 been, maintained since its original formation. In the country iuime- 
 diately adjoining the Mattawa River, and in the eastern part of Lake 
 Nipissing, the gneiss is usually very distinctly foliated, although in 
 many cases large areas are characterized by the presence of the 
 moie massive and granitoid varieties, in which cases the foliation is 
 often more or less obscure and occasionally absent altogether. The dip 
 is generally to the south at a high angle; but near the outlet i)f the 
 French River from Lake Nipissing, and for a (-onsiderable distance 
 down the river, the gneiss is either horizontal or inclined at a very low 
 angle to the south. As Lake Huron is approached, however, the 
 gneiss is again tilted up, and displays a lemarkably uniform dip in a 
 southeasterly direction at a (comparatively high angle. On a map 
 shortly to be issued by the Geological Survey) as well as on some 
 others previously issued) the attempt has been made to correlate the 
 many conflicting strikes obtained through this district, and to show 
 by means of certain lines the curious curving and twisting aftected by 
 this gneiss. 
 
 A large number of dykes cut these gneisses, but no petrographical 
 examination has yet been made 3f their contents. A rather remark- 
 
■."tffftUi-^fij^i-t ... 
 
 fc-_j,™,_;.iU. ™;,;™fc^*«a!jrii^_ 
 
 188 
 
 ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 
 
 able and unusual dyke, about ten feet wide, was noticed cutting across 
 the strike of the foliation of the gneiss on the most southerly of the 
 Manitou Islands. The rocks comprising the dyke resemble in a strik- 
 ing manner the alnoite rock described by Dr. F. D. Adams as occurring 
 at St. Anne's, on the Island of Montreal. Dykes of fine-grained felsite 
 and veins of pegmatite are, as usual, tolerably abundant. 
 
189 
 
 ' Thos 
 Canal, 
 (irtinfT 
 
 as the 
 7 feet, 
 feet 
 would 
 >81-28 
 et too 
 il rise 
 
 As a 
 ay be 
 is the 
 feci fie 
 a the 
 
 that 
 
 TE. 
 
 
 6 17 
 
 5-75 
 
 •00 
 
 r90 
 
 '50 
 
 '00 
 
 00 
 
 00 
 
 00 
 
 20 
 
 40 
 
 80 
 
 00 
 
 DO 
 
 OO 
 
(•Bi5»l^3S^K^Sr^*^-iw«*i^i^?^v. 
 
 Sfi*i*!»- -'**1»i?' < ■ -feWWWfc.V 
 
 aMHOMUM 
 
 r«A;V5. fl.S.C. 1895. 
 
 '* s 
 
 -lu^rmphtJ In/ ro .ferurttt , OHutAMt. 
 
SKCTJOn /i; 
 
 
 ofthf 
 
 PROPOSED 0TTAW>4 CANAL 
 From, 
 
 MONTRLAL TO g'eiorgm m «bay 
 
 T/f ill i('slrii_ic-fip.fl4.f iuf 
 
 78 
 
 Frc>/ujj-(i((- tftt^wa Ca,na.l; 
 
 Soffit ofStab^f^jmu. 
 
 ip » ?' 10 40 » 40 50 «• ?T» W »0 M« 
 
 76 
 
MaMPaaiMMqpMHM^MMHnpli 
 
 188 I 
 
 able 
 the s 
 Man 
 ingi 
 
 atS 
 und 
 
[KLLH & UAKI.OW] 
 
 PR(JFO.SED OITAVVA CANAL 
 
 180 
 
 
 Ihe following levels are based on n list publiHliod in IHfiOhy Thos 
 C. Clarke, C.E., in a loport on the Siirvoy.s of the Ottawa Ship Canal, 
 addressed to the Hon. Commissioner of Public Works. His starting 
 point, Lake St. Louis, is assumed as 57 feet above the s(!a, whereas the 
 latest levelliniT of the Public Works Department gives itas 72 47 feet, 
 that is L5-47 feet higher. This correction, after deducting IK) feet 
 from Clarke's estimate of the rise between Ottawa and (irenville, would 
 give an elevation of 588-37 feet for Lake Huron, as compared with ■)81 '28 
 leet, the latest determination of the US. Coast Survey or 709 feet too 
 high. This difference has been s|)read proportionately over the total rise 
 and fall Ijetween St. Anne and the mouth of the French River. As a 
 prool'()f the general accuracy of the levels tlius deduce.l, it may be 
 mentioned that the elevation given herein for Lake Nipissing is tbo 
 same as that given by the corrected levels of the Northern" Pacific 
 Junction Railway (now part of the Grand Trunk Railway), and the 
 elevation of the mouth of the Mattawa River also agrees with that 
 deduced from the profiles of the Canadian Pacific Railway. 
 
 J. White. 
 
 i 
 
 V 
 
 MOXTKEAL T(l MaTTAWA. 
 
 Montreal Harboui' 
 
 -"pposite Loiigneuil 
 
 " Round Island 
 
 at Victoria Bridge 
 
 Lake .St. Louis . 
 
 22 00 Lower Ste. Anne. 
 
 22.10 
 47-70 
 49 00 
 53 00 
 53 10 
 54-50 
 60 43 
 116 50 
 
 Upper Ste. Anne 
 
 Carillon Rapids 
 
 Above Carillon Rapids 
 
 Chute a Blondeau Rapids 
 
 Above Chute a Blondeau Rapids 
 
 Foot of Long .Sault Rapids 
 
 Grenville ■. . 
 
 J I 
 
 CC 
 
 8-55 
 
 38 47 
 
 Ottawa Harbour | ^^'"f ?*'"'.f ^''^l 
 ( at 1 -20 ft. / 
 
 Above Chaudiere Falls 
 
 118-50 Above Little Chaudiere Falls. 
 
 1-00 
 
 I 00 
 
 H 65 
 
 05 
 
 3 95 
 
 10 
 
 45-30 
 
 1-20 
 
 41.85 
 
 c 
 
 CS 
 
 -a . 
 
 g 3 " 
 
 go's 
 
 S-s o 
 
 ft 
 > 
 
 s 
 
 M 
 25 45 
 
 25 45 
 34 00 
 
 72 47 
 72-47 
 
 73 5 
 
 74 5 
 83- 15 
 83 2 
 87 15 
 87-25 
 
 132-55 
 
 133 75 
 
 1 75 -fi 
 
 B 
 
 .2HW I 
 
 > i 
 
 ij o 
 f ^ 
 
 u bOcS 
 
 40-62 
 41-20 
 42 00 
 80. 36 
 79.0 
 82-5 
 86 5 
 93 1 
 95 2 
 
 102 35 
 
 103 65 
 147-35 
 163-75 
 183-6 
 
 15 17 
 15-75 
 
 8-00 I 183.6 190.6 
 
 8-00 
 7-90 
 
 6 50 
 
 1 9 (M) 
 
 1 12 00 
 
 1 
 
 10 00 
 
 12 00 
 
 15-20 
 
 16-40 
 
 14-80 
 
 20-00 
 
 8 ()0 
 
 7-00 
 
I!)() 
 
 KOYAf. SOCIKTV OF CANADA 
 
 it ■, 
 
 viirn 
 
 140 .-)5 
 150 05 
 153 10 
 
 171 ;« 
 
 175-73 
 LSI ;« 
 
 
 l«4 II 
 202 -JO 
 175 7a 
 
 1 83 00 
 
 184 30 
 18600 
 
 187 00 
 
 188 00 
 188-50 
 180 -.•)() 
 100 30 
 ]92-(»0 
 195 02 
 20<i 00 
 215 43 
 215 50 
 220-35 
 
 Above Keinoux Rapids 
 
 Descheiios Lake 
 
 Foot of Chats Kallm 
 
 Ahovf ( 'liata 
 
 Cliats Lake 
 
 Foot of Ciienaux Rapids 
 Heail of Clieiiaiix Ripids 
 
 Portage (III Foit R.ijiid 
 
 lload of I'oitiigL' dii Fort R.inid 
 
 Mountain Rapid 
 
 Head of Moiinlaiii Rapid 
 
 Head of D.u-^'ies Rapiil . 
 
 Foot of Caluniut 
 
 Head of Cilmnet 
 
 La I 
 ^Porta;,'e dii l-'ort Rapid 
 
 Ro lie I'endii l-'i 
 
 Loni; Rapids 
 
 I !^'^ 
 
 -* Muskrat Rapid 
 ■^ ' Mice Rapid 
 
 '*< 
 2 
 2 Black Rapids 
 
 ^ j Black Falls 
 
 I F'iat Rapils 
 
 I La Passe 
 Foot of Allumette Island. 
 Foot of Chapeaii Rapids 
 Head of Chapeau Rapids 
 Foot of r Islet Rapids. .. 
 
 s . 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 i1 
 
 
 x> * 
 
 b 
 
 i-a 
 
 
 ? ^ 
 
 ■» 
 
 4) .- 
 
 
 U «T« 
 
 *» 
 
 
 
 £ 
 
 
 w 
 
 
 ^^ 
 
 
 8. 
 
 00 
 
 8- 
 
 00 
 
 10-00 
 
 4 
 
 (H) 
 
 / 
 
 m 
 
 I 
 
 00 
 
 
[KI.IX A HAKMIW) 
 
 I'OPONKI) OTTAWA CANAL 
 
 191 
 
 c 
 
 221 
 22« 
 2r.4 
 25r) 
 2fi3 
 2(W 
 2<l» 
 272 
 27» 
 2S5 
 2«« 
 2H« 
 287 
 288 
 288 
 296 
 301 
 306 
 307 
 307 
 308 
 308 
 
 10 
 40 
 (K) 
 64 
 .(() 
 25 
 00 
 ")() 
 85 
 55 
 01 
 70 
 15 
 10 
 70 
 75 
 50 
 55 
 00 
 60 
 00 
 00 
 
 308 
 310 
 310 
 316 
 316 
 316 
 
 •00 
 40 
 
 ■80 
 25 
 30 
 
 ■85 
 
 MoNTHKAI. Td MaTTAWA. 
 
 Heiid (if Ciilliute Kapiils . , 
 
 Fort Willimn 
 
 Head of Deep Hiver 
 
 Heiid of Des Joachims Rapids 
 
 Mouth of Diinioine River 
 
 Foot of McSnrley'a Rapids 
 
 Head of " " 
 
 Foot of kocher Captaine Rapids. . . . 
 
 Head of " '• " 
 
 Foot of Deux Rivieres Rapids 
 
 Head of " " " .. 
 
 Foot of Trou Rapids 
 
 Head of " " (at Micmacs). 
 
 Foot of L'Eveille Rapids 
 
 Head of " " 
 
 Foot of Rocky Fanu Rapids 
 
 Head of " " 
 
 Foot of Johnson's Rapids 
 
 Head of " " 
 
 F"oot of Mattawa Rapids . 
 
 Head of " " 
 
 Mouth of Mattawtt River 
 
 Mattawa and French Rivers. 
 
 41 
 
 4 
 
 l§ 
 
 I 
 
 Mouth of Mattawa River . 
 
 Foot of Plein Chant Rapid and Chute 
 
 Foot of Lac Plein Chant 
 
 Foot of Des Epines Rapids 
 
 Head of " " 
 
 F oot of Rapide de la Rose 
 
 I (I ■00 
 30 
 
 130 
 20 10 
 
 TOO 
 
 3 <)0 
 2 00 
 2.00 
 
 40 45 
 
 4 25 
 12-50 
 
 •80 
 7 30 
 2-80 
 7 40 
 
 -40 
 840 
 
 •80 
 480 
 
 •10 
 2 '90 
 
 5 40 
 16 70 
 
 •20 
 5 50 
 
 •20 
 
 ft) fc* 
 
 4/ 2 ^ 
 
 a 
 > 
 
 'I 
 
 3H8^5 
 368 8 
 370 1 
 
 396 2 
 
 397 2 
 4(M» 2 
 403.1 
 406.0 
 446.45 
 450 7 
 
 463 2 
 
 464 
 471 3 
 474 1 
 481 5 
 481 '9 
 490-3 
 491 1 
 495 9 
 496.0 
 498.9 
 498 9 
 
 498 
 504 
 521 
 521 
 526 
 526 
 
 lu a « 
 
 375 5 
 375 5 
 379 9 
 413-2 
 414 9 
 
 400-45 
 466 3 
 
 488^7 
 
 5132 
 
 a ^ 
 
 u 
 
 •^1 • 
 
 « " fc 
 g.SP," 
 
 700 
 
 7<l 
 
 9-80 
 
 17 00 
 
 17 70 
 
 14-00 
 15 60 
 
 17-40 
 
 1430 
 
ROYAL SOCIKTV OF (JANADA. 
 
 1 
 
 § 
 
 I 
 
 .HI 7 00 
 aiM 20 
 
 310 00 
 31l> 01 
 
 im «5 
 
 321 Ha 
 
 322 20 
 322 3.5 
 .323 38 
 324 53 
 324 71 
 32r)IH 
 ;{2.'5 33 
 3.32 34 
 336 OS 
 339 3 J 
 347 79 
 
 Matmwa and Fhkmh Rivp. 
 
 HH. 
 
 3J198 
 .382 42 
 382 72 
 .384 03 
 .391 60 
 
 391 69 
 
 392 45 
 392-53 
 
 Head of Rupido do la Rose 
 
 Foot of Kiipi<U! ([(>8 Rochorx 
 
 Head of " •' 
 
 Foot of Kapidus dc« Aiguilles. 
 
 Ifcad of " •< 
 
 Foot of Chute doR I'measeux 
 
 Head of " •' 
 
 Foot of Little I'arosseiix Rapids 
 
 Hoa<l of " <« M 
 
 Foot of Lake lMini8i(Eel Lake) 
 
 Foot of Talon Chute 
 
 Head of " " 
 
 Kapid below Lake 'J'alou 
 
 Foot of L^ikc Talon 
 
 Head of " 
 
 Foot of Turtle Lake 
 
 Foot of Trout Lake 
 
 Head of " " (Hunniiit level) 
 
 I'roposed suininit level of canal to be 
 obtained by lowering Trout and 
 Turtle Lakes and raising Lake Nip 
 
 
 
 
 i;» 
 
 4 80 
 10 
 40 
 
 .3.3 40 
 
 8 10 
 12 70 
 
 42 .30 
 
 ■no 
 
 issing . 
 
 Lake Nipissing, east shore. . . . 
 Head of Ciuvudiere I'orlage. . . . 
 Foot of " 
 
 Foot of Chaudiere liiijids 
 
 Head of Rapule du I'in 
 
 Foot ot " " 
 
 Head of Grande Fauiiile Rapid. 
 Foot of " " •' 
 
 65!» I ft. 
 
 29 53 
 ■90 
 
 Fall. 
 24 75 
 
 25-60 
 •70 
 
 8 i 
 
 ?» 3 4( 
 
 
 .V32-45 
 .5.33 8 
 .5.38 « 
 .5,38 7 
 ."),39l 
 .■•.39 1 
 .572 5 
 
 rc' -» 
 
 iu 
 
 .58(t.(i 
 .593 3 
 5!>3 3 
 (i35 6 
 
 635 6 
 0.36-5 
 
 636 5 
 666 05 
 666 95 
 666 95 
 
 .393-22 Head of Rapide du Buisson. 
 
 393 .32 
 
 Foot f)f 
 
 2 60 
 
 10 
 
 5-70 
 
 -40 
 
 3-30 
 
 642 2 
 642 2 
 616 6 
 615 9 
 615 9 
 613 3 
 613 2 
 607-5 
 607-1 
 603-8 
 
 9 - 
 •CHS 
 
 641 6 
 
 667-85 
 669-75 
 
 649 5 
 
 619 6 
 619-2 
 
 616 6 
 
 41 " I. 
 
 g.SP« 
 
 5-10 
 
 1-80 
 
 2 80 
 
 30 
 
 3 70 
 3 30 
 
 3 40 
 
{KI.I.M \ lUkliiW] 
 
 I'KOI'OSKI) OTTAWA fANAI,. 
 
 KM 
 
 1 
 
 39S 
 
 •78 
 
 304 
 
 00 
 
 39r) 
 
 41) 
 
 H9r. 
 
 70 
 
 412 
 
 72 
 
 412 
 
 74 
 
 413 
 
 74 
 
 413 
 
 H2 
 
 417 
 
 54 
 
 417 
 
 04 
 
 427 
 
 Nl 
 
 428' 
 
 02 
 
 430 
 
 70 
 
 MaTTAWA and I'KKM.'II K|VKK!4. 
 
 Hond of Petite I'liuuille Raplil, . . 
 Font of " " " 
 
 Heiul of Riipiile <lii I'lirioii^n 
 
 Fool of " " 
 
 Head of (Jiaiid Kucoilul Ka|ii(lH. 
 
 I'oot of " " " 
 
 Head of siiiull rapid. . 
 
 lM)Ot of " " 
 
 Head of siimll rapid 
 
 I'oot of «• " 
 
 Head of I'utiteo Dalles Rapid 
 
 iMiot of •' '« << 
 Mouth of I'reiicli River 
 
 I* 
 
 4 40 
 
 •HO 
 
 120 
 
 •;io 
 ooo 
 
 •10 
 •70 
 
 2 00 
 
 010 
 
 a ^ !• 
 
 
 OO.'l'H 
 
 rt0»4 i IIOfl'« 
 
 51(7 4 
 507 1 
 5J»0'2 
 500 I 
 580 4 
 580 ^4 
 587^4 
 587^4 
 581^3 
 581-3 
 
 001-2 
 
 501 -3 
 
 
 
 (5 
 
 (140 
 
 3 NO 
 
 3 00