Agriculture. The year 1926 was one Assemblyman Dr. A. A. McDonald (Con.) John Mustard (Lib.) Peter Sinclair (Lib.) W. Chester S. McLure (Con.) . J. H. Blanchard (Lib.). A. C. Saunders (Lib.) Hon. A. F. Arsenault (Con.) . J. F. McNeill (Lib.) of great encouragement. Hopes of the seed-time were more than generously fulfilled in the form of an abundant harvest, characterized by a quality of rare excellence. Owing to unfavourable weather, seeding was late in commencing, but details of seeding were well performed and germination and growth were generally satisfactory. The acreage sown to grain showed a decrease compared with the previous year, but the estimated yield was greater by upwards of 200,000 bushels. Pasturage conditions were excellent, and the flow of milk was maintained at a high level. Corn production, owing to the lateness of planting and the coolness of the weather during the growing season, experienced an off year. Root crops yielded less than an average crop but the potato crop from the standpoint of both quantity and quality was one of the best in the history of the Province. The area sown was almost 1,000 acres greater than in 1925, and the production exceeded that of 1925 by at least 500,000 bushels. Prices were highly remunerative. The Report of the Department of Agriculture, as submitted by Hon. J. D. Stewart, Acting Minister, gave the following estimate of the area, yield and value of the field crops in 1926: A great measure of activity was in evidence in the livestock industry. The swine industry made steady progress, and the number of hogs sold through cooperative agencies increased. The returns from the poultry flocks were encouraging. Statistics of livestock showed :-horses, 34,370; cattle, 114,704 ; sheep, 83,437; pigs, 49,711; fowls, 760,844. There were 22 creameries in operation which produced 1,842,141 lbs. of butter of a gross value of $653,232, and 20 cheese factories, which made 2,002,855 lbs. of cheese, of a gross value of $318,903. The interest in the Women's Institute Branch was well maintained, upwards of 20 new branches having been organized, and a great volume of valuable work performed. The number of branches was 133. Various Island agricultural organizations held their Annual Meetings in Charlottetown about Mar. 1st, 1927. The first of these was the P. E. I. Dairy Association, which met on Feb. 28. In his presidential address, W. J. Gibson contrasted the production of 1899, when the Association was formed, with that of 1926, showing that the output of butter had increased from 722,000 lbs. of a net value of 14.5 cents per lb. to 1,842,141 lbs. of a net value of 34 cents. Numerous addresses were delivered and the following Directors were elected: Queen's County, W. J. Gibson, Marshfield; J. P. Simmons, Charlottetown; J. H. Simpson, Bay View; King's County, John McKinnon, Bear River; John A. Dewar, North Perth; Prince County, Roy E. McLean, Lot 16, and C. M. Howett, Kensington. -The Potato Growers' Association met the next day with over 500 in attendance. The keenest interest was shown in the work of the organization. Several valuable addresses were delivered and informative discussions held on problems of the industry. were : On Mar. 2 at a combined meeting of the Central Farmers' Institute and the Swine Breeders' Association, approval was given to the formation of the Maritime Marketing Board. Officers elected by the Directors of the Institute President, R. A. Profitt, Prince County; Vice-President, W. W. Crosby, Queen's County; Secretary, C. E. McKenzie. Officers of the Swine Breeders were : President, Peter Brodie; Vice-President, W. J. Gibson; Secretary, A. W. Peterson. The P. E. I. Egg and Poultry Association met on Mar. 31, 1927. Total amount of eggs marketed in 1926 was stated to have been 1,129,442 doz., and the average price for all grades, 28.86 cts. per doz. The number of members increased from 3,536 to 3,702. Directors elected were: Prince County, W. B. McLellan, J. A. Thompson, Fulton Simpson; Queen's County, J. R. Munn, E. Howatt, J. J. McGillivray, John McLean; King's County, J. E. Dingwell, R. G. McLaren, J. W. McLean. The Annual Meeting of the Sheep Breeders' Association was also held on Mar. 3. The President, W. H. McGregor, presented a report on the progress of the industry. The two vacancies on the directorate were filled by the election of Joseph Dunbar, Prince County, and Oliver Saunders, Queen's County. Fisheries. The value of the production of the fisheries of Prince Edward Island in 1926, as reported by the Dominion Bureau of Statistics in cooperation with the Department of Marine and Fisheries, was $1,427,072, as compared with $1,598,119 in the previous year. The principal item of production was lobster, which showed a catch of 66,502 cwt., as compared with 78,570 cwt. in 1925. The average price per case of canned lobster was $30, compared with $28 in the previous year. 2,916 men were employed in the primary operations of catching and landing the fish, and 1,564 in canning and curing operations, both of which showed a decrease from 1925. Public Works. The Report of the Department of Public Works, which was concerned with the care of public buildings, county courts, gaols, ferries, roads and bridges, was submitted by Hon. H. F. McPhee, Minister of Public Works. It showed an ordinary expenditure in 1926 of $244,359, and a capital expenditure of $708. In connection with the highway improvement programme, H. H. Shaw, Provincial Engineer, stated that no new projects had been submitted for Federal aid. The largest part of the work was done in building steel and concrete bridges and culverts and in surfacing various weak stretches of road with gravel. The programme, in accordance with the Canada Highways Act, was practically completed. It included approximately 850 miles of road, of which projects covering 780 miles of county roads and 5 miles of roads through towns had been built at a cost to the Department of $1,492,975, and on which the Federal aid amounted to $537,581. Falconwood Hospital. This Provincial institution was governed by a Board of Trustees, of which the Premier, Hon. J. D. Stewart, was President. Reporting for 1926, the Medical Superintendent, V. L. Goodwill, M.M., C.M., stated that there were in residence at Jan. 1st, 155 men and 153 women, a total of 308. During the year 43 men and 26 women were admitted and 2 men were re-admitted, a total of 69. The total number under care and treatment was 198 men and 179 women. There were discharged or removed by death 46 men and 27 women, and the year closed with 152 men and 152 women, a total of 304. An event of the year was the burning on June 28 of the main tower, as a result of being struck by lightning. Education. Statistics with respect to the schools of Prince Edward Island in 1926 were furnished by H. H. Shaw, Chief Superintendent of Education, in his Annual Report submitted to the Lieutenant-Governor. These gave the following particulars: Number of school districts, 479; number of schools in operation, 471; number of departments, 614; enrolment of pupils, 17,324 (boys, 8,764; girls, 8,560); average daily attendance, 11,823, or 68.2 per cent. of the enrolment; number of teachers, 616 (male, 142; female, 474); government expenditure on schools, $283,022; district expenditure, $171,649; expenditure per pupil enrolled, $23.82; expenditure per pupil in attendance, $35.01. There were held in 1926, 53 school fairs, participated in by 264 schools with 17,432 exhibits made by 5,860 pupils. A number of courses were offered in connection with the Technical Education Act and total enrolment was 657. The chief feature during the year was the establishing of evening classes for the advancement of workers in their daily occupations. The numbers anxious to take this course far exceeded expectations. The success of the night school conducted at Georgetown, which was among the first to be established, had a wide influence on the extension of this work. The Annual Convention of the P. E. I. Teachers' Federation took place in Prince of Wales College Hall, Charlottetown, May 4-6, 1927. In addition to the address of the President, E. J. Hodgson Morrisey, which reviewed the year's work, addresses were delivered by H. H. Shaw, Chief Superintendent of Education, on "Changes of Text Books "; Rev. Fr. James A. Cloran, c.s.S.R., on "Ideals in Teaching "; Miss Jean Browne, National Director of the Junior Red Cross of Canada, on "Ideals in Public Health "; Dr. S. N. Robertson and Lloyd W. Shaw. At the 73rd annual Commencement of St. Dunstan's University, on May 26, 1927, 22 students graduated in Arts and were addressed by Hon. W. J. McMillan, M.D., C.M., F.A.C.S. The following appointments to the staff were made during the year Rev. Gavan Monaghan, Ph.D., Professor of Scholastic Philosophy; Charles McGillivray, B.Sc., Professor of Biology; Rev. Urban Gillis, B.A., Assistant Professor of Latin and History; Rev. Clarence Pitre, B.L., Assistant Director of the Commercial Department; Other Reports. As Acting Registrar-General, Hon. J. D. Stewart reported that in the year ended Dec. 31, 1925, there had been 1,127 births, 976 deaths, and 406 marriages. In the year ended Dec. 31, 1926, there were 1,653 births, 790 deaths, and 455 marriages. There were 164 fires in Prince Edward Island in 1926, involving a property loss of $384,234, and an insurance loss of $256,003. This represented a per capita loss of $4.35, which was the highest in several years. The Saunders Cabinet. On Aug. 12, 1927, the Stewart Government resigned and the new Saunders Cabinet was sworn in, the personnel of which included; THE PRAIRIE PROVINCES General Conditions; Business and economic conditions in the Prairie Provinces continued to improve throughout the year 1926. An accurate review of the situation was given in an article by Hon. T. A. Crerar, in The Globe, (Financial Review of 1926) Toronto, published on Jan. 1st, 1927, in which he said: Western Canada has experienced another good year in 1926. This has been the fourth in succession, for the tide of affairs, after running adversely to Western Canada for several years, changed strongly in favour of the Western Provinces in 1923. The favourable business conditions which now exist, not only in the West, but in many parts of Canada, as the direct result of improvement in Western affairs, are based not only on the effects of one year's crop production, but on the cumulative results of four successive years. The whole West, and all business which depends on the West, is now on a much firmer foundation than ever before. The business now done in Western Canada is based mainly on current production, and not on increase of indebtedness. Periods of business boom in the past have been based to a large extent on the expenditure of large sums of borrowed money, quite inevitable and, to a large extent, quite desirable in the development of a new country, and a lot of business has been transacted which rested, not on the deliberate investment of borrowed money for improvement, but on the increase of debt by farmers during a number of years of unprofitable results. During the past four years a large part of the debts of farmers, both those willingly and those unwillingly incurred, have been disposed of. The amount of borrowed money invested in Western agriculture is still, of course, of great proportions, but only the banks and mortgage companies could testify to the full extent of the reductions made in recent years. Instead of these lending institutions showing anxiety now to reduce the total of their holdings in the West, there is now a tendency to offer money on much less onerous terms than formerly. . . . Present conditions in Western Canada are such as to attract immigration, and there is every justification for our extending and intensifying our efforts to bring the advantages of this country before the people of other countries. Similar opinions were expressed by many other leading business men. Sir Henry Thornton, Chairman of the Canadian National Railways, stated in November, 1926, after a tour of the West, that there was "good, healthy growth" and that everywhere the country was going ahead. E. W. Beatty, President of the Canadian Pacific Railway, expressed the opinion on his Western tour in September, 1926, that conditions were undeniably improving. The testimony of prominent Winnipeg traders was of the same character. Provincial and municipal finance reflected the improvement in business conditions. Rates for both public and private borrowing of money declined. All testimony was to the effect that collections were much improved. The wheat crop of 1926 was somewhat reduced in total volume from that of 1925. Both Manitoba and Alberta had larger wheat production than in 1925, but that was more than offset by a reduction in Saskatchewan from the heavy yield of the previous year. The final summary of the 1925 crop, issued on Oct. 6, 1926, by the Northwest Grain Dealers' Association, indicated a total yield of 409,201,000 bushels of wheat, of which 353,301,000 bushels had been inspected at that date. On Dec. 22, 1926, the Northwest Grain Dealers' Association estimated the 1926 wheat crop at 371,226,000 bushels. The Dominion Government estimate of the wheat crop of the three Prairie Provinces was 381,284,000 bushels. Unfavourable weather during the threshing season reduced the grade of a considerable portion of the crop, and excessive moisture in the grain caused much of it to grade damp and tough. Alexander Thomson, President of the Winnipeg Grain Exchange, said in a statement published on Jan. 3, 1927, that the crop was practically the same as that of the year before in quantity and ranked as one of the largest in the history of the Prairie Provinces. The crop, he declared was not only a very large one, but also a very good one, with wheat of good milling quality. Mr. Thomson estimated the exportable surplus of the crop at about 280,000,000 bushels, and added that the sale of the crop would do much to rehabilitate the Western farmer and to stimulate the business of the whole Dominion. The 1926 wheat crop seemed likely to sell at an average price slightly lower than that of the previous year. Up to May 31, the average of the daily closing price on the Winnipeg market for No. 1 Northern wheat, basis in store at Fort William or Port Arthur, was stated by The Grain Trade News to be $1.43, against a corresponding figure for the previous year of $1.50. The Wheat Pools. During 1926, the Western Wheat Pools continued to grow in membership, and progress was made in each province in developing systems of elevators owned by the Provincial Pools. Total membership was reported in August, 1926, to be 127,200. The Canadian Co-operative Wheat Producers, Ltd., the central selling agency of the three Provincial Wheat Pools, announced on Oct. 15, that the final payment on Pool Wheat of the 1925 crop would be 5 cents per bushel. The initial price paid had been $1.00 per bushel, basis No. 1 Northern in store at Fort William, from which freight, elevator handling and other charges incurred before reaching that point were deducted, and with smaller payments on grain of inferior grade. On Mar. 10, and again on July 24, interim payments of 20 cents a bushel each were made. The final payment brought the price for No. 1 Northern up to $1.45 for the Pool year. The final payment was paid over to the three Provincial Pools which, before remitting to their members, made the deductions required in each Province for Provincial Pool expense and for elevator and commercial reserves. In the final payment adjustment was made on all the lower grades, including the off grades and mixtures on which no interim payment was made. In some of the latter cases the final adjustment ran as high as 25 to 29 cents per bushel. There were 188 |