Prince Edward Island

a province of the Dominion of Canada. It lies in the southern bend of the Gulf of St. Lawrence. It is separated from Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick by a curving body of water, ten to thirty miles wide, known as Northumberland Strait. The area of the island is 2,184 square miles. It is about 150 miles in length and from four to thirty-five miles in width. Eight hundred thousand acres are under cultivation. Charlottetown is the capital. The coast is irregular. Deep bays alternate with extensive headlands. The surface is undulating. The underlying rock is a red sandstone. The soil varies from clay to sand. The island is well watered. It was covered originally with dense forests of maple, beech, birch, fir, and other evergreens. About two-thirds of the island is under cultivation. The climate is considered milder than that of Maine. The chief industries are agriculture and stock raising. Wheat, barley, oats, beans, peas, potatoes, turnips, garden vegetables, small fruits, and orchard fruits do well. The summer is too cool for corn. The dairy interests of the island are large. It is estimated that the production of cheese for 1910 was 3,000,000 pounds, and of butter 550,000 pounds. The live stock of the province is as follows: horses, 34,127; milch cows, 53,182; other cattle, 61,116; sheep, 110,986; swine, 47,624; poultry, 723,213. The manufactures are chiefly those of linen, flannel, leather, boots and shoes, and tobacco. Meat products are packed for export. A railway running from one end of the island to the other, with branches, is owned and operated by the Dominion government. Formerly shipbuilding was an important industry. Fishing for lobster, mackerel, cod, herring, and hake is of importance, giving employment to about 5,000 men and yielding an annual catch worth over $1,000,000. The oyster fisheries are the most important in Canada. The population in 1900 was reported at 103,259. The people are chiefly of British ancestry. About 14,000 are French. A system of public schools is maintained. The province joined the Dominion of Canada in 1873 and is represented at Ottawa in both houses of the Dominion Parliament.