HARBOUR OF MONTREAL-OCEAN LINERS AND LAKE VESSELS AT THE ALEXANDRA AND KING EDWARD PIERS: GRAIN ELEVATOR No. 1 IN BACKGROUND

oats amounted to only 16,472,743 bushels, made up of 14,737,958 bushels of Canadian and 1,734,785 bushels of American origin. Since oats rates as 34 lbs. to the bushel, and is the lightest of all grains, the shrinkage in exports only represents about one-half of a similar decrease in the heavier grains.

The situation with regard to the movement of wheat, however, shows that in spite of the general depression in trade circles which prevailed during most of the navigation season, caused largely by strikes and other adverse occurrences in the European area, and in spite of statements to the effect that Europe was not buying, and could not afford to buy, wheat from this continent, the exports of wheat from Montreal not only held their own with previous years, but show a considerable increase over the record-breaking year 1925.

The aim of the Harbour Commissioners of Montreal in providing at this port adequate facilities for handling export grain has been to enable the transportation agencies in this country (of which the Harbour is a component and integral part) to be in a position to route the movement outward of Canadian grain over Canadian rail and vessel routes through Canadian ports.

The steady increase which is taking place in the percentage of Canadian grain in the total exports from Montreal year by year is splendid proof of the success which has attended this policy. In 1924, 57% of the total exports of grain was Canadian grain; in 1925 the percentage was 68%; while during the season of 1926 it increased to 73% of the total.

There is still, however, room for substantial improvement in the volume of Canadian grain which should leave Canada by Canadian ports, as is evidenced by the figures showing the quantities of Canadian grain which were exported in 1926 via several of the leading seaports in the United States. These figures quoted are official and show that 113,597,730 bushels of Canadian grain was exported through the Ports of New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Norfolk during 1926. The United States grain exported through these same seaports in the same period amounted to only 38,570,988 bushels, or approximately one-third of the amount of Canadian grain. The Harbour Commissioners are persuaded that a still larger percentage of the Canadian grain leaving this continent by United States ports should be exported through Montreal or one of the other Canadian seaports, and that

the profits of carriage and handling can be secured to Canadian agencies.

The Port of Montreal (and the Ports of Quebec, St. John, Halifax and Vancouver) are equipped to take care of this quantity of grain without the slightest difficulty, and to do so more expeditiously and efficiently than any of the United States harbours already mentioned.

The subjoined table shows to what extent this condition exists:

The season of navigation, after an inauspicious commencement due to an unprecedently late opening of navigation, witnessed intensive activity in the grain elevators of the Harbour during May and June. The indications were that Europe was insistently in need of the large stocks of Canadian grain which had been held in store throughout the winter season. This activity is clearly shown by the shipments of all grains for these two months, viz.: May, 22,846,850 bushels; June, 24,161,699 bushels; approximately 47,000,000 bushels in all, or nearly 3,000,000 bushels more than in the like period of the previous, record-breaking year. With July, however, came the British coal strike, with the demand which ensued for vessels to carry coal from this Continent to Europe, as a result of which chartering rates from the Atlantic coast for grain rose rapidly to twice their normal level. Coincident with this circumstance the south central states harvested a bumper crop of hard winter wheat, movement of which to European continental ports upon a record scale commenced early in July mainly through Gulf of Mexico ports. The port of Galveston had a busy season, and shipped in all 39,576,243 bushels of all grains, as compared with 7,327,000 bushels in the previous year. The consequent contraction in shipments from Montreal is strikingly exhibited in the following statement of shipments by months from this port during the Summer and Fall :

A most interesting statement has been prepared for inclusion in this report, showing the destination of the exports of grain which left the Port of Montreal for overseas during the season of navigation 1926. This statement will be found immediately following the Grain Elevator statistics. It shows that Great Britain holds a commanding lead over all other countries in the consumption of Canadian and United States grains shipped from Montreal, with a total of 32,530,853 bushels of wheat, 4,201,456 bushels of oats, 2,267,227 bushels of barley, and smaller quantities of other grains. While Italy took the second largest quantity of wheat, viz., 12,946,461 bushels, Holland had a greater total of all grains, with 10,433,158 bushels of wheat, 4,038,738 bushels of barley, 2,586,935 bushels of rye, and 3,650,770 bushels of oats. Belgium imported 11,597,796 bushels of wheat, Germany 6,256,200 bushels, France 5,621,615 bushels, Greece 2,496,461 bushels, Portugal 1,447,490 bushels, Ireland 1,177,063 bushels, and Norway, Brazil, South Africa, Algeria, Sweden, Finland, Denmark and Malta other smaller quantities.

Shipping. One of the bright features of an otherwise far from satisfactory season of navigation, was the new high total reached in the number of ships which came to the port. In all, 1,421 ships, both trans-Atlantic and coasting, of a net registered tonnage of 4,221,730 tons, came in, as compared with last year's record figure of 1,255 ships. The trans-Atlantic vessels numbered 1,042 as against 1,040 in 1925, but the increase was very noticeable in the coasting vessels, which numbered 379, having a net registered tonnage of 670,241, as compared with 215 ships of a net registered tonnage of 359,520 in the previous year. The reason for this increase was partly accounted for by the fact that the import of Nova Scotia coal during the season set a new high figure for all time, but the steady growth in the tonnage trading down the St. Lawrence to the Maritime Provinces and Newfoundland is indicative of the development in trade which every season witnesses in the fruitful territories lying between Montreal and the Atlantic.

Of the total 1,421 ocean-going ships which came to the port, 985 were British, and had a total net registered tonnage of 3,262,116 tons, while the United States was second with 183. Ninety-six Norwegian ships, fifty-eight Dutch, forty-three Italian, seventeen Danish, ten French and ten Greek were included amongst the total, and altogether fifteen nationalities were represented, the whole manned by 78,151 seamen.

During the season 115 passenger liners arrived in port, carrying 28,244 passengers from overseas, and the same number of ships sailed with 37,019 passengers.