Show st lawrence Is canada s natural highway treaty directs attention to great river system washington the st lawrence river canadas natural highroad to the west takes tabes on new importance since the recent signing 0 of the waterway treaty between the united states and canada with its five freshwater fresh water inland seas the st lawrence forms one of the file great river systems of the world says a bulletin from the national Nation nl geographical society while its basin Is third in size among amone north american rivers being exceeded by those of the mississippi and the mackenzie enzie the st lawrence drains in all some square miles an area nearly equal to that of the republic of reni peru the name st lawrence lanrence however applies only to the lower third of the 2100 mile river system actually the stream rises at the source of the st auls I river near dear the headwaters of the mississippi in minnesota flows into lake superior through the other great lakes and empties into the gulf of st lawrence at cape gaspe quebec but technically the st lawrence is that part of the main stream which flows from kingston at the mouth of lake ontario to cape gaspe miles in length unique among rivers in several ways the st lawrence la Is unique among large rivers of the world easygoing easy going it does not dig up much silt and therefore has no alluvial delta at its mouth its banks are clear and sharp to the oceans rim and the channel at its mouth Is deep enough to clear the largest ships afloat the st lawrence in fact may be said eald to lead a very well balanced life five months during the year it works dul diligently gently as canadas chief artery of commerce then for seven months it rests all but the lozer lower lo z er miles being closed by ice floods are almost unknown along the st lawrence the great lakes labes act as impounding re regulating u reservoirs and its own occa elonar expanses take up the excesses of its lower tributaries tributa ries the dikes at montreal and needed only during the spring and tall fall when infrequent ice fee jams cause the river to overflow its normal banks the st lawrence in its lower reaches Is a tidal river like the hudson but oddly enough its highest tides are at orleans island miles from the open ocean at cabot strait at its mouth the range Is only six feet but at orleans island below quebec the spread Is 19 feet quebec lias has as 1812 feet of tide although the water there Is almost fresh one or of or of rivers the me lawrence below quebec Is more like abroad a broad bay or long lake the stranger n approaching from europe must sail some distance up the st lawrence before he realizes that lie he Is in ID a river at all at point des monts both banks become visible for the first time yet the river here Is 40 miles across and very deep at its mouth the st lawrence Is more than twice as wide even at sa ecna Y halfway between the gulf and quebec it Is still 20 miles across legends of french canada historically sentimentally and scenically the st lawrence Is one of americas most famous and beloved streams long before english settlers had bad crossed the alle banies ha nies french missionaries and fur traders pushed down the st lawrence and over the portages por to the heart of north america today the tiny ellla villages es white parish churches and the green patchwork fields of the descendants of these french pioneers make the st SL lawrence valley seem more like a part of europe than america here Is a land of legends the dripping indian the phantom priest and the ghost ship far removed from busy montreal canadas largest city which also shares the banks of the st lawrence while vessels of any draft may ascend the st lawrence to quebec the next miles to montreal are open only to ocean steamers which do not dot draw more than 30 3 feet smaller ships may ascend the river today to lake ontario by using a combination of 0 short bhart canals and open channels but the locks are narrow and the current too swift for heavy commercial traffic in many places this channel Is 14 feet f beet with a 30 foot channel throughout ocean liners could ascend the st lawrence to lake ontario where the new welland canal of the same depth could carry them to lake erie eric and the other great lakes shipping direct by this route an exporter in buffalo for instance would save more than miles to liverpool in addition to td the cost of barge or rall mil shipment to atlantic coast ports |