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BRITISH COLUMBIA, the western province of the Dominion of Canada. It
is bounded on the east by the continental watershed in the Rocky Mountains,
until this, -in its north-westerly course, intersects 1200 W., which
is followed north to 60 N., thus including within. the province a part
of the Peace river country to the east of the mountains. The southern
boundary is formed by 49 N. and the strait separating Vancouver Island
from the state of Washington. The northern boundary is 60 N., the western
the Pacific Ocean, upon which the province fronts for about 600 m.,
and the coast strip of Alaska for a further distarke of 400 m. Vancouver
Island and the Queen Charlotte Islands, as well as the smaller islands
lying off the western coast of Canada, belong to the province of British
Columbia. Physical Features.British Columbia is essentially a mountainous
country, for the Rocky Mountains which in the United States lie to the
east of the Great Basin, on running to the north bear toward the west
and approach the ranges which border the Pacific coast. Thus British
Columbia comprises practically the entire width of what has been termed
the Cordillera or Cordilleran belt of North America, between the parallels
of latitude above indicated. There are two ruling mountain systems in
this belt the Rocky Mountains proper on the north-east side, and the
Coast Range on the south-west or Pacific side. Between these are subordinate
ranges to which various local names have been given, as well as the
Interior Plateau an elevated tract of hilly country, the hill summits
having an accordant altitude, which lies to the east of the Coast Range.
The several ranges, having been produced by successive foldings of the
earths crust in a direction parallel to the border of the Pacific Ocean,
have a common trend which is south-east and north-west. Vancouver Island
and the Queen Charlotte Islands are remnants of still another mountain
range, which runs parallel to the coast but is now almost entirely submerged
beneath the waters of the Pacific. The province might be said to consist
of a series of parallel mountain ranges with long narrow valleys lying
between them.
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