New Day Dawns

Along the narrow, tortuous streets of old Quebec City banners urged: "Allans `a I'Exposition." At the rate of 31,000 a day les Quebecois poured into town-children, priests, nuns, farmers from Beauce and Beaupre. On the fairgrounds down on the flats of St. Franc,ois parish they drank gallons of petite biere d'epinette, a mild sort of Gallic root beer; ate tons of frites (French fried potatoes); the children rode the miniature airplanes and the loop-the-loops, jubilantly dizzy.

Quebec's 35th annual provincial exhibition was the most exciting shivaree of the year. But there was more to it than the midway's cautious cooch dancers, or the daredevils in the motorcycle pit. In the Industrial Pavilion, the exhibits spelled out a new era. Typical was Paul Fortier demonstrating farm refrigeration machinery. Until 1942, he had worked for an American company. Then he decided that "French Canadians are as smart as others," and set up shop in a small garage. Already his business, originally capitalized at $4,000, is now worth $20,000.

War-Born Spirit. The fact was that Quebec was in the throes of industrial revolution. During the war, with plenty of manpower, cheap power and raw materials, Quebec was able to produce in a hurry. She received 38% of the war contracts let in Canada; her manufacturing output jumped from $1 billion to $2.5 billion annually.

The boom is still on. Since the first of the year, 1,200 new industrial firms have been formed in the province. In Montreal alone, where new capital is estimated at $60 million, there are 60 new industries, almost as many new plants. Verdun has 37 new plants within its city limits; once-sleepy towns like St. Tite have doubled in population. Quebec's burgeoning industries today embrace paper, textiles, chemicals, shipbuilding, breweries, tobacco. And Quebeckers are ready to supply the technical skills to run the new industries. In preparation for the new day, the province has steadily increased the budget of its technical and trade schools. Now there are 40-odd, with 12,000 students, best evidence that the revolution has come to stay.

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