State of Trade

Feilding Star, Volume X, Issue 68, 6 December 1888, Page 3

State of Trade

. . ■ ♦ . ------ The President of the Chrißtchurch I Chamber of Commerce {Mr-AY Kaye) made the following observations" ; «ii Wednesday in reference to the agricultural outlook : — After- sue hi a long pel ii id of depression, brought about mainly hy consecutive bnd harvests, low prices, and high rated of interest on borrowed money, following years of plenty and lavish advances too easily made available, we are too sceptical even to acknowledge to ourselves that New Zealand is uteadily — nay, rapidly— overcoming- her difficulties, and forging once more to the front as one of those important of British colonial dependencies. London is a splendid refuge when prices aro low here, and markets nearer at hand are temporarily closed to üb. Yet let us cultivate the Australian trade, where the risk is less, the returns quicker, and in the long run more profitable. Farmers are proverbially hard to please, but as regatds wheat growing they are in an enviable position, for it has been carefully ascertained that taking wheat at about 3s per bushel, the net profit in New Zealand is greater than the total value of the cr-jp of any other of the colonies of Australia ; and that our yield, on an average of years, is more than three times that of South Australia, nearly two and a-half times that of Victoria, and nearly double that of New South Wales. The average yield of wheat for 15 years past of four of the wheatgrowing colonies has been : — £ b. d. South Australia, 8.04 bushels per acre, at say 3s on farm . . 14 1 Victoria, 11.64 bushels per acre at say 3s on farm . . . . 115 6 New South Wales, 14.55 bushels per acre, at say 3s on farm . . New Zealand, 26.16 bushels per acre, at say 3s on farm . . 318 6 By the above you will note that the balance in favor of New Zealand over South Australia is £2 14s 3d, Victoria £2 3s, New South Wales £1 15s; and were we to compare with Canterbury alone the difference would be still more striking, as it will be readily admitted that the Canterbury farmer is much better situated ;han one in any other province, owing :o the nature of the land and the easy way it can be cultivated. Taking jats shows practically the same result for fifteen years — South Australia, 12.55; Victoria, 21.42; New South Waleg, 20.72 ; and New Zealand, 32.16. We can carry more sheep to ;he acre in New Zealand than in alnost any other part of the world ; hat whereas in nearly all parts of Australia they count how many acres to he sheep, we, in New Zealand, count iheep to the acre.