THE COLONIES IN 1885.

Kumara Times, Issue 1099, 8 April 1880, Page 2

THE COLONIES IN 1885.

From the Victorian Review office a book is to be issued in May next bearing title " the Commercial Future of Australia; or, the Colonies in 1885." The promoters state that " the importance to Australia, and Australians of evincing indefatigable energy in the development of the coming meat trade cannot be over estimated, especially now since the Strathleven has reached England with her cargo of meat in perfect condition, and disposed of at a very fair and thoroughly remunerative price. It means in plain language, about ,£2,000,000 per annum added to her already large and still growing exports within a very few years. But, like the inception of any other very large branch of commerce which .is in an embryonic condition, it is necjfcary to point out in an intelligent miner, both to the general public, to the growers of meat in Australia, and likewise to the consumers of meat in Great Britain, what are , the. available resources and facilities for supply enjoyed by the former, and what is the power of consumption possessed by the

£r fiii«iiii JtWiMafiii :i-iiitiMfcMM«ar-Matter, so as to enable both to comprehend adequately the incalculable benefit that will be conferred upon the great mass of the population in the Mother Country by furnishing them with cheap food, and at the same time devoloping a branch of industry in -Australia, which will open up new avenues of trade of a permanent character, to the benefit alike of capital aud labor of the old country and the new." Meanwhile (remarks the Lyttelton Times) the importance of the Strathleven experiment ia not being lost sight of in this Colony. -A Christ, "church gentleman who was on board ? the Strathleven the day before she sailed, and minutely inspected the meat-carrying process, expresses bis firm conviction that the system is thoroughly applicable to sailing vessels, since, as the meat is perfectly frozen in the first instance, it only remains to keep it in that condition during the Voyage by the use of the refrigerator. On inquiry we learn that the New ) Zealand Shipping Company is obtain-' ing from Eugland full working details cf the Bell-Coleman process, with cost of fitting, <fec, and when these are to I hand some course of action will no i doubt be speedily decided upon. j