PROSPECTS OF NEW ZEALAND.

Motueka Star, Volume IV, Issue 193, 26 June 1903, Page 4

PROSPECTS OF NEW ZEALAND.

A progressive .land settlement policy and the development of the country by the making of roads, the building of bridges, and the construction of railways, has quite changed the prospects of New Zealand. There is yet much to be done, but already the fruits of the Government’s policy are beginning to ripen. The success which has followed the dairying industry is remarkable. It is computed that the trade of the northern part of Wellington province, Taranaki and parts of Hawke’s Bay has increased by fully five and twenty per 6feht, during the past eighteen months. This is unquestionably due to dairying. The dairy farmer is in receipt of. his'monthly cheque. He has not to wait, as has the farmer dependent upon his grain or wool for a cheque once a year ; and it is thi* regular monthly revenue throughout all dairying districts that is doing so much to maintain that prosperity which is so general and so agreeable. The question Will it last? obtrudes itself sometimes on the serious and contemplative iiian of business. Will the prosperitv, we are now enjoying continue ? Those who would attempt to reply affirm that whether our prosperity continues or not depends almost entirely noon whether dairy produce maintains its value. This'is not, however, the whole case. Dairy produce is no doubt, an important factor in the question of continued prosperity ; but it is not everything. We must still give wool a first place, with frozen meat a: second, and butter and cheese a growing and certain third. Now, wool has risen and its piiceis likely to be maintained. Frozen meat is firm, and indeed higher than it was, so that the returns from these two sources of national wealth are in all likelihood to remain favoutable to the producer. And although there is every reason to believe that dairy produce will keep up in value, as it will certainlv increase in output, there are evidences that the rapid development of dairying in other countries will militate to some extent against values. A decline in value has already been experienced, but it is not sufficient yet to effect the receipts of the producer who is Interested in a co-opera-tive creamery, for m all probability his returns were fixed for him at the beginning of the season, and whatever depreciation may have been experienced towards its end the decline will represent so much less profit to the exporter or the purchaser of the creameries’ output. However, we notice that during the first three months of this year the arrivals of butter into London from Denmark increased by forty thousand civt, as compared with the quantity (419,300 cwt) imported into the metropolis from that country last year. Dur ing the quarter there were increases also from Sweden, Holland and France, aggregating 45,000c\vt. On the other hand, the Russian and German export of butter slightly declined, and that of the United States fell away by 50 per cent., while the export from Canada exhibited also a falling off. The greatest drop comparatively was in the Aus-tralian-export, that falling from 75,740ewt in 1902 to 19,870ewt in 1903, 4 on account,.of the drought. It ought to be observed, too. that the dairying business in New Zealand for the quarter showed satisfactory expansion, in creasing by 25,000 cwt. Next to Denmark, this country was for the quarter, under review , the largest supplier of butter to London ; and we note these facts in order to show that while there is room for expansion, New Zealand datojunan are not without powerful rivals in the field.