African Prospects.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVI, Issue 9, 12 January 1904, Page 4

African Prospects.

visiting nata-l, folitjcians. AI'STRAI.ASIAN TO Lit. Then' are at present .'(laying in Auckland three gentlemen droni Natal, who have been visiting- Australia antl are now touring New Zealand, seeking inforiimlhui of the resources of these colonies, more particularly us regards the pivs-ho;lal and dairyilng imh.UUk'x:- t r l'he visitors -aru Messrs AUuuice 's. Evans, CM/.!., Thos. Ilvsloj), M.L-A-, and (ieo. S. Ai'mslnong. M,.L<A. Messrs llcslcp and Armstrong left Xatal on OcloMer 17, and Mr Kvuns joined them ill Australia from E»g----1 ixiid, having resigned his seal, (Durban City) in the Nn-lal Legislative Atwe.mhly, in order to pay a longvisit to Eng'larav, und to, incAide Australia and New Zealand in his itinerary. The three gentlemen Inn e already visited Victoria, New South Wales, and Queensland, and speak most highly of the warm welcome extended to them in the States they have v.ifjiitpd toy the.GoVernmertl ollicials and residents. They were particularly struck with the good work being done at the agricultural college." of Dookie (Victoria). Ilawkesbury (New South Wales), and Catton (QncenslaiKl). They have gathered much valuable information in regard to the. agricultural industries oi the Stales of the Commonwealth named, which will be applied to their opvn colony in yo I'ar as the. conditions agree with those of Australia. In ad-.licb.n to the agricultural colleges named, two experimental (arms were inspected, and with some -interest, because an experimental farm has been started in Natal at Hilton, about 1(1 miles above Maritzburg.

"On the whole, we saw better la ( iu.l in Ai.v-iti'a.'.'ui than we ha\|e in

Natal," sajd air Aiitisi in fiinversulion with u Nov Zealand Herald reporter. " There are patches of poor land, of coui'xc." lie admitted. " but we think Unit the land 01 Australia that. we saw averages better results than the lands in our own colony. Of course, the droughts are against Australia, hut, barring them. I should say that fanning conditions are bettor."

■The visitors were asked ii tilings were brightening up in the Transvaal at all, and it they would improve with the advent of Chinese labour for the in hies.

Mr Evans said the. (ApiUilisls were determined to havt Chinese labour and if tlvey could g«t it on tlseir own tern": they would work the mines in that way, in oi'der to cope with the present scarcity of labour. •■ This will benefit Natal in a way," he added," -heemtso it is through our colony that so much traffic pastes. There are • three lines from Capo Colony, however, starting rrom Capetown Fast London, and Port Elizabeth, and then there is the IVlu.gon Hay line, starting from Lorenzo Marque;. The»3 lines average about a third of the trallic to each, i.e., one-third of thy trallic passes through Portuguese Kast Africa, one-third through Natal, awl thu remainder tljrougu Cape Colony. I suppose our line is about the workwl lin> im the. world. K is only 3ft (tin—the same guaitV as that of NV.w Zealand, I br-liev«-'.|it we manage to pass over its (Still or TOO miles an enormous amount of trallic, the receipts averaging, according to lilie latest information I have receives!,, £."»!,OOU per week. We thought when in Australia that it was « pity that there was not a uniform guage there as in South AJri/Lja." Shaking of the pastoral and agricultural prospects 0/ South Africa, and Natal in particular, Mr Jivslop said there 'cyVuld lie a big demand for New Zealand products for some time to come, " It is'inipossible for us to supply ourselves with all we want , jor a long tiu/i to come. Tln'i'e. lias been a considerable importation of Australian cattle, but that has now ceased. The price for "cattle has fallen because of the pest known as Hhodesian redwater.

Ou i' own cattle are somewhat immune from local pesis, but Unit is not .so with imported cuttle ; they lire most to hwul penis. N'iiUdj as you must he uwuiVi I'ns lieen incileaKKl l.:y the ud.lil'un of Utrecht and Vryheid districts, and all Ims settled .down, and tile people arc working us amicably together there us one might hope for alter the, wiir, and the country is now getting' settled down, but \t must Ia; a veiy liMig time before we can supply ourselves with all we iv.j.iiiv. Now, wheat is wht?t we cannot grow successfully to any extent. This we

shall have to import lor a very long time, to come. The climate is not suitable for wheat-g.rowi'ng with the present Known varieties. Jn regaid to minion, we must import heavily iVr |.son.e jeais, utnd there is a good demand lor sheep. Argentina has sent lurge n.U'iiint'ities, and Australia has also contributed, but it will lake a Kmijj tiiiK' f.pi'or-e we can make up for the heavy depletion of flocks caused by the war. The impelled sheep do much Ijt'Uei than cattle in the sheepraisingj drstricUs of South; Africa.' For iimny years Natal and Som'h Airica gieneiully can bv a gpod custoiner of New ZOaland." The three gentlemen w : ere very particular and unanimous on one point, viz., the uselessness of unskilled labourers going to South .Africa. There is i|(j ebaliHee for the busjli Ivuiniii, as all .roitgjh work is done:by mitivea and Indians, and although artisans are welcome, they must go u't their own risk of securing employment. As a niibter of fact ftahaL'is wufiUs in that respect are alivady lully met by the supply: The resources of South Africa as a whole would be gold and diamonds, and the prospects of extensive exports of agricultural products were extremely remote. It was Willi gold and diamonds that iSoulh Afj-nja. 'would! pay for hejr i.mpons.