WELLINGTON TOPICS.

Taranaki Daily News, 16 November 1917, Page 8

WELLINGTON TOPICS.

THE WHEAT OUTLOOK. (Fiom our Special Correspondent). Wellington, Nov. 12. Minister for Agriculture (Hon. IV. D. S. Mac Donald) stated to-day that the outlook as far as wheat was concorned was very good. He was disposed to believe, indeed, that the Government would, not need all the wheat that he had arranged provisionally to get from Australia, since the locaferop promised to be largo. If the senson proved a good one, New Zealand would be relieved of anxiety ns to a wheat shortage for sonic time to come.

The official statistics, prepared by the Government Statistician, show that the area under wheat this' year is 293,000 acres, an increase of about 55,000 acres on last year's crop. The area under Avheat in 1013-14 was 1GG,774 acres in 1914-15 it was 229.000 acres, and' in 1915-10 it was 329,200 acres. The yield in 1915-16 was unusually low, so that New Zealand lost most of the advantage of the increased area. The prospects this year are reported to be very good and unless adverse conditions are experienced later in the season the yield should bo large. The Minister mentioned that there are four full cargoes of wheat in Aus. tralia awaiting shipment to New Zealand at the present time. A chartered steamer is loading wheat at one of the Australian ports for the New Zealand Government. He had tried to arrange shipments' of wheat on overseas steamers that were taking cargo in Australia and then coming to New Zealand to complete their loading, but ho had been unable to get any wheat across in this way. The steamers could not afford to incur any delay.