Causes of high Price of Land. 23 



any tiling specially affecting- German interests in the colony, 

 tliey can at least influence one vote in Parliament. The 

 reason why the number of Germans in Australia is yet so 

 small is undoubtedly owing to the high price of land. The 

 same quantity which can be purchased in the United States 

 for one dollar costs £1 here, and this solely because the 

 Colonial Government contracted a loan in former days with 

 the wealthier colonists, for which they pledged the land, 

 which was taken at £1 per acre ; this has never been paid 

 off, so that the mortgagee is virtually the proprietor of the soil, 

 without Government being in a position to profit by its con- 

 tract or get rid of its liabilities. It thus has become necessary 

 for them to enhance the value of the land, and this seems to 

 be the chief difficulty in the way of lowering the acreage 

 price, to the manifest encouragement of emigration and the 

 cultivation of the soil. 



Sir William conducted us, now on horseback, now on foot, 

 now in his carriage, over his extensive domain, and did not 

 fail to acquaint us with the details of everything that could 

 be interesting or useful. Wine cultivation in Australia, though 

 only first raised into importance in 1838, has made such rapid 

 strides, and has proved so profitable, that in no long time Eng- 

 land, hitherto so deficient in wines, will be enabled through her 

 colonies to vie with the choicest vintages of Europe ; for those 

 of Australia and the Cape are little inferior even now in body 

 'and bouquet to those of Spain, and it is only the smallness of 

 the quantity hitherto manufactured, and almost entirely re- 



