60 Journal of Agriculture, Victoria. [10 Jan., 1917. 



with a view to promoting the manufacture in Australia of satisfactory 

 standard designs of apparatus. (4) Mod© of occurrence of gold in 

 quartz, to aid in the localization of payable gold and thus cheapen deep 

 prospecting. (5) Posidonia fibre, the commercial utilization of the 

 immense deposits in Spencer's Gulf. (6) Tick jjest in cattle, the loss 

 through which has cost the Commonwealth several millions of pounds 

 sterling. (7) Alunite, the production in Australia of potash salts, the 

 supply of which from Germany has been cut ofF through the war. (8) 

 Yeasts and breadmaking, in regard to which the results already obtained 

 afforded ho,pe that it will be possible to so shorten' the period of the 

 maturing of the dough as to contribute materially to the solution of the 

 " day-baKiiig trouble." (9) Tlie nodule disease in cattle, which like 

 the tick pest has caused enormous losses in Australia; and (10) Marine 

 biological economics of tropical Australia, including the pearl oyster 

 fisheries, the sponge industry, and the beche-de-mer and turtle fisheries, 

 llie policy of the Executive Committee in regard to these matters is, 

 after making preliminary inquiries from exj>erts, to refer them for 

 investigation under the general control of Special Committees composed 

 of the highest authorities in Australia, both industrial and scientific. 

 The Special Committees are responsible to the Executive. 



Another field of activities of the Executive lies in the matters which 

 have been referred for inquiry to the Committees that have been formed 

 in all the States, those matters including among ethers — (1) Phos- 

 phatic rocks in Australia, with a view to increasing our supply and 

 cheapening the price of phosphatic fertilisers. (2) Grass tree gum, 

 from which picric acid, used in the manufacture of high explosives, 

 can be manufactured. (3) The production of tannin from Australian 

 woods and barks. (4) The production of rennet in Australia for use in 

 cheese making. (5) Wood distillation and the recovery of by-products 

 now being wasted ; and (6) An industrial census, showing the stage of 

 develo])rnent, relative importance and distribution of our industries and 

 the technical and scientific problems affecting them. 



The Committee has found it important to keep in close touch, not 

 only with persons directly engaged in our primary and secondai-y indus- 

 tries, but also with Government Scientific Departments, the Universities 

 and Technical Schools, and among the matters into which inquiries are 

 being made in conjunction with these departments and institutions, the 

 following may be specially mentioned, viz. : — (1) A soil survey of 

 Australia, of great importance in connexion with the settlement on 

 scientific lines of our vast undeveloped areas. (2) The production of 

 cream of tartar, used for the manufacture of baking powders and self- 

 raising flour. (3) Damage done by insects to grain in store, in con- 

 junction with similar inquiries that are being made in England and 

 Canada. (4) The cotton industry in Australia and the introduction of 

 a mechanical cotton picker. (5) The control and eradication of the 

 prickly pear pest which is spreading at the rate of 1,000.000 acres 

 yearly. (6) The ]>roduction in Australia of casein. (7) Technical 

 Education. (8) The introduction of the metric system of weights and 

 measures and of decimal coinage; and (9) The production of dyes from 

 mangrove bark and from indigenous plants, &c. 



A large number of miscellaneous matters have also received the 

 attention of the Committee. Some of these are in the nature of inquiries 

 from manufacturers, and have already been disposed of, while others 



