4 TASMANIAN SCHOOL OF 



Before leaving these interesting statistics, the compilation 

 of which reflects the greatest honour on their author, I 

 would also call your attention to that most important part 

 of agricultural industry, dairy produce. It appears that 

 you are exporting annually butter and cheese to the value 

 of about =£2000, and importing the same produce at a cost 

 of about £35,000. This fact seems strange, considering that 

 other countries, not much larger than Tasmania, are able to 

 supply their own wants besides making the exportation of 

 these products one of the most prosperous and remunerative 

 of their industries. 



I wish to impress upon you that the foregoing statements 

 are not mere " idle fancies of the heated brain," but solid 

 facts, corroborated by statistical figures, which, if you doubt 

 their correctness, you can easily examine and verify for your- 

 selves. Taking for granted, then, that these statements and 

 figures are correct, what conclusions can we reasonably draw 

 from them? It appears to me that we can reasonably con- 

 clude that — 1st. The agricultural industry of Tasmania, 

 particularly as regards the production and exportation of 

 fruit, is at present not realising the advantages and profits 

 which the resources of the country, if judiciously and pro- 

 perly exploited, would legitimately warrant the producers 

 and exporters to expect; 2nd. The timber industry, con- 

 sidering the large area of forest lands and the quality of the 

 wood growing there, is in a still more unsatisfactory condition 

 as regards conservation, replanting, and exportation, while 

 one-Tialf of the value of exported home products is absorbed 

 in payment of imported timber, which could and ought to 

 be grown in Tasmania at one-third the cost ; 3rd. The minor 

 products of the farm, such as dairy produce, butter, cheese, 

 eggs, poultry, honey, &c., may, as far as exportation is con- 

 cerned, be treated as quite negligable quantities ; 4th. The 

 most strenuous efforts should be made, without delay, to 

 determine the cause of this state of affairs, and remedies 

 found to ameliorate the present condition and ensure the 

 future development and prosperity of the two great indus- 

 tries of forestry and agriculture in Tasmania. 



The causes which are generally put forward as reasons 

 why your fruit trade is not giving a remunerative return for 

 the labour, time, and money expended on it, are numerous. 

 XJnpropitious seasons and weather will, of course, have an 

 influence on this as well as on other agricultural crops in 

 every country in the world, but in such a climate as that 

 of Tasmania it is not likely that great material injury will 

 be caused by them, or only in rare and exceptional instances. 



