l-RoDli'l'li'X AM) coxsr M I-'lUi.W 1 37 



sluinj) had nut occurred, ihu year 1915 would imi lia\e shown 

 nuich progress as compared with 1913. Hor the purposes of this 

 comparison the luiropcan war may be left out of account. It is 

 true that there were ship])ing chfficulties in the later year, hut 

 these very difficulties reduced our imports of agricultural pro- 

 ducts as well as our exports, while at the same time new exports 

 became possible. My object in presenting these figures is to 

 indicate tiie slow growth of our farming industries in recent 

 years. I also endeavoured to show, in the paper which I read 

 before this Association last year,* that our greatest advancement 

 in agriculture took place when our internal and external markets 

 were enlarged — that is to say, when demand, and particularly 

 internal demand, increased. As soon as demand extended sui)i)ly 

 responded. 



To revert now to the avenues along which constant progress 

 must be attained: Firstly, natural increase of population. The 

 area cultivated is limited by the number of producers and by 

 the means at their disposal ; and the number of producers is 

 limited by the number of consumers and the amount received 

 from the latter for the commodities produced. If the consumers 

 are few, the producers must be few; and if the consumers ])ay 

 low prices the producers will also be few. So long as distribu- 

 tion is undul}- in favour of the consumer, so long will production 

 be impeded ; and it is useless calling for greater production so 

 long as the producer considers that he does not receive a fair 

 return for his lalxmr. Also, if the cost of production be high, 

 the producers will be few. If distances from and to the market 

 are great and transport is dear, the cost of production will be 

 high ; and it is futile to cry out for settlement on the land if 

 it is more profitable not to settle on it ; or against the least gifted 

 taking to farming when the most gifted can obtain better value 

 for his labour elsewhere. We must recognise the need for 

 demand when we talk about supply. We must recognise that 

 this is a land of distances. We must recognise cost of produc- 

 tion and all that this implies— education, roads, railways, irriga- 

 tion, security, and every other act of Government — when we 

 si)eak of increasing production. Production automatically and 

 naturallv increases when the cost thereof decreases or ])rices for 

 the articles produced rise. The cost can be decreased by various 

 Governmental acts, as I have indicated ; and i)rices rise when 

 demand increases. 1lie cost of agricultural products may be 

 cheapened to the consumer by lessening the cost of production 

 and of distribution; but if it is cheapened to the consumer, w^ith- 

 out reducing that cost, then it will be at the expense of the pro- 

 ducer, and the latter, receiving a .smaller profit, will have less 

 to ])roduce with ; and conceivably a point may be reached at 

 which he will cease altogether to produce. 



For some commodities, however, there is a demand beyond 

 our shores, in addition to the demand within our borders.^^ And 



* Rept. S..\. Assn. for Adv. of Sc. : Pretoria G915). I45-I5.=5- 



