not a railway to Jancl akot, although one has been talked of. 



The Harvey agricultural area adjoins that of Coolup on the 

 southern boundary of the latter. The Harvey area was thrown 

 open for selection in January, i Soj, and covers 43,000 acres. The 

 survey takes in 155 blocks and 19,803 acres. More than 10,000 

 acres have been alienated. The area is 40 miles from Hnnbtiry and 76 

 from Perth ; the South-western railway is laid throughout its length. 

 There is, perhaps, no area that would be so rapidly taken up if 

 portions of it were not liable to be inundated by the storm waters 

 from the higher country near the ranges. In spite, however, of this 

 risk, settlement on the Harvey has been proceeding briskly, and 

 happily, without untoward circumstances retarding the prosperity 

 of the selectors, who for the last few years have been favored with 

 very mild winters. Nevertheless, the danger has been the subject 

 of earnest representations to the Government through the medium 

 of the Producers' conferences, which in 1896 passed a resolution to 

 the effect that it was expedient that a drainage scheme should be 

 undertaken, in order to protect settlers from flood in the south- 

 west. A somewhat tardy commencement was made by the Public 

 Works department to accomplish the object aimed at in this 

 manifesto, and the subject again came before the conference in the 

 following year, when the South Murray Fanners' Agricultural Associa- 

 tion sought to hasten the completion of the work. The Public Works 

 department announced that surveys had been made, and that the 

 most urgent precautions against flood would be immediately 

 executed. In the discussion that ensued one delegate suggested 

 that the drainage of the Harvey and Collie agricultural areas were 

 only local issues, and that the conference should confine its attention 

 to national questions, but this view was strongly combated by the 

 Hon. E. McLarty, who, in the course of his address, submitted some 

 important observations as to the broad matters of general concern 

 to the welfare of the colony that were embraced in the topic, and 

 supported his view by citing the following reasons for the position 

 he took up : " I cannot agree with the argument that the motion 

 dealing with the drainage of a large portion of the south-west is 

 purely a local question, affecting one particular district. The object 

 of these motions is to have a large area of fertile and cultivable 

 land thrown open for, and made available to, settlement. Until the 

 drains are cut there will be thousands of acres of Crown lands, 

 otherwise eligible for settlement, but liable to flood in the winter, 

 and, therefore, almost useless. It is the general impression among 

 those who know 7 the land, and in this belief I share, that if the 

 flood waters could be thrown off the land at the Harvey it 

 would be very productive. I have noticed that new settlers 

 produced last year excellent crops on some portions of this 

 land, bat the reason was that w r e had a very mild winter. 

 We did not have in the south-west the usual amount of rainfall, 

 and the land was not swamped. Therefore, some magnificent 



