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to serve their own interests. As a giv.it deal of capital was needed to 

 carry on the niak ng of wine in a manner that would ensure 

 a high class quality of wine, it was not to be expected that every 

 man who planted a few acres of vines could successfully embark in 

 the business of fermentation, blending, and keeping his wine until it 

 had properly matured ; nor was every vigneron skilful enough to 

 make really good wine even under the most favorable conditions. 

 The result was that Western Australian wine had not, like that of 

 France, a distinctive quality and character appertaining to 

 certain districts, and which would enable foreign buyers to give 

 orders with confidence that they would get what they wanted. So 

 far co-operative wineries have not been established. The price of 

 grapes is so good that there is not at present much incentive to see 

 the plan earnestly achieved. There is a demand for all the grapes that 

 are grown, and the growers are, for the time being, content to let 

 well alone, but Mr. Harper utters a warning that there is clanger 

 ahead. He says Western Australian vignerons are only repeating 

 the policy of inaction, in not looking ahead to provide a certain 

 market for their grapes, that has proved to be mischievous in 

 California, Victoria, and South Australia. In these countries there 

 was a time similar to that which is being enjoyed on thejSwan, when 

 it was only necessary to produce grapes in order to net large profits. 

 But as enlarged and new vineyard areas came into bearing a 

 disastrous competition set in to get the owners of large cellars to 

 take the crop. The capitalists saw their opportunity and took 

 advantage to press rates down as low as 303. per ton for grapes 

 which, when converted into wine, realised a very handsome profit, 

 after allowing a very liberal margin for working expenses and all 

 charges. The growers, in fact, had to come to the position of 

 working for the benefit of those who were enabled to become 

 monopolists, because those w T ho had grapes to sell were without the 

 means of turning them into wine. Those means could be as fairly 

 supplied to vignerons on adequate security as loans from the Land 

 bank are advanced to the farmer ; but the State is not likely to 

 offer money from the public coffers to assist any of the producing 

 industries unless the need for such is pressed upon the attention 

 of the Government. By and by, when the menace to the vineyards 

 which is looming up assumes a more tangible shape, Mr. Harper 

 says the small grape-grow r ers, meaning those who do not make their 

 own wine, may find that the capitalist is too strong for them. That 

 has been the experience of other places ; the wane-makers who have 

 established a reputation have been able to bring so much influence 

 to bear, owing to their vested interests, that the numerical superiority 

 of the vignerons who have desired State aid have been unable to 

 obtain it. 



To illustrate the scope of the scheme formulated by the Bureau, 

 and to show the scope of w r ork that a central winery would have in 

 the Guildford district, His Excellency the Governor, Sir Gerard 



