xin WHEAT, MAIZE, COFFEE 125 



thankful to find anything that will grow at all. This 

 product they get in maize. Take the Transvaal. 

 Generally speaking, a maize crop can be grown on new 

 land for four or five years and will yield during the 

 same period an average crop of between four and five 

 bags. There is nothing very great about that, but the 

 crop is certain and diseases are very few. Consequently, 

 the Transvaal Government determined to use every 

 power of organisation and management to ensure the 

 farmer a small but certain profit on his crop at an 

 average price. Accordingly, arrangements were made 

 and contracts entered into whereby the railway freight 

 was reduced toiu. 4^., and the sea freight to 14s. a ton. 

 All other charges, including ordinary insurance, were 

 effected at 4.S. 6d. This in all makes a total charge of 

 2s. Sd. a bag, for which sum also Government under- 

 took to collect payment. Thus all the farmer had, 

 and has, to do was to turn up at the station and hand 

 in his bag of maize, to receive the market price less 

 2s. Sd. 



Now in British East Africa the average crop is 

 more like eight bags than five, and, moreover, in many 

 parts we get two crops in the year. It was therefore 

 felt, and rightly so, that though our freights would 

 always be higher than theirs, yet our farmers could 

 still compete on favourable terms with those in South 

 Africa taken as a whole. Two points, however, were 

 temporarily lost sight of. The first is that we have 

 not the scope of ground available to provide a sufficient 

 surplus stock of maize to induce ship-owners to lower 

 their freights to a reasonable figure. The second and 

 perhaps more obvious consideration is that we can 

 grow a variety of very much more valuable crops. 



The local demand for maize is so great that large 



