BY C. ROLLESTON, ESQ. 237 



I take this means of giving publicity to the subject, since 

 owing to the lateness of the period when the returns for 1863 

 were received, no time was afforded me for analysing them prior 

 to their publication, and the usual official channel is now closed to 

 me. 



If any one will take the trouble to refer to the " Statistical 

 Register" for 1858, he will find a set of tables similar to 

 those now before you, extending over the period from 1854 to 

 1858, both inclusive. He will find the following results plainly 

 brought out, and stated at pages 12, 13, and 14 of the pre- 

 fatory report, viz., that the average annual value of our 

 imports of wheat and flour for the five years was no less than 

 368,473 ; that was at the annual rate of 1 5s. 3d. per head 

 of the population. 



The total sum sent out of the colony during this period for 

 wheat and flour, was 1,842,365 ; this was for the five years, 

 1854 to 1858. Well, what did we produce during this period? 

 The statistics of agriculture show us that on the average of the 

 five years, our wheat crops yielded 1,346,052 bushels per annum 

 (an average of rather more than 15 bushels per acre.) The price 

 of wheat during these five years ranged from 7s. 4d. up to 16s. 5d. 

 per bushel, the average being lls. 4d. ; this gave an annual value 

 to our wheat crop of 762,312, or at the rate of 2 12s. 3d. per 

 head of the population. 



The annual value of our imports and home produce together, 

 was 1,120,785, or at the rate of 3 17s. 6d. per head of the 

 population ; but from this we must deduct an export at the rate 

 of 86,356, or 6s. 4d. per head annually, which leaves 3 lls. 2d. 

 as the annual average value of the consumption of breadstuffs per 

 head of the population. Including wheat for seed, the net 

 quantity of wheat and flour left for consumption, after deducting 

 exports, averaged 44,361 tons annually, that is at the rate of 14'9 

 tons to every 100 of the population, equal to very nearly 300 Ibs. 

 to every man, woman, and child in the colony. 



I have referred back to these results of a previous inves- 

 tigation, in order to institute a comparison with the figures I 

 have now to treat of, which have reference to the later quin- 

 quennial period, 1859 to 1863. 



Q 



