CATTLE PROSPECTS IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA 211 



There is plenty of cattle country vacant in the North-west, 

 hut no one is troubling about breeding. Sheep pay better, and 

 the cattle question is left to look after itself. No doubt, as ex- 

 port develops and the whole country advances, the cattle numbers 

 will increase, and increase considerably. 



On the Murchison and the Eastern Goldfields there are some 

 73,349 cattle, over 20,660 of which are held round Kalgoorlie, 

 which is, for the first time in its brief history, able to eat its 

 own roasts for a considerable portion of the year. There is still 

 much unoccupied country in these divisions, but, served as the 

 country is with railways, it is more likely to increase its sheep 

 numbers than its cattle. The country along the Great Western 

 Railway, too, may probably run some cattle, but the chances are 

 that here as elsewhere sheep will be the objective. 



Lastly, we have the agricultural areas of the South-western 

 Division, which ran 120,582 cattle ten years ago, and only counts 

 up 99,358 to-day. The South-west is not a cattle country, and 

 "the most that can be hoped for is the development of dairying 

 in the improved country, and a gradual but slow increase, per- 

 liaps principally of dairy breeds, and to a lesser degree of beef 

 Ijreeds. But that increase is not likely to be sudden nor con- 

 siderable. 



From this sketch it will be seen that Western Australian in- 

 crease will be in the tropics and very largely in proportion to 

 the development of cold storage. Southwards, as the population 

 grows, there is little probability of any noticeable increase in the 

 day of this generation. And even if the present figures were 

 -doubled they would still be inconsiderable. 



