38 REPORT— 1898. 



L. 



So long ago as April 16, 1891, the following statement by a leading 

 Indian economist appeared in the ' Daily Englishman ' of Calcutta: — - 

 ' People do not realise the fact that all the wheat India produces is 

 required for home consumption, and that this fact is not likely to be 

 realised until a serious disaster occurs, and that even now less than 

 9 per cent is exported. It is a self-evident fact that a slight expansion 

 of consumption, or a partial failure of crops of other food grains, will be 

 sufficient to absorb the small proportion now exported. Besides, we have 

 a steady increase of consumption, in consequence of the natural growth 

 of the population, as well as in the gradual impros^ement of the condition 

 of a considerable part of the people in the cities. I believe that, com- 

 paratively speaking, India will in a few years cease to export wheat, and 

 soon thereafter become an importing country.' 



M. 



An average wheat crop on the 1897-8 acreage would be 2,070,000,000 

 bushels. Adding to this 1,270,000,000 bushels, makes a grand total of 

 3,340,000,000 bushels. But the estimate in Appendix D shows that in 

 the year 1931 the bread-eaters will require 3,357,000,000 bushels. Thus 

 there will be in 1931 a deficiency of 17,000,000 bushels, unless the 

 average yield per acre be increased. 



N. 

 Sir Andi'ew Noble informs me that a first-class battleship would carry 

 about sixty-three tons of cordite, and we may suppose that in a general 

 action forty tons of this would be expended. Now at Trafalgar, Nelson 

 had twenty-seven line- of -battle ships, and the allied forces thirty-three. 

 If we suppose a similar number of modern battleships and first-class 

 cruisers to be engaged, and each to expend forty tons of cordite, the total 

 volume of nitrogen set free would be 302,400 cubic metres, or about 380 

 tons, equivalent to 2,300 tons of nitrate of soda. 



