334 BRITISH NORTH BORNEO. 



remarks made by Mr. A. Dent when Sir Walter Medeurst's paper on 

 British North Borneo was read before the Royal Colonial Institute on the 12th 

 May, 1885: — "The progress in North Borneo has not been so rapid as was 

 anticipated when we obtained the charter at the end of 1881, but still we 

 can certainly point to steady progress since the company took possession in 

 July, 1882. I find that the fiscal revenue for 1884 as compared with 1383 

 shows an increase of 60 per cent., land sales a decrease of 39 per cent., leaving 

 a total increase of 28 per cent-, which, considering the slate of 

 trade and universal depression, must, I think be thought n >{, wholiy unsatis- 

 factory. Sir Walter has alluded to several new imports and exports. We 

 hope in 1885 to show an export of gold. Last autumn we sent one of our best 

 officers to explore for gold in the Segama and Kinabatangan rivers, and his 

 report showed gold to exist in alluvial deposits in the 30 or 40 places experi- 

 mented upon. He could not continue his explorations, owing to the wet 

 season having just set in, but has recently gone back, and we hope soon to hear 

 it confirmed that there are workable deposits of gold in the country. That 

 the Governor and officials of North Borneo believe in it is evidenced by their 

 having taken the trouble to publish regulations and proclaim certain districts 

 as gold fields. Tobacco Ave look forward to as likely to prove an important 

 enterprise in the country. This, as the paper says, is advancing but slowly, 

 for, owing to many difficulties which occur in a new country, the ISSi crop 

 did not come up to expectations. Considerable preparations have, however, 

 been made for planting during the coming season. In February last one 

 company had 330 coolies working on their plantation, and another company 100 

 coolies. From all accounts, this tobacco is likely to prove equal to the finest 

 Sumatra. It is used for covering purposes. In su^ar little has been done as 

 yet, but large tracts of country have been taken by Australians, Chinese, and 

 others. There seems to be a fair prospect that the depression in this trade will 

 soon pass away, for prices have recently advanced 30 per cent. There is some 

 reason to believe that the German Government are getting tired of the system 

 of bounties, for I believe it is a fact that the suuar manufacturers and growers 

 of beetroot in Germany owe the Government something like ten millions ster- 

 ling, and the authorities are beginning to wonder whether they will ever & j e 

 their money again. As regards timber, our export for 1884 amounted to 

 $10,000. Part went to Australia and part of China. There is a great variety 

 of timber in Borneo, some of the hardest woods in the world being found there. 

 The Billian, or iron wood, is plentiful, and valuable for railway sleepers, 

 wharves, &c. ; and some other woods are suited for furniture, ship -building, 

 and other purposes. One of the Chinese merchants has 200 men cutting- 

 timber for the China mai ket, and the Australians are cutting tim er freely 

 for the Melbourne market. The report upon the experimental garden at 

 Silam states that Liberian coffee, now rising to its third year, is very fine, 

 and yielding freely. The younger plantations at Sandakan promise well 

 The growth of pepper is all that could be des red. Cocoa, Manila he up, >md 

 gambia are, amongst other articles, easily produced in the territory. < )ne of 

 the main questions remaining for consideration is that of labour. Everywhere 

 the question seems to be how, and where, to get labour. Many restrictions 

 are, we know, put upon the importing of Chinese into America and Australia, 



