92 H. G. MKINNEY. 



through the series and end off with the remark, " I told you so." 

 There was, in fact, much point in the question lately put to me 

 regarding the River Murray by a prominent Victorian,—" Do 

 you think we in Victoria are such fools as to postpone our works 

 for perhaps fifty years till the Sydney people find out the value of 

 the Murray ? " There is no vagueness or mincing of matters in 

 that question, and the accompanying map (republished with this 

 paper by the kind permission of the Hon. Alfred Deakin, Minister 

 for Water Supply, Victoria,) will show that the action taken has 

 been as decided and energetic as the question would indicate. 



The explanation of the backward state of affairs in this colony 

 regarding water conservation is very simple. While the indirect 

 results of a national system of water conservation would be enor- 

 mous, and would add greatly to the wealth and prosperity of the 

 -colony, the number of persons directly affected in the first instance 

 would be relatively small. Hence we find that the question is 

 • esthe 



<3olony. But the spread of information and the remarkable pro- 

 gress made in the Northern Districts of Victoria must soon have 

 their effect. Many in Sydney are beginning to see that a drought 

 which occasions losses in the interior of the colony to the extent 

 of millions sterling, must have some effect on their business, and 

 the spread of such ideas cannot fail to lead to action. 

 Statistics relating to Losses. 

 The following figures, illustrating the importance of the subject 

 -dealt with in this paper, speak for themselves -.—Number of sheep 

 m New South Wales on December 31, 1886, 39,169,000 ; number 

 of sheep in New South Wales on December 31, 1887, 46,965,152; 

 number of sheep in New South Wales on December 31, 1888, 

 46,503,469. The year 1887 was a good one for pastoralists, and 

 1888 unfavourable. Inspection of the figures shows that the 

 number of sheep at the end of 1888 was about ten millions less 

 than if the rate of increase of the previous year had been main- 

 tained—in fact, instead of an increase of that amount, we find 

 that there was a decrease of nearly half-a-million. Some idea of 

 the proportion carried off by starvation aiid thirst may be con- 

 veyed by the statement of a writer in one of " 

 who declares from personal knowledge that c 

 sheep were lost in this way last year out of 120,000, and on another 

 station 80,000 out of 150,000. The same writer estimates that 

 the number of lambs shorn this year will be 2,000,000 less than 

 last year, on account of the drought, and that for the same reason 

 the wool throughout the country north and west of the Lachlan 



