348 Agricultural Imports of Cereal Year, [sept., 



increase, and the number of cows and heifers is again the 

 highest on record. 



• ' The total number of sheep again shows an increase over 

 1905, which was the first year since 1899 in which an increase 

 had to be noted. The addition is absolutely and relatively 

 greatest in ewes kept for breeding, the number of which 

 novv stands at over 10,000,000, a total which has not been 

 before recorded since 1901. The decrease in other sheep, one 

 year old and above, reaches nearly 49,000, or slightly under 

 I per cent., but this deficiency is more than made up by 

 the increase of 86,000 in lambs. 



Sheep. 



1906. 



1905. 



Increase or Decrease. 



Ewes kept for Breeding ... 

 Other Sheep (one year and 



above) ... 

 Ditto (under one year) 



Total 



Number. 



10,061,104 



5,098,876 

 10,260,380 



Number. 



9,935,766 



5,i47'5i7 

 10,173.913 



Number. 

 + 125,338 



- 48,641 

 + 86,467 



Per Cent. 



+ 1-3 



- o'9 

 + 0.8 



25,420,360 



25,257,196 



+ 163,164 



+ 0-6 



Swine— a very fluctuating item — show a total decrease 

 of over 100,000, or a little more than 4 per cent. Breeding 

 sows, however, are slightly more numerous than in 1905, the 

 numbers being 336,322 and 335,008 respectively, the deficit 

 being wholly in other pigs, where a loss of nearly 103,000 is 

 recorded, or 5 per cent. 



AGRICULTURAL LMPORTS OF THE CEREAL 



YEAR. 



The close of the period known as the cereal year (September: st 

 to August 3 1st) affords an opportunity for considering the extent 

 to which this country has been dependent on the Colonies and 

 on foreign countries for grain to supplement the harvest of 1905. 



Wheat, the largest of our agricultural imports, after being 

 received in increasing quantities for five consecutive years, ex- 

 perienced a check in the year just ended. It was hardly to be 

 expected that the very great extension in the receipts which 



