544 



Number of Visitors at Kew. 



sheep growers of the Colony, and the Committee recognise that 

 the competition of other countries is inevitable. Notwithstand- 

 ing the increased production of her rivals, New Zealand has 

 more than held her own, both in price and quantity, and the 

 Committee were not prepared to support the proposals referred 

 to without some better evidence that they were likely to do 

 more good than harm. 



Visitors at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, 

 in 1903. 



The total number of visitors to the Royal Botanic Gardens, 

 Kew, in 1903 was 1,352,548 — a figure which, notwithstanding 

 the unfavourable weather, closely approximates to the average 

 for the ten preceding years, viz., 1,352,425. The exceptional 

 character of the weather is reflected in the great fluctuations in 

 the monthly attendance and in the fact that the smallest day's 

 attendance occurred on June 19th, a circumstance probably 

 without parallel in the history of the Gardens. Of the total 

 number of visitors, 783,822 came on week-days, and 568,726 on 

 Sundays. The largest day's attendance was 1 on Whit-Monday, 

 when 71^6 persons visited the Gardens ; while the largest 

 Sunday attendance was 32,128, on May 24th. The number of 

 visitors in each month of the year was as follows : — 



Month. 



_ Attendance. 



Month, 



Attendance. 



January ... 



. 18,638 



July.: 



164,319 



February 



37,903 



August ... , ... 



265,148 



March. 



75,024 



September 



145,586 



April ... ... 



168,884 



! October . .. , , .., 



, , ■ 42,838 . ; v 



May 



152,322 



November 



45,047 



June 



219,823 



December, ... 



I7,Ol6 



Importation of Cattle into the Transvaal. 

 The Board have received from the Colonial Office a copy of 

 a return, dated July 23rd last, showing the number of cattle 

 introduced by the Government of the Transvaal into that 

 Colony. The work of introducing the stock has been under- 



