52 



GENERAL AGRICULTURAL NOTES. 



[June 1896, 



used, while to the farmer owning his own machinery good 

 wages would be possible in harvesting at much lower rates 

 than those given. The tables are, it is maintained, sufficiently 

 accurate, however, to show that, after allowing for the price of 

 seed and for the use of machinery, good wages for himself and 

 teams, there is still left a fair profit to the Queensland grower, 

 at the low price named, upon every bushel of wheat that he 

 raises. To the credit side of the account may be added the 

 feed for stock which the growing wheat often furnishes and the 

 value of the straw, a considerable item. 



Dairy and Bacon Factories in Victoria. 



The Board have recently received from the Government of 

 Victoria a copy of the Statistical Register of that Colony, which 

 contains, with much other information, a statement of the 

 number of butter and cheese factories, as well as of bacon and 

 ham euring establishments, which were in operation in Victoria 

 during the year ended 1st March 1895. There were 155 

 factories of the first-mentioned category, of which 121 were 

 used for butter-making only, 19 for cheese-making only, whilst 

 both butter and cheese were manufactured in the remaining 15 

 establishments. One hundred and forty-two of the factories 

 were driven by steam power, six by gas, one by water, and 

 six by manual labour. The number of persons employed at the 

 factories was 820, of whom only 28 were females. 



The total quantity of butter and cheese made at the factories 

 and on farms during the period in question is given in the 

 following table, which also shows the corresponding quantities 

 made during the three preceding years. 





Total 



Quantities of Butter and Cheese made 



Total for Colony. 



Tear. 



Number 

 of 



Fac- 



At Factories. 



On Farms. 





tories. 



Butter. 



Cheese. 



Butter. 



Cheese. 



Butter. 



Cheese. 







lbs. 



lbs. 



lbs. " 



lbs. 



lbs. 



lbs. 



1892 



74 



5,842,942 



818,282 



10,860,844 



2,492,730 



16,703,786 



3,311,012 



1893 



109 



13,189,766 



916,531 



10,320,079 



3,110,463 



23,509,845 



4,056,994 



1894 



133 



18,054,641 



1,106,418 



10,105,800 



2,642.137 



28,160,441 



3,748,555 



1895 



155 



26,703,309 



2,199,869 



8,876,892 



1,953,262 



85,580,201 



4,153,131 



As regards the bacon and ham curing establishments in 

 Victoria, it appears that the number in operation on the 

 1st March 1895 was 26, as compared with 22 which existed in 

 1892. The weight of bacon and hams cured at the factories 

 during the year 1891-2 amounted to 7,245,496 lbs., whilst the 



