Imports of Agricultural Produce. 445 



noted that the aggregate weight of wheat and wheat flour, 

 expressed as wheat, was last year 94,419,000 cwts,, whereas 

 in 1897 it was 88,686,000 cwts. 



Although the total quantity of wheat imported has been 

 exceeded upon previous occasions, 1 898 witnessed the arrival 

 in our harbours of the largest amount of wheat and wheat 

 flour (expressed as wheat) ever received from the United 

 States, the quantity reaching 62,034,700 cwts., or 1,100,000 

 cwts. more than in 1892, the highest hitherto noted. Canada 

 contributed 7,746,000 cwts. of wheat (grain and flour 

 together) this representing the largest amount received from 

 that colony, while the Indian quota exhibited a recovery to 

 a level which has not been exceeded since 1892. 



The imports of barley, which had shown some falling off 

 in 1897, rose last year to 24,457,000 cwts. (the highest total 

 since 1894), an increase of 5 J million cwts., or 29 per 

 cent. The increase was fairly generally distributed : Russia, 

 with a total of 10,267,000, sending nearly three million cwts. 

 more than in 1897, while from Roumania (4,734,760 cwts. in 

 1898) an increase of 1,460,000 cwts. is recorded. Oats, on 

 the other hand, came in somewhat diminished consignments, 

 only 3,344,220 cwts. coming from Russia, as against 5,463,480 

 in 1897 and 10,222,800 in 1896; and the pre-eminenc© 

 attained by the United States in 1897 as a purveyor of this 

 grain was accentuated by a shipment of 8,435,820 cwts., or 

 about 350,000 cwts. more than in the earlier year. The 

 imports of maize, 57,169,292 cwts., have again proved the 

 highest on record, surpassing by nearly 3,400,000 cwts. the 

 receipts of 1897. Maize flour also reached a maximum. It 

 is noticeable that the supply of maize from the United States 

 fell ofl by over two million cwts., attaining only 37,466,100 

 cwts., whereas the supply from Canada nearly doubled, the 

 increase being from 4,235,400 to 7,972,500 cwts. 



All the cereals imported were declared at an average value 

 above that of 1897 ; barley being returned at 5s. 7d., as com- 

 pared with 4s. I id. , oats at 5s. 8d., instead of 5s. ; and maize 

 at 3s. I id., as against 3s. 5d., all per cwt. 



In the following table are given the imports of such of the 

 princijpal remaining commodities of vegetable origin as com- 



