tlO THE TROPICAL 
CINCHONA AND QUININE. 
Messrs. C. M. & C. Woodhouse afford a 
good deal of geneially interesting inform- 
ation in their annual review of the above 
markets published in February. They say 
that the bi monthly exporis of bark from 
Java continue to exercise the chief con- 
trolling influence on the quinine market ; 
although the total shipments for 1902 were 
by no means excessive. But when ship- 
ments for a fortnight in August were tele- 
graphed at IJ miilion lb., a panic occurred, 
only abated when news came of short ex- 
ports afterwards. Now the Java planters are 
expected to regulate shipments ; just as India 
and Ceylon tea planters are expected to try 
and control the offerings of their staple in 
the London market— rather a difficult task. 
The Java Cinchona men have resolved " to 
offer during 1903 at every Amsterdam Cin- 
chona Bark Auction, not more than 1-lOth 
of the yearly production of every estate." 
The largest monthly export last year was 
1,577,000 lb. in October, and the smallest 
776,000 in May. A great feature of the 
market was the large orders for quinine 
during the past six months, and Germany 
has been a large exporcer, sending away 
232,200 kilogrammes in 1902 against 195,400 
in 1901. United States, Kussia and Italy 
are the chief customers. The unit value of 
ba<-k, in London varied from l|d. to 2d, 
per lb. Altogether, the estimated production 
of cinchona bark is given, as equivalent to 
14,489,000 ounces of quinine in 1902 ; and 
Java makes up 12,457.000 ounces of this 1, 
leaving only 2 mili.ons for the rest of the 
world, of wlxich again India gave more 
than half. South America, the original 
home of cinchona, gave last year bark 
only equal to 620,000 ounces of quinine ; 
Ceylon 195,000 oz.; Africa 86,000 oz.— Java 
exported 7u0,000 ounces of quinine locally 
manufactured, against 11,757,000 oz. sent away 
in bark. So that the Java quinine manu- 
factory of which we heard so much, does 
not deal with much more than 5 per cent 
of the whole crop of bark. The United 
States is the greatest consumer, importing 
8,400,000 oz. of quinine beside bark for 
local manufacture equal to 2,496,000 oz. 
France takes bark equal to 1,802 GOO oz. 
quinine ; Germany consumes a million oz. 
of quinine ; but exports 6,195,000 oz. exclusive 
of what goes to the United States. Russia and 
Italy each use up over a million oz., and 
Greece and Turkey rather more. The British 
Empire makes up another million ; and 
Netherlands, Austria and other countries 
about li million more. The world's con- 
Bumption is slowly increasing. 
» 
THE FUTURE OF QUEENSLAND: 
A SAD PICTURE. 
Writing from Dornoch Terrace South Bris- 
bane, Queensland, on 16th February, Mr. 
Donald Mackay (so welUknown in Oeylon) 
tells us in the course of a ch&tty letter: — "I 
am working my way back Irom New Zea- 
land to Malaya. I'he disorganised state of trade 
AGEICULTUEIST. [April 1, 1903.. 
owing to the ravages of drought makes it 
more difficult to get along round the north of 
Queensland and through the Eastern Archi- 
pelago for the lines that were formerly re- 
gular haVe become quite irregular for want 
of loading, I don't know what this poor 
country is coming to— what with the visita- 
tions of Providence and the intolerance of 
the labour-ridden Government of the Com- 
monwealth which decreed that even tropical 
Queensland should be the close preserve of the 
white labour which cannot labour to any 
purpose. Even now a Government Agent is 
going about, arranging for the deportation to 
the New Hebrides of the Kanakas, many of 
whom have been here for years, some of 
whom have been here for twenty. The Gov- 
ernment or the labour party, which is one 
and the same thing, think that by bonuses 
of two pounds per ton, sugar can be grown 
by whites. Assuming it can, what can be said 
of a policy that keeps up the price of labour 
by simply taxing the rest of the population ? 
This is only one of the many examples of 
labour class legislation, to the detriment of 
the general body, that has been passed by 
the Parliament of the Commonwealth. Both 
N.S. W. and Queensland have suffered already 
from the Federal protectionist tariff, but this 
state has suffered most and it is for it a cause 
for bitter regret that it went into Federation in 
blind fa/ith, without any guarantees. It was 
quite open to Queensland to have made terms 
as West Australia had, but the wise men of 
the former State had not the foresight of 
those of the latter who did not pin their 
faith on the word of any man, much less oa 
those of the colonial politician on the look- 
out for office. It is stated, and I think with 
a good deal of truth, that the present Premier 
of the Commonwealth— to gain the support of 
the labour party- ate his own words, spoken 
%Yhen bidding for office, and allowed his legisla- 
tion to be controlled and virtually ruled by 
the labour minority in Parliament. Hence it is 
that indirect taxation on necessaries of the 
multitude, which was really little felt, was 
sacrificed and as a consequence resulted in a 
highly protectionist tariff which is now being 
strongly agitated against by the Opposition. 
The labour party, though a small minority, 
hold the fort because of their organisation 
outside which is complete. The other and 
larger interests of agriculture and com- 
merce are not organised and consequently 
are riot able to assert themselves to sub- 
stantial effect in the control of legislation 
and Government of the country. The arrog- 
ance of the labour party and the ruinous 
results of their narrow, selfish policy will as- 
suredly lead to counter-organisation of rival 
interests in Australia as it did in New Zealand, 
where the farming interest is organised and 
ready to strike in when the pinch of ad- 
versity makes labour arrogance intolerable. 
Labour is having its day of power which, in 
its short-sightedness, it is using most arro- 
gantly i the more so the better, for the quicker 
will come the reaction and the more crashing 
the downfall, I cannot discourse any longer 
on the politics of Australia which are none 
of the sweetest, so must say good-bye and 
with best wishes &c. 
