Vol. VIII. No. 85. 
IMPERIAL INSTITUTE JOURNAL. 
[January, 190c.] 
1 1 
an area of 3,000,000 acres sown. The yield of wheat amounts to 50,500,000 
bushels, being an average of 25 bushels per acre. This is a record yield 
for the province. The wheat crop in the North-Western territories exceeds 
15,000,000 bushels. 
India. — The first general report on the rice crop of Bengal, Madras, 
and Lower Burma, issued by the Statistical Department of the Government 
of India, makes the total area sown with autumn and winter rice 46,545,900 
acres, or 236,300 acres more than was harvested in 1900, but 33,600 acres less 
than that of the crop of 1899. In Bengal, where about four-fifths of the crop 
is grown, a yield close to the average is anticipated for autumn and winter 
rice alike. In Burma some damage has been done by floods, but prospects 
on the whole are favourable, while in Madras, if the rest of the season 
proves suitable to the maturing of the crop, an average yield may be ex- 
pected. Reports from the cotton-growing districts of India, though not 
unfavourable, are not so good as for the same period last year. In the 
Punjab the area sown is now estimated at 1,074,100 acres, or about 12 per 
cent, below the exceptionally large area of last year. In the North-Western 
Provinces 'and Oudh the area sown is estimated at about 5 per cent, below 
the normal. In the Central Provinces 1,007,857 acres have been sown, an 
area considerably above the average. The crop is generally backward, but 
the out-turn is expected to be only a little short of the normal. The area 
under cotton in Berar is reported to be 2,628,000 acres, which is 6 per 
cent, in excess of last year’s estimate, and 17 per cent, above the average 
of the last five years. In Bombay there are 1,101,500 acres under the 
early crop in the Deccan, this being 4 per cent, below the average. The 
areas in the other provinces are reported as follows : — Sind, 87,000 acres, 
or 7 per cent, below the average ; Madras, 464,500 acres, or quite 25 per 
cent, below the average; and Burma, 108,712 acres. 
Foreign Countries. — A report issued by the Ministry of Agriculture 
of Argentina estimates the area of the wheat crop at 3,296,066 hectares, 
or 8,141,283 acres, as compared with 8,347,980 acres for last year, showing 
a decrease of 206,697 acres. These figures represent the area sown, on much 
of which, this season, the crop has been destroyed. Probably the total 
is an outside estimate, as, according to the Standard , the Provincial Agri- 
cultural Department of Buenos Ayres, in a report issued to counteract 
pessimist statements, puts the area in that province at 61,105 acres less than 
is given in the account published by the Central Ministry of Agriculture. 
In examining the returns of agricultural exports from the Argentine Republic 
in the first nine months of 1901, and comparing them with the figures for 
the corresponding periods of the two preceding years, it is seen that, over 
the three periods, live cattle and live sheep have been exported from the River 
Plate in continually decreasing quantities, while the exports of frozen mutton, 
frozen beef, and butter have undergone continuous expansion. Comparing 
the first three quarters of 1901 with the corresponding period of 1900, 
we find increases of 2,180 tons of frozen mutton, 16,336 tons of frozen 
beef, 5,554 tons of jerked beef, 94,889 tons of wool, 416,671 tons of maize, 
130,679 tons of linseed, 183,033 lb. of butter, and 1,635 lb. of cheese. 
Coincident with these we get decreases of 16,653 head of cattle, 171,862 
sheep, 904,855 tons of wheat, and 17,920 tons of hay. The marked decrease 
in the exportation of live animals dates back to the early half of 1900, 
when the British ports were closed on account of the appearance of foot-and- 
mouth disease in Argentina. However, whilst the exports of sheep have 
dwindled to one-twentieth of their dimensions two years ago, those of cattle 
have not declined even to one-third. There is a revival in the trade in jerked 
beef (tasajo ) , an article which is sent to neighbouring South American 
countries. The wool shipments from. Argentina are irregular, the pre- 
sent export being more than twice the quantity in 1900. Exports of 
butter continue to expand slowly but continuously, but those of cheese are 
at present insignificant. As regards grain supply, Argentina is erratic ; the 
quantity of wheat shipped last year was less than half as much as in the 
previous year, whilst nearly double the quantity of maize was exported. 
Most of the exports of hay — lucerne, or alfalfa — come to this country, and the 
quantity does not vary much from year to year. 
— <♦> 
LABOUR RETROSPECT. 
United Kingdom. — During the past year a backward movement has 
been apparent in many important branches of industry. The retrogression 
has taken place slowly, but nevertheless steadily, and in the closing month of 
the year was noticeable in the shipbuilding industry, in iron and steel manu- 
facturing, and in the engineering and metal trades generally, in all of which 
branches an unusual number of men were out of work. Employment in coal- 
mining was not so good, but wages in South Wales, although showing a fall 
of 7^ per cent, on twelve months ago, are still more than 60 per cent, above 
the standard. In the engineering trades, relations between employers and 
employed remain on an amicable basis, as it has been arranged that the 
working agreement arrived at after the great strike should, with a few modifi- 
cations, continue in force. Some of the Scottish steel companies have 
announced their intention of extending holidays to one month, in consequence 
of the slackness of trade. The cotton industry is in a better position than it 
was at the beginning of last year. Information for November respecting 
factories employing about 78,000 women and girls shows that 94 per cent, of 
those in spinning mills, and 71 per cent, of those in weaving factories were 
working in factories giving full employment throughout the month, to be 
compared with 84 and 71 per cent, respectively in October. 
Sir Edward Fry’s award in the Grimsby fishing dispute Iras been issued. 
It will be remembered that for the chief engineer the men demanded 38s. per 
week and poundage at 4d. in the pound of net profit. The owners offered 
34s. and a poundage of 3d., food being assumed in all cases. Sir Edward 
Fry awards 34s. with poundage at 3|d. For the second engineer the demand 
was 30s. with 3d. poundage, the offer was 27s. with 2d. poundage, and the 
award is 27s. with 2M. poundage. For the third hand the demand was 23s. 
with 2d. poundage, the offer was 20s. with 2d. poundage, and the award is 
20s. with poundage at 2^d. There is no doubt that the method of payment 
favoured by the arbitrator is best calculated to make the men do their work 
efficiently. One strong point which the share fishermen (skippers and mates) 
made was with regard to signing on, as they objected to this taking place at 
the Federation offices. Under the award, all men must sign on at the Board 
of Trade office for the protection of the masters, as they must sign off at the 
same office for protection against the masters. Sir Edward Fry goes 
very carefully into the numerous duties of the hands employed, and his ruling 
on tire various points appears to have given general satisfaction. 
Colonies. — In Australia, two measures of importance to labour have 
just become law. The Alien Immigration Restriction Bill, some of the 
clauses of which have provoked much discussion, has passed the Common- 
wealth Parliament. The other, which deals with industrial arbitration, has 
been passed by the New South Wales Legislature. The latter is considered 
to be the most resolute and consistent attempt yet made to deal with disputes 
between capital and labour, because it not only compels a reference of all 
such disputes to a competent court with power to enforce its orders and 
awards, but it makes a strike or a lock-out before such reference or during 
its pendency a misdemeanour punishable by fine or imprisonment. Every 
industrial dispute — a phrase which is defined in terms which include every 
possible matter which can arise between an employer and his workmen — can 
be referred to the Court either by the industrial union interested or by the 
registrar. Orders of the Court may be enforced, as in New Zealand, by 
injunction or by fines and penalties levied on the corporate funds of the 
union and on individual members, but they are also enforceable by a totally 
new method — namely, the declaration of a common rule. This gives the 
Court power to declare that any practice, usage, condition of employment, or 
industrial dealings, shall, with such limitations and exceptions as the Court 
may declare, become a common rule for all persons employed in the industry 
which is under review. This authority will be a most powerful instrument 
to compel obedience to the decree of the Court, and upon its efficacy will 
probably depend the success or failure of the whole measure. The Court 
has also power to declare a standard wage. The lasting effect of the drought 
in Queensland is shown in the latest report of the Labour Bureau. It 
attributes the increase in the volume of unemployed labour to the effects 
which the prolonged drought had upon the pastoral and kindred industries. 
While the drought lasted, however, many hundreds of men found employment 
travelling stock, or providing emergency feed, etc. Nearly all these men 
were thrown out of work by the break-up of the drought. In order to cope 
with this difficulty the Government decided to have certain authorised railway 
lines constructed by day labour instead of contract. In July, 1901, 1,100 
men were being employed, either at day wages or piece-work, upon certain 
selected lines. The Queensland Government has issued a formal appeal 
against the Pacific Islands Labourers Bill, on the following grounds : — That 
the provisions of the bill are in direct conflict with the principle laid down 
by Mr. Chamberlain, that legislation imposing disqualifications on account of 
race and colour is contrary to the general conceptions guiding British rule 
throughout the Empire ; that the Bill provides for the forcible expulsion of 
many persons whose original coming to Queensland was lawful, and who have 
for many years enjoyed the protection of British laws; and that the provisions 
of the Bill will inflict a grievous wrong on the State of Queensland as 
distinguished from the rest of the Commonwealth. 
Mr. Cecil Rhodes has made public some valuable opinions concerning 
land settlement in South Africa — a question upon which he is well qualified 
to speak. He favours the adoption of some scheme by which a portion 
of the Yeomanry could be retained in the country, and suggests that offers 
should be made to the present troops of a yearly capitation grant of, say, 
jQ 2 5 per man, and, perhaps, a horse allowance of ^12 per year, to those 
who would remain in the country and serve when called upon for its defence. 
They should receive land in one of the irrigation colonies, the extent of 
an allotment to be in accordance with its productive capacity, such allot- 
ment to be sufficient to maintain a family in comfort, with communal grazing 
over the balance of the land owned by the settlement. Mr. Rhodes, in 
discussing the details, points out that the scheme is not a vast one, as, 
’ taking the maximum at 4,000 men, the 2,000 allotted to the Transvaal 
would require only sufficient irrigated land as would support each family 
in comfort, the balance being merely communal grazing. In the Free State 
practically the whole strip along the Basutoland boundary, termed the 
“ Conquered Territory,” is capable of being put under the plough. In the 
meantime, it is cheering to hear that more mines on the Rand are getting 
to work, the Commander-in-Chief having sanctioned the dropping of 100 
stamps weekly up to 15th January. It is hoped that by the end of February 
one-fourth of the mines will be re-started. A revision of the regulations 
governing native labour has been under consideration for some months, 
and the new enactments have now been drawn up. Between a desire to 
support the gold industry and, at the same time, to protect the native 
labourer, these regulations appear to strike a happy mean. It is provided 
that all labour agents and compound overseers shall first obtain a licence, 
so that when the native enters into a contract of service, he will be safe- 
guarded against coercion and fraud. A feature of the new regulations is 
