526 
was formed by the Government of Queensland and given the necessary 
means for furthering every branch of agricultural development 
possible to the soil and climate. The. land was alienated for next to 
nothing, seeds were imported and distributed to all who would plant 
them. I remember a fully-equipped dairy visiting my district there 
nineteen years ago, and giving instruction, free of charge, to all 
willing to learn. I believe there was not a single private dairy in all 
Queensland then. To-day there are 13,000 and instead of having to 
import butter and cheese, an enormous export trade has been estab- 
lished. Surely it is possible for our authorities to profit by such 
lessons as these. 
Our 2 %°/ export duty on gross output is equal to a .2, A in the £ 
income tax, on an average net profit of 20%. per annum and is 
probably: thoheaviest direct tax on agriculture in the British^ Empire. 
The F.M.S. planter’s position in this respect is indeed a proud one, 
and he has been further elevated by the increased value placed upon 
the land he proposes to plant together with other burdens recently 
laid upon his industry. In spite of the high price of rubber, barely 
10% of the rubber estates in the F.M.S. were in a sufficiently forward 
position to pay dividends last year, and not more than 5% have yet 
given an adequate return on the capital expenditure, considering 
how long the investors have had to wait for it. Therefore, with all 
respect to His Excellency, I would submit that the consideration of 
how we shall use our reserves is not a very urgent question with 
most of us to-day, and its discussion might be deferred, until the 
community in general have something more substantial than good 
prospects to sustain them. 
The perusal of the annual reports for the past year must surely 
show that there is something wrong with the prevailing policy. The 
area of the F.M.S. exceeds 16,000,000 acres and most of this is 
suitable for cultivation or mining operations. Yet the total alienated 
acreage is only 1,300,000 acres. Of this the Resident-General tells us 
that probably, not more than one quarter, or say a little over 2% of 
the whole area, is under cultivation ; while we learn from the Resi- 
dent’s report that the applications for land in Selangor amounted to 
only 30,925 acres as against 79,776 in 1907, while 3,534 acres reverted 
to the State. 
In F.M.S. revenue ( although we are still taxed in excess of local 
requirements) there was a falling off of more than four million 
dollars and the total reduction in the import and export trade 
exceeded $21,000,000. It is true that there was a general depression 
in trade throughout the world in the d'W 1908; and the decline in 
the value of tin was largely respons^ 6 for the shortage ; but surely 
there are sufficient remnants of prosperity left us to make it possible 
to tempt our fellow-countrymen, at any rate, to come here instead 
of going to the Dutch colonies? I think we may say that we have 
demonstrated that the soil and climate conditions of these States are 
as well adapted for the cultivation of rubber and several other 
It 
